MuckSuckers Blog
Articles to help you solve pond nightmares and make your pond happy!The Story Of Old Moe, The Biggest Catfish In Ohio
The Story of Old Moe as told by Ron Becker “There I was” That’s how all good stories should be started. This story starts out approximately 20 years ago when we built our family pond. We did everything in the construction of our pond to make it the best possible pond...
Pond cleaning at Chase Bank
MuckSuckers was tasked with cleaning sediment from the Chase Bank Coporate Office building pond in Columbus Ohio. This 1/3 acre pond was surrounded on three sides by office buildings and the fourth side by beautiful landscaping. Employees of Chase enjoy this courtyard...
Lake Erie Boat Dock Cleaning
MuckSuckers kicked off the Dive Season at Point Retreat in Sandusky, Ohio in April. We pumped out 2-3 feet of sediment from around boat docks. The water temperature was 47 degrees!
The best (and environmentally friendly) way to dredge a pond
The conventional way of dredging a pond is a very messy task. This usually involves first draining the pond, then allowing time for the sediment to dry. All wildlife is either killed off or relocated during this aspect of the operation. Heavy equipment is then used to...
How to dredge – but not destroy – a pond
Dredging a pond is a damaging process. All water and all wildlife must be removed before the heavy equipment is brought in - and heavy equipment means felled trees and tattered shorelines. Essentially, dredging is like saying goodbye to (or at best relocating) your...
Pond stratification, or how a sick pond can become healthy
Without proper aeration, pond water can become stratified, creating a "sick", unhealthy pond. Think of a pond in layers. Warm water is less dense, therefore it will sit on top of colder, denser, deeper water. This stratification of water into layers is more common and...
What are retention ponds and detention ponds?
Retention ponds are basins constructed for holding water. Typically this is water that is runoff from higher elevation. Often they are built near areas of development such as larger buildings or parking lots. You've probably seen retention ponds without knowing what...
Why our pond cleaning process is environmentally friendly
There's a lot that goes into cleaning a pond. Traditionally, and still today, most companies use dredging to clean ponds. Dredging is the act of removing sediment and muck (decaying leaves, algae and biomass) from the bottom of a body of water. The muck is harmful...
Geotextile containers: how we use them to help clean your pond
Geotextile containers are what we use when vacuuming the sediment from your pond. The muck from the bottom of the pond is sucked up and discharged into them. They're also sometimes called de-watering bags, geotextile tubes or silt containers. The geotextile fabric...
What is filamentous algae and why is it dangerous to my pond?
Filamentous algae sounds nasty and looks nasty too. Filamentous algae is the type of moss you see on some ponds that has long, intertwined threads or filaments. The filaments can grow together to form a mat that seems like an icky, green wet wool or a mat of human...
How to get rid of moss in farm ponds
Filamentous algae, commonly called “moss", or "pond moss", is prevalent in many organically rich pond environments. This moss covers the surface of the water and is aesthetically displeasing. Chemicals can kill algae, but the breakdown of the dead plants just adds...
Can I use bacteria to clean up my pond?
Beneficial bacteria is important in any pond environment. Adding additional bacteria to the ecosystem will have some positive effects. However, it many cases, ponds have a tremendous load of organics located in the “bowl” of the pond. This area tends to be very low...
How to remove cooling pond algae
Filamentous algae, commonly called “Moss”, is prevalent in many organically rich pond environments including cooling ponds. This moss covers the surface of the pond and can eventually clog water pumps, pump house grates and screens and is aesthetically displeasing....
How to remove out of control algae in golf course ponds
Algae can quickly grow out of control in golf course ponds. If you manage such a pond, you might tear your hair out as year after year you keep seeing algae come back. And golf course ponds can be more difficult than other ponds. This is mainly because fertilizer used...