Got a Murky Pond? Part II

Last week, we determined your pond has suspended clay particles that prevent it from maintaining normal clarity.  A popular method to remove the particles is applying gypsum.  The first step is calculating how many pounds.

Collect four; one-gallon glass jars of your pond water and one jar of clear water. Leave one pond water jar as a control. Mix two level tablespoons of gypsum into the clear water jar.  Stir into a slurry.  Then, using your slurry, add the mix into the three remaining samples, one tablespoon at a time.

Each tablespoon represents 80 pounds of gypsum per acre-foot of water.  Put one tablespoon into the first sample, two into the second, and three into the third sample.  Wait at least 12 hours.  Evaluate the differences between sample jars.  If there is no change, add more gypsum until one of the jars clears.

This may not be a permanent fix, but gypsum is among the most common techniques to improve clarity.