Pond World- The Blog

Tea colored water is a common occurence for pond owners and is very annoying, but many folks do not know what causes it.  Tea colored water is caused by tannins.  Tannins come from decaying leaves, twigs, mulch, bark and other similar sources.  As these materials break down, the chemical in their cells that make up their color are released into the water.  They are generally not too harmful other than the aesthetic distraction, but there are ways to get it rid of it and help keep it away.  First of all you need to keep your pond cleaned out, which could mean vacuuming it out, using a net to scoop out debris from the bottom and even using pond bacteria to help quickly break down waste.  If you actually get the tea colored water, it can easily be cleared by using activated carbon.  Activated carbon will adosrb (not absorb) tannins and other toxins in water to help clean it.  All you need to do is place the carbon is a mesh bag and add to your filter or under the water fall and in a day or two the tannins should be cleared.