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Q: I hear that Total Alkalinity is important to KoiZyme. Is this true?
A: Yes, very much so. But remember Total Alkalinity is VERY IMPORTANT to all the benificial bacteria in our ponds. Total Alkalinity is the "backbone" for our pond to function. Total Alkalinity is the measurement of calcium carbonate in the water. Without a reasonable Total Alkalinity count, none of the benificial bacteria will function properly. ALL biological products, such as KoiZyme or Micro-Lift, require T.A. to do their jobs. Also your nitrifying bacteria in your biofilter require T.A. to oxidize ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate.
Did you know that for every gram of ammonia that is processed in your biofilter, 2.5 grams of calcium carbonate is consumed by the biofilter. The minimum T.A. count for a pond is 80. Below 80, bacteria become sluggish and do not perform properly. A count of 100 or 120 is really needed for the biofilter or probiotics to function properly.
It is VERY IMPORTANT to know your Total Alkalinity count. See your dealer to get a Total Alkalinity test kit.
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Q: I've been told not to use Amquel or Prime when using KC Nitrifier, why?
A: There has been alot of discussions about this on the various message boards on the Internet. Actually you can use Amquel and Prime when using KC Nitrifier with some explanation needed. First of all Amquel and Prime are wonderful products that do a great job at reducing the toxic ammonia. Toxic ammonia is NH3 and non-toxic ammonia is NH4. KC Nitrifier can consume NH4. Keenton Industries has stated that using these additives can reduce the CFU count (Colony Forming Unit- thats how we count bacteria ) of KC Nitrifier. But because the CFU count of KC Nitrifier is 10 billion per gram some reduction is acceptable. If you need to use Amquel due to dangerous ammonia levels, use it. It is worth a minor reduction in KC Nitrifier CFU count to reduce the toxic level of ammonia in the pond. The intent of Keeton Industries was to say if you can aviod using additives, do. If you NEED to use them, then use them, they will not keep KC Nitrifier from starting your filter. We simply like to see as high as a CFU count as possible when trying to start a filter.
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Q: Can I use my U.V. Light when treating with KoiZyme?
A: You should turn off your U.V. Light when treating with KoiZyme for the first five initial treatments only. It is OK to turn the U.V. Light back on for the rest of the season once you get into the "Maintenance" treatment of 1/2 the label dosage.
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Q: How long do I treat with KoiZyme?
A: You start treating with KoiZyme in the Springtime once the water temp reaches 50 to 52 degrees. If you had treated with KoiZyme the previous year you would still "start over" and do the five initial treatments at full dosage rate, then go into the "Maintenance" program. You should continue the "Maintenance" program the entire season until the water temp drops back into the low 50 degree area.
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Q: I have heard that water temperature affects the dosage rate. Is that true?
A: Yes. Water temp does have an affect on the dosage rate. This is because the KoiZyme bacteria is not as active (or hungry) at the lower water temps. Here is the dosage rates for the various water temps:
50 to 62 degrees -- Double the label dosage of 20ml (4tsp) to 40ml (8 tsp).
63 to 68 degrees -- 1.5 X the label dosage of 20ml (4tsp) to 30ml (6 tsp).
69 and above -- normal label dosage
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Q: Can I use salt when treating with KoiZyme ?
A: Yes. KoiZyme works equally well in fresh or salt water.
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Q: Can I use KoiZyme while treating with other pond products?
A: KoiZyme can be used while treating your pond with most other products. Other "probiotics" such as Micro-Lift are OK to use at the same time. This is because no other "probiotic" (bacterial based product) consumes the same "nutrients" as KoiZyme, therefore they do not compete with each other.
If you are going to treat your pond with a chemical product such as a parasite product, wait until you have completed the first 5 initial treatment of KoiZyme. Most chemical based products will kill the KoiZyme bacteria, but once you are into the "maintenance program" of Koizyme, thats OK. This is due to the fact that KoiZyme only lives in your pond for 3 to 4 days (it has gone through it's complete life cycle at that point). And in the "maintenance program" you are simply keeping the bad "nutrient" level down so that Aeromonas does not return.
If you kill the KoiZyme bacteria one week during the "maintenance program" the bad "nutrients" will not build back up that quickly. Simply continue on with the "maintenance program" after treating with your chemical product.
Some other products that should not be used during the "initial dosage" treatment of KoiZyme are Amquel, and liquid antibiotics.
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Q: I currently have a Aeromonas problem, should I increase the KoiZyme dosage and is that safe to do?
A: We strongly recommend that you double the dosage rate if you have a existing Aeromonas problem. By doubling the dosage rate, you will speed up the rate that the KoiZyme will consume the bad "nutrients" from the pond water, thus starving out the Aeromonas sooner.
It is almost impossible to overdose with KoiZyme. I have dosed my hospital tank, with 9 Koi in it, at the rate of 200ml (over 6 oz.)/1,000 gallons for a period of three weeks with no affect on the fish or the biofilter. Also, by increasing the dosage rate during an existing Aeromonas problem, KoiZyme bacteria will displace the Aeromonas bacteria off the ulcer or infected area of the fish.
You will see the infected area start to "white over" soon after treatment is started. BUT, let me say this, if the ulcer is in an advanced state (into the "meat" of the fish), you should treat that fish with antibiotics because most likely that Aeromonas bacteria has gotten into it's bloodstream.
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Q: Does the label dosage of 20ml (4tsp) work for all ponds?
A: No, not all ponds. We have found that by far most ponds respond very well to the label dosage of 20ml (4tsp)/1,000 gallons. Every pond has its own "biological personality" and therefore the bad "nutrient" level in that pond can vary.
We have found that about 85% to 90% of ponds tested responded well to the label dosage rate. If the pond is heavily stocked, or poorly physically filtered (the handling of the fish waste), then the bad "nutrient" level (nutrients given off the fish waste) will be higher in that pond and therefore more Koizyme will be required to lower those bad "nutrient" levels.
The worst pond we have tested had an Aeromonas count of 500,000 CFU (Colony Forming Unit). This is an extremely high count and indicates that there was excessive amounts of bad "nutrients" in that pond, allowing the Aeromonas count to get to 500,000 CFU. That pond, when treated at the rate of 60ml/1,000 gallons (triple the label dosage), responded well, dropping the Aeromonas count to 18,000 CFU within 3 weeks. That pond DID NOT respond to the label dosage of 20ml/1,000 gallons.
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Q: Does KoiZyme have any affect on my biofilter?
A: No, not at all. The KoiZyme bacteria's do not consume ammonia or nitrites, therefore they do not compete with your filter.
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