10 Steps to Successful Koi Keeping... Sign Up Now

Over the next 10 weeks you can receive the complete book "10 Steps to Successful Koi Keeping" by Ben Helm

Ben is a acknowledged expert on koi keeping and breeding especially with respect to the UK situations.

If you would like to receive this series of 10 instalments please complete the form below..

  • Topics Covered...

  • About The Author …. Ben Helm
  • Creating the perfect pond environment.
  • A stable environment.
  • Differences between the natural and artificial environments and their likely consequences to koi success.
  • Providing Koi with the conditions that they require
  • Pond vs Filtered Pond - A Practical Illustration
  • Regular testing. If you can measure it, you can manage it.
  • What achievable targets has a natural pond set us and how do we best achieve those targets in a filtered pond?
  • Biological water parameters.
  • Chemical water parameters
  • Physical parameters.
  • Koi Husbandry.
  • Normal behaviour.
  • Putting koi behaviour into context.
  • Seasonal inactivity.
  • Quarantine.
  • Fighting or spawning?
  • Shyness.
  • Husbandry - Not so hands-on.
  • Maintaining health and preventing disease.
  • Maintaining healthy koi.
  • Maintaining the health: disease balance.
  • Rate of recovery.
  • Preventing disease.
  • Where does 'disease' come from?
  • Quarantine or acclimatisation?
  • Methods for Maintaining Health:
  • Methods for Preventing Disease
  • Disease - Diagnosing and Treating
  • Treating and Healing: A Team Effort.
  • Medications: Toxic but Effective
  • Know your pond volume.
  • Treatment on an individual basis.
  • Four types of pathogen.
  • Viruses
  • Bacteria
  • Fungus.
  • Parasites
  • Nature's Balancing Act
  • Identifying microscopic pathogens using a microscope.
  • Do's and Don'ts when diagnosing and treating disease.
  • Food and feeding.
  • Food - The pond's software.
  • Koi food. How does koi food work as our ponds 'software' and what results can we expect to achieve when using it?
  • Energy
  • Growth:
  • Health
  • Colour
  • Water quality
  • Feeding.
  • Seasonal feeding.
  • The 5 Nutrient Groups - What they do for our koi
  • Protein.
  • Carbohydrate.
  • Oils.
  • Vitamins and Minerals.
  • Filtration.
  • Koi pond filtration - what is it?
  • The tasks that a filter must carry out.
  • Mechanical filtration serves two purposes in a koi pond.
  • Aesthetics
  • Filter function
  • UVc’s … Ultra Violet Clarifiers
  • Why are there so many different types of filter?
  • Methods of mechanical filtration.
  • Settlement and vortex
  • Entrapment
  • Biological filtration.
  • Pump fed or gravity fed?
  • Gravity fed.
  • Pump fed.
  • Golden rules.
  • Avoiding and confronting common problems.
  • 1. Problems with your pond and filter system.
  • Know your pond's vital statistics.
  • Auto top-up
  • Pump Standby
  • Problems with water quality.
  • Better quality water at source
  • Saltmeter / Refractometer.
  • Surface foams and frothing water
  • Problems with your koi.
  • Avoiding unnecessary treatments - get to know your koi better.
  • Keep a log or koi diary.
  • Understanding the Koi's Calendar.
  • What time of year is it?
  • Water temperature
  • Water Temperature and 'Degree Days'.
  • Daylength
  • Photoperiod and Growth
  • The Koi's seasonal calendar.
  • Spring
  • Summer
  • Autumn
  • Winter
  • The undesirable effects that heating a koi pond can have on the koi's seasonal calendar.
  • Temperature / Photoperiod mismatches
  • Growth rates.
  • Breeding Koi.
  • Just got to breed!
  • When will my koi spawn?
  • How the professionals can do it.
  • Koi Pond Spawnings
  • Limitations of a flock spawn.
  • You've made it!