Frequently Asked Questions

How deep, wide and old is the pond?
What kind of pump, liner and filter are used?
What happens to the fish in the winter?
The fish aren't moving much. What's up?
Is that algae on the rocks?
Part of the image is blurry or washed out. Why?

What kind of camera and software are used?
I'm not getting the automatic image updates. Why?
Why would anyone put a Webcam on a pond?

How deep, wide and old is the pond?
The pond is 2 foot deep in the center, the rest of the pond is about 1 foot deep. It is about 8 foot wide and 11 foot long including the separate pool at the base of the waterfall. It was built in October 2001. Fish were added in April 2002. Back to top

What kind of pump, liner and filter are used?
We used an Aquascape kit to build the pond, including their 3000 gallon per hour pump, EPDM rubber liner and Biofilter-waterfall setup. Back to top

What happens to the fish in the winter?
In our climate the 2 foot pond depth protects the fish from freezing. The pump is left on all winter and continues to circulate the water even though the surface may be iced over. This filters the water and provides oxygen. The biggest threat to the fish are predators such as herons and raccoons. Back to top

The fish aren't moving much. What's up?
Some of the fish are slow to get going in the morning and take breaks during the day. I've been talking to them about that. They are most active in the evening or when the sun is not shining directly on them. Sometimes they get spooked by an animal at the pond edge or security warnings in the media and they hide in the deep area. Cold weather will also slow them down. Back to top

Is that algae on the rocks?
Yes, there is some algae on the rocks in the pond. We strive to use no chemicals in the pond except to neutralize chlorine from newly added water. The algae is controlled at a low, natural level with plants competing for the same nutrients, bio-filtration and fish eating the algae for food. There are more plants in the water than there are fish. Barley straw extract pellets are occasionaly added to stave off "green water" suspended algae and "string algae." In the fall, we use a net over the pond to block falling leaves. The decomposition of leaves in the pond is very detrimental to water quality and algae control. Back to top

Part of the image is blurry or washed out. Why?
When it rains, the drops hitting the water can appear distort the images. At night, the fish will reflect the underwater lights, so if they are close to the light source, the reflected glare makes the image appear to be washed out in that area. In the winter, ice may cover all or part of the pond. Don't worry, the fish will be OK. Back to top

Tech Stuff

What kind of camera and software are used?
We started with an Intel Pro PC camera and Webcam32 software. It worked fine, but it got toasted in an electrical storm. The next camera was a D-link DCS-2100+ which was a big disappointment. It had very poor low light capability and undependable performance. We are now using a Panasonic BL-C30A network camera that has been working much better. The automatic uploads of images to our pondcam.com Web site are handled by the server built-in to the camera. Back to top

I'm not getting the automatic image updates. Why?
Once in a while, we have a glitch that stops the uploading of our images. Once detected, we'll get it back working ASAP. Otherwise, if the image does not change when the countdown timer goes to zero, you may be viewing a cached version of the page that is stored on your hard drive. You need to hold down your "Shift" or "Control" key while clicking on your "Refresh" button. That should force a current page to load. You should also check your browser settings to get current pages:
Using MS Internet Explorer,
Click on "Tools" on the top menu,
Then click on "Internet Options"
Then under "Temporary Internet Files" click on "Settings"
Click the choice "Automatically"
Some other settings do not get you the current versions of pages.

If you are experiencing problems with this site or would like to send us a question or comment, click on "Contact" at the top of most Pondcam.com pages. Back to top

Why would anyone put a Webcam on a pond?
I'm a "techie" kind of guy who likes to see what makes things work. I enjoy the pond and I'm just sharing that with others. You're here and lots of others are too. Plus I sell Amazon books and get commissions on eBay bids and Google ads to pay the upkeep. Back to top

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