The 1,000 Gallon Factor:
Water Volume Adjustment
Multiply Fish Weight x 1.1 Per 1,000 Gallons of Water
In determining the total amount of fish that you can effectively support in your pond, you need to know:
- The Total Specific Surface Area (SSA) of your biological filter
- The Total Specific Surface Area (SSA) of the pond floor and sides
- The Total Specific Surface Area (SSA) of any streams or waterfalls
- The Total Specific Surface Area (SSA) of boulders in the pond/stream and falls
- The Total Specific Surface Area (SSA) of gravel in the pond and stream
The combined SSA of all the above items equals the Total SSA, or TSSA. The TSSA tells you how much total biofilm can live in your pond. The biofilm TSSA will tell you how much fish waste it can metabolize in 24 hours.
The 1,000 Gallon Factor is an adjustment for water volume in the pond - more water, the more diluted the fish waste will be - thus the more water you have in the system - the more fish it can effectively support.
The 1,000 Gallon Factor is a Multiplier of Fish Weight x 1.1 per thousand gallons of water in the system.
Example: The pond, stream, falls, and plumbing contains 1,267 gallons of water. The 1,000 Gallon Factor would be 1.1267.
You've calculated your TSSA to be 1,267. Total biofilm TSSA of 1,267 can metabolize 253.40 grams of fish waste in 24 hours. 253.40 grams of fish waste is produced by 760.20 grams of fish weight. (See Metabolization Rates) In this example, the pond contains 1,267 gallons of water (measured with a meter). Now use The 1,000 Gallon Factor. Multiply 760.20 grams of fish weight by 1.1267 for an adjusted total fish weight of 856.52. (760.20 x 1.1267 = 856.20)
The 1,000 Gallon Factor combines TSSA with water volume for a more accurate measurement of how much fish, by weight, you can effectively support in your pond.
Multiply Fish Weight by 1.1 per
1,000 gallons of pond water.
Water Volume in Gallons
|
Fish Weight Multiplier Factor
|
1,000 |
1.10 |
1,200 |
1.12 |
1,500 |
1.15 |
1,800 |
1.18 |
2,000 |
1.20 |
2,250 |
1.225 |
2,500 |
1.250 |
2,750 |
1.275 |
3,000 |
1.30 |
3,500 |
1.35 |
4,000 |
1.40 |
4,500 |
1.45 |
5,000 |
1.50 |
5,500 |
1.55 |
6,000 |
1.60 |
6,500 |
1.65 |
7,000 |
1.70 |
7,500 |
1.75 |
8,000 |
1.80 |
8,500 |
1.85 |
9,000 |
1.90 |
9,500 |
1.95 |
10,000 |
2.00 |
11,000 |
2.10 |
12,000 |
2.20 |
13,000 |
2.30 |
14,000 |
2.40 |
15,000 |
2.50 |
16,000 |
2.60 |
17,000 |
2.70 |
18,000 |
2.80 |
19,000 |
2.90 |
20,000 |
3.00 |
25,000 |
3.50 |
30,000 |
4.00 |