"Dirt" in pond

[SueAndHerZoo]

Hi there. 
I took the day off from work last Thursday and spent it potting my newly purchased water lilies and lotus plants and carefully placed them in all the ideal places so that I could start the exciting daily process of checking on their status, growth, etc.  I went to bed tired but happy.  The next morning I was shocked to find my previously crystal-clear pond totally BROWN.  I could not see an inch below the surface - the water was totally brown.  I imagine some of the pots have been knocked over/burrowed in by the koi (even though I used rocks over the dirt) and figured if I were patient it would all settle to the bottom in a couple of days.  It's now Sunday and I really don't see ANY improvement.  Should I be more patient or do I need to take action?  Should I do a partial water change?  Should I remove all the filter pads from the skimmer and biological waterfall and rinse them off?  I don't want to disturb the natural balance of things but I really thought I would see some clearing by now.  I can't imagine why it's THIS dirty - I really didn't use that much dirt and the pond is 20 feet by 20 feet and I only planted two lotus and 6 lilies. 

Help please?

[Sunbeam56]

How are you aerating the pond? What is the size of your koi?

Koi are natural grazers, and bottom feeders. I've never successfully kept koi and lilies together, except with the koi were REALLY small - less than six inches. BEcause they are smart enough when it comes to eating that they can move even very large stones to get into the mud.
Koi LOVE messin' with mud.

[Ruthie]

My koi are of the size now where they can easily topple pots, so this year I have had to deal with this problem several times.  I had a large pot of creeping jenny and Jack, our biggest koi, had a wondeful time knocking it over and rooting every bit of clay and every single pebble out of the pot.  When I finally figured it out, the creeping jenny was bareroot, floating, nibbled on and the pot was on the bottom of the pond, completely empty.  It happened again when I put some lily divisions (now they all go into the stock tank until they are established and more koi proof.  They don't mess with them once they are big and well rooted.)  

It takes a few days or even a week for the turbidity to settle out in my pond, but if you have a powerful fountain or a waterfall, it will keep things stirred up for a longer period.  Everything had settled out in my pond, then I moved the fountain around and it got slightly turbid again.  

Things that help:  quilt batting!  I set up an extra five gallon bucket filter filled with a bit of lava rock from the bio filter and layers of quilt batting.  My pond isn't as big as yours, but quilt batting in any running water source will help remove the fine particles.  If I got obsessive about clearing it up fast, I hosed it off every day or more frequntly.   I figure next time I get everything settled again and *really clear*, I'll vaccuum the pond.  I know how much clay was in that pot (a lot!)  

A partial water change won't hurt, either.  The fresh water has a tendency to settle the clay particles out of suspension, too.

[SueAndHerZoo]

Thanks - that's exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for.  Some of the koi are 14-18" long so I am sure they are the capable culprits.  In my previous pond I never bothered with dirt - I used to anchor bare root lily tubers into a pot with rocks and things were fine.  Since we just built this "new and improved" pond I figured I should do things "right" and actually use dirt.  What a fool.  I have a powerful 3-tier waterfall that empties into the center section of the pond so it may be keeping things stirred up but it certainly does add a lot of aeration.  I used to use nothing BUT quilt batting in my old pond but again, was thrilled to have purchased a "new and improved" expensive skimmer and waterfall bio system with filter pads and was thrilled I wouldn't have to fight with heavy, slimy, dirty batting anymore.  Guess I'm back to it, at least for a while.    I'm heading out to do a partial water change and add batting to the filters.   Thanks for the responses.  It's days like this when I shake my head and wonder why I do this to myself with this ponding obsession, but 9 days out of 10 I am thrilled to death with it. 
Sue

[Loritx]

Seems this spring my water was gettting more cloudy every day.  Partial water changes seemed to do nothing, but make the Koi spawn. Then I was watching and it appeared she was laying her eggs in the lily pots and making more mess. Not to mention spawn foam on top of the water!! Last water change was about a week ago, 50% water change. It finaly started to clear up. I can now see the bottom. I will do another large water change next weekend and hopefull I will have clear water the rest of summer!