PIP Titanium Balls - For The Pond - No kidding!

From a web site I found today - "These are a new product from Japan which has only become available in the UK recently. PIP stands for Powder Impact Plating, and it is during this process that a photo catalyst known as "Electromagnetic wave response-type photo catalyst" occurs. What is a photo catalyst you may be asking well it is a catalyst which has the properties of being able to remove odour from the air, reducing bacterial levels, and lowering pollution when triggered by a certain element. If you are not already lost ;without going into to much scientific detail an explanation of this is in simple terms as follows: This media is best described as balls which have a Titanium dioxide coating applied via the PIP process, which means that when they are exposed to one of more of the following gamma rays, X-ray, Ultraviolet, radiant energy, inferred rays, radio waves, one of these a process occurs even in water which makes them an ideal pond media, resulting in the deoxidising of organic substances in the water, including ammonia and nitrite, and well as having the effect of reducing any odour from the pond, and improving the clarity of the water if it was tinted (not cloudy or suspended solids). In fact this technology is being investigated for its use in making self cleaning products, and this has been covered in the press recently with headlines such as “Self Cleaning Bathroom”. Titanium Balls make an ideal trickle filter media, and as they need to be exposed to light having them on the top level is probably the best location. Here you can either rely upon natural daylight to cause the reaction to happen, thus limiting it to only daylight hours, plus the limited effect sunlight will have on the reaction according to some people. Or ideally mount a fluorescent light over the filter giving them 24 hour exposure to light, but once again some people will still disagree with the effectiveness of this saying that to get the best results from this new and high tech media the balls are bested exposed to UV light. One of the down sides to this media is that it is very expensive, however this is off set by the fact that you do not require any depth of media as you only need one layer of the PIP Titanium Balls, as they will only work when exposed to light, thus it is pointless having 3 or 4 layers as the ones on the bottom levels will not get any light and thus the reaction will not occur. Along with this the high cost is also offset by the fact that this product has a very long life expectancy and thus unlike other medias should not require replacing for many, many years. There is not a specific volume for size of pond, so if you do decide to use it in a trickle tower ensure that you have enough to cover the top layer. This media could also be used by simply placing it on top of your existing media, but make sure that you install a sufficient source of light to cause the process described to occur, plus think of a method of being able to remove the balls easily should the media onto which you have placed them needs cleaning."

Huh? I have no idea!

I could see something like that being part of a UV/mechanical filter combo. There are already many of those available you would just need to add these balls to the area exposed to the UV light. The UV lights that I have seen are basically cylinders. I wonder if you could make a circular UV so that the light is more widely distributed, have the balls on top and the conventional filter media undeneath that. The one I use now has a UV filter on the side with round filter pads on the top and bio balls on the bottom. It is very easy to take apart. Something to think about.

This is where I found them. I couldn't find a US source. Most of all I don't understand them. I got lost at the part where it said "..........if you are not already lost". LOL With the exchage rate they are about $133 US. I did find the same technology applied to some water purification systems, so there might be something to it. If you try them out let us all us know if they work OK? ;>) I am tempted myself but can't figure out how to get them in the filter flow and in the light.

http://www.koiwaterbarn.co.uk/?act=products&cat=4

Okay, I have to ask, how did you happen upon this UK Koi site? Is this one of your references online or something? I LOL reading your post. I thought it was just me thinking they are ahead of us in koi ponding - it seems 1 out of 5 homes has a koi pond in my MIL's village. Do you want me to ask her if she or anyone else she knows uses this product and get a review? My MIL's system is antiquated and her pond is solid green and she never changes the water and her fish are as healthy as horses even as they are overcrowed. A few years ago she had work done on it and the guy changed out the water and cleaned it and was shocked at the dirtiness of the water (dirtiest he has ever seen) yet her fish were thriving. Every so often she has to off load fish because they outgrow her space. This pond has been in place about 20 years . . .

I just like to noodle around the net looking for new stuff or different ponding stuff. Before I changed my major to finance in college I was an English major. The grammer and run on sentences in the description just cracked me up. Please, ask your MIL if she's heard of these things. I'll try about anything that doesn't appear to have the potential to cause any trouble.

As for the green water phenomenon and healthy fish, it's true. Koi love green water. It's pond owners who want to see their sparkly jewel fish clearly that don't like pea soup water. As long as there's oxygen in the water the fish are happy, happy, happy. Dr. Eric Johnson, the koi vet, in one of his books (don't remember which off hand) wrote that if you put an ulcerated koi in heavy green water it will heal without futher attention. No studies have been done to determine what actually happens biologically. I think it's a testable hypothesis to say that pond owner's, in our quest to have clear water, probably upset the natural bacteria balance that keeps the bad bacteria from causing problems. Does this mean that I'm going to turn off my UV and let the algae take over? UhUh. I'm as guilty as they come when it comes to wanting the clear water that allows me to see my koi.

As for you MIL's pond I am curious about the bottom. Heavy mulm or debris acummulation on the bottom does breed bad bacteria. Worse, if it's deep enough to go anerobic, you can get hydrogen sulfide gas. H2S kills. I remember when I decided to get the rocks out from the bottom of my pond. I had to climb in to do it so my nose was right there. I lowered the water level ,and with the koi swimming around me, I lifted the rocks up and heaved them up and off onto the grass. It was probably the nastiest thing I have ever done. As I got to the very bottom I began smelling a rotton egg odor. There was hydrogen sulfide gas in pockets among the rocks and the accumulated debris. I was stunned. I was scared I'd kill my fish with the disturbance. I finished in a huge hurry, got the pump running for aeration and followed with a big water change. I didn't lose any fish, but the next day several of them had tiny red spots like the beginning of ulcers. They were peppered with them. I didn't immediatley treat, but waited 24 hours. They had all but disappeared and were all gone in 48 hrs. It was a very scary and educational experience, not to mention having koi poop floating under my nose. I showered with a toothbrush instead of a washcloth.

So back to your MIL's pond. What is the bottom like?

Hell if I know what is on the bottom of her pond-maybe the Loc Ness Monster for all I know! She mostly has goldfish though (I know koi are more sensitive but this water is dark, dark green. It doesn't have a smell (my pond had a smell after one month of operating but not hers. . . I would assume there is rock on the bottom as the whole pond is surrounded by a rockery. The waterfall is gentle and easy so there is not a lot of aeration. Her fish are hardly ever fed (probably only when we visit and my kids get to feed them). They are very, very large goldfish and are very friendly. She has no clue about spawning but apparently they spawn because as her fish overgrow her pond she rehomes them and still has fish replacements. Her whole pond makes me laugh because I had to work my butt off all summer to try and keep my fish healthy and my water safe and her pond could be a toxic waste dump and her fish are happy.

I will ask her about those balls-she is extremely educated and will get information about them. She is a master gardener but is now 80 years old and has someone else do her heavy work for her and this person is also into koi and ponds. Between them they will get answers.

Snapple: I copied and pasted the website and your post and sent it to my MIL. I'm eager to hear what she has to say about it.

MM You made me snort coffee out my nose I laughed so hard!!!!! You sure that's not a spring fed swamp?

Snort coffee huh? Glad I could make you laugh so well. My MIL's garden and yard is small but amazing.

Snapple it also said radio waves. I wonder how we could make that work.

MM - I would imagine that the plantings of a British Master Gardener would be spectacular. After all I think they invented the art of great gardens and gardening. The "English Garden" is what most on this side of the pond aspire to. Who isn't just knocked flat by the works of Gertrude Jekyll, Vita Sackville West and Capability Brown. My very favorite British garden is Great Dixter. Christopher LLoyd, who you probably know died not too long ago, is my all time favorite British gardener. I've no doubt your MIL knows more about gardening at the highest level than I could ever hope to aspire. I'm sure she will put me to shame by understanding the PIP Titanium Ball thing.

I know that jeri11 already has a better grasp than I do. Radio waves? Really? I'd better read that again.

Mention radio waves and I start thinking of people who wear aluminum foil hats. (NOT you jeri11.)

Yup, radio waves all right and a lot of other waves/rays. Anybody here major in particle physics?

This message was edited Dec 10, 2008 7:24 PM

LOL!!! I've been wanting a good sound system for the backyard. Do you think DH would consider this?

If your DH is like my DH at the mention of the phrase "I need (fill in the blank here) for the pond." his eyes start to glaze over. Although he does enjoy sitting out by the pond in the summer and watching the koi, he basically views it as a money pit over which he has no control.

My DH doesn't even enjoy sitting out there, especially not during the summer!!! He said he has to work in it(the heat) and he wants A/C when he can!!! Besides if he's out there he's afraid I might ask him to do something!!! God help us all if he picks up pruners or lopers!!! I'm not thru crying over the 1st bush and he's finished and some how managed to hit every plant I have. I think he does it that way so I won't ask him to help any more and he's right!!! LOL!!!!

For me, the key in getting my spouse to "get into" the garden or pond is to put their favorite thing or things in the area or nearby. In my case, I have a beer and beverage frig. 10 feet from the pond and I had an awesome, powerful sound system installed with speaker rocks and house mounted speakers. My husband hooks up his ipod in the house and plays it outside and/or inside at the same time and is happy. I think if I can figure out how to get a flat screen outside that you can actually view the picture I doubt he would ever come inside. . .

When my husband gets the tractor out and starts mowing I literally "blast the yard with music". My neighbors either don't hear it or don't mind it but I think it's funny.

A beer fridge would definitely get my DH outdoors more often. He'd follow it anywhere.

LOL at the 2 of you!!! I can just see Yall now with a long pole with a bottle of beer dangling from it to entice them to do your Honey Do List!!!!

Snapple put the beer fridge on wheels . . .