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Let us say this up front. When it comes to keeping Koi we know only one way to do it. This is not the quickest route. It is not the cheapest initially. It is however the correct way to keep Koi. Full stop.

So please don't get upset with us when we get short because someone once told you a sand filter with special Koi sand is THE thing to use, or that so and so has kept 'show quality' Koi in this pond of 200 litres run on an old bicycle pump and a frayed string. This site is here to establish ONE thing in your mind - what it takes to keep Koi in an environment conducive to THEIR long term well being and not necessarily your short term budgetary constraints!

In other words, if there were shortcuts available to Koi keepers we'd be using them ourselves. We make no money from building Koi ponds since we don't build them. Hence why would we deliberately chase you into the arms of a cheaper Koi pond builder? It is because unless you have kept Koi before and you have the experience that goes with it you will not understand precisely WHY we do things the way we do.

So the choice is yours. You either do Koi ponds properly, or YOU are the one who will suffer the consequences of having a pond that does not and will not ever work.

A Koi pond can cost the same as a new kitchen or a modest new car (or even in some cases a not so modest new car)!

Why on earth would you spend that kind of money without doing your homework properly?

Research is free, remember?

Happy Koi 'does' Koi ponds properly, no shortcuts, no nonsense and no short term blinkered thinking.

For clarification, we don't build Koi ponds. We design them and the filtration that goes on them so that the two work seamlessly and properly. The result is a Koi pond conductive to housing world class quality collections of Koi in them.

YOU have to live with the Koi pond YOU have built, not us. You have only yourself to blame if you don't ask us our advice and end up with something that you thought was cheaper but turns out to be destined only for the rubbish dump because it is the wrong thing to begin with.

You cannot un-build a Koi pond and you can't retrofit it. Same goes for filtration - if you have the wrong thing you have to throw it away. It can't be changed or 'fixed'. It can only be chucked out!

 

The stunning Koi pond at the Himeji Castle Gardens

This site will teach you everything that you need to know about Koi fish ponds and keeping Koi carp.

Happy Koi is here to help you with as much information as possible on all aspects of fish keeping including:

   Building a Koi pond, Koi pond design and construction - right in your own
      garden...

    Koi pond filters and filtration...

    How and why mechanical filtration is so important in Koi ponds...

    Bio filters/bioconverters - their roles in Koi ponds i.e. how and why biological
       filtration is so important...

    Why SuperActiFlo moving bed media is one of the best bio media(s) and how
       it can save you money...

    Aqua Culture - we know more than a thing or two about it!

    Natural swimming pools - the application is similar to Koi ponds, just without
       the Koi - we work closely with the best in the industry to give you what YOU
       want...

    Aquariums. Between Mark and William we have much hard learned experience in
       keeping tropical and marine aquariums

There is tons of useful information and more in our regular newsletters with valuable and FREE information direct from the experts in the field...

In short, if it swims and has gills the chances are we can help you!

A Koi pond at the Koi Museum in Ojiya City

Our focus is of course on our beloved Koi because that's why we got into the business in the first place. But we understand water, how to handle it and how to treat it. You cannot expect to be successful in sustaining aquatic life without understanding aqua, water,  to begin with. With a chemical engineer on board, Happy Koi works with water 24 hours a day 365 days a year. Ask us your questions and if we don't know the answers we'll find out who does. 

Happy Koi exists to try and teach you everything you need to know about making the best possible start to keeping Koi carp and also to help you if you have problems with your existing Koi pond.

So, what's in it for you on this fish and water keeping website?

This website offers you as much advice as we can give you, whether you're a beginner (as we all once were) or whether you are a seasoned Koi keeper, just wondering if there is a better way for you to keep Koi.

Koi fish ponds are not something that are casual flings with animal husbandry. Koi ponds are permanent affairs located in your garden and our intention is to try and help ensure that this is the one affair with Koi fish that you will enjoy for many, many years.

Yes, we do have Koi fish for sale and we do sell Koi pond filter equipment. This however is more of a secondary bonus for you - in the meantime we try to teach you as much as we can about this fascinating fish keeping hobby. And then, if you decide, you get the opportunity to buy the best equipment for Koi keeping ever designed. However, the primary thrust behind this site is to deliver good quality content and meaningful useful Koi information for ALL Koi keepers.

We also focus on separating Koi pond myth from reality, which can sometimes be quite tricky...

It has been our experience that there is a tremendous amount of total nonsense surrounding the fish keeping hobby. Thankfully that is all changing as people become more and more educated about the hobby but there is still too much ignorance that leads to unnecessary Koi fish fatalities.

South Africa has an absolutely ideal climate for Koi keeping and the hobby has every right to prosper. It should not end up as a litany of filled in ponds, dead Koi and frustrated hobbyists. Yet some of the advice and products offered by so-called professionals are guaranteed to cause disaster - for instance if anyone offers or recommends the use of a sand filter they ought to have a very special reason for doing so... Actually in many years in Koi keeping we still can't think of a single good reason to use a sand filter for anything on a Koi pond other than as an ornament. More on that inside...

Your need might be for appropriate filter equipment, or you might need state of the art advice and that's what we try and give you, on both counts. Hopefully you will find that our advice makes sense to you.

If you're new to Koi carp keeping then start your journey here...

A completely unique Koi found in Japan. Utterly amazing!

Koi pond fanatics

Who are we? We're William and Mark. One chemical engineer (William) and one fish fanatic (Mark) on a mission to bring South African Koi keeping kicking and screaming into the 21st century! Read our bit on chemical engineers and Koi ponds and see if you agree with us or not... We hope you'll see lots of useful information here and elsewhere on the site.

Happy Koi will help YOU to learn about filtration and about keeping Koi. It is after all your own responsibility - your Koi will thrive and prosper or suffer and die at your hand and no one else's. And our Koi fish for sale we think are the best ones to have in your pond!

You can make a great start by downloading our FREE Acrobat document on filtration basics and how it all works. It's by no means a comprehensive book but it's a great start!

Koi keeping should be about enjoying your Koi in a stunning Koi pond. After all, if you don't enjoy the results of your efforts, why bother?