Koi

From talking to Ken at Ken's Fish; there maybe some money to be made in Koi.

This is a nice beginner's site: A Begginers Guide to Koi and Koi ponds.

What are Koi?

Related to the common carp.

Koi are not big gold fish. However, they are a distant cousin to Koi.

They were developed over 200 years ago in Japan. I would have expected them actually to be much older than this.

Types of Koi

There is a lot of different varities of Koi:

Kohaku, Tashio Sanke, Showa Sanke, Bekko and Utsuri, Asagi and Shusui, Tancho, Kigio, etc.

Ponds for Koi

Setting up a pond for Koi requires two things. One, a healthy home for the Koi. Two, clear water to see the Koi.

Best to use bio filters.

Should be atleast 500 gallons. A pool about 7 to 8 feet radius with a 3 foot depth should work.

Straight or near vertical walls to protect from preditors and give more pond volumne.

Bottom that slopes towards drains and awy from incomming water.

Surface skimmer

Associations

There is an atlanta Koi club: Atlanta Koi Club

They meet once a month and it would cost $30.00 to join.

Possible Setups

Use with aquaponics system.

Set up in kiddy pool for view and sale.

Use rain water.

To get the rain water I could use a barrel.

this seems like a nice site: HGTV Home Ideas

I especially like the idea of grouping more than one barrel with a down spout.