Origially I wasn't really lookin for a pool to keep fish in, I was looking for a nice water feature which I think I will stick to as after doing a few measurements in my back yard it's going to be a bit bigger than first expected.
A nice plug and play water feature will do me for now I think

I will post up the info the manufacturers send me back about it though.

Hi all

First I must register a vested interest in this thread. I have been looking after the Blagdon brand for nearly ten years now. I am also the person who conceived and created Affinity Living Feature Pools. I saw all the questions and thought you may as well get it from the horses mouth! I will try to answer some of them for you here as best I can.

Firstly the reason for creating Affinity is to bring the joy of successful coldwater fish keeping to more people. I started as a hobbisyst, like you, when I was thirteen with two second hand 30" tanks , I dug a pond at 15 and haven't stopped since then. I currently have a 5ft mixed tropical aquarium , and yes I have an Affinity at home. I am landscaping the garden and a goldfish pond will be going (in the ground) shortly. My hope is that Affinity will increase the range of people who appreciate the joy that keeping fish can provide.

Ok:

The construction is the best spec possible; High quality PE Rattan, aluminum frame ( will not rust ever ) aluminum brackets, stainless steel bolts, copper threads, 1mm fiber reinforced liner, 1 mm windows, a very high surface area filter for the pool volume (about half to two thirds more than most of the industry would recommend) graded foams, ceramic bio media, polymer wool to polish the water. You also get Bioactive Tapsafe, and there is a 5w UVC upgrade available for guaranteed clear water. Suffice to say, you will get a clear and healthy pond once the filtration has matured.

Outdoor suitability; Octogan 495lt , Half Moon 312lt , depth 60cm (both). A general rule for UK ponds is 18" minimum/45 cm, however the deeper the better is true.These pools have been run outdoors through UK winter with fish ( last winter was a cold one ) with no problems , yes the pool froze , even the fountain , however the pump and filter kept running and all the fish came through fine. There was no damage to the pools! Actually we, and other manufactures, have sold thousands of ponds and liners in the uk over many years to create ponds with smaller volumes than this, and shallower. I have never heard of one fatal issue for the fish if they where introduced between June and August , therefore had time to build strengthen and acclimatize to the temperatures. From a heat point of view , as long as the stocking levels are sensible , and especially if the pump is running twenty four/seven (as it should be) I can see no problems in Europe for gold fish species. Affinitys have been running in Southern China also in ambient temperatures of 35+ degrees ! not really recommended but possible with the pump and filtration provided. May I also add that Affinity pools are far larger in volume than the vast majority of cold water aquariums sold in the UK.

So; you can build it in under an hour, it is suitable for modern smaller gardens, it is inherently safer as a raised pool, has excellent and sophisticated filtration that is easy to maintain, it is durable, the windows really do offer a new view for a garden pool (my kids love it) and it is great to see and interact with the goldfish as they come to the window and 'beg' when we get home. The automatic LED light adds real interest all year round, actually as a keen gardener, I thought the interest the pool added between November and March (when little is happening in the garden) is one of it's best features.

I hope I have answered some of your questions and I hope you get a feel for the passion put into this product because it really is something we would want people to enjoy and succeed with. I would love to hear from anybody who has bought an Affinity, and what their experience has been. Look out for an article in Practicle Fishkeeping Magazine in the Summer, they have one and have put it on test!
I will post some pictures of my Affinity (at home). This is a pre production prototype that I have been running at home for constant observation and development.

Andrew Paxton

Hi Andrew, welcome to FK

Not sure anyone here has an issue with the Blagdon size to start with, but filtration size/turnover info is needed as you have only mentioned media.

Filter info a must.

Given FK recommends 180 litres for one goldfish (common, who should be in a pond really once warmer) and 180 litres for 2 fancies, I think the marketing and pics on the tank are a bit misleading (too many fish in the pics, a common issue with pet shops and their pics of fish in said tanks.)

Octogan 495lt , Half Moon 312lt, both given less 10% for decor displacement. The half moon at 281 litres for example, would only house 4 fancies max.

http://www.fishkeeping.co.uk/articles ... -size-life-expectancy.htm

Perhaps scale back the pics of ultimate fish in the marketing pics to be more accurate and get more kudos?

You'll gain more favour for being honest here!

Edit: apologies Andrew, should have mentioned tank length too, given just fancies need 5-6 foot to stretch their fins, longer thinner tanks would be better IMO than than the circular design as at present.

Perhaps something you can consider for future builds?

Hi Andrew

I am glad I read your post regarding the Affinity Pool, it has really put my mind at rest.

I purchased the half moon about 1 month ago, and we are new to keeping fish. We have followed all the advice and had the pool running a couple of weeks before purchasing some goldfish. We now have four goldfish in the pool and they do seem to be thriving (fingers crossed) The pool is a real feature to our new decking area and we sit for hours watching the fish through the port holes - even our two cocker spaniels are enjoying the view.

I would appreciate some advice from you regarding what to put in with them, at the moment we only have a couple of pond plants in the basket provided. Someone has suggested we purchase some bogwood (what do you think?)

Any advice would be appreciated to get the most from our new hobby.

PFK are doing a review of this in their next issue - will be interesting to see what they make of it

I can't really comment on the question Lesleyh - I'm not sure that Andrew has spotted the questions from Violet yet.

Maybe one of the pond experts will be better suited to that

Hi, we saw these at Maidenhead Aquatics in Taunton. They look really nice. They are ideal as a water feature. I think that is the difference, they are a water feature and NOT a pond. They would look great lit up with a small fountain and some plants but, I don't think I'd want to keep any fish in one. They'd look good on some decking though, the water feature I mean....not the fish

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Some one has asked a question


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As yet, no reply. Andrew also said

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Over two weeks and no pictures.

Hi guys and gals.

I have the smaller version(half moon) and it sits on our decking. I have had it two weeks with water in and four plants. Two are oxy plants sat on the bottom. there are obviously no fish in it yet. Im only planning on having 3-4 small fish and i will let you know how i get on with it. Will also put a couple pics on here too.

New to this forum

David

I too hope Andrew Paxton finds the time to post an update as i am a newbie to the forum and we are currently awaiting the arrival of the Affinity Octogan Pond.