Our new pond is three weeks old and I am having major anxiety issues. Two days ago the water levels were perfect. Now I have a nitrite spike, which is normal for new ponds but there can be a lot of bad consequences if it’s not taken care of. The pond should naturally develop bacteria that breaks ammonia down to nitrites and breaks the nitrites into nitrates that the surface plants can absorb. Nitrite reducing bacteria takes some time to develop…most ponds will find their balance in about six weeks. Meanwhile, I’m worried about brown blood disease and losing koi to high levels of nitrite. All sorts of remedies on various koi forums but we’re going to go with more frequent water changes, adding bacteria and some prayers.