Many people refer to the Water Lily, either the native or introduced varieties, as lily pads but that is simply the emergent part of the plant or part of the plant we can see above the water. The entire plant is much more complicated and includes a sophisticated root system which serves as one of its ways of reproduction.  This root system is the aspect that should be considered when one decides how to best manage their lily pad control issues. More...

Recently Lake Restoration was brought in by the Minnewaska Lake Association (MLA) to treat a serious infestation of Eurasian Watermilfoil.  The first aquatic weed treatment covered 15 acres of the nearly 130 of acres that are infested with the invasive plant.  These acres exist in 6 pockets across the lake’s total 7,100 acres.  The goal is, of course, complete removal of Eurasian Watermilfoil, however realistically speaking the MLA said they would be happy to simply control and halt the spread of the plant. More...

While acquiring exotic plants is a pleasing pursuit, when these plants leave a contained area and enter into the wild, big problems can arise.  In this case the plant newly causing troubles in the the state of Wisconsin is Brazilian Water Milfoil also referred to as Parrotfeather. More...

There has been considerable debate about whether Phragmites are native to North America or if they should be considered an invasive species.  Until recently they were thought to be a non-native invasive species.  Regardless of their classification, experts agree that the dense mats these emergent plants form provide little to no value to wildlife and can reduce an area’s diversity of both plants and wildlife species if they become dominant.  Their conclusion is that Phragmites removal is recommended to ensure an area’s diversity of native plant and wildlife. More...

You may have noticed that toward the end of the summer the cattails you’ve been ignoring are reaching maturity and taking over your lake or pond.  Perhaps your attempt to cut them back earlier in the year has backfired and now you’ve actually got more of them than if you had just left them alone.  Either way, we at Lake Restoration are here to tell you how to get rid of cattails in your pond or lake. More...

Improving the health of your pond or lake can often be a multi-step process.  If your goal is killing floating pond weeds you might have to look a little deeper into your pond’s overall health.  Simply removing weeds like duckweed, watermeal, water hyacinth or water lettuce is just one part of the process. More...

As the summer temperature heats up, who doesn’t want to take a dip in the lake and cool off?  Swimmer’s itch is an itchy rash caused by certain parasites that normally live in freshwater snails and sometimes can even be found on waterfowl.  While you are swimming, these parasites might burrow into your skin, causing the swimmer’s itch rash.  These parasites soon die as humans are not suitable hosts for them.

The cause of swimmer’s itch is your body’s allergic reaction to parasites that migrate from snails to other types of waterfowl.  Swimmer’s itch isn’t contagious from person to person and not everyone is sensitive to swimmer’s itch.  Some people show no symptoms even though they would be swimming in the same location as others who break out with a red rash.  Children are at the highest risk, because they normally splash around in the shallow water.  If swimmer’s itch is known to be present, swim off shore if possible.  Also, avoid swimming when winds are carrying the organism to the beach. 

If swimmer’s itch is a problem at your lake, it is important to rinse and towel off immediately after getting out of the water.  This will help reduce the odds that you will get it after you get out of the water.  If you did get swimmer’s itch while you were in the water, the rash typically clears up within a few days.  While the itching can be unpleasant, it usually doesn’t require you to get medical attention.

We recommend using a copper sulfate to kill the snails that are in the water.  The copper sulfate will only kill the snails that are present during the time of application.  Keep in mind that other snails may move into the area after this time and so a second application of copper sulfate might be necessary.  Copper sulfate is toxic to snails, but safe for swimmers.  It is an EPA approved algaecide.

We also recommend keeping waterfowl away from your dock and swimming area.  The use of our Goose D-Fence® system will help keep unwanted geese off of your property.  The Goose D-Fence system is a retractable fence that has easy installation or removal.  Geese require easy access to food and a drink of water every 30 minutes.  Goose D-Fence® can eliminate that access and the geese will move on to other sites that better suit them.

Algae can appear in different forms and different colors.  Is your algae safe, or is it toxic?  There is no way to just look at an algae bloom and tell if it is toxic. 

Green Algae can be picked up when a stick test is done.  If you poke a stick into the algae and the algae grabs on to the stick, is stringy and has a texture, this will tell you that it is a filamentous algae and it is safe.  It is the Blue Green algae that can be harmful.  There have been pet and livestock deaths due to the amount of consumption.

Cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, looks like someone took a can of green paint and dumped it into a body of water.  This bacteria can also be reddish-purple or even brown in color and is also known in the marine environment as “red tides”.   Harmful algal blooms can decrease the water quality, produce an awful odor or taste, and cause the production of algal toxins.  When a stick test is done, the algae will not grab on to the stick.  There is no consistency to blue-green algae and it will make the tip of the stick wet.  Not all cyanobacteria algae is toxic.  And even if your algae tests non-toxic one day, the next day it can turn toxic.

As algae dies, it produces toxins and some of those toxins may be harmful to humans and wild life if the water is ingested or comes into contact with the skin.  As the summer temperatures rise, you can experience a new algae bloom every 10-14 days.  With every algal bloom, it is very important to use a copper-based algaecide to keep the algae and scum levels under control.  Our liquid, concentrated algaecide, Mizzen™, may be used in fresh water lakes, ponds, potable water reservoirs, water gardens, irrigation ditches and many other bodies of water.  Mizzen will help control nearly all types of planktonic and filamentous algae and chara.

In addition to an algaecide, the use of phosphorus reducer is very important to improve water clarity and help prevent or reduce nuisance algae blooms.  Storm water, animal waste and fertilizer are just a few ways that phosphorus can get into your body of water.  Our PhosControl® makes an invisible layer on the bottom of the pond and bonds with the phosphorus making it unavailable to aquatic plants and algae.  Each pound of phosphorus can produce 500 pounds of aquatic plant and algae growth. 

Making sure that your water’s nutrients levels are under control will help in deterring future weed and algae growth.  With the warmer weather that we have been experiencing, the water temperatures are heating up and if you mix that with high levels of phosphorus, chances are  you will have an algae bloom.

During the dog-days of summer, conditions are just right to cause blue-green algae to grow very quickly, resulting in algal blooms in lakes.  These blooms can create a noxious smell, discolored water and can even sometimes kill fish, which die when unable to get enough oxygen from the algae-dominated water.  Combine this in some cases with an abundance of phosphorus from agricultural runoff, sewage treatment plants, lawn fertilizer, water treatment plants, and septic systems, and more algal blooms can occur in lakes and ponds. More...

We are expanding our line of pond and lake weed rakes to include new rake tools, rake and weed control kit bundles, and new options for our patented LAKEMAID® lake weed removal machine.  New to the lake and pond weed rake product line this year are several hand held rakes:

Aquatic Weed Eradicator 

The Midwest Rake Aquatic Weed Eradicator is a lake and pond bottom weed removal tool. It has 28 inch blades that is adept at getting weeds out at the root.  

Screening rake

The Screening Rake is ideal for sifting, grading and screening stones and debris from sand or soil. Ideal for beaches.

Weed Razer Pro

The Weed Razer Pro is a lightweight, hand operated weed cutter excellent for cutting every type of pond and lake weed.  It is adjustable from 12 to 62 inches. 

In addition to adding these rakes as stand alone items available for purchase online, we are now offering a bundle with each rake along with either the MuckMaid or the RestoreAccess Ultra G kit.  These kits are designed specifically for beaches and swimming areas and provide a more comprehensive solution to help eliminate silt and muck in addition to the weeds themselves.

The LAKEMAID® weed control removal machine, meanwhile, is now available with 24 foot arms, allowing for much greater coverage and faster results. The LAKEMAID® sits on top of the water and removes pond and lake weeds, silt, and muck near docks and in swimming areas by dragging weed-removing rakes across the lake bottom.  Compared to other mechanical tools, it is lightweight, easy to install, surprisingly portable and shareable, and priced competitively.

“We feel these new rakes, the bundles, and the added options for the LAKEMAID cover almost every weed control need out there,” says Mary Jo Furman, Sales Manager for Lake Restoration. “Ultimately it’s about enjoying the pond or lake and getting to the beach, and these products make that possible.