Lake Dye

[jdarwin]

Scot - you need to check w/ Ward and I about a better solution.

[The_MS]

@MrJones JD is correct.

[jwroblew]

@ Skoot I was thinking more like a chemical / natural organism that you can put in the lake that will eat the muck like this:

https://sancoind.com/store/p-7-natural-pond-cleaner.aspx

Just wondering if anybody had experience with something like this.

[AggieSkier]

@jwroblew Robert Averyt owns Lake Louise in Texas. He was using that product back in 2007 and claimed it was great. Have not asked him about it since then. PM for his email.

[smanski]

I just saw Blue Bayou on sale at Tractor Supply for $30 a gallon. It is typically $40.

[Marco]

Just put 1 jug of the Sensient dye in our lake a few days ago. I'll put in another as soon as I launch my boat for the first time this weekend. Our lake is 9 acres, and 2 of the jugs just might do it for the initial fill. This product seems waay more concentrated than Aqua Shade. Typically, we would need to start with between 6-8 gallons of Aqua Shade. Thanks @JD for the tip on the Sensient!

[A_B]

Aqua Shade takes the dyes that are discussed above, blends them with water, and sells to people who have 1-acre ponds in their back yard, or Koi ponds. Using AS for a ski lake is like the biggest waste of money I can think of in lake ownership. I would be curious to see if some of the lighter applications above, or 2 jugs in 9 acres does the job on weed and algae. If used as an aesthetic improvement or to keep water slightly cooler, maybe, but we needed about 100 pounds of concentrate for our intial charge to keep our algae under control, and use about half of that now every year. We are roughly 15-16 acres and 18 feet deep at center.

 

 

[CReckard]

Where are you guys buying Sensient dye? The email address at the beginning of this post or is there a retailer?

 

[A_B]

Keith.Brewer@sensient.com

 

 

[AggieSkier]

I talked with the lake owner who used Sanco Pond Cleaner. He tried it in 2007 and not since, he can't recall if the results were good or poor.

 

He did just treat a real bad algae bloom on his lake with 14 gallons of Seapro Captain. Said it worked great.

 

We used 11 gallons of Sensient dye on our 4 lakes (2.75 gal/lake). Still a bit greenish tint so we will add another 1/2 gallon per lake in a week or so.

[Marco]

We put just 1 jug (2.2lbs) to start in our lake, and it is amazing how blue it turned with just one jug. We'll wait until it starts to get warmer before adding another jug, but 1 jug definately made a big difference. Our lake is approximately 12 million gallons/36 acre feet. Sorry about the crappy cell phone photo. Kind of hard to tell from the pic, but it really is blue.

[stacy]

I hav a 22 acre 8 ft deep lake how many gallons would it take of the Sensien ? What is the cost of it ?

[A_B]

Here is info I received on the granules in one gallon jugs:

Item# 057261706 - 2KGs per GL - SensiPro Blue Granules

1x1 gallon jug (sold by weight: 4.4 lbs per) of Pourable Granules.

Sufficient to color 3-4 acres of water, 5-6' depth

FOB St Louis price: $99.26 each. There are 4 x 2Kgs per case.

Sold by case only please.

 

[jwroblew]

plus about $20 for shipping for the case of 4 gallons

[stacy]

Sounds good thx for the price break down

[crashman]

A little off topic but not much, is any-buddy using anything to get rid of the muck at the bottom of the lake, if so what? The muck is a food source for the weeds / algea, reducing the food source should reduce the plant growth, right?

 

anybody else have zebra mussels in their lake? they are invasive around here and they were accidentally introduced into our lake a number of years back. They are a pain in the neck but man did they clear up the water.

[bgturf]

In the Southern Cal area and to some degree Northern Cal we have been using Mirage. It is a combination of the blue and yellow dye. The yellow is the work horse that blocks the UV light. The lake would look like mountain due if there was not blue added ,not what I would want. I recommend to keep the color in the lake dark in the spring and early summer and then let it slide as the summer progresses. I have seen dyes turn water milky and the they get turned off of them because of the experience.

[AggieSkier]

We ended up adding 2 more gallons for a total of 13 gallons applied to 4 lakes. 11 gallons was still too green.

[The_MS]

@JayG80 That Bichon will have a nice green tint on him by years end.

[AggieSkier]

@MS - You are on target. She came out a little too green. Maybe we need to order more dye.

[The_MS]

She looks like the new A3. Might be a good nickname. My last Bichon was named Kidder.

[Keithbrewer]

Hello to the Forum! Please allow me to introduce myself- Keith Brewer of Sensient Colors. I want to say Thank You to Joe Darwin, and all the others there that tried our innovative Blue &/or Black Granules for your ski lakes.

 

If you have not tried them, please reach out to me via email. We would be delighted to send samples. We also manufacture traditional Liquid pond colorant in Blue and Black, at very high concentrations.

 

I promise not to spam this thread..:-) I just want to get the word out and ALSO get some feedback either here or shoot me an email at: keith.brewer@sensient.com

 

Thank you and safe skiing !

[Murrski]

@waterskigirl - Hey Robbie... have you guys had to add any more dye? Are you still happy with the product? Is this the blue lagoon product: < http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/brandt-blue-lagoon-ss-pond-lake-colorant-p-7468.html > ? I was going to talk to Ron about Pleasant Oaks and see if this was something we would like to do. The water chemistry & color there seems to be very similar to yours prior to the dye you guys added. Your lake looks awesome!

[Murrski]

@waterskigirl - sorry but I should have asked this too... was 12 quarts your initial application or was it what you added to an initial application several months later? Thanks in advance for your feedback.

[waterskigirl]

We had been using blue lagoon, but when this thread started Keith sent us 1 jug to try and that ended up lasting most of the rest of the season! We are switching to Sensient, it has really good color and is so easy to apply... the color in our pic(earlier in this thread) was after adding Sensient last summer :)

[A_B]

We used about 15 pounds of solid in the first year. 2k foot lake 18 feet deep. I guess a lake that was half as deep would be half as much. We keep it really blue though.

 

So for liquids, if they are 40% solids and a gallon weighs about 9 pounds, just do the math. The solids are the dye, the liquid just carries it.

[Murrski]

Thanks Robbie @waterskigirl -- Keith @Keithbrewer is graciously sending us a small sample of the Sensient granules to test! Hopefully I can get Ron and the members on board!

[A_B]

Keith's stuff comes in great packaging and excellent product to use to eliminate looking like a smurf and having blue carpet. I just happen to be lucky in having a supplier of blue sludge, ultra dense dye in 15 gallon totes, which works out better for us on a landed cost basis. When this source is no longer available, I would use Sensient in a heart beat.

[Skoot1123]

I just contacted @keithbrewer yesterday. Immediate response and will for sure be getting some when our lake fills......

[Keithbrewer]

Just wanted to shout out and say Thanks to those that are pleased with our GRANULAR High Concentrate Blue Lake Coloants. We are sponsoring the GOODE event in San Marocs and you will be able to see the awesome lake color there.

 

If anyone has been using liquid dyes, you will be amazed at SensiPro Granules! And a whole lot cheaper to ship and store. Feel free to contact me for a sample, or to place an order!

 

keith.brewer@sensient.com

314-662-0583

[Marco]

Thanks @Keithbrewer - This is our 2nd year using Sensient in our lake and it works great. We install it by putting it in a "PAM feeder" which is mounted above our water inlet. It is basically a covered plastic box with a spring loaded conveyor belt that pulls forward, releasing whatever chemical is on it, over a period of 12 hours. The Sensient is typically completely dispersed by morning if we put it in the feeder the previous afternoon. This method prevents accidental spills in the boat and the "smurf factor" that @AB mentions.

 

Thanks also to @jdarwiin for making us aware of this great product!

[MrJones]

Just ordered another case. +1 on the Sensient being a good product.

 

(I wish I had video of me standing there with boots strapped down, rope coming tight, and hearing the kids knock a gallon of liquid dye off the picnic table on the dock. This happened about 3 years ago and yes the lid came off. Dad was not happy!)

[Skoot1123]

@keithbrewer - how recent did the new product come out (or formulation for the dye)?

[Keithbrewer]

Yup!

Thanks Mr Jones for your repeat order! If that video existed, we'd have to "bleep" a few commentaries out...L)

 

Marcos- that's VERY interesting... I need to research that...! I may contact you if possible.

 

Skoot1123- We introduced the new Granular technology about 2 years ago. Sensient is a US based manufacturer of dye for foods, cosmetics, etc... We introduced a highly innovative GRANULAR Blue (and Black) Lake Colorant last year... IT ROCKS! (just read all the above testimonials:) And it's ecomonical, and doesn't "spill" nearly as bad as heavy to ship liquids!

 

See more at: http://sensientindustrial.com/index.php?p=95

Be sure to also see the Video there too.

 

If anyone wants a sample or wants to discuss: keith.brewer@sensient.com

Phone: 314-662-0583

 

Reminder, we are a Sponsor at the GOODE event in San Marcos TX in a couple weeks!

[Moskier3ev]

Thank you for sponsorship!!! Lakes were died Wed. night looking good.

 

Jeff Lindsey

SMRR

[Keithbrewer]

Great news Jeff! Appreciate the update. SMRR is going to be rocking very soon!

[Marco]

@Keithbrewer - PM me and I'll give you more details on the "PAM feeder"... Makes applying the Sensient easy and clean, at least in our situation where we have flowing water into the lake.

[Marco]

@Keithbrewer - Here are pictures of the PAM feeder we use to apply the Sensient. This is 12 years old, so I am not sure if they make them any more.

 

 

[Marco]

Here is a picture of the inside. You pull back the conveyor belt and add the product on top. A spring slowly pulls the belt forward over a period up to 12 hours. It is really handy for adding powdered chemicals to the lake.

 

 

[Keithbrewer]

Mark - Thanks for the pics! I can see now how the Feeder would be a no-brainer where there's an inlet of water like you explained. That's got me thinking...!

[Keithbrewer]

Here's our Banner that will be at the GOODE event next week in San Marcos TX.

Major Thanks to Dan O'Reily for using SensiPro Blue Granules and allowing us to Sponsor the event!

[Marco]

Keith- I'll look you up next week to chat about the feeder. We'll be pulling in late Tuesday...

[ski4xtc]

Found this tread this morning after reading it a couple of years ago. I am checking into the dye for a friend who is just filling his lakes for the first time. I e-mailed Keith for more information and he quickly responded back answering all my questions. Absolutely great customer service.

 

I am curious how it is working for everyone two years later @AggieSkier, @MrJones, @Jdarwin, @Marco, @Waterskigirl ? What are your lake sizes and how much are you now using? How often do you have to add more product and how much? What is your water source and do any of you pump quite a bit of water? Exactly how are you applying it from your boat? How do you judge how much to pour as you are going down the lake? Big thanks in advance for answering my questions.

 

When I checked into using Aqua Shade years ago for a big weed problem at our lake, it was not even an option due to the cost. This seems almost a no brainier due to the reasonable cost. It also appears that the company has great customer service.

[Marco]

Our lake is 2000' by 200', 6 feet deep, 36 acre feet of water. We are constantly running water into the lake to make up for water lost to irrigation needs, evaporation, and seepage. We typically start the year by putting in 2 jugs, and then add a jug every month to 6 weeks. We use the PAM feeder pictured above, which is located at the water inlet. The powdered dye will make a mess of your boat if you put it in that way. The smallest breeze will carry the dye dust everywhere. I would suggest just walking down the shoreline and dumping it in. Within a day it will spread evenly throughout the lake.

[Skoot1123]

@marco - I am assuming that you only add during the ski season? If so, is that starting in March and ending in September?

[Marco]

Yep- end of April through September.

[ski4xtc]

@Marco, thanks for the info. I am thinking another way to disperse it might be out the back of a canoe. Any thoughts on that? By the way, would you say the dye has any effect on your water temperature?

[Marco]

Haven't noticed a change in water temp. A canoe would work if you don't mind getting it blue. The blue stains do go away with time, so its really not that big of a deal. I just wouldn't do it out of my ski boat.

[igkya]

Has anyone tried the water soluble packets Keith offers? Are they same effectiveness, cost?

[Keithbrewer]