Thanks for all the help so far guys (and gals)! Well, all of the fish have survived last summers heat and last winters freeze, so they must have found a way around that problem. Anyway, we have a lot of pine trees in her yard so the pond isn't ever in constant sunlight (no need for a patio umbrella, but good idea), just different parts of the pond get different lighting times during the day, but overall the pond gets about 8 hours of sunlight a day. Its been setup for 14 months now, so I don't think cycling is a problem. I'm not sure about the type of algae, but will take pics and post them on this thread for identification so I can figure out exactly how to kill it. In the mean time, we will heavily plant it (like you guys said) and get a new filter. And is barley straw needed with plants or are we fine without it when we have plants? Also, how do you use it?