I posted a while ago regarding my dusty barrel pond and thought I'd give you all an update on how it's doing.

Against the advice of a few I did actually replace a lot of the water, mainly because the oxygenating plants were covered in dust, and I used the opportunity to wash them and all the pebbles off. I was careful to strain as many invertebrates as possible when draining the water to put them back in afterwards.

Once everything was rinsed, I kept the sand in the base (there were a number of worm-things burrowing) but packed it with much more pebbles then returned the plants into it. When I refilled it I poured the water over the reed bed. It stirred up dust again but not nearly as much. I reinstalled the pump too and added a stick, suggested by one commenter.

The dust settled in a few days and now it's crystal clear. The pump only runs continuously in full sun but that's enough to agitate the surface promoting gas exchange and reducing algal growth.

I'm looking forward to seeing if anything interesting turns up in it! When I eventually move and make another one I will take a lot of lessons with me.