approx 900g pond build in RI (pics of course)

[Cilyjr]

will do...gonna get started in a few

 

[sissy]

have fun stay cool and have a great 4th

 

[Cilyjr]

i filled with water today. still not done with the landscaping around the pond but at least it is filled. i may put in 2 shubunkins in on Wednesday. the only thing i am testing atm is ph which is about 7.6 on a liquid api test. well here a few pictures of the build.

 

[fishin4cars]

Well the deco and landscaping look nice, But all those rocks in the pond are going to be nothing but nightmare of problems, as I guess you already see or at least I can. all the murky water is stuff that came off the rocks when you filled it, Guess where it's going, Right under all those rocks in the pond and in about 3-4 weeks your going to be asking why the water won't turn clear, why it's staying green. Well it will start with all the debris under the rock. 6 months down the road your going to start having issues with ammonia and nitrites that won't stabilize, again because there will start to be larger build up of debris in the bottom, By early next year, your going to be in the pond cleaning out all the rocks because it won't clear, fish keep having problems, ph won't stay stable and you keep noticing a foul smell. We say it all the time here, they look good when you can see them but, rocks in the bottom just isn't a good idea.
I hate being the first person to post and breaking news like this after all the hard work you have done to make it look so nice, But honestly my advice is, drain the pond get the rocks back out and start over now. Save you, your fish, and your plants a lot of headache in the future while you have a clean slate to work with.

 

[koidaddy]

I was going to say the same thing fishin. It was looking good until I saw the rocks on the bottom. Please rethink this cilyjr. As the pond establishes itself it will look natural plus fish stand out better on a dark background, not light.

 

[addy1]

I used to have rocks on the bottom (in one of my previous ponds) they do just get covered up with junk unless you vacuum them all the time.

But other than that your pond looks great.

 

[Cilyjr]

I will think on the small river stone. The larger field stone on the sides will most likely stay

 

[addy1]

Totally up to you and what you prefer. Can always remove later if you decide you don't like the rocks.

 

[Cilyjr]

Well I would certainly prefer something there... maybe more flat stone. After the posts though I gotta think that that it is going to be a problem....

 

[Cilyjr]

also i dont see any sub forum for pond chemistry. i think that would be helpful...just a thought

 

[addy1]

Well I would certainly prefer something there... maybe more flat stone. After the posts though I gotta think that that it is going to be a problem....

After ex amount of time you won't even really see the rocks, they get covered with algae, dirt unless you really keep them clean. Even nice flat ones. The liner will get covered to the point it looks like rocks.

This is from 2-5 feet deep the folds start to look like rocks. There is a little pea gravel down in the bottom that has fallen in over time.

This is from 2 feet to five feet deep.

 

[Cilyjr]

cool. thanks all on the info i think for now i will leave it. as i have a deadline of july 30 (wifes annual christmas in july party) to be done. but as the pond is not that big and i am only planning on a few fish at the moment i can maybe remove the ruck in the fall. i have a friend who drains his pond and power washes the whole thing in the early spring...thoughts on that?

 

[koidaddy]

Just leave them for now and get through the party. Rock around the top edge are fine just remember then come spawning time sharp edges will do damage to your fish. I start my rock just above the water line for this reason and to keep any debris from getting trapped between them. You can see the liner some but its not bad looking.
As far as breaking down yearly, dont do it. If your pond is maintained before and at the end of the season you shouldn't have to overly clean it come spring. I am in Florida so we have ours going year round.

 

[Cilyjr]

heres a "finished" pic. i am guessing that like my reef tank it will be a work in progress as long as i own this home :regular_waving_emot....
ready to start planting around the pond i need to put in a tree of some kind to get some shade on the left side. water got up to around 83 degrees but its been 90 here the last couple days. speaking of which...what is an acceptable daily temp swing for the fish? i think i am getting about 6 degrees difference.

 

[j.w]

You could put in clumping bamboo, the kind that doesn't spread for a nice sun block :twisted: