Auto-top off ideas?

[Lisak1]

Remind me again - how big is your pond going to be? 50 gallons just isn't going to make a difference, unless we're talking 300 gallon pond. If our pond loses 50 gallons of water, we wouldn't even notice. Some years we barely add water at all to the pond. This year we're in a drought with extreme heat in June and right now we're topping off daily.

I mean - your pond, your decision, but I would just cut out the "middle man" and plumb your drip right to the pond. Until you've actually built it and experienced the amount of water loss you'll experience, how will you calculate what the right amount of drip will be?

 

[Jagsfan]

Remind me again - how big is your pond going to be? 50 gallons just isn't going to make a difference, unless we're talking 300 gallon pond. If our pond loses 50 gallons of water, we wouldn't even notice. Some years we barely add water at all to the pond. This year we're in a drought with extreme heat in June and right now we're topping off daily.

I mean - your pond, your decision, but I would just cut out the "middle man" and plumb your drip right to the pond. Until you've actually built it and experienced the amount of water loss you'll experience, how will you calculate what the right amount of drip will be?

My pond will be 9x5x3, with a thin layer of gravel on the bottom but the sides will be bare liner(except for the water line) so it should be pretty close to 1000 gallons. I have no idea how much water will evaporate, but I've ordered 2 different emitters. One that will allow 12 gallons per day and another that will allow 24 gallons per day. The pond is never in direct sun and is shaded for most the day, but if 24 gallons a day isnt enough i could go up to 48 or 62. With the overflow pipe installed, i wouldnt mind filling a little more than what is evaporating. I know some days it will evaporate more than others and it wont be a set amount each day, then you throw in rainy days and its getting even more water. But the thought is to always be putting water in to help compensate. I dont want to have to fill it by hand everyday. Hopefully i can get it dialed in enough to were it fills (or overfills) itself on a regular basis.

 

[Rashad]

Hey thought I’d jump in on this thread. Any ideas for how to just attach an auto fill valve to the side of the pond somewhere? Stick it between some rocks or something? I have a nearby hose bib connected to my well that I could use and just hide the hose, but the water level in my pump vault is too high to attach the valve to the side of it.

 

[Lisak1]

I'd have to imagine there are a myriad of ways to include an autofill in a pond build. We included ours by finishing the pond, looking around and realizing we had completely forgotten it! My one big regret... now my husband knows every single time the pond needs water! haha!

The one we had was a Hudson float valve - no idea how it works though!