Here we go...

[Waterbug]

Best tool for checking levels is a water level. Cheap and butt easy to use.

Beyond water nothing else is "required" for a pond. Places for fish to hide are an idea, and fish do like to hide. But I'm not sure how much protection they provide. When a fish is taken by a Heron it's because the fish had no idea the Heron was there. Waiting is what Herons do for a living. Raccons would love for a fish to hide in a pipe where they'd be trapped. We have a deal with Goldfish and Koi, we bred them to be looked at, we build ponds so we can look at them. Their end of the bargin is they be visible. That said, people genrally weigh down large diameter PVC pipe or clay pipe for hideouts.

I've never heard of anyone ever complain that their pond was too deep. Deeper has lots of up sides.

The Skippy filter is very popular amoung Water Gardeners but not used outside of this hobby. The reason is water gardens generally don't require a filter. Fish farmers, high end Koi ponds and other high fish load applications require filters for the fish to stay alive so they're more focused on what works and what doesn't. They also focus on solutions to problems, like ammonia. They use filters specifically to remove ammonia. Other kinds of filters to remove other specific things. A Skippy is said to do everything. Remove ammonia, muck, algae, you name it. Sounds really good. But it does none of those things very well, which is OK when no filter is actually needed. They are great fun to make however.

 

[koiguy1969]

i use a koiguy skippy "style" filter on both of my ponds, indoors and out, i just different use media,(and prefilters).. now my basement pond is under 2, 4' flourecent bulbs. theres no sun, so no plants, no rocks, or other large decorative items in the pond to provide surface area for bacterrial colonization. yet my water is pristine, gin clear and maintains ideal parameters. for a filter that doesnt do anything, well mine sure does a fantastic job for me. i installed a flushvalve, as most folks here did, my basement ponds filter is made with a 55 gallon plastic barrel and the outdoor is a 70 gal stocktank. i move my filter media between filters as i move the fish. and as you can see if you watch my videos or see my pics i dont have a lightly stocked pond... in the area of 250 inches of fish in 800 gals of water. oh and i feed 3 times a day.
i did however, also build and install a waterfall weir on mine. this aside of making a much better waterfall,allows the use of all of the tank right up to an inch or so from the top..on theirs, you loose a good portion of the tanks volume. even if you put a toilet flange as close to the top as you can you loose alot of volume. you can see the water will start to leave the tank 1/2 way down...mine, 3" or so from the top.
first pic is theirs ...the others mine!

 

[taherrmann4]

Hopefully the leveling process will not be as hard as I'm making it. :razz: Todd after looking at some of your pictures it helps alot. Why do you wish you had made yours 4 ft deep? Do you have Koi in your ponds? We have also been told that since we want Koi, they need some sort of "tunnel or cave" to be able to hide from any predators. What has everyone used in their ponds for this purpose?

Basically as Larkin explained in the following posts of your question. I would like it deeper b/c yes i have 3 koi, it would also help give the fish a cooler place to stay when it gets really hot in the summer and to help protect them from predators. There are always things you will look back on and say why didn't I do this or that, this forum can help minimize a lot of those but ultimately it is up to you and what you want to do we are all just people giving what has worked or what we would do differently.

Keep asking questions it is the only way you learn and we kinda like to give pointers.

 

[pondlover]

I will gladly take all the pointers thrown this way. :razz:

 

[sissy]

deeper is always better in cold or hot weather .I notice my koi always end up at the deepest part of the pond winter and summer or under the bridge

 

[pondlover]

We are making some progress on the pond. I think we are done with the majority of the digging. Now we will begin to shape the shelves and smoothing the inside walls some. I have painted the level where the bottom of shelves will be. We have built up the low side and I want to really make sure that we've done it right. Any suggestions from anyone on our site?

I would like to know how everyone feels on a submersible pump or external pump? As for putting the skimmer in, I have also painted a possible site for that. We are still uncertain on whether we can make our own. We are planning on using the 100 gal. stock tank that I've seen on the forum here. We are planning on getting the underlayment and liner this week (weather permitting). This is really fun for my husband and I. I am learning so much here.

 

[sissy]

I like submersible it seems to stay cooler in the water and lowes has some good ones called pondsmart pumps if you have a lowes by you .I guess it will be up to you and maybe others can tell you that have out of pond pumps .I have 2 pupms that give you a choice of in water or out of water it is how you hook up the hose to it and if you feel you need a skimmer .I don't need one because there are no trees nearby to blow anything in the pond .That you will have more knowledge on your sight by .Try to make sure you feel around the bottom to make sure there are no rocks .I put sand on the bottom and on my shelves as extra precaution .You never now and sand is cheap

 

[j.w]

I've never used an external and I do like my pondmaster mag drive submersible and mine has been running steady for around 9yrs now but I hear Laguna's are more energy efficient and a very good pump also. Lot's here use and like their externals and can let ya know more about the ones they like.

 

[Waterbug]

For a small Water Garden I like submersible. Cheap, quiet, easy to replace. External for high volume and in this type of pond there's normally a place for the pump that makes noise less of an issue. Externals are pretty quiet, but on a calm summer evening they can bother some people.

 

[pondlover]

Does your submersible go in your skimmer box? We don't have many trees, we do get some leaves blown in the pool, but not many. I was thinking of using the swimming pool skimmer and hooking the external pump to skimmer then to bio tank that will also double as a waterfall as koipond ponderer has done. Do I need to cover the stock tank? Seems like it might be a tad but ugly to look at with no lid. :sad:

 

[addy1]

I used a wide mouth hayward pool skimmer, that sucker pulls the leaves into very well. I put my skimmer on the dominate downwind side, i.e. to the east. Most of our wind comes from the west. The water fall from the stream and bog are on the west side of the pond, which also pushes the water and debris towards the skimmer.

I like external pumps, they are quiet, my sequence and my dragon pumps you don't really even hear them unless standing right next to them. I have not compared operating cost recently, but from what I recall the external pumps tend to be less expensive i.e. electricity costs. I prefer to be able to go down clean the leaf basket and be done with the pump cleaning.

You could cover the stock tank or put some plants in it, get some bio filtration.

I hooked up the skimmer and the pond bottom draw to the pump with ball valves on the lines to be able to direct the draw. I have the skimmer running full blast when we are having the leaf dump in the fall, or the flower dump in the spring. Ow it is running about 1/2 draw.

 

[sissy]

The most important thing you want to look at is the energy use ,you sure dont want that to go up when energy rates are not going down anytime soon .You sure don't want that first surprise .The other is make sure you get enough gph because the longer the hose and the higher up it has to run the less gph you will get and if you want decorative spitters or oor fountain you may want a small pump also just for them .If the pump you buy has an extended warranty ,buy it .I like having an extra pump anyway if something goes wrong with your main pump you still have something workng while it is being fixed and the other cheaper pump is great to use in the winter when you shut down your waterfall .Submersible is easier to just shut down and leave it where it is ,but with external pump you will have to unhook it and store it somewhere .These are things you need to think about and how much time you will have to do that stuff .I don't have a skimmer ,I don't need one no leaves .You may want to think about an aerator also in the future .Remember also to have plenty of electrical outlets by your pond ,that way they can handle lights ,pumps ,aerator and whatever else you might want to plug in ,more is better .Try to make it so that when you mow grass does not get thrown into the pond .

 

[pondlover]

We don't have any trees near the site of our pond, which is going to be right next to our pool. So I'm wondering if I even need a skimmer. If your not using a skimmer, what is your plumbing setup? Do you just have something in bottom of pond that draws water up to the filter/fall? Our pond is going to be 10x12x3 and we have just purchased the 100 gal rubbermaid stock tank to use as the biol-filter and/or waterfall. Does anyone think this is overkill? The 100 gal tank just looks so huge. Would a 55 gal drum be sufficient?

 

[koiguy1969]

use dirt from your dig ..once you build up the "hill" or mound around the stocktank and the stones, and landscape are done on the mound. the tank will virtually dissappear. i use a 70 gallon stocktank myself. here are some pics of mine... better to have more filtration than you need than not enough...

i dont know how you plan to stock your pond, but like most folks you probably want to stock as heavy as possible...

 

[pondlover]

Koiguy I love your pond. I can't wait for mine to be done. Do you have a skimmer in your pond? I think we are going with Addy1's idea and get a pool skimmer. We haven't decided on what type of pump we will use. Hubby is going to begin doing the trenching for the plumbing. If we use a submersible pump, I'm a bit confused on where it is actually housed. Your detailed thread on how to build the skippy type filter is fabulous. Did you use a whole saw to cut your holes or a jig saw?