Hi from Montana!

[addy1]

looking good

 

[j.w]

You are really going to like that when you get all done. I love the way my little ledge w/ rocks on it hides the liner and makes it look more natural.

 

[callingcolleen1]

Lets hope the weather gets nice and hot again for a while, cause I need to get work done outside too. Maybe some of that hot air from Effingham will blow up our way, wind is sure blowing right now high up in the tree tops!

I see a fish is watching you make his pond shelf too! :goldfish:

 

[CountryEscape]

Colleen, I'll try to send you some of this warm weather, but it's not very hot at all, just beautiful fall temps!
MT, that is looking awesome! I want my stream to look like that, with a ledge for the rocks on the ledge, fading to more rocks on the upper edge. Like JW says, it's a perfect way to hide the liner on the outside edge and make it look more natural. Lots of things I would do differently if I rebuilt my pond .... that's one of them! You have such beautiful rocks to use, too! Can't wait to see it when it's all done. Best part of cooler weather is you don't sweat nearly as much as hot weather. :blueflower:

 

[mtpond]

I agree with you CE I would also of done things different when I built my pond knowing what I know now. Number one I could of saved myself a lot of work if I hadn't put all those rocks in the pond. I have to admit though the first year the rocks in the pond did look good. There's some of the things I can change and make better without relocating the fish ( like I'm doing with the rock issue right now). I made a little more progress with the edge on Sunday. The weather hasn't been that great so I haven't been spending to much time outside. Hubby keeps asking me are you done with the rocks, my reply does it look like I'm done? LOL
Yes Colleen the fish have been curious of what's going on with their home. When I'm out there working they come right up to the top of the pond to check things out.

 

[CountryEscape]

Oh, my no wonder it's taking you so long. You are integrating plants on the edge, and making a masterpiece with the edging. Fine job, too! Keep working, we love to see others work and posting pics of their progress. This is a lot of progress, if you ask me.
Now, what I want to know is if you were on this forum and asked about rocks in the pond BEFORE they were put there! And, if so, what were the replies from other ponders. Any rock that falls to the bottom of my pond quickly gets disguised with moss/algae unless I take it out right away. Usually I feel with my feet while in the pond pruning lily leaves in the summer and wonder how many of them got there! Guess the dogs stand on the edge more than I think, or maybe it's the neighbor dog ...

 

[j.w]

Good also MT it looks like your pond edge is up higher than the ground around it so you won't get any runoff from heavy rains. It is looking very nice! If you would have had places around it that were not higher up then the ground you could also have folded the edge of the liner back over the rocks and then topped it off w/ more rocks to hide the liner so no runoff could enter. Rocks can be placed anywhere around any part of the liner around that flipped over edge to hide it. I sure can't say enough good things about rocks :biggrin:

 

[mtpond]

CE I didn't find this forum until 6 months after I had built my pond. I'm also on a couple other forums but I had build my pond before I was on them too. I was watching a lot of YouTube and as you know a lot of the pond builders put rocks In the ponds that they build and I thought they were beautiful. I also put a fish cave in my pond and I have seen a few fish in it at different times but for the most part I think it just takes up space on the bottom of the pond. So next year when I redo the right side of the pond and take out the rocks the fish cave just might go away. I have learned a lot of do's and don't in the short time that I have had my pond and so now I'm working to make it better.

 

[Big Lou]

........fish cave in my pond and I have seen a few fish in it at different times .......

I encourage you to have some type of hiding place in your pond. Fish appreciate such cover when they sense a threat.

 

[CountryEscape]

I agree, I would not take up that much space if you built your fish cave with rocks, but agree with Lou, make sure you DO have something for them to get into or under. I love the idea someone on here recommended. Get one or two of those stackable shelf units from like Menards, Home Depot, etc. If you turn them upside down, they look like an open garage. They have holes all the way around the other 3 sides, and no sharp edges. I use them as double purpose, putting lily pots on them in the middle of the pond. The fish go there in the winter a LOT, and it also gives them an area to hide if a predator shows up. They don't take up much space, water can circulate through them, and are double purpose. Win-win deal!
Yes, pond builders like the idea of rocks IN your pond because it costs far more to build the pond. What they don't tell you is that after about a year, you can't even tell there are beautiful rocks down there anymore ... they are covered with silt and algae. They do look beautiful when first put there, though, I totally agree.

 

[Big Lou]

I used half of an old urn. Looked good and made a great shelter.

 

[rebelangel_3733]

I have a black milk crate with "doors" cut out for them to get into on the second level (about 2 1/2 ft down) of my pond (made a shelf specifically for it) and I filed/sanded the edges of the "doors" so they wouldn't hurt themselves going in and out. It holds my bubbler on top of it with some heavy rocks to keep it from floating and actually that was one of the first thing my fish did when I put them in the new pond, checked out their hiding spot. I've seen them swim through a few times, but it's just reassuring to me that they have somewhere to go if they needed to although we live in town and have a 6' fence around the yard.

 

[j.w]

I don't have a lot of room on my pond bottom so my fish just have that floating plant ring that is about 3ft in diameter to hide under. It does the job and I am able to net the bottom easier under my conditions. They hang out under it in the winter a lot, maybe it's warmer under there?

 

[rebelangel_3733]

Ive notice since the temps have cooled and the pond is mostly in the shade now that my fish like to hang out under the bubbler although when I come out there they scurry right on up to the middle or edge cuz they think I'm going to feed them lol

 

[mtpond]

For the last two winters my fish have layed on the bottom of the pond on the right side next to the rocks. But as the pond has been cooling down this year they are laying in the front of the pond where I have takin the rocks out. If my pond starts freezing over the right side of the pond freezes over first so I believe that's why they stay over there cause the pond bottom will warm up some. Guess I'll see where they end up this year. Thinking maybe where the rocks are gone it will be warmer.?????
Put a few more rocks around the pond tonight when I was out with the dogs, no rain but still on the chilly side. If I wasn't so picky on my rock placement, even tho it's been cold I would be done. When we were first building the pond the rocks that I was placing on the side of the pond you could walk up to the top of the pond and no rocks would fall but where hubby placed the rocks you couldn't walk up without them falling. LOL I'm on a mission to finish the project this weekend so we can get the extra rock off the yard.