how to build a pond and waterfall

[addy1]

Thanks for splaining it to me LP............duh I should have know about the stone being your moo la,lol!

lol jw if was too dear you would not want to take a chance of breaking it, while drilling

 

[taherrmann4]

I looked, I got 2.25" of rain the last 3 days. Enough is enough! I already drained about an inch out of my pond over the weekend (used the skimmer-to-bog drain pipe) and tonight just let it run out while I fed the barn cats, horses, and checked on where the horses were (didn't find them either come to think of it ...). Hoping I got it down to at least where the skimmer can work properly.
I just looked back to the beginning here and see that this thread was started by "Littlepond", from Ireland. Can I assume that "Ponddigger" is the same person? I see the Ponddigger is ending the posts with "Littlepond", but I must have missed something along the way. Imagine that! LOL
Sissy, what did you try to order from Ebay that someone would not send to you, and you can get locally at $1.25?

Country why don't you put an overflow section in your pond and it will drain automatically so no worrying about your skimmer not working properly. My overflow maintains my pond level at the max level for the skimmer, the only thing I have to do is keep the leaves out of it during the fall, it looks very natural like a creek that leaves the pond. Now you would not be able to do this if your pond sits lower than the surrounding area.

 

[CountryEscape]

Todd, my pond is about 12" above ground level, so I could do that, but I've always been worried about things besides the water draining out! Like baby fish or turtles, tadpoles, etc. How do you keep them from rushing out with the water, or do you simply not worry about it? I will have to drain some more this weekend, I'm sure, as I didn't take long enough to drain what needed to be drained the other night. I could do that drain thing easy enough, by simply lowering the liner in between two of the landscape stones that are used for the outside wall, and just let it trickle out! But, then that area would probably remain muddy, and that is where I will eventually have a sidewalk or something walking around the pond, so I really need to do something so that it will go into maybe a french drain or something similar. Hate to get off topic, but what are your thoughts? Remember, my property is pretty level, although there is some drop, and the lowest part of the wall (no, I didn't use a transit, so my wall is not totally level LOL) is on the skimmer end, and where I walk around to the bog.

 

[taherrmann4]

I never worried about it and it is not that large of an area and there is not that much of a rush of water that goes down it. As the pond gradually fills when it hits that point it just slowly drains, don't see how a fish or turtle would be able to get caught in it. Now when you have one of those once a year downpours yes it will pick up in force but still I think the fish and stuff are smart enough to not get in it. My skimmer has a line on it where you should keep your pond level and I used this as the high point for the pond and just adjusted the overflow to that point. Took some minor adjustments but I have never had a problem with it.

This is the location of the overflow point


This is what the creek that I built for the overflow area, it goes to a drain which then takes the water off my property.


This is looking at the overflow point from the pond view, you really can't see it, it is located just to the right of that reed.

 

[taherrmann4]

Country to clarify my overflow creek is lined with an old piece of liner that goes into a drain, so it fits into the landscaping quite well I think. You could do the same thing and if you are going to put landscaping on that side of the pond you could even put a bridge over the dry stream bed, then have the dry stream go for about 10 feet into a french drain. I had the same problem with my yard always being wet, but not just because of the pond overflow but because my whole yard and other yards seem to drain through my backyard. I really put my pond in the low spot of the yard, and have had to install drains to get the water from one side of the pond to the other and then off the property. I should have planned better but that was my learning curve.

 

[ponddigger]

hi all from ireland.lovely photos of your pond taherrmann4.to day i put a small pipe into the barrel to hold the granite pier post ,then fill around the granite post with half in stones .this made the post very secure.filled up the rest of the basin with 2in round stone :razz: littlepond :razz:

 

[sissy]

looks great littlepond and know what you mean I tried to get into the pond sight here before and a virus some how got through and tried to infect my puter .Said it was a trojan not sure why it came on and how .I guess someones on the prowl to infect sights at christmas time took over an hour to double scan and isolate it .Gosh little pond you are really working hard

 

[j.w]

You'll soon have it all done and bubbling away! Looking good!

 

[CountryEscape]

Littlepond, I can't wait to see it bubbling away! Can't wait to see the finished project. You do great work, and it's fun to watch your projects take shape.

Todd, my yard is pretty flat, but I got to thinking your idea would work since my pond is above ground level. If I can figure out a way to have there be a sort of "step" for the water to flow onto and then down from there and away. You have given me some really neat ideas to work with. I'm thinking of adding or expanding my bog on the corner of the end with the skimmer and where an overflow would go, so that would work well, too. And, it happens to be the lowest part of the area around the pond, too. More ideas and planning for the spring.

 

[addy1]

I stacked some rocks at our low point of the liner, which is the overflow. They keep the fish, tads etc from deciding to go for a ride out of the pond into the dirt. When we get a good rain fall, the overflow is like a small waterfall, which then flows into the back field via a "dry" gravel bed.

 

[sissy]

I put a pipe in mine with one of those grate covers over it and this way anything under a half inch can't get through it .The cover is one of those green ones you put in the ground and I put it under and back of my one waterfall and if anything starts to clog it I just brush it off .My neighbors we put it in her waterfall weir as it is a deep one and just put the hole at the top of it with a shower drain cover so nothing could get sucked in .It is behind the clean out basket .Behind the pipe we just put a small area of stones like a dry creek bed .

 

[ponddigger]

hi all from ireland.finished bubbling rock ,also finished timber fence :razz: littlepond :razz:

 

[ponddigger]

sorry no photos

 

[sissy]

very nice little pond and I love the rocks you chose and I really like that placement with the rustic fence back ground.You did the timber fence gosh your really good at everything you do .

 

[j.w]

Very nice job on both fence and bubbling rock!