Mi pawnd rebild tew

[fishin4cars]

Wow, what a change since the rebuild. It has really grown in nice. water looks so clear and the plants have really grown in nice! All that hard work is paying off!

 

[Shdwdrgn]

j.w - We technically live in a desert, so a lawn is nearly impossible here without a good sprinkler system. Not too much of a critter problem, almost every house around me has dogs, and the squirrels don't eat many fish :razz: The gravel area in the last pic is my quasi-bog area. It's relatively fast-moving water, but eventually it will be filled in heavily with all the grasses and rushes. I'm hoping this specific area will provide as much or more filtration as the two skippys, because I'll have a pretty heavy fish load once all the new koi and shubunkins grow in.

fishin - Yes, huge changes all around the yard. Now I'm not sure what to do in the other half, it feels so bare! Thanks once again for all the plants, it really helped jump-start the pond. Crossing my fingers that I'm done with the worst of the algae blooms, and next year won't require so many bottles of bacteria supplement.

 

[addy1]

That is looking great! You have done a wonderful job. For the rest of the yard dig a lily pond!

My plants have gone crazy next year will be offering freebies to anybody that wants some, or trades lol

 

[taherrmann4]

shdwdrgn something that you can put in front of the barrel filter and they grow fast is some sort of ornamental grass. They will grow fast and will give even give you cover throughout the winter if you dont cut them down until Feb and then in a month or two they are back to 3 or 4 feet tall depending on what type you get.

 

[Shdwdrgn]

I haven't had any luck with ornamental grasses in the past. I have a few new ones I put in this year - crossing my fingers and trying again, but I've never had any of them grow back again the next year. I'll keep trying though, because I really like them and eventually I'll find something that grows well.

 

[Shdwdrgn]

Well I cleaned out both barrels yesterday, and I'm still wondering if it was worth it... Shut down the pumps and drained the barrels out onto the lawn (the grass should LOVE that!), then got a bit more sludge out of the bottom with a bucket. Definitely a lot of crap hanging around in the bottom of the barrels. Hopefully with the new piping and a slower flow through the filters, that stuff will break down better next year. As it is, there is still suspended particles drifting through the pond water, but today it looks noticeably clearer than from before I started the cleaning. At least the filters have a good start for the upcoming Winter, and the fish should have some cleaner water.

I also got some dechlor ordered (finally). Wish I'd found this stuff sooner, I would have been more willing to do water changes over the Summer. At least this stuff will last me a LONG time... The bottle has enough for me to do 40 complete water changes (or 400 10% changes)... it will probably solidify before I have a chance to use it all.

And why am I still wondering if the filter cleaning was worth it? I messed up bad. While getting the last buckets up water out of the bottom of the barrel, one time I lifted and twisted wrong... and BADLY tweaked my back. Lots of drugs and an easy day later, and it still hurts to sit here, but it's starting to feel better. The worst part was I decided to finish up the second filter instead of stopping. Ugh. But at least my fish are happy!

 

[j.w]

Oh you are a glutton for punishment aren't you Shdwdrgn! Hope you feel all better soon so you can start on something else to keep you busy.

 

[Shdwdrgn]

*sigh* Looks like projects will be on hold for awhile. Extreme pain overnight, so saw my doctor today. He put me on flexeril 3x daily, and that stuff makes me really dopey. The good news is he thinks its just a badly pulled muscle, but when I woke up this morning it felt more like the rod in my femur was trying to claw its way out through my hip! I have to keep walking to a minimum, because even just boiling some spaghetti tonight was enough to send me back into pain this evening.

I did manage to get out and look at the pond today, though, and the water quality is definitely improving. Much less sediment floating in the water now. Its not crystal-clear, but at least it looks drinkable now.

I've been thinking about a new project for next year to try and put my graveled areas to better use. I'm considering laying down some small 3/4" sprinkler pipe (drilled for water flow through the sides) into the river bed, and bury it in the gravel. Then hook it to a small (maybe 500gph?) submersible pump that I can drop in the bottom of the larger pond. Seems like this would help stir up any sediment that gets into the gravel, and help ensure a good water flow from the bottom of the pond. On top of that, the gravel bed would have more functional surface area for filtering the water - more like a properly built bog. Anyone think this would work, even with the fast flow of water over the top of the gravel? The gravel itself is only a couple inches deep, but anything I can do to utilize it for filtering the water would be great.

 

[addy1]

Sorry about your back. It can really hurt, sending get well wishes your way.
Your pond will wait on you.
I hurt mine once, diving into a stream, did a u turn to miss a rock. Hurt for a year, ripped the ligaments.

The best cure is rest, lots of rest, and anti inflammatory meds like aspirin.

That is a good idea with your pipe, it will make it like a mini bog, sending the water through the gravel and plant roots.

 

[j.w]

Darn bodies keeping us from getting things done!
Hope you heal quickly Shdwdrgn.

 

[sissy]

hope you feel better and have to say what you started with and what you ended up with are amazing and you need to sit back and enjoy it for awhile .

 

[Shdwdrgn]

The water has really settled down this week, and the pond is looking nice and clear now! The water temp has dropped down to 50F this week and the fish are slowing down, so I'll need to find some Winter food real soon. At least the pond is ready for the season, and I'm curious to see what happens with the ice.

Too bad that's about the only thing that's gotten done. I've been taking it real easy, and essentially not getting any real work done, and yet I managed to pull my back again on Friday, and then again today. Been on a steady diet of muscle relaxers from my doctor, gotten a couple massage sessions to try and work it out, and it seems like its just getting worse. I still need to get a rail put on the new steps I built for the back porch before the ground freezes, but the chances of that seem to be getting further away.

Oh, I didn't mention before but we got a new used cat about a month ago. Picked up from a friend who doesn't have time to take care of her pets anymore, he's around 7 years old and already street-smart. He's been very curious about the pond, but cautious to approach, but he seems to be getting much more used to it now, and likes looking at the fish. He likes sitting up high where he can look into the water, but still afraid to get too close. I'm just waiting to see one of the big koi jump out of the water near him and splash him.

 

[j.w]

That's too bad about your back giving you more problems. It's supposed to get better, not worse. Hope you are resting and not doing too much........sounds like you might be feeling a bit better at times and maybe thinking you can do something perhaps that you shouldn't. Things can wait so take it easy and get well soon.

Nice that you took in a new pet. First I thought you were talking about a big piece of used equipment called a cat and thought oh no, now he's really gonna wreck himself up! Hope Mr Used Cat doesn't get to like your fish too well,lol!

 

[lotusfreak]

This has been an amazing project. thank you so much for sharing!!!!!

 

[Shdwdrgn]

Thanks, I appreciate it, and of course I love sharing!
Hopefully the pictures I uploaded here don't get lost. My storage drive got corrupted last week and I lost all the pictures from the last three months.