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How about a little aerator, just to move the water around some.
Michey1st's Maryland Pond Upgrade Thread
- Thread starter michey1st
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I've got a tiny aquarium aerator, but I don't think that's rated for outside use. Now that I think of it, I don't have electricity close to where I set up the preform. ACK!!!! Guess I will be doing some partial water changes over the course of the next few weeks...
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Drag an extension cord, my pond ran on a extension cord for 3.5 years, my electrician husband never got around to hard wiring it...............
Just cover the end so it does not get rain wet, I always put mine under a bucket.
Just cover the end so it does not get rain wet, I always put mine under a bucket.
The only outlet I have in the back already has a bunch of stuff plugged in to it so i'll have to do some retooling, but I think I can make it work. I have been meaning to buy a pond aerator anyway...
Where there is a will, there's a way, right? =D
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Yep!
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Great looking project, michey1st.
I totally sympathize with saving the tadpoles.
I had some fish eggs come with some floating plants I bought. I set up a completely separate system to help them survive.
Free fish (or tadpoles) can be expensive!
I totally sympathize with saving the tadpoles.
I had some fish eggs come with some floating plants I bought. I set up a completely separate system to help them survive.
Free fish (or tadpoles) can be expensive!
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With ponds it is often where there is a credit card there is a way...
Your new pond is really taking shape. Great job!
LOL! No joke! At work, we like to use the saying "free like a puppy" for all the different open source software solutions that are out there. Guess it holds true for us ponders as well ;-)Great looking project, michey1st.
I totally sympathize with saving the tadpoles.
I had some fish eggs come with some floating plants I bought. I set up a completely separate system to help them survive.
Free fish (or tadpoles) can be expensive!
Thank you! Between the liner, my new aerator and all the nuts and bolts to try and jerry-rig a "cheap" skimmer together, my discover card is smoking this month! Kinda fun right now, but ask me again when I get my bill >.<
Overall progress for today!
We got the berm fairly level, and after assessing the sitch, have changed our plan slightly. Originally, the top of the berm was going to be the water line, but after assessing things on our slope, we changed it up a bit. Here's what the back side of the pond has to look like to keep the berm at ground level on the opposite side:
And here's a shot looking up towards the house/street:
I knew we'd have a hill to contend with, but at this point, we didn't want to make it any higher than necessary.
So, instead, this berm is the tippy top -- a single stone will rest above it -- and we started carving out ledges a few inches down so we have rocks emerging from the waterline.
Here, you can see the ledge. The right side of the photo is the high part of the yard. We will take the rocks and liner all the way to the top, but the water line will still end up being 3-4 inches down or so on this side. On the left side, it will be much higher. We also plan on narrowing the ledge since we are using stacked stone that isn't all that wide.
This whole ledge and berm thing will evolve as the liner gets put in and we have a waterline showing us the true level. From what we have done, we are pretty close, but i won't be shocked if it ends up being off.
Overall progress for posterity's sake:
Up for the rest of the week is finishing out that ledge, dig down to the full depth, and trying to come up with some way to retain the berm on the back side. I don't think we have enough rocks to do the whole thing (outside and inside) like we have done the middle pond and bog. Might need to do some temporary retaining measures while we figure it out.
We're supposed to get rain on Wednesday. Time to buy stock in a tarp company ;-)
We got the berm fairly level, and after assessing the sitch, have changed our plan slightly. Originally, the top of the berm was going to be the water line, but after assessing things on our slope, we changed it up a bit. Here's what the back side of the pond has to look like to keep the berm at ground level on the opposite side:
And here's a shot looking up towards the house/street:
I knew we'd have a hill to contend with, but at this point, we didn't want to make it any higher than necessary.
So, instead, this berm is the tippy top -- a single stone will rest above it -- and we started carving out ledges a few inches down so we have rocks emerging from the waterline.
Here, you can see the ledge. The right side of the photo is the high part of the yard. We will take the rocks and liner all the way to the top, but the water line will still end up being 3-4 inches down or so on this side. On the left side, it will be much higher. We also plan on narrowing the ledge since we are using stacked stone that isn't all that wide.
This whole ledge and berm thing will evolve as the liner gets put in and we have a waterline showing us the true level. From what we have done, we are pretty close, but i won't be shocked if it ends up being off.
Overall progress for posterity's sake:
Up for the rest of the week is finishing out that ledge, dig down to the full depth, and trying to come up with some way to retain the berm on the back side. I don't think we have enough rocks to do the whole thing (outside and inside) like we have done the middle pond and bog. Might need to do some temporary retaining measures while we figure it out.
We're supposed to get rain on Wednesday. Time to buy stock in a tarp company ;-)
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I planted my berm, the down hill side of my pond is built up around 8 feet to make the pond level, the top slope side is dug down 3-4 feet. Now it looks like a level spot, everything has grown up in and around the rocks, dirt etc. Sort of blended in. You don't really notice it until you walk on the down hill side of the berm and look up at this wall of plants.
I got mini sea oats to cover the berm, totally coves the back side.
I got mini sea oats to cover the berm, totally coves the back side.
Addy, you are a trove of information! I was hoping to plant it as well, but i'm a little worried we'll loose soil while the plants grow in. If we do have any extra clay, I plan to make the slope a little less severe. Hopefully a good covering of mulch will help too.
I've got this grass that grows like crazy (canary ribbon grass). Spreads by runners and really gets down in the soil. It's beautiful (green and white varigated) Unfortunately, it's considered an invasive non-native. Being so close to a county-maintained forest, I feel a bit bad proliferating it for fear it goes out of bounds. But it would definitely do the job.
I've got this grass that grows like crazy (canary ribbon grass). Spreads by runners and really gets down in the soil. It's beautiful (green and white varigated) Unfortunately, it's considered an invasive non-native. Being so close to a county-maintained forest, I feel a bit bad proliferating it for fear it goes out of bounds. But it would definitely do the job.
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I let it rain on my berm, it helped settle the dirt, pack it and also found low spots that needed fixing.
I've been toting this freebie pool cover around for the last 3 years... I KNEW i'd find a use for it eventually!
We are trying to protect the hole and surrounding berm as much as possible, and this cover is the perfect size. Chance of rain every night this week, with the best possibility Wednesday and Saturday -_- When the liner arrives on Thursday, we may just put it in temporarily until all this crazy weather nonsense subsides.
We are trying to protect the hole and surrounding berm as much as possible, and this cover is the perfect size. Chance of rain every night this week, with the best possibility Wednesday and Saturday -_- When the liner arrives on Thursday, we may just put it in temporarily until all this crazy weather nonsense subsides.
Today we are under the gun to get the liner in. Full day of rain and storms predicted for tomorrow >.< Would be nice to catch a little rainfall in the new pond!
Soooo.... here's the pond liner softening up in the sun. It's 20 x 25 and weighs over 120 lbs!
Straight on view of the waterfall. House is to the right and the yard slopes down to the left. Just a few more inches to go!
Nuther view looking up towards the house/patio. You can sort of see the ledge we created for the stacked stone. Here's hoping it's level, but if not, we can adjust as we add water.
One last shot from the patio. In my head, it looks AMAZEBALLS. Right now, it's a mess!
And just for kicks, spied this pretty shroom growing in our tree stump. It positively shines as the sun is passing over!
Next up, finish digging & smoothing out. We are going to put carpet down on the side closest to the Japanese magnolia, as we started to hit small tree roots about a foot down. Then, underlayment and liner! We have A TON of soil, so are only going down 30" at the deepest, and then using all the left-over soil to go up a bit higher than originally planned.
God willing we get it done today, but contingency plan is to get as far as we can, then just put the liner in to protect the hole for the predicted storms tomorrow. Then, pull it out and finish up, if deemed necessary.
The sun is at its peak right now, so we are taking a break for a few hours. PHEW!
Soooo.... here's the pond liner softening up in the sun. It's 20 x 25 and weighs over 120 lbs!
Straight on view of the waterfall. House is to the right and the yard slopes down to the left. Just a few more inches to go!
Nuther view looking up towards the house/patio. You can sort of see the ledge we created for the stacked stone. Here's hoping it's level, but if not, we can adjust as we add water.
One last shot from the patio. In my head, it looks AMAZEBALLS. Right now, it's a mess!
And just for kicks, spied this pretty shroom growing in our tree stump. It positively shines as the sun is passing over!
Next up, finish digging & smoothing out. We are going to put carpet down on the side closest to the Japanese magnolia, as we started to hit small tree roots about a foot down. Then, underlayment and liner! We have A TON of soil, so are only going down 30" at the deepest, and then using all the left-over soil to go up a bit higher than originally planned.
God willing we get it done today, but contingency plan is to get as far as we can, then just put the liner in to protect the hole for the predicted storms tomorrow. Then, pull it out and finish up, if deemed necessary.
The sun is at its peak right now, so we are taking a break for a few hours. PHEW!