New house with old pond Brown water issues.

[brokensword]

Here's what I did (and should have done);

Dug my hole and be sure to slope the sides ( I should have sloped to form a funnel toward the lowest part, which is where the bottom of your cleanout is to be). Sloping is very important for backflush success.

Dig your hole/bed; slope the sides so a funnel is formed with one low point for the cleanout. Your bog should have a low end for the cleanout. Down the center, dig out a trench; this is where the distribution pipe will go (it connects at one end to your pump and at the other, the cleanout bottom).
Lay in your liner.
Lay in your distribution piping. Your distribution pipe can be a corrugated plastic drain tile with slits cut every 4" or so. The slits should only be halfway through the 4" drain piping. You can use a chainsaw to do the cutting.

Connect the distrib pipe to the cleanout.

Connect your tubing from pump to the other end of your distrib pipe. They make adaptors for flex pvc to corrugated drain tile piping.

A 12" corrugated plastic drain pipe works well for a cleanout, especially since you can get a top (cap) for it (which you'll want). This is placed in the lowest part of your bog. This is where the cleanout is. The cleanout goes from here to the surface of your bog. Mine is about 40".

Next, lay in your layers of stone; first layer is larger stone, 4-6", round river rock. Don't use any sharp edged stones.
Next layer is smaller stone; 2" round rock. I have 18" or so of this layer.
Last layer is pea gravel; I have about 24".
You put a top on your cleanout but cut a small hole (1/2-1") near the top of your cleanout. I forget the reason why but it's necessary. Plan on having the top be just below your gravel level so as not to attract any mosquito activity. Place a rock on top to mark where the cleanout is for future backflushing.

Plants are the last step.

Due to my own experience of a clogged bog, with Meyer's help, I designed a prefilter that is working very well. I stopped the above pond pump input to the bog and instead, shifted it to the prefilter. The output of the prefilter then goes into my cleanout and down into the bog. I had to retrofit but you can design from the beginning to do similar if the idea has appeal. My way though, I have options in case I want to go back to pushing water straight from the pond to the bog.

My prefilter looks like this; a 55 gallon barrel with 1-1/2" top inlet from the submersible pump and 1-1/2" bottom outlet. Inside, I made a 'tube sock' filter. It's fairly easy as it's an aquarium idea; I just oversized the concept and used plastic webbing to hold my filter. I think I have about 1400 sq inches of filtering capacity. To provide for clogging of filter, I made the tube sock smaller than my barrel (and shorter in height) so IF the sock gets filled and I don't notice, the over flow spills over the sock's edge and between the filter and barrel wall, where it still can escape out the bottom outlet.

A nice feature is I can easily get at my filter as it's above ground. I'm looking to get at least half a summer out of the filter before either replacing or cleaning occurs. So far, so good. I camouflaged my barrel with some hunter's pattern material. You can also hide it with plantings/landscaping or paint it.

So basically, I have a gravity fed bog. Use unions and valves to allow easy access, variable flows, and shutoff, etc.

Now, I'll plan on backflusing once in the fall as I cleanup the plantings before winter. Should only take one backflush since the larger particles are now being filtered out. That said, it took over 3 years before my bog gummed up. Mine is a lot smaller than yours and I'm sure that played a part as I was making my bog both a mechanical and bio filter. Now, it's bio only.

Hope this helps.

Michael

 

[rellascout]

Here's what I did (and should have done);

Dug my hole and be sure to slope the sides ( I should have sloped to form a funnel toward the lowest part, which is where the bottom of your cleanout is to be). Sloping is very important for backflush success.

Dig your hole/bed; slope the sides so a funnel is formed with one low point for the cleanout. Your bog should have a low end for the cleanout. Down the center, dig out a trench; this is where the distribution pipe will go (it connects at one end to your pump and at the other, the cleanout bottom).
Lay in your liner.
Lay in your distribution piping. Your distribution pipe can be a corrugated plastic drain tile with slits cut every 4" or so. The slits should only be halfway through the 4" drain piping. You can use a chainsaw to do the cutting.

Connect the distrib pipe to the cleanout.

Connect your tubing from pump to the other end of your distrib pipe. They make adaptors for flex pvc to corrugated drain tile piping.

A 12" corrugated plastic drain pipe works well for a cleanout, especially since you can get a top (cap) for it (which you'll want). This is placed in the lowest part of your bog. This is where the cleanout is. The cleanout goes from here to the surface of your bog. Mine is about 40".

Next, lay in your layers of stone; first layer is larger stone, 4-6", round river rock. Don't use any sharp edged stones.
Next layer is smaller stone; 2" round rock. I have 18" or so of this layer.
Last layer is pea gravel; I have about 24".
You put a top on your cleanout but cut a small hole (1/2-1") near the top of your cleanout. I forget the reason why but it's necessary. Plan on having the top be just below your gravel level so as not to attract any mosquito activity. Place a rock on top to mark where the cleanout is for future backflushing.

Plants are the last step.

Due to my own experience of a clogged bog, with Meyer's help, I designed a prefilter that is working very well. I stopped the above pond pump input to the bog and instead, shifted it to the prefilter. The output of the prefilter then goes into my cleanout and down into the bog. I had to retrofit but you can design from the beginning to do similar if the idea has appeal. My way though, I have options in case I want to go back to pushing water straight from the pond to the bog.

My prefilter looks like this; a 55 gallon barrel with 1-1/2" top inlet from the submersible pump and 1-1/2" bottom outlet. Inside, I made a 'tube sock' filter. It's fairly easy as it's an aquarium idea; I just oversized the concept and used plastic webbing to hold my filter. I think I have about 1400 sq inches of filtering capacity. To provide for clogging of filter, I made the tube sock smaller than my barrel (and shorter in height) so IF the sock gets filled and I don't notice, the over flow spills over the sock's edge and between the filter and barrel wall, where it still can escape out the bottom outlet.

A nice feature is I can easily get at my filter as it's above ground. I'm looking to get at least half a summer out of the filter before either replacing or cleaning occurs. So far, so good. I camouflaged my barrel with some hunter's pattern material. You can also hide it with plantings/landscaping or paint it.

So basically, I have a gravity fed bog. Use unions and valves to allow easy access, variable flows, and shutoff, etc.

Now, I'll plan on backflusing once in the fall as I cleanup the plantings before winter. Should only take one backflush since the larger particles are now being filtered out. That said, it took over 3 years before my bog gummed up. Mine is a lot smaller than yours and I'm sure that played a part as I was making my bog both a mechanical and bio filter. Now, it's bio only.

Hope this helps.

Michael

Thank you this is the kind of info I am looking for. Did you use single or double walled corrugated plastic drain pipe. I read somewhere that double walled was preferred. I am looking to add a prefilter similar to yours so any diagrams or more info you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

 

[brokensword]

I used single walled. The first layer of rock more or less protects the distribution pipe from the rock on top of it. I'll include some of my diagrams from the last upgrade as well as the link to the site from which I got my bog design.

http://www.bogfiltration.com/making_your_own_upflow_bog_filte.html

My system and design for new pump outflow + drum sock mech filter.

I shut the valve to the bog (original feed) and now it serves only the waterfall with the second new line feeing the drum filter which feeds the bog (through) the cleanout.

 

[rellascout]

Thanks brokensword that looks awesome. I found the sane site for the bog filter setup. I am interested in the sock filter. I would use it to feed the bog which feeds the stream which empties into the pond.

 

[brokensword]

What I did was to buy some plastic chicken wire (to form a rigid shell so the sock filter would stand up) and used it to make a 'pouch'. That is, sewn (using string trimmer string) on three sides with the top left open in case I want to replace the actual filter material. The filter material itself I got from a fabric store; use something that is not treated (should say that it's flammable). It's a felt-like material that will let water pass but collect as a filter material should. I cut this and slipped it inside the chicken wire mesh pouch. Then I formed a cylinder and sewed that up too. I took more chicken wire and made a bottom piece and sewed that as well. So, I can replace easily the cylinder filter (or I can take the whole thing out and hose it down to clean it) but the bottom I'll have to 'unsew' if I want to replace that one. Using the string trimmer string makes sewing/unsewing easy. And I hope to do this only once a year. So far, it seems I may get that full year out of it and instead of washing the filter, I'll probably just make a new one. I think the felt material was like $12 and I bought 90" of it.

Leaving a gap between the flexible filter housing and the drum allows the water to overflow the sock IF it gets clogged and I'm not paying attention. Recently I've been thinking I'll add another outlet at the bottom so I can run the filter full and NOT have the water come up full force through the bog. Just gives me max flow through re filter and I can still valve off both outlets and control how much goes where. That'll be my next improvement to the system. Like you've planned, my drum filter empties into my bog which empties into my stream which then empties into my pond.

Oh, and I actually placed my outlet about 16" or so off the bottom to have a built in 'settling' tank, once the lower part of the filter becomes clogged.

Btw; you should be able to see my camouflaged drum filter in the first of the videos of my pond I uploaded earlier under 'Garden Photography' forum. Should be last/next to last page and it's the first video. Just to show placement and how to blend it with the bog plantings. If I'd have had enough room, I'd have put the drum ON TOP of the bog and used that for overflow/leak protection but I don't think that risk is high. Thing is, starting from scratch, you can place your prefilter more preferably.


Michael

 

[Mitakuye]

Are there any "bogs" designed with air injection that you know of?

Appears "bogs" in this context is a sub-surface flow wetland, with plumbing that is an inverted image of a vertical flow wetland. I am curious whom is the "founding father" of this type of "bog" design that appears to be a dominant application in these ponds.

Yes, there are sub-surface flow wetlands utilize forced bed aeration in industry. However, reciprocating sub-surface flow wetlands and tidal flow wetlands have cheaper energy costs yet still allows notable oxygen penetration to create a controlled environment within the wetland to expedite waste reduction and stabilization.

 

[Mitakuye]

I would estimate that there is about 7" to 8" of crap under a lot of plants and plant roots.

This is inevitable and can occur very soon again.

I am not sure how I am going to get all of the muck out of the bog. Basically has a big of a mess on my hands. Might be time to look for a contractor who can do the grunt work for me and then allow me to focus on the rebuild.

@rellascout , if you are going to pay the time and money to remove the gravel, then I suggest considering rebuilding the bog and look towards those whom have built their "bogs" that has required minimal, if any, flushing maintenance for many years.

I have been reading about how "bogs" are done here. Most impressive one I have read that appears to achieve minimal flushing, if any, is the "bog" made by @addy1 .

 

[addy1]

Thanks @Mitakuye for the compliment.

I had very small bogs before this one. Some worked some failed. Did a lot of reading before I did this pond. Found info in forums....10 years ago, monster koi pond builds or something like that.

I believe what helps this one is the water intake is not from the bottom of the pond and I have a leaf basket before the pump. Usually do not need to clean the leaf basket during the summer.

I have not touched the bog, except excess plant yanking, since 2010. I did dig down one time just out of curiosity the gavel was clean, the smell normal pond water smell.

Keeps my pond in great shape.