New Small Garden Pond to learn

[Tincan]

Hi All
Great to join your forum.
As a furlough distraction i decided to dig a pond. 3 rocks, stone and root strewn weeks later I have a 2Mx1Mx1M hole with a .5mm liner.
Only now have i slowed, realising the issues I've overlooked, so I'd be grateful for any guidance on pumps, filters, fountains, drainage, electrical power and fish selection, at present all on a budget!

 

[Shell-Fish]

If you can add in a bog filter, do amazing job as you'll not require any filter media, UV and other devices to clean out every so often.
All that's required is a pump to feed the bog, pea gravel and plenty of plants. It's a natural way of cleaning the water without the needs of the expensive filters.

If you can make a raised bog area, line it with pond linger and use pvc tubing with cut slots and attach to pond pump. Cover the pipe with shingles/pea gravel and get planting.
Pump will push water through pipe slots, feed the plants as well as filtering the water and goes back down to your pond. Plenty of people using bog filters and successfully.

 

[addy1]

Welcome to our forum!

post some pictures of your dig so we can "see" what you have going on.

 

[Mmathis]

Hello and welcome!

 

[Tincan]

If you can add in a bog filter, do amazing job as you'll not require any filter media, UV and other devices to clean out every so often.
All that's required is a pump to feed the bog, pea gravel and plenty of plants. It's a natural way of cleaning the water without the needs of the expensive filters.

If you can make a raised bog area, line it with pond linger and use pvc tubing with cut slots and attach to pond pump. Cover the pipe with shingles/pea gravel and get planting.
Pump will push water through pipe slots, feed the plants as well as filtering the water and goes back down to your pond. Plenty of people using bog filters and successfully.

Ive never heard of a bog filter, but i could create one with the left over soil and rocks from the dig - I have 1/2m space adjacent to a tree i could use. Also ive built an embankment to protect my border with a neighbour from overflows - so im thinking of adapting that.
Im anxious to make it as maintenance free as possible as when i get back to work theres not much time to tend to it, so if nature is going to do most of the work, a great.
I did buy a all in one filter/pump/fountain but i sent it back as if one thing goes wrong the whole thing stops working.
Cheers

 

[poconojoe]

Agree with what has been said.
If you truly are anxious in making it maintenance free, I highly recommend building a bog. It's the ultimate best thing I've done for my pond in over a decade. You won't regret it. Plus, by doing it now, you would be saving a ton of money by not buying inadequate store bought filters and UV lights. I wasted so much money over the years. Plus all the constant rinsing of filters made it feel like just another job. Now I sit back and enjoy my pond. Plus, I have never had water this clear....never. it's so clear, it looks like you could drink it!

Here's my bog build:

My add-on bog build

I finally did it! I joined the bog club! The bog is approximately 14 feet by 5 feet and about 12 inches deep. I know my 1600+ gallon pond has been overpopulated due to my fish reproductive rates! Last year the water never cleared up to my liking. I figured my two pressure filters and my...

www.gardenpondforum.com

 

[j.w]

@Tincan

 

[Tincan]

Agree with what has been said.
If you truly are anxious in making it maintenance free, I highly recommend building a bog. It's the ultimate best thing I've done for my pond in over a decade. You won't regret it. Plus, by doing it now, you would be saving a ton of money by not buying inadequate store bought filters and UV lights. I wasted so much money over the years. Plus all the constant rinsing of filters made it feel like just another job. Now I sit back and enjoy my pond. Plus, I have never had water this clear....never. it's so clear, it looks like you could drink it!

Here's my bog build:

My add-on bog build

I finally did it! I joined the bog club! The bog is approximately 14 feet by 5 feet and about 12 inches deep. I know my 1600+ gallon pond has been overpopulated due to my fish reproductive rates! Last year the water never cleared up to my liking. I figured my two pressure filters and my...

www.gardenpondforum.com

Wow - looks brilliant. I've a better idea of what i need to do now. Pardon the ignorance, the plumbing bit, is that to connect to the pond, to a mains water supply or a rainwater barrel? I'm still at the early stages and so i think i can add in a strip of 1M x 0.5M bog with an incline to run in to the main pond. Also how do i manage overflows? I've attached some photos below.

 

[Tincan]

Welcome to our forum!

post some pictures of your dig so we can "see" what you have going on.

Thanks Addy , please see pics in my reply to Poconojo.

 

[JRS]

Welcome!

 

[Shell-Fish]

Wow - looks brilliant. I've a better idea of what i need to do now. Pardon the ignorance, the plumbing bit, is that to connect to the pond, to a mains water supply or a rainwater barrel? I'm still at the early stages and so i think i can add in a strip of 1M x 0.5M bog with an incline to run in to the main pond. Also how do i manage overflows? I've attached some photos below.

Plumbing bit is connected to your pond water source so pump in your pond connected to the plumbing. As long as you have right size piping and cuts in place and most importantly, space and depth (think depth is standard 28cm???) should do fine.

This is mines on top of raised pond.
I have a feed from under connecting to the pipes that has cuts slots and holes underside.

Drilled exit hole and a pipe connected for outlet. Plants doing very well and growing quickly as well as water clearer as I can see the bottom pond liner

 

[Tincan]

So is the pump in your pond connected to this pipework in your bog filter to supply the water and so create the sustainable water loop?

 

[Shell-Fish]

So is the pump in your pond connected to this pipework in your bog filter to supply the water and so create the sustainable water loop?

Correct. I have a pond pipe sitting just below the bog filter connected to a Y splitter. One split goes to my large and ugly filter and other is connected underneath the container.
Since running the bog filter, no more hair algae and much, much clearer water. Plants in bog soaking up the nutrients as well as growing quickly.

The pipe you see at rear sticking out is to allow me to place a hose pipe and push out anything blocking the pipe cut slots. More plants, more growth and more chance one of the slots will be blocked. Hose pipe in and pressure to force the debris out fo slots.

Hope this makes sense

 

[Tincan]

Perfectly, many thanks. Can that be configured to control any overflow through the pump?

 

[Shell-Fish]

Perfectly, many thanks. Can that be configured to control any overflow through the pump?

You can always add a ball valve if you want to control the overflow but depends on your water volume and pond pump make and turnover, may not need to.

If you can scape the bog to have water flowing back to main pond, you can leave as is.