Newbie pond build questions..

[Tom Cook]

I first want to say Thank You for the welcome,

I really like the ideas and the conversations you folks have presented here and I WILL put them into action in my little garden empire.
I have a load of dirt coming this week and will have a pump by the end of next week.
"Jim Bob" is still hanging out in the bottom, i'll put some flat rocks down there for him today to hide under.
The liner is new, but it is meant for use in Oil field production and is so heavy you can littlerally drive a Caterpillar over them and not hurt them.
So the rocks wont hurt the liner.

I did notice the Frog is a bit lethargic, but then it is 39 degrees outside, so I don't blame him.
I know you folks are used to really exotic fish and cool stuff in your ponds, but i'm so exited to just have the Frog so far, its a sign of life
and I think (hope) it's a sign of a healthy environment I've created. I did put a ramp in, so he can get out, but he just stays at the bottom and
yes he's alive, I picked him up yesterday. He wasn't so happy to see me, but i'll grow on him.

Seems like Koi are very popular, so i'll probably go a different direction and have Goldfish and maybe a Placo if they'll live.
I just like to be different rather than popular. My other hobby is restoring WW2 radio equiptment and operating it on the Ham Radio Bands, so
i'm definitely one "other than the main stream" hobbies.

I would like some ideas as far as plants and fish, can I stuff some tulies in there? how bout L.E.D. lights?
If I build an aeriator windmill, would it help the pond or overkill?

TOM..

 

[sissy]

My pond is 3000 gallons and I have a 40 gallon stock tank at 1 end and a 20 gallon tote for the other end of the pond with 2 pumps 1 is 2900 gph and the other is 960 gph and my filters can handle this pond .You do not need huge filters you just need filters that work .If you do not overfeed and aerate the pond and have the right amount of plants where you need them you should have no problems .I put plants in my filters to suck up the stuff from the pond and my lava rock has worked for years .There is 1 company that sells great aerator windmills on ebay.Not cheap over a thousand dollars but if you have wind and the money it would be my dream aerator .They also have a sight .

 

[dieselplower]

Hey Tom I just wanted to give you a heads up on the rocks. Rocks are a very controversial topic in the pond world. Some people will say that putting rocks on the bottom if a pond is a terrible idea. Debris surely will fall between and get under the rocks etc and you will have a very hard time getting it out. It can also get stinky and even toxic, maybe. Some people say this muck is great for the pond, and harbors good bacteria that help balance the pond ecosystem. I personally have a bare bottom pond because I do not like the muck and I want to maximize cleaning efficiency.

 

[dieselplower]

Also, don't get the wrong impression about the forum members. We are all very level headed (ok mostly). Yes some if us have koi etc but we do not have giant heads or huge egos about it like another forum I can think of. In my pond I have about 30 goldfish, 2 koi, and however many frogs show up... Usually about 4 a year. I enjoy the variety. I'm not saying that you think we are all fancy weirdos or anything... Just letting you know we are all down to earth folks.

 

[sissy]

sorry but my fish are mutts bought for less than 5 dollars and are 11 years old and I have 2 koi that are over 2 ft long and the rest are fancy tail or butterfly and goldfish and 1 shubbie .I still have all my original fish and have given lots of babies away.Just made my pond slightly longer with a level flat bottom .No cool stuff in my pond but all stuff that came into my head ,from where no clue .I just want healthy fish .I did trade last year with a ponder for 2 lotus plants .He wanted fish and i gave him all my babies (I thought ).He thinks he gotta the better deal ,I think I did ..My filters also nothing fancy ,cheap lava rock and furnace filters and quilt batting to pick up the fine algae cells .I am should have been named cheap ,sorry mom and dad

 

[Tom Cook]

I love it, you guys are very kind. Also...NO I didn't mean the earlier comment the way it sounded.
I just didn't want you guys to think I didn't care about the Life in the pond and I was a little self conscious
about being so happy to have a Frog, by the way he's (?) hard to find when he doesn't want to be.

We have gusty winds day and night here, over the past 2 days I've had 1/4 inch of evaporation. I'm sure the wind is some of that.

By the way, I built a model steam engine on my Lathe last month and have adapted it to a little garden windmill, Its pumping enough to
make tiny little bursts of bubbles from a small Aquarium airstone. Next I might take a Smog pump and make a bigger windmill, something decorative.
Maybe I can get more air that way. Will the air make the Algae grow more? or pester it? I thought it would pester it.

I like the Lava rock idea and Furnace filters, I like it because it's something I can buy cheap and engineer.

I also appreciate the warning about the roof water in my pond.
I take that water from the roof of my shop, Its a metal roof and I don't spray anything on it.
What i'm doing is capturing the rain Via the gutter into a 55 Gallon Food Grade drum.
It then goes to the pond in a .25 inch Poly tube to an Evap Cooler float valve.
Water is expensive here, so I have about 20 dollars involved in that system instead of
40 dollars a month of tap water.

I just don't know if Lotus plants will make it here, we get a lot of heat and humidity, but no shade between 10 AM and 6PM in the summer.
And the reason I brought up Tullies is because their plentiful in a wild pond nearby. If I can keep the Mocasins from biting me I could get some.
The Moccasin's are already being seen swimming on the surface of that wild pond.

Which brings me to pests,
I like Raccoons,Squirrels,Birds and that such, but Poisonous Snakes I draw the line and will 20 gauge on site in my back yard.
I know this project may draw them and what are some deterents for them?
I don't mind them in the woods eating the mice, but not in my pond.

Keep your suggestions coming, I need ideas and its fun to share this.

Tom in Roland Oklahoma..

 

[sissy]

these kind and funny you want frogs and I keep rehoming frogs out of my pond to creeks here the taddies can really clog up a pump and filter.crushed oyster shells stabilize ph .Raccoons are your worst enemy the others not so much but snakes I am not a fan of .I shop dollar stores all the time and amazed at what you can look at and see using it in your pond .I buy dollar store laundry bags to put crushed oyster shells in and activated charcoal .great idea on the refill part

 

[sissy]

4 th pic is some I took to a new home quilt batting to pick up fine stuff .I rinse it with a hose and dip it in peroxide and water and hang to dry to be reused

 

[HARO]

Tom; I may have missed it, but have you tested your pond water for Ph? Rain can be very acidic!
John

 

[taherrmann4]

Tom welcome to the forum.

I used to have my pond filled via the rain from my roof for several years, but changed the design and was no longer able to keep it that way. I never had any problems as far my water parameters, I know of some other people that have their bigger ponds that way as well and never noticed it affecting the pond. Rocks on the bottom is very controversial, I will tell you that I have some large flat rocks on the bottom but I also have a pond vac that I use a few times a year to clean the pond bottom, I do leave some muck in the deeper end for the frogs to bury themselves in and who knows what else may like it also. I think the rocks give it some character rather than just a plain liner. I have lots of things that visit my pond, and I usually get at least one snake per year and they are impossible to catch at least for me. There are just too many places for them to hide but they don't stay around long either a month or so and they are gone. squirrels just stop by for a drink then go back to eating bird seed and the raccoons visit me in the fall when my grapes are about ready to pick, they come and have an old fashioned grape stomping party on my patio! My bigger concern is the heron who seems to stop by and look for an easy meal, he is very hard to keep away.

Would like to see some pics of that model steam engine you built!!!

 

[addy1]

We are out in rural maryland I have been using roof water for our pond for years now, no issues with the fish or pond. Helps save our well, esp in the summer.

 

[sissy]

I was watching a garden show that the guy made up a Y and first flush from roof went into that and when it filled up the rest went into his rain catchment system.He had it set up with one of those end caps at the bottom of the Y pipe that he unscrewed and let the gunk from dust and stuff run out

 

[JohnHuff]

I was watching a garden show that the guy made up a Y and first flush from roof went into that and when it filled up the rest went into his rain catchment system.He had it set up with one of those end caps at the bottom of the Y pipe that he unscrewed and let the gunk from dust and stuff run out

Yes, the first flush to waste. I guess it also depends where you live and how dirty the air is. My cedar roof is treated with chemicals so I wouldn't want any of that in the pond. Besides which I live in WA, so when it rains, I'm thinking about how much to drain the pond and not add roof water to it!

 

[sissy]

We get a lot of pollen here and the roof ends up totally green with it .It can even make pond green .I have underground tanks off 2 of my gutters and water goes in them and I just drop a pump down in them and add fertilizer and water every thing .Here in July and august we may not see rain at all .I have to protect my well .Neighbors that the builder built there houses have had problems with there wells because he refuses to go over 200 ft deep .He wants to save money .My well is over 400 ft deep .When well driller finally hit good water it came up like a gusher ,house was soaked on the outside and so were all the poor guys working here .

 

[Tom Cook]

Hello everyone,

I will have to watch out for the pollen, that will be an issue here. I wish I could punch a well, but the cost is high here. Rocks are only inches from the surface and
there very large. Under the Railroad ties that wall in the above ground portion of the pond, I laid rocks I dug up. They are 4x5 foot and 4-6 inches thick. when I dug them up, I had to
choke them with a steel cable and drag them into place with my truck.

I like the underground tank idea, but again the rocks.
I have also placed a line of Barrels behind the shop and they receive water from another downspout. They are attached to 180 feet of that clear poly tubing I buried just under the grass.
That runs to three trees I just planted, Almond,Peach and Cherry. I really am enjoying the reclamation idea, i'm not a Miser, just fun to make this stuff up and watch it work.
So, the pond will be kept up and the tree's in the dry weeks we get this Summer wont be so dry for my pond and trees.

Please keep this thread going i'm really enjoying it!

Tom