Hello all,
I have a pond design that I would appreciate some opinions on.
I am currently in the planning stages for building a concrete pond for my terrapins (turtles) and wildlife. I live in Portugal and garden ponds are not common round my parts. Swimming pools however, are extremely common, and so it is more preferable (and reliable) to build a reinforced concrete pond rather than a liner pond.
My terrapins will eat any plants that are floating or growing in the pond, so a separate area for marginal plants is required.
My questions relate to this planted area. My original plan was to have a planted wetland/bog filter with a traditional K+ Media filter working in unison, but I went off this idea when I realised that the normal filter (probably a gravity fed Nexus 320, Cetus Sieve and UV) will comfortably filter the entire pond. It is a wildlife type pond, so perfectly clear water (like a Koi pond) is not necessary.
I don't want to just fill the planted area with soil or stone because it will surely become quite stagnant with limited flow, so my plan is to put a couple of bottom drains in the planted area and then a layer of soakaway crates (Aquablocks) with some geotextile laid on top of them. On top of this will be a layer of medium size pebbles and finally a layer of small pebbles. The marginal plants would then be planted in the pebbles. The pond will be approximately 1 metre (3ft) deep, so maybe 50cm (1.5ft) of crates and 50cm (1.5ft) of pebbles. I would have a couple of access ports above the two bottom drains, so I can clean/rod them when necessary. There would also be a bottom drain in the main pond area.
I have attached some diagrams (and a photo of a similar design). The opposite side of the pond to the planted area will be sloped for the terrapins to get in and out, but my MS Paint skills have waned over the years so I left it vertical in the diagrams.
What are your thoughts? Does this seem like a viable system?
Cheers.
I have a pond design that I would appreciate some opinions on.
I am currently in the planning stages for building a concrete pond for my terrapins (turtles) and wildlife. I live in Portugal and garden ponds are not common round my parts. Swimming pools however, are extremely common, and so it is more preferable (and reliable) to build a reinforced concrete pond rather than a liner pond.
My terrapins will eat any plants that are floating or growing in the pond, so a separate area for marginal plants is required.
My questions relate to this planted area. My original plan was to have a planted wetland/bog filter with a traditional K+ Media filter working in unison, but I went off this idea when I realised that the normal filter (probably a gravity fed Nexus 320, Cetus Sieve and UV) will comfortably filter the entire pond. It is a wildlife type pond, so perfectly clear water (like a Koi pond) is not necessary.
I don't want to just fill the planted area with soil or stone because it will surely become quite stagnant with limited flow, so my plan is to put a couple of bottom drains in the planted area and then a layer of soakaway crates (Aquablocks) with some geotextile laid on top of them. On top of this will be a layer of medium size pebbles and finally a layer of small pebbles. The marginal plants would then be planted in the pebbles. The pond will be approximately 1 metre (3ft) deep, so maybe 50cm (1.5ft) of crates and 50cm (1.5ft) of pebbles. I would have a couple of access ports above the two bottom drains, so I can clean/rod them when necessary. There would also be a bottom drain in the main pond area.
I have attached some diagrams (and a photo of a similar design). The opposite side of the pond to the planted area will be sloped for the terrapins to get in and out, but my MS Paint skills have waned over the years so I left it vertical in the diagrams.
What are your thoughts? Does this seem like a viable system?
Cheers.
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