Pond Newbie - Seeking Construction, Layout, Equipment, and Planting Advice

[cas]

Just a note - be aware that when the pump is turned off, all the water from the stream will go into your pond and it may overflow.

If you do go with the deck overhang I saw someone place their skimmer under the deck and then build a trap door to get to it. It hid the skimmer really nice.

 

[KC Crook]

Without practical experience in ponds, I think you are out of your mind...only cuz Im jealous you are more courageous then me. I would fear a total disaster and a big mosquito ridden hole. I cant wait to see how you accomplish your ideas and I trully look forward to seeing the results!

 

[addy1]

Just a note - be aware that when the pump is turned off, all the water from the stream will go into your pond and it may overflow.
.

My stream is run on a separate pump on a timer, due to head pressure. It draws the pond down 1 inch refills one inch when done running. I didn't want to pay for a pond pump that could handle 100 feet when I already had 4 pond pumps in storage. and pricey to run.

 

[Darkrider]

mgmine and addy1... thank you for the pics and suggestions! It sounds like I need to go narrower on the waterfall with a longer snaking run. 15' would have been close to a straight shot but I can likely double that with more bends.

Cas... great idea on hiding the skimmer! Note to self - resist urge to turn on pump until pond reaches desired fill.

KC Crook... I probably am a little crazy and over ambitious. At least, I had the sense to seek advice here first! I'll start a build thread with pics when I break ground in a couple weeks.

 

[Richardspond]

Off your first post w/o reading rest. You should go another foot at least, or 2 '
I'm in atl and mine is 3ft deep.

I'm decking mine next year and putting in benches, but I'm re digging to 4 ft deep, will look into an under deck skimmer

 

[sissy]

deeper is always safer for freeze or heat or predators and all one level bottom is easier to net the bottom

 

[Darkrider]

I was all set to break ground this weekend, but the rain decided it didn't want to cooperate! On a positive note, after all of the reading here, I decided to go with a skippy filter, rather than a commercial one. I bought all of the supplies yesterday morning and was able to assemble it in a couple of hours. I went with a 100g Rubbermaid stock tank. I debated between the 150g and the 100g, but TSC had a sale on the 100g for $69.99 making it an almost no-brainer, since the 150g was nearly double that!

Note for the new style Rubbermaid tanks, the included drain size is no longer 1 1/2". I think it's a 1" or 1 1/4". I'll need to take the plug back to Home Depot to be sure, and exchange some of the drain parts. I also went with 2 of the 2" compression offset shower drain fittings instead of the 4" flange style, as you have to seat them slightly lower on the face of the new style tank now. The offset raises them up slightly even with the lower hole(s), putting them at almost the same level as the old style.. If you did the 4" flange style, you'd lose a lot of fill capacity, so I'd strongly recommend going this route or cutting out for a wier. My tank is going to be 3/4's of the way submerged and sit back slightly, so the wier wouldn't have been a great option. I'll either route the 2" pipes directly to the start of the falls and flatten the ends or possibly take the 2" smaller pipes into a single 4" larger and flatten that. For the 2" drains, I didn't have a hole saw in the proper size, but found that my ceiling light/drywall hole cutter worked perfectly using a drill and very little pressure.
I'll post pics of the finished product later.

I still need to source media. Any recommendations on the best cheap/effective solution to fill the 100g size?

 

[EricV]

I bought a bunch of these: https://www.doitbest.com/products/8-piece-cleaning-pads-smart-savers I've seen comparisons where these come out on top, in terms of available area, over just about anything but ceramic media. The price is right, each box is probably 1/2 a cubic foot.

 

[sissy]

I use lava rock old fashioned but it works and is cheap to buy

 

[Darkrider]

I bought a bunch of these: https://www.doitbest.com/products/8-piece-cleaning-pads-smart-savers I've seen comparisons where these come out on top, in terms of available area, over just about anything but ceramic media. The price is right, each box is probably 1/2 a cubic foot.

Nice find! Those should do the trick.

I use lava rock old fashioned but it works and is cheap to buy

Can't argue with what is cheap and works. Is there any benefit to using multiple types of media?

 

[Darkrider]

Here are some shots of the skippy filter. Since I have a relatively high head height, I'm thinking there may be a benefit to installing the flow valve closer to the pump. I know I need 24/7 circulation, but I was thinking of installing a T near the bottom of my falls with a short hidden run of pvc dumping just before the final waterfall drop. If I get one of the variable speed pumps, that would give me flexibility to lower speed and save energy versus running the higher output all the time. Thoughts?

 

[Darkrider]

I'm starting to shop my other components and am really liking the power/performance ratio of the Alpine Eco-Twist Pump. Specifically, I'm looking at the 5300GPH model with variable speed controller. I know the recommendation is about half the GPH rating of the pond size at the desired head height. My pond will likely end up in the neighborhood of 2750 gallons, and based on an approximately 12' head height, I'd be looking at around 2000GPH. Does that sound about right, and will that give me sufficient flow for my waterfall? I was thinking about putting it in a Little Giant SK5 skimmer, and hiding it underneath the decking with a hidden hinged door for access.

ALPINE ECO-TWIST PUMP 5300 GPH WITH CONTROLLER


Max Flow: 5,300 GPH
Max Head: 22.5'
Watts:
200
Discharge Outlet: 2" MPT
Tubing Adapters: 1 1/4", 1 1/2", 2" FPT
Cord Length: 33'
Dimensions: 13" x 6" x 7"
Warranty: 3 Years



PUMP FLOW CHART


GPH per foot of Head
0' 5' 10' 15' 20'
5,300 3,582 2,408 1,584 681

 

[Meyer Jordan]

My pond will likely end up in the neighborhood of 2750 gallons, and based on an approximately 12' head height, I'd be looking at around 2000GPH. Does that sound about right, and will that give me sufficient flow for my waterfall?

Ideally, you want to turn the entire pond capacity 1.5 - 2 times per hour. So for your pond you should have 3100 to 5500 gph.
As to your waterfall, for a decent effect a minimum of 100 gph per inch of waterfall weir width is recommended.

 

[Darkrider]

Ideally, you want to turn the entire pond capacity 1.5 - 2 times per hour. So for your pond you should have 3100 to 5500 gph.
As to your waterfall, for a decent effect a minimum of 100 gph per inch of waterfall weir width is recommended.

Hmmm... I didn't realize the recirc requirement was higher than the waterfall requirement. I either need to start slightly lower on the slope, go for a bigger pump, or integrate a 2nd pump. What do you think would work best?

 

[Meyer Jordan]

It does not matter how many pumps you use. Some use more than one pump just to have redundancy in the event one pump fails. The main thing to keep in mind is that all of the circulation should be exposed to biofiltration. Water quality and subsequently the health of the fish is paramount and trumps everything else.