So some good news at last, Uniseal is working by the looks of it, I thinned the 50mm pipe and it fits, the Uniseal expands and seals it. Now I've not tried it fully yet as I have to get some fittings from 38 to 50 but it is bone dry under the uniseal no dripping of any kind, and the Uniseal is halfway submerged so if it were to leak it would. Very happy
Rebuilding a pond, tips on bog filter?
- Thread starter dinm
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It's working alright now, no leaks with the Uniseal. Only thing that could be a problem is where I used silicone for the waterfall reel, but that's another matter. I've left it running so if it drops it's certainly that.
2 hours later, I think I lost approx cm of water or so, probably less as my pond is not really level so one area would appear to lose more. A positive is that the pipes are not leaking at all, bone dry, which is fantastic.
Leads me to believe that the silicone is leaking, quite a lot. But yet I don't see much loss of water, though I guess when water's running it's also higher in the bog and more water would be leaking out. But then the water loss is a bit hard to see with eyes without a strong flashlight, because the water could be quite literally dripping down and it'd be hard to see because its constantly wet, I do notice that it is leaking but is that really enough to lose half a centimeter of water or even a cm?
Part of me wants to buy liner and line the barrel then connect both that way. But that would also mean removing all this gravel which is a lot, it would though give me an opportunity to set the barrel right which would be great. Just an option I'll think about. It could also be the liner near the waterfall, but this much water lost is not really possible I think with a liner leak. And I have geotextile as well so doubt it. Liner is the best option and probably not cost a lot, but adhesives etc cost a lot so I'll think about it whether to do that after I see whats going on.
Not gonna waste time anymore, tomorrow I take concrete action and dig out the area around more, remove some rocks near the waterfall and try and understand what is going on...
Applied some sealant yesterday along with support for the reel as the wall of the barrel's too thin. Today it seems better, I might jinx myself yet but I have not seen any leak, certainly not any ones that are easily seen. If it is leaking it is a very small leak that I can't easily see.
I had a towel there under the liner so if the water was gathering then it'd of course get wet. After an hour or so the towel was still dry, I think that rules out both a liner leak as well as a leak from the waterfall reel.
Doesn't look presentable still but anyway it's worthless if it looks good but leaks water, so I'm just waiting and seeing what happens, if the water level drops. Getting somewhere at least, no leaks with pipes anymore.
I gotta make something with Arduino that monitors the water level in the pond, cause measuring this stuff with eyes or photos is not that easy unless its a great leak.
I had a towel there under the liner so if the water was gathering then it'd of course get wet. After an hour or so the towel was still dry, I think that rules out both a liner leak as well as a leak from the waterfall reel.
Doesn't look presentable still but anyway it's worthless if it looks good but leaks water, so I'm just waiting and seeing what happens, if the water level drops. Getting somewhere at least, no leaks with pipes anymore.
I gotta make something with Arduino that monitors the water level in the pond, cause measuring this stuff with eyes or photos is not that easy unless its a great leak.
Almost feel like a bigger leak is better than a smaller one. Right now I can't even tell anymore if I have a leak, the eye and photos are bad measures. Anyway, I dug out the part where waterfall drops so I can prepare for it rocks if indeed it is not leaking but I'm gonna leave it like this for a day or two more and see what happens. I am trying to make it so I don't lose any flow by water gathering there, and also so that a low edge is next to impossible.
I keep the bog on for around 12-14 hrs now, at night I switch to the box filter, just don't feel quite safe yet with how I glued the hose to the pipe, even though it is holding and there are no leaks on pipes or on it, didn't glue it straight, not a big deal anyway I can deal with that when this is complete.
I filled it up above a certain rock so I'll know if water drops at any time when bog was running that it is a bog leak possibly. I had a low edge problem I think it was 5-7 days ago I realized it, not sure what had gone on but I raised the soil a bit and it should be ok now.
I keep the bog on for around 12-14 hrs now, at night I switch to the box filter, just don't feel quite safe yet with how I glued the hose to the pipe, even though it is holding and there are no leaks on pipes or on it, didn't glue it straight, not a big deal anyway I can deal with that when this is complete.
I filled it up above a certain rock so I'll know if water drops at any time when bog was running that it is a bog leak possibly. I had a low edge problem I think it was 5-7 days ago I realized it, not sure what had gone on but I raised the soil a bit and it should be ok now.
you only shut down a bog in the winter when ike plants the bacteria and fish go dormant if your starting to run your bog at all then leave it on 24/7
totally aware of that, there is water in the bog 24/7 though its never dry. i just dont run it over night currently cause the hose glued is not straight glued so im worried it might burst or something and dont want that to happen while im testing this situation.
but why would they die if the bog has water 24/7, no ammonia?
Over 48 hrs now that bog has been running, no leaks apparent. I would have noticed a leak by now, still I remain a bit paranoid. Hope it stays that way, then I can get to cleaning up around and hiding cables etc. I put the rocks in yesterday, So far so good though, I made the soil a bit higher so that water can't wick as I've had my fair share of water magic and don't want to risk it.
I did keep it running, didn't turn it off at all. Only worry for me is that the flex hose would somehow burst out of the pipe its glued into, just because it's not a straight glue, it's sort of angled, but I haven't had any drips or leaks, that's just my overworrying.
I did keep it running, didn't turn it off at all. Only worry for me is that the flex hose would somehow burst out of the pipe its glued into, just because it's not a straight glue, it's sort of angled, but I haven't had any drips or leaks, that's just my overworrying.
Here it is, algae has started rapidly growing now too, in weird rings, anyway I don't mind it, I'm just glad to see some activity. Plants are also growing. I guess all those nutrients get concentrated and so the plants just love it. But the algae also love it.
I came today to an almost overflowing bog cause the floating plant got stuck in it. I think I need to make the hole bigger, but I was told it doesn't matter as the water level will always stay same, clearly that's not true, how big the hole is does affect the water level in the bog, so I think making the hole bigger will mean less water and less chance of overflow in case it gets clogged. Just a small improvement.
All that is left I think now is some good edging which I haven't bothered to touch since I built the pond, it's okay right now but not spectacular or natural looking. I like the lemon button fern in the pic you can see it where the water is dropping, and also a yellow flag iris.
Wrap your angled pipe with some flex tape take your time make it tight . The wrap that with gorilla tape to prevent it from slipping out
Thinking of planting some perennial flowers around it, so just landscaping is now left as I have no more leaks. Though pretty much all plants I put in that bed are perennial.
A few more big rocks on that side and maybe create a sort of rock garden with ferns I'm thinking. Bare bottom not that bad actually, with the submerged plants and the algae/organic matter buildup it looks natural.
The fern I planted in the pond on the other side is doing pretty well which I'm glad to see so I'll be getting more of those too. More Yellow flag irises too. So far so good, but a very warm start to the spring this March.
I don't feed the fish at all currently, don't want to create algae blooms I have already plenty of it.
Still running strong, bog plants are growing rapidly, especially Carex riparia and the Yellow Iris. Planted Hart's tongue fern as a marginal, fish are much more energetic now, though it is also because it is much warmer now. Only need to hide the cable mess I have but that is simple enough.
You can certainly notice that plants in the bog grow much faster than in the pond, I suppose that is because all nutrient is concentrated in the bog, all algae concentrate there too.
You can certainly notice that plants in the bog grow much faster than in the pond, I suppose that is because all nutrient is concentrated in the bog, all algae concentrate there too.