Starting Container Pond

[TorchwoodMindfreak]

Well my in-ground pond hasn't progressed any and now I'm kind of moving houses so Rupert, my goldfish from the state fair, who has been living on my counter for months, needs a new home. A while ago I wanted to have a container pond which is what I'm going to do at this rental house. I don't have that much money to spend but I've been looking at these stock tanks.
http://www.tractorsu...10-gal--2229862
http://www.tractorsu...apacity-2177201
http://www.tractorsu...apacity-2177227
Are there any opinions on plastic versus galvanized steel? I'm in Texas so it gets really hot and sunny. Also what kind of filter do you think I should get for it? I plan on keeping plants and some goldfish in it. Any tips are welcome Also how should I protect it against my cats, dogs, and other predators?

I started a post about this months ago but I wasn't considering steel tanks then and well I forgot about that topic.

 

[Waterbug]

I'm in between ponds too. I hadn't really considered a container pond, but now you have me thinking. Currently I just have water plants in containers.

I remember years ago a lady in Texas had a galvanized steel tank with lots of plants and fish. Very nice pond. Above ground and the steel is a great look. Hers was pretty big I think, round, not super tall as I remember, but it was along time ago.

The Tuff Stuff is nice imo in that it's smooth, but it deform a bit. Nothing dangerous, but could be an issue if you were going to face it with rock or something like that.The Rubbermaid are very rigid, don't move at all.

Bio filter would depend on the fish load. Small trickle tower is easy, cheap, works great, never has to be cleaned.

For green water UV is of course best, but I've heard trickle water changes (drip irrigation on 24/7) keeps water clear. But then adding plants would bring in string algae too and that could keep the water clear.Great thing about a small pond is that algae is pretty easy to control lots of ways, many more viable options.

 

[TorchwoodMindfreak]

I'm thinking of doing a small skipy type filter in a 5 gallon bucket. I've heard some stuff about the galvanized leaking chemicals, but there are fish happy in my uncle's stock tank. And I've also heard about the plastic becoming brittle. But maybe I could edge it or something. I just wish I could find a bigger one than 110gallons.

So maybe a rubbermaid you think if I'm going to edge it? I can get a bigger one of those they're just more expensive.

 

[Waterbug]

For the filter a 5 gal bucket filled with rocks and above the water is 10-30 times better at waste conversion and you never have to clean it. Water goes in at the top, flows over the rocks and out the bottom. Skippy is a really old design.

The Rubbermaid tanks are expensive. A cheaper DIY option is a liquid pallet container, also called totes. You have to cut the top off, but a great tank. People use them in aquaponics a lot. You can find used food grade totes in the $25-50 range and in all areas of the country. Takes some scrounging. Especially if you're going to edge it any ways, the wire cage makes attaching veneer easy.

 

[JohnHuff]

Home depot sells preformed ponds, they're having a sale now. Today, I saw a medium sized pond discounted from $70+ to about $50+, not sure about the size. Their biggest one is selling at $110.00. Buying a purpose made pond will save you a lot of headaches in the long run.

 

[Waterbug]

Performs aren't really self supporting imo.

 

[TorchwoodMindfreak]

Hmm just rocks in it? And yeah I'm not going to dig up the ground here so a preformed pond isn't really what I'm looking for. I'll look up the totes.

 

[j.w]

I'm thinking of doing this one if I can ever find a strawberry pot:

I think waterbug posted this:

"Trickle towers" are very good, 10 to 30 times better than most submerged media filters like you have now. Basically just a pile of rocks you pump water over. For example, something called a "strawberry pot", ceramic or clay, can be filled with stones/rocks and water pumped over it, would be way better than any filter you can buy for under $500. Strawberry pot, or strawberry planters can be found in most local garden stores and sell for $30-150 depending how big or fancy you want. Set the pot on a shelf or shallow area inside the pond but above the water line. You can add bricks or concrete blocks if needed to build a platform. Most people think they look pretty good. Actually any ceramic or clay pot that has a hole in the bottom can be used. Easy to put together.

Strawberry Trickle Tower



Got this off the net:

Very clear water !

Trickle Towers​

Trickle towers do control nitrates and do work at keeping a pond clear of both pea green algae and string algae. String algae can still be a problem when water temps are below 60 degrees. Basic theory is that by trickling water over a large surface area that has contact with air, the nitrates will disapate at a much faster rate than through a submerged biofilter media.

I made my trickle tower with large strawberry planter. It is supported on a PVC pipd structure that I made. I am using a 1200 mag drive supreme pump.The pump is fed by an in-the-water skimmer unit.. The Strawberry planter is filled with lava rock. I rinse the lava rock off thoroughly to get rid of any red coloring. Also, I discard all the floaters. I am using a sprinkler fountain head to disperse water and to add oxygen. I also have a tee attached to pump pipes and have a venturi exiting to the side of the trickle tower.​

Smaller ponds with goldfish may be able to use a trickle tower as it's only biofilter.​

​

​

And a friend on another forum did this one:

Esther's version:
I had one a while back made out of a large strawberry pot filled with lava rock sitting on a plant stand in the middle of the pond. The pump was suspended under the pot and the water was pushed up through PVC pipe in the center and through a fountain head to trickle back down and out through the various openings in the jar. I don't know why I took it out. I guess I decided it was overkill with the 100 gallon Skippy and one more thing to take care of and pay the electric bill to run the pump.

This was my first pond. It was tiny. When we built the bigger pond, I used the same TT for a while.



I saw where someone had stacked just round plant pots and lava rock in the center of the pond with the water going up through PVC like mine too for a TT.

 

[Waterbug]

Unfortunately, while bio filters may cause a pond to clear it is hit and miss at best. What they are good at is conversion of ammonia and nitrites. Many water gardens don't need any bio filter since the pond itself can convert some ammonia and nitrite. I'm just saying if you're going to the trouble of building a bio filter, may as well build a better unit.