vacation and water level

[Mmathis]

A thought about water loss. Do you know how much water you are losing ? I would think this time of year the water level should not drop much. This time of year the rain is enough to raise the water level in my pond. Heavy rains activate the overflow usually until the temps get above 75 degrees. I have not added water to my pond due to evaporation since early fall

I was wondering same. Pond is 4’ deep, but don’t know volume.

 

[Lisak1]

I would think this time of year the water level should not drop much

We're losing more water right now than we have at any other time than we can remember. It's still cold here (zone 5B) and windy - the combination is causing a lot of evaporation. Any precipitation we're getting has been snow. We've had rain, but not enough to make a difference. We also had to disconnect our sump pump line that feeds the pond late last fall - something started leaking and we didn't get time to check on it - so that's also had an impact on our water level.

 

[Gordo33]

We're losing more water right now than we have at any other time than we can remember. It's still cold here (zone 5B) and windy - the combination is causing a lot of evaporation. Any precipitation we're getting has been snow. We've had rain, but not enough to make a difference. We also had to disconnect our sump pump line that feeds the pond late last fall - something started leaking and we didn't get time to check on it - so that's also had an impact on our water level.

All great points and shows the importance of knowing your pond and surrounding elements that have an impact. Being relatively new to ponds my experience and knowledge, other than what I’ve learned from this forum, is based on an N=1 study.

 

[Magzire]

Strange I never have to top up my water level, only when clean filter. If you need to do it twice a week, has to be a leak.

 

[addy1]

Strange I never have to top up my water level, only when clean filter. If you need to do it twice a week, has to be a leak.

In the summer I add water daily, the bog plants use a lot. I lose a lot to evaporation, a lot of surface area.

I have not added water since I turned off the pump in November, but will need to start adding once I get the pond running again. The amount increases as it gets hotter.

 

[Magzire]

In the summer I add water daily, the bog plants use a lot. I lose a lot to evaporation, a lot of surface area.

I have not added water since I turned off the pump in November, but will need to start adding once I get the pond running again. The amount increases as it gets hotter.

She was worried that her pond would evaporate in a week, so thats obviously not right.

 

[addy1]

aww missed that.............

 

[Mmathis]

@Sushi Prohibited Was just looking at your profile and see that your pond is 5,000 gallons and you said it was 4’ deep. Just trying to figure out how you could be losing so much water that you’re afraid to leave the pond unattended for a week.....during this time of year.

Where exactly in your pond is your pump located? ....you said it was “at the side of the pond, and under water.” How far under water is it? Is it very close to the surface?

And can you estimate the amount of water you are losing per week? All you said was that you had to add water a couple times a week. It must be a lot, if it’s in danger of damaging the pump. Forget the pump, I’d be afraid of killing my fish with a dry pond.

So, as someone else brought up, could you have a leak that is causing the water loss? Do you have plants or rocks that could be blocking or channeling the water flow, maybe at the waterfall? This is a common hot-spot for leaks. And what about wet spots in your yard — can you find a place in the yard that stays unusually wet?