Want to build an above ground pond.

[Holg]

Plan:
My wife and I just bought a house with big empty yard. We want to make a back porch area with plants, seating, grill, and a pond. We live in central florida so I was hoping to be able to put African Cichlids and aquatic plants in the pond. The size for the pond I have in mind is 8' x 4' x 2-3'. I wanted to make it out of 4"x4" fence post lumber. They are fairly cheap at around $6. I plan on using a pump located in the middle of the pond feeding to two skippy mini-me filter pots that will be sitting on the back corners of the ledge. I have included a picture of my initial drawing i made in sketchup. My initial calculations have the price of wood, pump, and liner coming to about $300. Another $100 for pots, pvc, and hardware comes out to around $400.

Questions:
1. Will I have to worry too much about the temp of the water in the summer/winter? The pond will be in a shaded area and I have some small heaters for the winter.
2. Is it a good idea to put sand or gravel at the bottom of a above ground pond. Most cichlids like to move around sand and gravel.
3. What is the best media to use with the skippy filter that is easy to find at a local store and cheap.
4. What would be the best way to secure the wood together to make it very strong.

That is all I can think of right now, but I am sure ill think of something else. My wife and I might start on this in about a month from now. The main thing that is stopping us is the most ideal location we want the pond might be right near our septic tank. We are not sure exactly where it is so we may need a professional to survey it.

 

[Holg]

I just realized this should go in DIY and i cannot post pictures.

 

[koiguy1969]

no sand or gravel on the bottom
predrill the lumber and drive rebar thru it.. first layer at least 2 feet into ground each layer on top thru the layer under it moving the holes each time of corse. use a construction adhesive between layers also
a mix of medias from corse to fine is best...that said you can use plastic cut to fit furnace filters.scrbbing pads(no soap) soda straws cut into small peices, pvc shavings,plastic tubing (irrigation is good), anything that will provide alot of surface area and allow waterflow.

 

[chilligirl]

A solution for the sand/gravel issue - put a couple of 3-4" deep plastic pans (think cat litter pan) in the bottom of the pond, filled half way with sand/gravel. Gives the cichlids substrate to sift through, but can be removed for cleaning :biggrin:

My above ground section of my pond is 8' x 8' x 2'. I used landscaping timbers that are 4" x almost 6". I laid them in a log cabin pattern, then joined the corners using redi rod. I then pounded rebar (two pieces per side) all the way down through pre-drilled holes, further joining the wood, plus stabilizing the walls since the rebar goes into the ground about a foot. I did not other attachments, no glue, no nailing or drilling the landscape ties together. I wanted things to be able to flex a bit with weather/temperature changes.

My pond is new, only a few months old, so I can't say yet whether it will ever bow, but it is VERY solid. My pond plans were looked over at the supply store by some guys who work there doing landscaping and small building projects - they said it would be fine.

Here's a picture of the build

 

[DrDave]

I think you are going to have a problem keeping African Cichlids with the temperature they like. I have a couple of 2KW barrell heaters that would do the job. These and a thermostat to control them would maintain the water. Your cost to heat this is not determined by the heater size, but the BTU's required no matter the heater size.

 

[Holg]

chilligirl: I like that idea better. Those landscape timbers are only like $3-4 each. What is that redi-rod you used for the corners, it just looks like you used rebar. Do you have any pictures of the completed pond? I would like to see how you do your filtration.

DrDave: Can you give me an option that would be a permanent installation that would maintain the temperature year round? I am guessing the investment won't be cheap but what about the monthly cost?

 

[DrDave]

If I was going to do this, I would build or buy some solar water heater panels and pump the pond water through it after the filtration. I would insulate the above ground structure with Foam panels to help hold the heat in. I would also keep it covered when it is cold and I am not there to enjoy the pond.
Here is a thought.
Find a spa, that someone needs to get rid of, and make it your pond. you can use all the above ideas with this as well.

 

[koikeepr]

why cichlids? Why not fancy goldfish like wakin, shubunkin, watonai, sarassa's, etc?

You won't really see the cichlids in a pond anyway...They are made for side viewing in a tank and not top viewing.

 

[Holg]

If I was going to do this, I would build or buy some solar water heater panels and pump the pond water through it after the filtration. I would insulate the above ground structure with Foam panels to help hold the heat in. I would also keep it covered when it is cold and I am not there to enjoy the pond.
Here is a thought.
Find a spa, that someone needs to get rid of, and make it your pond. you can use all the above ideas with this as well.

That seems pretty expensive. I would like to make this project as cheap as possible. Most of the year here in Florida ill be fine so wouldn't a 1-2000w heater with a controller work put directly in the pond? I can make a cover for the winter as well. The heater I found was $300 for 1800w at aquaticeco which I can drive to.

 

[DrDave]

You can have both my 2 KW heaters for $30 plus shipping. You can pick up old spas for next to nothing. My son just bought a working one for $350.

 

[Holg]

Electrically, how do those hook up? Would they cost a ton to run? Are they basically just water heater elements? I would have to connect them to some sort of controller that I could just have them on year round at like 78 degrees. I think I am pretty set on the wood with liner idea because my wife loves it. I think I will use that landscape timber idea with the two skippy filters in the back corners.

 

[Holg]

Here are the pictures I wanted to post before.

My initial idea for the pond.

Barrel Skippy filter I saw on youtube with water lettuce on top.

 

[DrDave]

Great images.

The heaters just need a 110VAC wires attached to the screws shown in the photo. If you set up a thermostat to switch it, they would only be on when it reaches the setpoint.
The cost to heat is the same no matter the wattage. It is going to stay on till it gets to the setpoint. A small heater will never turn off and may never get it to the desired temperatue. A large heater turns off when it gets there very quickly.

If you are familiar with BTU's that is the energy it takes to heat 1lb of water 1 degree in 1 minute. It takes so many BTU's no matter the size of the heater to do this.

These would have to screw (NPT) into a metal container where the water would pass through, just like your water heater at home. Not too difficult to fabricate.

Having 2 means you have a backup if for some reason the other fails.

 

[Holg]

Instead of using those whisky barrels like in the picture, we were going to use some plastic pots. Couldn't I drill a hole towards the bottom where the tubing will be for the water to enter the pot and put the grating on top of that so the media doesn't burn or anything. That way I could put one in each pot and attach them both to a thermostat/controller.

 

[DrDave]

These must be mounted in metal, or at least screwed into something that won't melt or burn. A plumbing supply house probably has enough stuff to fabricate a heater box for the elements.