Waterfall blade/filter material ?

[Tr1951terry]

The corners have 6” bolts through and the wood has 5” screws into the row underneath I must admit this is new to me

I am havin several layers of underlay down plus that gap is because it’s resting on pieces of decking and it’s not long enough

 

[Tr1951terry]

you took the words right out of my mouth @GBBUDD

You’ve got me thinking now about taking it apart and redoing it with staggered corners I joined this forum for advice as this is new to me I appreciate any advice

 

[brokensword]

You’ve got me thinking now about taking it apart and redoing it with staggered corners I joined this forum for advice as this is new to me I appreciate any advice

staggering/ alternating the row corners is the best way as it's the corner expansion that is worse than bowing (and that can happen too. Some above ground ponds have buttresses just to stop that ).

 

[Tr1951terry]

staggering/ alternating the row corners is the best way as it's the corner expansion that is worse than bowing (and that can happen too. Some above ground ponds have buttresses just to stop that ).

View attachment 144534

Thankyou I’ve made my mind up I’m taking it apart and starting again following yours and others advice I really appreciate it sooner do it right

 

[GBBUDD]

2.5 inches may be enough to do the job but once I got some money in fish and they become family I'd rather not chance it . If you have everything screwed and bolted then and yes easy for me to say but cut your losses and do it right.

Scribing is easy once you know the trick. Let's say you have a 2 inch space you need to mimic take a 2x4 and lift it up so it it level so it can latter have the 4x4 sit on it latter. So if you have to fill 2 " then you'll want to cut off a 1 1/2" so cut a block that's that size run that along the ground while drawing onto the 2x

 

[GBBUDD]

The bottom row you should drill out for a piece of rebar so you can drive it into the ground to keep the area stable . If the water gets under that space that was left it will lift the whole thing the pressures are side to side but it will take path of least resistance.. if your not up to scribing. You can always shim it with 3/4 5/4 what ever you can and then slip cedar shingles in from both sides and put the rebar throw it as welll

 

[Tr1951terry]

2.5 inches may be enough to do the job but once I got some money in fish and they become family I'd rather not chance it . If you have everything screwed and bolted then and yes easy for me to say but cut your losses and do it right.

Scribing is easy once you know the trick. Let's say you have a 2 inch space you need to mimic take a 2x4 and lift it up so it it level so it can latter have the 4x4 sit on it latter. So if you have to fill 2 " then you'll want to cut off a 1 1/2" so cut a block that's that size run that along the ground while drawing onto the 2x

I really appreciate urs an others advice I’ve been taking it apart and start again I’m 70 and retired so it’s not an issue I’d sooner do it properly like I said I’ve built a small pond which is fine but as my fish are growing I wanted a bigger one I won’t let it beat me that’s my small pond

 

[Tr1951terry]

2.5 inches may be enough to do the job but once I got some money in fish and they become family I'd rather not chance it . If you have everything screwed and bolted then and yes easy for me to say but cut your losses and do it right.

Scribing is easy once you know the trick. Let's say you have a 2 inch space you need to mimic take a 2x4 and lift it up so it it level so it can latter have the 4x4 sit on it latter. So if you have to fill 2 " then you'll want to cut off a 1 1/2" so cut a block that's that size run that along the ground while drawing onto the 2x

I have taken it apart I am going to redone it with staggered corners like this yes ?

 

[GBBUDD]

Good choice you won't be sorry . Having the 6 inch in horizontal is far stronger then is the 4 inch. You will need to secure one layer to the other more often I'd say every foot going with the 4 inch and even then there's no guarantee of the 4 inch bowing in time . 6 inch on the other hand you probably saw yourself at the lumber yard the 4x4 were probably not as straight as were there 6x4. Now your pond is about 12feet ? With the staggered beams how are you securing on tier to the other? With 4x6 and the six is in height. Your 6 inch screws or bolts I believe you mentioned are to small. Land Scape nails/pins and or screws of a minimum of 8 inch are needed to secure from one row to the lower. The 6 inch can be used with a predrilled hole slightly larger then the shank and a second hole for the head of the bolt with a washer to be recessed approximately 1 inch wide. Now if you don't want to see these bolt heads make the the hole an inch or 1 1/4" to recess them and plug with some glue and a dowel.
There are many videos on YouTube of people building there own I'd surf through them you'll know when someone knows what there doing. Here's a quick one I found

.

Simple build isn't it?
If you go down to a 8 foot pond it's a lot easier a lot less pressure. But it is less rewarding and harder to keep stable.fish and water quality wise

 

[Tr1951terry]

Good choice you won't be sorry . Having the 6 inch in horizontal is far stronger then is the 4 inch. You will need to secure one layer to the other more often I'd say every foot going with the 4 inch and even then there's no guarantee of the 4 inch bowing in time . 6 inch on the other hand you probably saw yourself at the lumber yard the 4x4 were probably not as straight as were there 6x4. Now your pond is about 12feet ? With the staggered beams how are you securing on tier to the other? With 4x6 and the six is in height. Your 6 inch screws or bolts I believe you mentioned are to small. Land Scape nails/pins and or screws of a minimum of 8 inch are needed to secure from one row to the lower. The 6 inch can be used with a predrilled hole slightly larger then the shank and a second hole for the head of the bolt with a washer to be recessed approximately 1 inch wide. Now if you don't want to see these bolt heads make the the hole an inch or 1 1/4" to recess them and plug with some glue and a dowel.
There are many videos on YouTube of people building there own I'd surf through them you'll know when someone knows what there doing. Here's a quick one I found

.

Simple build isn't it?
If you go down to a 8 foot pond it's a lot easier a lot less pressure. But it is less rewarding and harder to keep stable.fish and water quality wise

My pond is 6ft 6” x 4ft 6” the timber is 3an half inch x 2an half inch an I’m using 6” screw bolts down through the corners and thr the sides at the corners recessed That go nearly through the wood and 5” screws in the tier sides

 

[brokensword]

My pond is 6ft 6” x 4ft 6” the timber is 3an half inch x 2an half inch an I’m using 6” screw bolts down through the corners and thr the sides at the corners recessed That go nearly through the wood and 5” screws in the tier sides

IF not too late, a very good construction method is to bore a hole down, top to bottom, on each side of each corner, and pound in a solid steel rod (re-rod will work and is cheap). The interconnections of layer to layer are good, but this method above is a lot stronger. You can do this along each wall too, but it's more work and might not be necessary. I know it's something I'd do, especially if from scratch. This will help keep bowing from happening to some extent. Research 'buttress' for above ground ponds and see if that design is something appealing. This may all seem like overkill (it does to me even as I write it!) but if you start reading about bowing, leaking, splitting, rotting, etc of such wood above ground ponds, you may not think it's overkill at all!

Good on you for an open mind and NOT wanting to do it again later on!

 

[Tr1951terry]

IF not too late, a very good construction method is to bore a hole down, top to bottom, on each side of each corner, and pound in a solid steel rod (re-rod will work and is cheap). The interconnections of layer to layer are good, but this method above is a lot stronger. You can do this along each wall too, but it's more work and might not be necessary. I know it's something I'd do, especially if from scratch. This will help keep bowing from happening to some extent. Research 'buttress' for above ground ponds and see if that design is something appealing. This may all seem like overkill (it does to me even as I write it!) but if you start reading about bowing, leaking, splitting, rotting, etc of such wood above ground ponds, you may not think it's overkill at all!

Good on you for an open mind and NOT wanting to do it again later on!

View attachment 144542

My friend next door said that about bolting it right through