New Pond Plans

[WaterPond]

So i ran the idea of a new and imporved pond past my parents today and it seemed to be a hit. My birthday is coming up and for my birthday we will be installing a new pond in place of my old one which is just... junky (looking and in quality)

This one is going to be more your average pond i suppose, here are the plans:

500gal(give or take)
3 tiers, ledges at 1', 2' and 3'

the majority of it will be 3', with one ledge being 2' and two ledges being 1', the 1' areas will be a water garden area with a wall spearating it and soil placed in it but the wall will be made of rock which will allow some water to flow through, that should attract birts and frogs and toads. Also, if i get mt fish breeding it will be a good place for fry to hide.

The walls of the pond wont slope at all, which i've read is a good way to keep predators out. Not really sure about the shape or measurments i want yet, but we will see. I will keep you poseted as my plans come further along :)

Any tips/pointers/critiscism/snappy remarks are welcome too

[Katalyst]

No snappy remarks from me, I can't wait to see it! And should I tell your parents when my birthday is or do you want to? :laugh:

[Pamelajo]

Sounds good keep us posted.

[Soggybottom]

Looking forward to seeing it come together, take lots of pics!

What are you going to use for soil?

[Melody]

What a great b-day gift! I hope you'll post pic's as it progresses!

[CACAdmin]

Sounds great! Why don't you take pics while building it and post it in the DIY section. That way we can watch the progess and it would also serve as a reference for anyone else thinking of doing something similar.

[WaterPond]

oooh boy. hole dug, liner in, its filled up :)

hold onto your seahorses, pics are coming soon :wink: gunna make a slideshow for you of the whole process

[CACAdmin]

Sounds like you've been busy. :yes: A slideshow... sounds cool. Looking forward to it. :smile:

[Melody]

That would be fantastic Jason. You must be excited!

[WaterPond]

HELLO HELLO!

The pond is nearing completion. and here are the stats:

Stock
4:butterfly koi

1-domestic
1-hikarimoyo hariwake
1-bekko
1 -asagi mix3 regular goldfish which were all sold as feeders
2 red fantails
2 red cap orandas
2 sarasa comets

Plants:

Hardy pond lillies, parrots feather, iris', corkscrew plant, and some other nice grassy stuff (the name escapes me)

So heres how it all went down.

My family and i laid out string around the area where we wanted the pond to be and cleared out that area. We then dug the hole and made the ledges shaping the clay (the stuff we have instead of real soil) to suit the shape of the pond i wanted. We then bought the liner and laid it the best we could, but because of one end of the pond being narrow there were alot of wrinkles. We filled'r up and started to buy and lay the stone around it. Placed the plants and all that jazz, then waited a few weeks for it to stablize (the soil of the plants has bacteria that quickly cycles the pond) and added fish. I made a waterfall by laying liner where i wanted it to go, and then laying rock over top. I ordered my filter off the internet. The laguna 2000. When it came, the supplier accidentally sent the wrong one, so we returned it and he sent the 2000, but accidentally sent two of them :D woops. We ordered the Laguna Pressureflo 2100 filter (this things a tank) off the internet too. Its amazing. UV sterilizer, self cleaning, backwash system, and three stade filtration. THats all hooked up, i got a few more koi and its lookinf fairly nice i think.

It came out being a little more then 1300 gallons :P

And as i promised, here are the pics of its progress. Just click the pic below and it will redirect you

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l117/WaterPond/th_PONDPROGRESS001.jpg (http://s94.photobucket.com/albums/l117/WaterPond/?action=view&current=52953612.pbw)

[Melody]

WOW! And with my fave pond fish too (Butterfly Koi)! It looks fantastic, thanks for sharing the steps with us.

What do you do if you see a cycle with all of those monsters? Can you pump water out for a waterchange?

[CACAdmin]

Fantastic!... you sure put in a lot of work but the rewards are incredible. Beautiful pond and gorgeous fish. It makes me want to set up a chair next to the pond and just sit back and relax and watch.

Question, it's hard to tell from the slide show... how deep (at the deepest point) did you make the pond?

[WaterPond]

Deepest point is about 4' so everyone should be able to winter over nicely except for the fancy goldies.

I shouldn't see a cycle because of such a light fish load(because they are so small) and so much good bacteria in the soil of the plants. If i were to see a cycle it would have come up by now. With the backwash system on my pump all i have to do it attach a hose to the pump, flick a switch, and out comes water at 2000 gph. Then i just fill'r up again with the garden hose. Its so simple. The filter can be cleaned without even opening it too. All i have to do it move two rods up and down while its set to backwash, and i use all the nutrient rich water from the backwash to water my garden.

We've got a pig muskoka bench setup by the pond, its so nice to just sit and watch.

[PintoHawk]

It's an awesome pond! Good job!

So I take it by having the water really deep, you can leave the fish in there over the winter? Where do you live, that this is possible?

I like the big shale-type rocks you used around the edge, that looks very nice, and I also really like the waterfall. :)

[Pamelajo]

Awesome Jason!!! Love the butterfly koi.

[Soggybottom]

Nice work! looks like a really peaceful spot...

[Namor]

:thumbup: Awesome slideshow, pond & fish.:thumbup:

[WaterPond]

Wow, i've been gone for a while, and i've left you hanging on deatails about the pond's progress. I got a few more plants, and had to replace some fish after some weird weather caused my fish to get ick. All and all its going very well. I went to moore water garden's in port stanley yesterday and got a ginrin butterfly kohaku, and also a regular kohaku. I now have two butterfly koi, two standard, and a bunch of goldies :P i've lost count. Here are some updated pics.

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l117/WaterPond/Picture002.jpg

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l117/WaterPond/Picture004.jpg

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l117/WaterPond/Picture013.jpg

[CACAdmin]

It's beautiful, Waterpond. I think I want to head out there and sit by your pond with my morning coffee. Sorry to hear you lost some fish, but sadly those things do happen.

[blainep]

Amazing job Waterpond ! :notworthy:

[Jeradatar]

Great Job some fantastic pictures.
Juanita

[Melody]

Very pretty pond. Nice balance of plants & rock too. :smile:

[Pamelajo]

It is beautiful Jason.