Pond Ideas...

[Mozely]

OK, the pond must be built, but money is a factor so initially I am not bothered what it loos like or where it goes exactly either. I have never built a pond before and money is tight so I need to know where the best place to look for materials, filters etc,... is. Appearence wise I can fiddle with once the pond is there. Even just sticking a few pots round it will do. I am thinking a raised pond in my back garden is going to be the best option as the back garden is oin the process of renovation anyway. All help will be much apreciated. I imagine this is going to be a slow process and I am hoping to house my fish in the pond in Spring time.

So I need pointers regarding;

Size for 9 fish, in dimensions rather than volume, I'd like it to be deeper rather than wide. Should limit algae growth a little and my garden is not huge, so I need to be able to move round it

Filtration, what should I be looking for and where

Materials, what will be the best thing to build it with that won't cost the earth?

 

[aly_starh]

Size: Possibly 10ft long x 8ft wide x 4ft 6in deep, that would be a good size, seen as you have quite a few goldies

Filter: Not too sure for a pond that big

Material: Pre-shaped wont have that size so buy a large pond Liner


I have a small pond, only have 3 goldies, they are like 5 years old. So with a big sized pond obviously you need a big filter. I have a solar powered filter, from China (Ebay). Works well

Hope that helps

 

[Mozely]

I don't think practically I have space for something 10 foot by 8 foot. Depth wise I am not bothered, I wouldn't even mind going deeper than that, if that is possible/practical. If I have to rehome a few of my fish I will. Since most of them are still very small I think I shall build something a little smaller than that, and if they smaller ones do grow too large I shall just have to rehome some of them as and when.

 

[Honeythorn]

This is my post from you other thread

For a pond, make it as big as you possibly can, and as close to the house as you can ( less distance means you will need less extensions ect for filter wiring )

You need the pond to be at least 4 feet deep, as in winter the fish will retreat to the bottom where the water will actually be warmer than at the surface where ice can form. The deeper it is, the warmer the water will be.

Something around 8 feet long or around ( if circular) , and 4 feet deep should be sufficient for your number of goldfish. This is almost 1600 gallons. You can look online or in stores for a pond filter that is rated for that amount. If it rated for more than 1600 gallons then that's even better.

I'd really go for a sand and liner base, as this means you can shape the pond to the way you like it, and add as many "steps" and terraces in the sides as you like for resting potted water plants on. Just make sure that when you dig the pond out, that you remove even small stones, as these may break through the sand and pierce the liner. A good thick layer of sand is needed so dig the pond a few inches bigger than planned o allow for the sand.

If you like a natural looking pond, then making one end of the pond a shallow area leading into to a gravelled silty bank would mean you can have plenty of marginal plants that like to live at the edge of the water and in the shallows rather than being really submerged like Water lilies. There are plenty of marsh grasses and reed type plants you could buy, and they will attract insects and other wildlife to your pond as well.

A formal style pond or one with a raised wall around it, would mean marginal plants aren't really an option as the sides would be too steep. You could still have Water lillies and also Hornwort , but you will need to keep them in check as if you don't the can take over the pond. The same goes for Hornwort.

If you have to have a pond smaller than the size mentioned then it would be best to rehome quite a few of your goldfish. A pond 6 feet long or round, and approximately 5 feet deep at the deepest depth, would be ok for 3 goldfish. All the other advice above still applies.

 

[Mozely]

Yes, it will have to have raised sides as I have 2 young children. I love my fish but no way could I risk one of them falling in. I intend to have something over the top to prevent that but still, I'd rather not risk having something too low to the ground just incase. I was hoping for something at least 5 feet deep really. It would have to be a less square shape and more recangular though. The practicality is simply that my garden is not huge, I have 3 dogs and 2 children.

 

[Honeythorn]

Rectangular is fine. 5-6 foot long X 4 foot wide X 5 foot deep would work very well. From the sound of it you're going for a more formal style of pond?

The raised wall should be around 2.5 - 3 feet high from ground level to stop small kids tripping and falling in. You can also put netting/wire across for extra safety. Having the netting at least 1 foot above the water's surface will also put off Herons ( you need at least a foot to accomodate for the heron's long beak ) and also cats.

Adding ornamental grasses and plants in pots , and nice ornaments around the top of the wall will look really good. The top of the wall could be finished with some nice slabs wide enough to allow for potted plants.

 

[Mozely]

In an ideal world I would have the time, money and space to have a huge natural looking pond, but practically speaking that is not going to be possible. I think a formal pond can still look just as nice. To begin with so long as it is safe for the fish and the kids I don't care what it looks like. Eventually I could plant some clematis or passion flowers to grow on the raised sides? That way it would look pretty whatever it was made from. Fortunately I have family and friends who work in the building industry who can help with getting materials cheaper than usual At this point I wouldn't care if it was made from cement! It just needs to be done as cheaply as possible whilst remaining safe and practical. Apearence at this point is the absolute lowest priority. That can alsways be modified at a later date. I only have tank knowledge to date, but those dimensions sound more practical for my garden. Being that the fish currently add up to a total of 34 inces and live in a 42" x 12" x 18" tank I'm sure they'd be happy with anything too! I guess the one good thing is all the filter stuff in the tank can go out with them imediately once the pond is completed.

So, we have decided on a rectangular pond which will be roughly 6 X 4 across and 5 feet deep. Obviously some of that depth will be dug down and some from the raised edges.

How do I line it? I imagine the digging and most of the wall will need to be completed first, then line and fill with water before cutting the liner. How do I best pad the liner in a formal pond?

I know I am asking a million questions and I am very gratefull for all the help everyone. I'd just rather ask everything before I even think about digging or building anything. Since my back garden is in the process of a full overhaul it shouldn't be too difficult to simply incorporate the pond into what is already planned.

 

[Honeythorn]

I guess the one good thing is all the filter stuff in the tank can go out with them imediately once the pond is completed.

NO! The filters you have now would struggle to cope with the waste of a pair of goldfish let alone all of them once full grown. More importantly, a couple of Fluvals will NOT be able to filter a pond. Ever. They are not designed for outdoor pond use if nothing else .

You need a proper pond filter rated for the amount of gallons you have, but if it's rated for more then even better. The filter itself will sit outside your pond like an external filter sits outside a large tank. You will need to build a box with a lid to house the filter at one end of the pond , and the intake and outtake can either feed out through a carefully cut notch in the lid and over the edge of the wall , or feed through the raised wall of the pond.

It would make sense to build the pond as close to the house as you possibly can. That way you will need less extensions and so on for running the filter. The wires will have to run along the ground ( near the edge of the fence or walll ect ) , up the wall of the house and feed in through the window - a small upper window on the ground floor is best of course ( or if you must, drill a hole through the wall , take the plug off the filter, pass the wire through and then put the plug back on )

I really would not reccomend growing any climbing plants up the walls of the pond, the leaves shed by them in autumn may cause water quality problems if they fall in and rot.

Line the pond with fine builders sand. Make sure there are absolutely no stones anywhere in the sand as they could pierce the liner and give you a permanent leak. After lining with sand, add your liner and press it into shape around the pond. There should be a fair bit sticking up/left over at the top. You can cut this down so you have about half a foot, which can be folded over the top of the wall and slabbed over to create a nice top to the wall and hiding your liner edges at the same time.

 

[Mozely]

I didn't mean the actual filters, I meant the sponge type stuff in them, as a temporary measure it can be transfered straight into the pond filter to speed up bacteria growth in the whatever stuff they are typically filled with. Sorry if I didn't word that well enough before.

 

[Honeythorn]

Ah I see, well yes that would help the cycle start itself off if you wedge your sponges in there It may take a while since the pond filter is much bigger, but any bacteria is better than none at all.

 

[Mozely]

I'm guessing cycling with a pond is much the same as cycling with a tank just on a larger scale. I've got the master test kit so checking the water quality will not be an issue. My water quality in my tank has been perfect for a long time other than slight ph flutuations occasionally. The fish themselves all seem healthy and active and there have been no new fish added for a long time either so I'm happy that my filters are doing their job well enough untill the pond is completed..