Will Be Building My Fisrt Pond

Ralph

I am planning to build a pond this fall when the weather cools a little bit. I am new to ponds, with no experience.
Can anyone with experience tell me what they think of this kit product? Post it here or PM me.
Thanks

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...&category=20507

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The liner design is pretty typical for irregular layouts and can work quite well. I would be most concerned about the filter design. Filter size really depends on fish load and sun exposure. It's not unusual for a filter to be 1/4 the size of the pond, (or even larger!) and have much more media and surface area.

Often it's arranged so that water is fed by gravity from the pond into a settling tank, and then pumped into a larger biological filter from the bottom, where it percolates up. Teh filter is located slightly higher than the pond, so water can then spills down a waterfall, which aerates it.

You can learn a lot by visiting one of the more active pond forums or contacting a koi and water garden club in your area. They will save you a lot of headaches

I put that liner dimension into google and found a few sites. The last one seems inexpensive, but quality may vary. Look at the MIL dimension - thicker is better.

http://createapond.safeshopper.com/6/15.htm?914
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/premierponds/ponlinun.html
http://www.aquaart.com/liners.html
http://www.ponds2go.com/pondkit.asp
http://www.pondliners.com/epdm-liners-45mil.html

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Ralph

Hi Matt,
Thanks for the comments. I have until this Fall to gain knowledge before I start. I budgeted about $1200 for all the pond equipment, and I have a free supply of stone. that will get me off the ground this fall, and next spring I will stock the pond with koi, and landscape the area. My intention is to build a pond roughly 11ft x 15ft x 30 inches deep. I selected a location in my yard in front of our patio. I will document this with pictures and upload my progress here on the site.
That Ebay vendor listed above has a website @ www.watergardencreations.com
The prices they advertise are better than I can get locally, even with the shipping added, and better than I have seen on other websites. It's just that I am ignorant to the quality of the product at this point. They look like they have a reasonble quality liner with warranty. The pumps are cheap, and I wonder if I am better with a more expensive pump using less wattage. Additionally, purchaing over the internet, as opposed to purchasing from a local distibutor always comes with it's own risks for claims on damages, etc. I will doument here when I start the job, whether I purchased a kit, or individual components, and what company I went with, and what my final costs were.

__________________
Emerging from winter slumber
Bonsai trees burst buds anew
Spring is upon us!


-Paul S.

TreeBay

Most of the large ponds I have seen on tours in Santa Clara Valley make use of circulation pumps. (Your pond sounds like it would qualify as large) These pumps are manufactured by Teel and come in various capacities 1/8 horsepower up. You can find them at catalog houses like Cole-Parmer or plumbing supply houses. They are designed for use in residential and industrial water supply systems to keep water from the heater circulating around so it is always hot when you turn on the tap.

The pumps are easy to set up, but they do sit outside the pond, and usually a flapper valve is required in line just before the pump. It's all plumbed in ABS or PVC pipe. Big pipes are better - you want to stay away from anything designed for swimming pools or spas, because they move water under high pressure through small pipes, and you really want the opposite. These circulator pumps can move a ton of water and do so almost silently with good efficiency. So if you have a big falls in mind, that's something to think about.

Most submersible pumps only last 18 months or so before the seals give out or the bearings/impeller clog.

When you choose a liner dimensions, you factor twice the pond depth plus a ledge for rock and add that on to the pond's linear dimensions measured at the surface. Depth protects the koi from predators like racoons and herons. It's not unheard of for a koi pond to be 5' deep to let the fish exercise by diving and get really big. I have just a small backyard pond only 2-1/2 feet deep and it has been cleaned out twice in 10 years by raccoons!

When you lay out your pond, it's worthwhile to use a garden hose to mark its dimensions and live with it for a few weeks before you break ground. Measurements that sound practical on paper have a way of shrinking when you lay them out at the site.

Good luck,

Matt

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