Pond update

Well we are quite a long way into our big pond project and have just compiled a series of photos.

The Big Pond Build (so far) ~ Alternative Eden

As you can see its not that far off. Hopefully the weather will stay mild for the rest of the winter and we can get many of the remaining jobs done ahead of finishing off the blockwork and then the fibreglassing in the spring!

 

Ye gods!

What a magnificent feature all that will be!

A wee bit more than the usual hole in the ground with some water in........

 

Blimey Gaz Hell of a project, looking good.

 

nice one ... well planned and will look stunning

just be careful with predator birds .... I worked at a company in south africa .... they bought a new premisis with ultra modern office .... had the whole garden landscaped, and built a huge pond ... and had it planted with exotic type pond plants

the boss spent thousands stacking up the pond with Koi (they were very expensive) .....

a couple of months later, the cormorant birds got wind of this and descended .... they had a feast

was actually funny, (we were contractors) ... and we used to stand on a balcony having our cigarettes, and watch the cormorant dive and eat the koi ....

R250 a pop (that was a long time ago and was equivalent to £25 for a small koi in those days) ....

The cormorant birds wiped out the whole lot in a matter of weeks (the pond was approx 80m long and 40m wide but was oval in shape

 

Looking good Gaz :thumb:

Can you please give some details of the equipment your using? Filtration and gallonage?

I wouldn't be over-worried about predators. As far as I know, the only one that should be of concern is the Heron. As I understand it, they like to have their feet in the water to 'fish'. A bit difficult to do that with raised sides.

Cheers...Freddy.

 

Thanks for all the comments guys! Glad you enjoy it.

In relation to predators, our main worry are herons, as Freddy says. We are planning on building a pergola over the top which should help shield the pond, but will also use fishing line round the pond as it helps keep the birds from getting too close. Herons tend to prefer to wade in, so with vertical sides that should also put them off.

Freddy, the final filtration set up is still to be decided upon. However the two bottom drains will feed a sieve, then a bead filter and finally a UV filter. There will also be a separate surface skimmer which will go to another filter system - this one we haven't made our mind up on what we will use.

The final pond gallonage will be in the region of 8,000 gallons.

 

Hiya Gaz. 8,000 gallons, that's quite large! Are you sure one sieve is enough? I too have a sieve and a bead filter for my 2,180 gallon Koi pond. I went for the Econobead 60 which is reckoned to be able to cope with Koi ponds UP TO 6,000 gallons. The key thing here is the "UP TO". My advice is to be very wary when it comes to quoted capacity. Much better to have too much than too little.

Cheers...Freddy.

 

Not for long,


The RSPB: The Great Crane Project: About the project

Strongys already seen one.

I'd be tempted to grow a few Grass Carp for the table, juveniles are £2/3 each & they grow very fast.

 

Hi Freddy, the plan is to have a Cetus sieve and an Econobead 100 on each bottom drain. Then an additional filter run from the skimmer. Each bead should cope with upto 12,000gal so even allowing for exaggeration by the suppliers the two filter runs should be ok.

Ziggy, cant see us growing any to eat, we tend to get too attached to any 'pets' we have

Gaz

 

Hiya Gaz. Sounds good :thumb: BTW, what pumps are you planning to use?

 

would one decent swimming pool pump not be good enough? .... (it's a large pond)

could be then filtered through 2 or 3 seperate filters (joined in tandem) before being returned to the pond .... last filter filled with special charcoal (like they use in tropical fish tanks)

am just guessing here, but trying to think of a similar system as used in large tropical fish tanks

 

Hiya *dim*.

It's not quite as simple as that. For a start, he has two bottom drains, each feeding a sieve. These will each need a dedicated pump, of sufficient force (but not too much) to feed his beadfilters, AND turn over the contents of the pond once every 1-2 hours. Also, there's the issue of energy consumption. I'm guessing that 'regular' swimming pool pumps aren't exactly energy efficient?

I've used a beadfilter on my pond, and the main reason was the size of the footprint, and the quite massive filtration they offer, given their size. As with all systems, there are downsides. It's all about what suits the individual.

Cheers...Freddy.

 

shows you how little I know .... was wondering what those filter thingys were on the base of the pond

my only experience is with tropical fish tanks and swimming pools .... suppose it works different

but thought that it's best not to filter from the bottom floor as fish lay eggs on the bottom? ....

suppose ponds work different, and the last time I owned a fishtank, things like microwaves, mobile phones and solar heating were not even thought of

:(

 

found it ... interesting reading

Bottom Drains for Koi Ponds