Starting a new pond

I am starting a new bigger pond for my fish that have out grown the small pre-formed one I have now.
I am going to use a liner this time to get a more natural look. With a water fall and small shallow stream.
What I need to no is what kind of stone should I use in the building of the waterfall so not to kill the fish :eek: and how long do I have to leave the pond before I transfer the fish. They are 2 big goldfish and 2 very big koi.I also have a green tench and a few smaller golden orf .

 

I believe York stone is one of the recommended types as it doesn't leech into the water.

 

Any stone which does not disolve is OK. Chalk for example is a definate no no.

 

On the whole - use what's natural in your area (and it means you're less likely to have to pay over the odds for it too) Sorry I don't know what's local for your area! Have a look on-line - google geology - west midlands and see what comes up! Have fun - particularly in digging out the pond! (Don't forget to use sand to help when you lay the liner so the stones underneath don't tear your liner!!

 

The new pond is now dug out, the liner is in so to is the water.
We went for a preformed concrete waterfall, the garden centre by where we live were re-doing their gardens and we got it from them cheap. It's covered in green and looks really old and natural.
The pump is working and it's connected to the bio filter.All we have to do now is the landscaping around the area.( if it stops raining)
What I need to no is how long should I leave it before I can put fish in?

 

Ideally you should get a few fish in now..not too many though.

The waste they produce will cycle the biofilter.
You can do the same thing using ammonia instead of fish.
It will probably take a while ( a month or two) to complete the cycle from scratch,especially in cooler weather.
If you can get some filter medium from a mature filter (a friends pond?) it may save some time.

You could also buy test kits to check the progress, one for ammonia, one for nitrite and one for nitrates.
Once the filter is up to speed you can gradually add more fish.
Don`t forget to put in some plants..they consume the nitrates.

 

We left our pond around 4 weeks - we also put in a bucket of water from another pond to introduce mico-organisms and bugs, etc that help set up the balance in the water.

 

Thank you . We have another smaller pond with a filter in it. I'll take some of the stuff out of it. Do I put it in the new filter or the pond?
I'll put some of the water in to.

Many thanks.

 

This is the pond so far, as you can see there is still a lot of work to do . Any help and advise please.When I put the edging stone on do I have to concrete it on top of the liner?
How much liner should I leave on? Sorry.

 

Hi Lyn,

Take some of the old filter medium and put it in the new filter.
The bacteria colony will be well established so it`ll seed your new filter.

Replace the medium you took out of the old filter with some new stuff, otherwise you`ll reduce the capacity.

That landscaped waterfall looks great!

 

Thank you, that rockery was so heavy.We finished off the rockery area last night just a few plants to put in after the soil as settled. Waiting for the york stone to be delivered (today or monday) for round the edge of the pond.The electrics are finished both the pump and UV bio filter working.I put some of the medium in the filter out of the old one,(nasty).And the Lilly is in.
This is such hard work.People who don't garden haven't got a clue. Some one asked me yesterday haven't you finished yet.!!!!!!!!!!

 

If you go to your local builder's merchant, such as Jewson or bradford you should be able to pick up a catalogue of products and it should say in there which types of rocks & gravel are okay for ponds. Cement is a no no unless sealed as the lime leaches out, that is what the fish don't like.

 

That's coming along nicely.

 

Nearly there.Thank goodness. Feeling a bit worn out now, we were out again until 8.30 last night fitting in lights and finishing off the paving.
This really was a big job. Don't no if we would have started it if we had known.
But it is looking lovely and we are very pleased with it.
I'll post a photo in the next couple of days when it's been cleaned up and finished.

 

This is it almost finished just a bit more of a tidy .Just need the plants to grow a bit . The fish are in , we had to borrow next doors landing net for the big fish .
It was a lot of hard work but we are pleased with the result.
Not something I would like to start every bank holiday