Fish Pond!

[jenks69]

We have a tank thread so thought I'd start a pond thread.

I have decided I need to turn my front garden into a relaxing place to be, we'll never let Blake play there as it's hard concrete in places and easy access to main road so I want to do the following:

Increase height of gate and hedge to 6' for privacy from the pavement
Make a wooden bin store to get the two wheely bins out of the way and more pleasing to the eye
External mood lighting
Raised pond with water feature / fall stock with lots of small goldfish
I'll be aiming for a DIY filter and a DIY skimmer at the other end.

Has anyone here got a pond? Got any tips or tricks that I may need to know?

 

[Focus Owner]

all i know is when your fish becomes too big you have to dig more out.

and you need to protect from birds

I would make a sliding, folding gate lid design to stop thief's since its in your front garden.


folding style thing

 

[jenks69]

I've been thinking about a thin wire grid somehow locked so it's just under the surface of the water. That'll stop cats, birds and thieves from getting at the fish.

Won't be putting anything expensive in like Koi jut be generic goldfish of the very cheap variety.

 

[Focus Owner]

As the metal reacts with the water it may cause problems later down the line.
cats, they are weird animals.
ours was scared of fish, or not bothered.

I'm thinking filter ect as well.

 

[jenks69]

I've got several box filters from various fish tanks that I've had over the years, I'm going to take the pumps from those and build a skimmer to take surface crap out, and then a DIY larger box filter / waterfall thinggy somehow, I'll work that out at the end once I have the pond built. It'll be about 2m long, 0.7m wide and about 1m deep then at one end I'll add a raised area where I pump into the filter at one end and gravity will take the water out over a water fall at the other.

It'll be a raised pond so when I eventually move I can drain it and take it with me

 

[PuntoHowTo]

Fountains and water falls keep the water moving to oxygenate the water and reduce alge consider investing in uv filter box.

Little-uns and ponds don't mix well a thin mesh might be ok for stopping the odd cat but it won't help a toddler going face down when your not looking so you might want to install something a little more child friendly, birds like herons will still find ways to eat the fish they'll just wreck thin mesh.

Old plastic water header tanks make a good filter box.

 

[jenks69]

I have some knowledge from keeping various fish tanks, the main principles are the same.

Little one won't ever be allowed in front garden on his own, with or without pond, due to the main road. As for herons and things it's a small enclosed garden I can't imagine one getting in.

Water cirulation and aeriation I am fine with, but DIY filter and UV are a new to me.

Thanks everyone.

 

[sludgeguts]

My pond is an above ground affair made from 3 sheets of 8x4 external ply (one sheet cut in half to form the two ends 4x4).
These are held in place with 3 frames of 3"x4" timbers (one at the top, middle and base). The outside is finished with gravel boards fixed vertically to the 3 frames. The gap between the ply and gravel board is stuffed with loft insulation.
To stop herons, I made a pergola with a bamboo screen on top to provide some shade (south facing garden).
I pump the water out & through a large UV system into two small water butts. The first filter is purely a vortex, water comes in through the lid and the outlet is angled partway up so the water swirls around the tub, encouraging heavy particles to sink. Water then exits near the top and into the second filter, leaving the pipe near the bottom of the butt. This water has to pass up through some K1 before exiting to the pond.
I also have a solar powered air pump just to help out in the summer.
This system has worked really well for the last couple of years. The water is crystal clear & the goldfish breed like . . . Over the past few years I've given away about 200 goldfish and umpteen binbagsfull of pondweed.

Only downside. When temps drop to below zero I can't run the water through the UV or filters - but that's no biggie as the fish don't feed for a few months so they're not producing loads of muck.
Upside is, with the pond being 4'deep/high, it's great to lean on the top and look in - I finished the top off with a decking frame to hide the edge of the pond liner and gravel board.