Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be
before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
Lisa C. wrote:
In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? I must admit I disagree with that to a certain extent. I found myself moistening the clay when I dug out my first pond. Clay when dry is really tough to sink a shovel into. OTOH, when it's really wet, it's heavy and tough to do anything with. FWIW, I've gone the DIY route with two ponds now. First one taught me a lot - don't just decide that wetspot in the yard would make a good pond, use a liner (fortunately I knew that before I started) not a preform cause preforms can be problematic, keep away from trees, keep the dog out of the pond cause their naisl tear liners (*sigh*) and it's going to take a while. Longer than you thought. Also, have a plan for what you are going to do with all the clay you dig out. Second pond taught me that some spots in NC can be solid rock. Witness digging down 6" to hit sandstone. Pond is 8' x 6' and 36" deep. The entire pond is carved out of that single slab of rock. We never found the edge or the bottom. It took renting an electric jackhammer to carve it out. (Yep, there are such critters.) One other thing, do not put rocks on the bottom as it cause all types of water problems. The liner will rapidly be covered with a nice, healthy coat of algae. One last thing, you need to treat city water in this area for the most part to remove chloramines. This is not the same as chlorine. DOn't put fish in it immediately as it takes time for the water to cycle through and the pond to become safe. Buy a cheap water test kit to watch the ph, nitrates, nitrites and ammonia levels. One way that I've heard to jump start the biological cycle of a pond is to get some water from a pond that's established. This will introduce the beneficial bacteria and help them get established faster. Above all, don't let me scare you off. My first pond took me about a month to dig out and set up. My second - a three day weekend. Jackhammering I found is a lot faster than digging. *grin* Come hang out on rec.ponds. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people on the newsgroup and will readily answer just about anu question you may have. Susan shsimko[@]duke[.]edu |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
Lisa C. wrote:
In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? I must admit I disagree with that to a certain extent. I found myself moistening the clay when I dug out my first pond. Clay when dry is really tough to sink a shovel into. OTOH, when it's really wet, it's heavy and tough to do anything with. FWIW, I've gone the DIY route with two ponds now. First one taught me a lot - don't just decide that wetspot in the yard would make a good pond, use a liner (fortunately I knew that before I started) not a preform cause preforms can be problematic, keep away from trees, keep the dog out of the pond cause their naisl tear liners (*sigh*) and it's going to take a while. Longer than you thought. Also, have a plan for what you are going to do with all the clay you dig out. Second pond taught me that some spots in NC can be solid rock. Witness digging down 6" to hit sandstone. Pond is 8' x 6' and 36" deep. The entire pond is carved out of that single slab of rock. We never found the edge or the bottom. It took renting an electric jackhammer to carve it out. (Yep, there are such critters.) One other thing, do not put rocks on the bottom as it cause all types of water problems. The liner will rapidly be covered with a nice, healthy coat of algae. One last thing, you need to treat city water in this area for the most part to remove chloramines. This is not the same as chlorine. DOn't put fish in it immediately as it takes time for the water to cycle through and the pond to become safe. Buy a cheap water test kit to watch the ph, nitrates, nitrites and ammonia levels. One way that I've heard to jump start the biological cycle of a pond is to get some water from a pond that's established. This will introduce the beneficial bacteria and help them get established faster. Above all, don't let me scare you off. My first pond took me about a month to dig out and set up. My second - a three day weekend. Jackhammering I found is a lot faster than digging. *grin* Come hang out on rec.ponds. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people on the newsgroup and will readily answer just about anu question you may have. Susan shsimko[@]duke[.]edu |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
In article , Lisa C wrote:
In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? -- Wes Dukes (wdukes.pobox@com) Swap the . and the @ to email me please. spam@www.spam.com is a garbage address. |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
|
#7
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
Lisa,
Since you are talking about a fishing pond, dug with heavy equipment, I'd ask the *operators* of the equipment, as I think they would know best the optimal conditions for the equipment. Hmmm.... I've been meaning to upgrade my teeny little water garden, maybe this will be the year to do it. Anne Lurie NE Raleigh "Lisa C." wrote in message ... On Fri, 02 Apr 2004 13:22:31 GMT, wrote: In article , Lisa C wrote: In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? Ohh. that would probably help, huh? I am talking more like a pond that you would go fishing in - with a dam - not a small goldfish pond. One that you would dig with heavy equipment. |
#8
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
Lisa,
Since you are talking about a fishing pond, dug with heavy equipment, I'd ask the *operators* of the equipment, as I think they would know best the optimal conditions for the equipment. Hmmm.... I've been meaning to upgrade my teeny little water garden, maybe this will be the year to do it. Anne Lurie NE Raleigh "Lisa C." wrote in message ... On Fri, 02 Apr 2004 13:22:31 GMT, wrote: In article , Lisa C wrote: In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? Ohh. that would probably help, huh? I am talking more like a pond that you would go fishing in - with a dam - not a small goldfish pond. One that you would dig with heavy equipment. |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
In article , Anne Lurie wrote:
Lisa, Since you are talking about a fishing pond, dug with heavy equipment, I'd ask the *operators* of the equipment, as I think they would know best the optimal conditions for the equipment. Hmmm.... I've been meaning to upgrade my teeny little water garden, maybe this will be the year to do it. I agree Anne. Most times someone takes advantage of sloping land and dams up the lower end. ONe also has to install a spillway and other such things in the bottom so too much water would be a factor. With all the environmental factors today you may also be required to have a permit to even build one and have an engineer design it. A contractor would be the source or someone in county government who is in water and stream managment. Someone in our church recently built one on their land west of Pittsboro I will ask him. Anne Lurie NE Raleigh "Lisa C." wrote in message ... On Fri, 02 Apr 2004 13:22:31 GMT, wrote: In article , Lisa C wrote: In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? Ohh. that would probably help, huh? I am talking more like a pond that you would go fishing in - with a dam - not a small goldfish pond. One that you would dig with heavy equipment. -- Wes Dukes (wdukes.pobox@com) Swap the . and the @ to email me please. spam@www.spam.com is a garbage address. |
#10
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
In article , Anne Lurie wrote:
Lisa, Since you are talking about a fishing pond, dug with heavy equipment, I'd ask the *operators* of the equipment, as I think they would know best the optimal conditions for the equipment. Hmmm.... I've been meaning to upgrade my teeny little water garden, maybe this will be the year to do it. I agree Anne. Most times someone takes advantage of sloping land and dams up the lower end. ONe also has to install a spillway and other such things in the bottom so too much water would be a factor. With all the environmental factors today you may also be required to have a permit to even build one and have an engineer design it. A contractor would be the source or someone in county government who is in water and stream managment. Someone in our church recently built one on their land west of Pittsboro I will ask him. Anne Lurie NE Raleigh "Lisa C." wrote in message ... On Fri, 02 Apr 2004 13:22:31 GMT, wrote: In article , Lisa C wrote: In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? Ohh. that would probably help, huh? I am talking more like a pond that you would go fishing in - with a dam - not a small goldfish pond. One that you would dig with heavy equipment. -- Wes Dukes (wdukes.pobox@com) Swap the . and the @ to email me please. spam@www.spam.com is a garbage address. |
#11
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
|
#12
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
Lisa,
Since you are talking about a fishing pond, dug with heavy equipment, I'd ask the *operators* of the equipment, as I think they would know best the optimal conditions for the equipment. Hmmm.... I've been meaning to upgrade my teeny little water garden, maybe this will be the year to do it. Anne Lurie NE Raleigh "Lisa C." wrote in message ... On Fri, 02 Apr 2004 13:22:31 GMT, wrote: In article , Lisa C wrote: In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? Ohh. that would probably help, huh? I am talking more like a pond that you would go fishing in - with a dam - not a small goldfish pond. One that you would dig with heavy equipment. |
#13
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
In article , Anne Lurie wrote:
Lisa, Since you are talking about a fishing pond, dug with heavy equipment, I'd ask the *operators* of the equipment, as I think they would know best the optimal conditions for the equipment. Hmmm.... I've been meaning to upgrade my teeny little water garden, maybe this will be the year to do it. I agree Anne. Most times someone takes advantage of sloping land and dams up the lower end. ONe also has to install a spillway and other such things in the bottom so too much water would be a factor. With all the environmental factors today you may also be required to have a permit to even build one and have an engineer design it. A contractor would be the source or someone in county government who is in water and stream managment. Someone in our church recently built one on their land west of Pittsboro I will ask him. Anne Lurie NE Raleigh "Lisa C." wrote in message ... On Fri, 02 Apr 2004 13:22:31 GMT, wrote: In article , Lisa C wrote: In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? Ohh. that would probably help, huh? I am talking more like a pond that you would go fishing in - with a dam - not a small goldfish pond. One that you would dig with heavy equipment. -- Wes Dukes (wdukes.pobox@com) Swap the . and the @ to email me please. spam@www.spam.com is a garbage address. |
#14
|
|||
|
|||
Digging out a pond?
Contact the county ag extension.
They generally help farmers build fire and or irrigation ponds all of the time so they can give you some specs on it. I dont think that wether the ground is dry or wet matters though. A backhoe will take care of it either way. The big issues will be 1- water inflow and out - if you dont have someway of keeping the pond filled it will dry up in summer months. 2 - Seepage, for the 1st couple of years the pond will seep water until it finally silts in. tomatolord wrote in message . .. In article , Anne Lurie wrote: Lisa, Since you are talking about a fishing pond, dug with heavy equipment, I'd ask the *operators* of the equipment, as I think they would know best the optimal conditions for the equipment. Hmmm.... I've been meaning to upgrade my teeny little water garden, maybe this will be the year to do it. I agree Anne. Most times someone takes advantage of sloping land and dams up the lower end. ONe also has to install a spillway and other such things in the bottom so too much water would be a factor. With all the environmental factors today you may also be required to have a permit to even build one and have an engineer design it. A contractor would be the source or someone in county government who is in water and stream managment. Someone in our church recently built one on their land west of Pittsboro I will ask him. Anne Lurie NE Raleigh "Lisa C." wrote in message ... On Fri, 02 Apr 2004 13:22:31 GMT, wrote: In article , Lisa C wrote: In the do-it-yourself realm of things, how dry does it need to be before you dig out a pond? I have been told that it pretty much has to be dry as a bone to keep from getting stuck - but I'm wondering what that really means. Are we talking a week with very little rain? A month? How deep? Area (sqft or acres)? Ohh. that would probably help, huh? I am talking more like a pond that you would go fishing in - with a dam - not a small goldfish pond. One that you would dig with heavy equipment. -- Wes Dukes (wdukes.pobox@com) Swap the . and the @ to email me please. spam@www.spam.com is a garbage address. |
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Hand held tools for pulling/digging out roots and stems from woody brush | Gardening | |||
Pampas grass: digging out | United Kingdom | |||
Digging out a quince | United Kingdom | |||
Bloody dogs digging out bulbs | Australia | |||
Pond Digging 101 | Ponds |