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Want a Pond?
Some Things to consider
1. The first thing you will need to do is decide do you want a Koi Pond or a Water Garden?
Koi Ponds are built for fish and can have a plant bed built in so the fish can’t get to the plants. They have more filtration than Water Gardens
Water Gardens are built for plants and can have a few fish in there swimming around to help with the appearance
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2. The next thing you need to think about is how large do you want the pond to be. In the deep south the water can get very hot so a pond that you are planning to have fish in needs to be larger than a pond with only plants.
Koi Ponds should be around 2500 Gal or larger. Deeper and smaller is better than shallow and spread out
Water Gardens can be as large or as small as you like
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3. Look at the space you want to turn into a pond. Consider the soundings, is there a lot of trees,(under the trees may look good but it can be quite a nightmare when the leaves are falling) is it under the edge of the roof or are you close to a river, pond or stream. If you are looking for a large crashing waterfall you need to consider the noise. Once you have decided on a location take a water hose and lay out the shape you want. You need to keep in mind Koi Pond or Water Garden rounded corners will look better and are also less trouble in the long run.
4. Once you have the shape and the depth you want the pond to be you have what you need to figure how many gallons the pond will be.
If the pond is square the formula is( length X with X average depth all in feet X 7.48) you may need to break the pond up into sections to get the best result
If the pond is round the formula is(radius X radius X Depth X 3.142 X 7.48)Again you may need to break the pond up to get the best results
5. Now you have the number of Gallons the pond will be you can decide on a pump to circulate the water. I you are going to have fish in the pond the rule is, you need to move the volume of the pond through the filter once an hour. What this means is if the pond is 1000 gal. you need a pump that will move 1000 gal. an hour, if the pond is 15000 gal. you need a pump that will move 15000 gal. an hour.
6. Filters, this is where it starts to get tricky. Koi Ponds need more filtration than Water Gardens. With this in mind for ease of maintenances, I recommend Bead filters for Koi Ponds just pick the one for the size pond you have. Water Gardens need filtration as well and there are several different kinds you can use. If you are not planning to have fish in the pond or at least not many most waterfall containers will house enough media for your water garden.
What to build the pond out of
Do you want a Liner pond or Concrete? Here are a couple of things you will need to consider before making a choice:
Concrete; Concrete is suited more for deeper ponds with a lot of water flow. 1. Concrete is much more expansive than a liner pond. 2. Concrete is forever and can be whatever shape you want. 3. Concrete will have no rankles or crevices for your fish to hide. Concrete will allow for jets, intakes and other things on the walls of the pond.
Liner;(45 ml rubber) Liner is best suited for more shallow ponds with average water flow. 1. Liner is reasonably inexpensive 2. Liner can also fit most shapes however deep ponds will have large folds that are hard to hide and clean. 3. Liners will not allow for jets or things like a mid level intake.
The Finish, what do you want the pond to look like? Do you want a formal look or a more natural look? Concrete is very easy to get a formal look where as a liner is much easer to finish with stone and blend it into the landscaping. When making this decision you should consider carefully where you are putting the pond it is going to be there for a long time
. When making any of these dictions, consulting with a pond building professional will be most helpful. We have the experience to help guide you and prevent you from making a costly mistake. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.