Jim,
Your right on about the water table. I have mixed emotions over that. My pond looses a lot of water, but it comes back faster.It took two months to drop down and only 3.5 inches to get it back almost full. I have thought of using bentonite. My size pond should be small enough to not have too much "sticker" shock on the price of bentonite. I really want to keep it as full as possible. Normally down here we have a wet June and that, along with summer thunderstorms should keep it full. I am still thinking about daming my road ditch and diverting that water into the pond.
I got a hold of Advanced Drainage Systems' product catalog and will be buying a waterproof elbow for the overflow pipe. This will raise the water level 12 more inches when full.
hugs, Brandi
First off , I,ve just read the entire thread finally & its a really nice looking project Brandi , Thanks for sharing it .
I,ve been digging a small pond Myself the last several months Mainly for field drainage I needed dirt for several other projects . I Know I,m not doing it right like most others here , But Hopefully it will work out for Our needs .
But I do have one question as I cant properly seal it as well as Yours as I have very little clay & very sandy soil . As the heavy rains are pretty much over here for now anyway , Mine is dry again Which is What I wanted because it filled up before I was finished
. The question is, Have You or any others ever considered putting in a dedicated cased well & pump water into it ? I dug one years ago at anothor property much like the size of Yours But I had more clay there & it held fairlly well . However Since I stocked it with catfish I added a 1/4 horse pump & well just to keep it topped off . It had a 2 inch plastic line that ran to the waters edge that aimed up about a foot at about a 45 degree angle . I was told it would Provide oxygen for the fish as well as keeping it at a certain level & of coarse the waterfall type sound was an added bonus .
It worked Great & never had a fish kill the 10 years I lived there . Granted winter time I never ran it other then on really nice days . the Pump had its own well house & was insulated & had its own electric heater in it for the winter as it gets pretty cold here . The monthly cost never seemed to run more then maybe an additional 20 or 30 bucks a month depending on the weather & amount of Use .
I plan on doing the same thing with the new pond & Curious to Your thoughts or opinion & others of the idea . It makes it pretty nice when in dry months You dont have to depend on mother nature to keep the pond at an even level . Thanks again for the great thread.
. Bob
