Creating a Lake

[npaden]

Eddie, something tells me that some of the last few posters didn't bother to go back and read through the last 18 months of posts on this thread and only skimmed through the last couple pages. I wouldn't take their half cocked advice to close to heart.

I know that you try to glean as much input as you can but some people just like to criticize and don't have a clue what it really takes to complete a project like this. Most of the time they hear from a friend who heard from a friend that someone had a failed dam after a big rain so they just assume everyone will suffer the same result.

If anyone had genuine advice they would say something specific that they thought you had neglected i.e. the dam should be 50' wide at the base instead of 40' wide or something like that.

Also, I would think they would have said something a year or so ago when you were building the dam rather than wait until the lake was filling up.

I think some people are just jealous.

That's my 2 cents.

 

[Dozernut]

I've got to agree with npaden, the only failure of a dam that I am familiar with is an acquaintance who dammed up a central drainage creek. This creek drained several acres of farm land and only had an overflow tube. A large rain and the small creek became a raging giant and the overflow tube could not handle the onslaught, thus washing out the dam. The now non-existing pond was poorly constructed with no thought of a heavy rain. I see none of this in your pond. If your overflow is significant you might want to rip rap the spillway but all I have on my large pond (4 Acres) is a grass spillway and I have no problem with erosion. The oldest pond I have built is over 30 years old with a grass spillway and it is still standing and has never had a problem with erosion.

 

[EddieWalker]

Hi Nathan & Dozernut,

I agree that somebody with actual knowledge of what they were talking about would mention something specific as to what I did wrong. The other option would be to ask pertinent questions regarding an aspect of pond construction that they are concerned with.

My resourses are well documented in the thread as well as what is required to build a dam and how I did so. What's interesting is that I've overbuilt the size of the dam over twice as thick as it needed to be. I cored it, compacted it and used a high quality clay with 3:1 slopes on the inside adn 6:1 on the outside. Nobody in there right mind would pay a contractor to do all that extra work and move that much additional material, but since it was my hours and machines, I wanted it to be stronger than it had to be and also pleasing to the eye. When it's full of water and the grass is grown in, I want people to walk along the dam and not even realize it is a dam!!!!

Since klm and hillbillyfarmer have both chosen to make rude remarks without offering anything suggestive, I take it they don't have any knowledge of what they are talking about and are just angry with me for some other reason. Might be they don't like another post I made or that they are just against ponds in general. Hopefully I'm mistaken and they will take as much time to offer some insight to there wisdom as they did to insult me.

Eddie

 

[CurlyDave]

Eddie:

As I recall it, you were planning to concrete the spillway, at least at one point in the project.

Once you have removed the possibility of erosion, I don't see how you would be in much danger at all. As I recall this, the head at the dam is substantially less than the total depth of the lake -- you excavated a large basin. This makes it a lot safer than someone coming in at the end and assuming a 15-foot dam would think.

I am certainly impressed with the size of this project and your tenacity at it.

 

[Glowplug]

klm and hillbillyfarmer basically show their ignorance of this whole thread and the project in general with their comments. They obviously didn't read the earlier posts from 1 1/2 years ago. Those of us who have followed every post in this thread for the past 18 months feel confident in your ability Eddie. We have seen all the forethought, planning, as well as the blood, sweat, and tears that went into this project. To lose your dam with a storm, it would have to be something of biblical proportions. And you definitely didn't just slap a dam up anywhere without any planning in order to make your pond!

 

[john_bud]

I can't think of a better way to mess up some good land than to go off half cocked building a pond. Ponds need to be designed and built according to a well conceived and engineered plan.
Yea, you might get lucky, but more often than not, a poorly though out pond construction job becomes a disaster.

Having read the previous 600 odd posts, I really don't think that this particular pond was done in a slap dash fashion.

jb

 

[schmism]

dont feed the trolls....

any new pics? how deep is it!

 

[Renze]

Hopefully I'm mistaken and they will take as much time to offer some insight to there wisdom as they did to insult me.
Eddie

Eddie, when about 120 years ago the first steam train in the Netherlands was achieving the speed of 40 km/h, in some small town they hired an excorcist to protect the villagers against this devilish machine, as it was common belief that a man made machine could only reach this speed when it was somehow connected to the devil....

mocking is a result of ignorance.

 

[Farwell]

I can't think of a better way to mess up some good land than to go off half cocked building a pond. Ponds need to be designed and built according to a well conceived and engineered plan.
Yea, you might get lucky, but more often than not, a poorly though out pond construction job becomes a disaster.

Hillbillyfarmer,
I would like to have a $100 for every hour that Eddie has spent thinking about how to correctly build his pond.
David

 

[Glowplug]

I would like to have a $100 for every hour that Eddie has spent thinking about how to correctly build his pond.

A hundred dollar bill for every hour?!? You planning on retiring rich? Heck, I'd like to have a dollar! I could probably buy a nice tractor implement! Possibly even a tractor!

 

[Farwell]

A hundred dollar bill for every hour?!? You planning on retiring rich? Heck, I'd like to have a dollar! I could probably buy a nice tractor implement! Possibly even a tractor!

Glowplug,
I was thinking of buying one of those Beverly Hills mansions. They do grow corn in Beverly Hills don't they?
I have read all 600+ posts and wait anxiously for the next one. I was really saddened when the thread ended on the engine repair for Eddies dozer.
David

 

[rico304]

I can't think of a better way to mess up some good land than to go off half cocked building a pond. Ponds need to be designed and built according to a well conceived and engineered plan.
Yea, you might get lucky, but more often than not, a poorly though out pond construction job becomes a disaster.

We obviously don't agree on the messing up land theory, but the rest of his statement is correct.
That is why I'm happy that this Lake was / is a well conceived and engineered plan that was well thought out!

 

[mudcat]

Sometimes a persons popularity is frowned upon. Jealousy? Ignorance? Who knows. Like stated above anyone who has followed this thread knows the time, dedication and forethought put into this project. I hope Eddie gets a BIG RAIN so he can post a KMA photo.

 

[NorthwestBlue]

Eddie,

I'm one of the many who read this thread regularly, content to watch and learn from you and the many others who supply insiteful comments, earnest questions, and atta boys. It caught me off-gaurd when I read those two posts, as they were far and away the opposite to everything that has been posted on your thread to date. So I just have to say don't let it get to you, keep up the good work, and keep the posts and pictures comin'.

 

[ronjhall]

I can't think of a better way to mess up some good land than to go off half cocked building a pond. Ponds need to be designed and built according to a well conceived and engineered plan.
Yea, you might get lucky, but more often than not, a poorly though out pond construction job becomes a disaster.

Having visited Eddies place.
If there is/was any messing up of land. It was done by the Army back in the 40's.

 

[gsganzer]

I think Eddie's pond will be fine. He put a lot of research into it and had a tremendous amount of input from some very knowledgeable folks here on TBN and elsewhere.

We did have a dam fail near me. The tank was about 10- 15 acres. The dam was packed clay with no rip-rap or concrete spillway or overflow pipe. My next door neighbor voiced his concerns that he thought there spillway would wash out (the acreage draining to this pond is sizable, probably 2,000 - 3,000 acres). The first rain filled the tank to a magnificent size and water started over the spillway, that started the ball in motion. Every subsequent rain resulted in a lower water level as a groove started to get eaten through the spillway. Once a groove starts getting eroded, there's almost no way to stop it.

The builders messed up that pond up on a couple of points:

• They underestimated the sheer volume of run-off during a big storm, due to the size of the watershed acreage.

• 
  They didn't have any type of normal overflow path, culverts etc. The spillway should only be shedding water during extreme events, so the vegetation can take hold.

• 
  They didn't grade to allow for a "sheet" flow over the spillway. This would have allowed the velocity of the overflow to be lower and less concentrated, minimizing the channel getting eroded

• 
  In the case of their design, they needed some riprap and or concrete

Again, this tank was sizable with a huge watershed area. There would normally be a constant inflow and outflow during typical seasons that they never allowed for. It was a shame to see that dam fail, it was fixin' to be a great duck hunting place that would have attracted a ton of ducks that travel between the larger Corp of Engineers lakes in the area.

If anyone has Google earth, you can see the failed dam at Latitude 33°17'15.43"N, Longitude 97°10'9.28"W

 

[slowzuki]

I hope my post was not seen as negative, I was just trying to think why someone would make a vague comment. Judging by the amount of time to fill up, I don't think Eddie has the kind of rain that other areas have to deal with.

I saw pictures of the spillway a while back and it seemed the grass hadn't grown on it yet. Perhaps the poster was worried about the unsodded spillway eroding?

 

[firemanpat2910]

Glowplug,
I was thinking of buying one of those Beverly Hills mansions. They do grow corn in Beverly Hills don't they?
I have read all 600+ posts and wait anxiously for the next one. I was really saddened when the thread ended on the engine repair for Eddies dozer.
David

me too but I bet Eddie and his dad were glad to be done with it

 

[ArkLaTexSam]

My area has man made lakes and ponds all over the place. Most of them were made by land owners that had a lot of ambition just like Eddie. These were not College Grads or engineer's. Just simple people that did their homework and made a dream into life. They are all full of water and none have failed.


ArkLaTexSam

 

[EddieWalker]

THANK YOU guys for your support and encouragement. Since klm and hillbillyfarmer haven't replied, I'll just have to assume they were having a bad day and chose my dam as the source of there frustration.

One of the main reasons I'm here is to learn how to do things right and better than I know how. I truly want people to offer critism or ask questions on things they think I'm doing wrong. I'm just an amature here working on my land and most of what I do is learned from what I've read or I'm told. It sure doesn't mean I know what I'm doing!!!!!

I'm very concerned that my dam might fail. It's always a possibility, so if I've done soemthing wrong, or can do something more, than please let me know. Just telling me I'm an idiot and not explaining why isn't very benificial or very helpful at fixing my mistakes.

I took another picture of the spillway today. It's still hard to tell what's going on by the picture because the dirt all sort of blends it together. The light colored areas are bermuda grass that has gone dormant on me. There is still grass that is sprouting and comeing up, but that's just baby grass. The mature, established stuff is all brown.

As you can see in the picture, the land is almost totaly flat. If I get any erosion, it will be very miniman and easy to repair. At no time will the dam be affected by water running through the spillway. When it does overflow, I'll be sure to update it with more pictures as I'm dying to see how it all works out.

The water is still rising, but slowly. The plants on the island are all in water now and there's only a few islands still above the water.

The last picture shows the overall view of the lake as of today.

Thank you,
Eddie