Filling in Pond...

   / Filling in Pond... #1  

MicroPilot

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 9, 2004
Messages
1,141
Location
Northern KY
Tractor
Cub Cadet GT3500 hand-me-down
I have a small pond on my place that has over the last few years turned into more of a mud pit than pond. I'm thinking of filling this in and using the resulting flat space for a new Garage/Workshop. I've been told that IF I do this I'll have to remove all the mud at the bottomm as it will take a long time to completely dry out and settiling because of this would be a problem for a few years.

Has anyone done this kind of thing before?

Is the advice I've been given correct?

Are there any other issues I need to consider?
 
   / Filling in Pond... #2  
You need to do a search for a post by Jinman about the removal of silt in his pond. Just search in projects under "silt" and you should find it. He had a track loaded dig out all his silt down to a solid bottom and ended up with a massive amount of material. Last I heard, it's been months, and it's still wet on the inside.

If you want to build, you will have to remove all of the silt. Then you will have to bring in clean fill and compact is as you fill in layers.

This is a very large undertaking and it will be very expensive. If it's a large pond, it will be rediculously expensive!!!! If the silt is really deep and you have to bring in clean fill from any sort of distance, you could be talking about the truly absurd level of expensive!!!!!!!

Either dig it out and have a pond, or fill it in and have a pasture. Don't waste a bunch of money on it.

Eddie
 
   / Filling in Pond... #3  
My guess is your silt might stay wet and plastic for years. The fellow who dug out my silt and put it into a 10' deep pile told me to figure on three years for it to dry out. That's outside the pond. Inside the pond, it may take an "eternity" due to seepage from the surrounding ground. I would do just as you have been told: remove the silt, backfill, and build. Even after you backfill, you may end up with a virtual "bowl" because the fill soil is different from the native soil. If you don't select your soil properly and compact it very well, you will never have a stable building site in my opinion. I would find somewhere else if at all possible.
 
   / Filling in Pond...
  • Thread Starter
#4  
jinman said:
My guess is your silt might stay wet and plastic for years. The fellow who dug out my silt and put it into a 10' deep pile told me to figure on three years for it to dry out. That's outside the pond. Inside the pond, it may take an "eternity" due to seepage from the surrounding ground. ...Even after you backfill, you may end up with a virtual "bowl" because the fill soil is different from the native soil... I would find somewhere else if at all possible.


My property is all hill tops and steep valley bottoms. Flat space is hard to find. The location of this pond with my driveway right next to it would perfect for a garage/workshop. It does sound like it would be better in the long run to just lop off the top of one of the ridges with a dozer and make some flat space that way.
 
   / Filling in Pond... #5  
Any reason you don't drive piles? Basicly building your house above the muck and leaving it in place. There are several ways to do it but don't let the surface conditions stop you if you really want the building there.
 
   / Filling in Pond... #6  
Don't know about KY but here in Michigan I would be very carefull about filling anything that could be considered wetlands. I would make sure about permits and all of the needed hoops before I moved any dirt. I'm a big fan of "better to beg forgiveness than ask permission" on many matters, but not this one.
 
   / Filling in Pond... #7  
goaliedad said:
Don't know about KY but here in Michigan I would be very carefull about filling anything that could be considered wetlands. I would make sure about permits and all of the needed hoops before I moved any dirt. I'm a big fan of "better to beg forgiveness than ask permission" on many matters, but not this one.

Same in Wisconsin! Touch a wetlands and die! DNR, City, everyone will make you miserable.
Bob
 
   / Filling in Pond... #8  
If you get down to virgin soil and use a sheepsfoot to compact as you backfill you should not have an issue with sinking ground afterward. When they built our pond they compacted the material used for the dam every 6 inches in depth and it's solid.

The problem as I see it is just how deep would you might need to go to hit solid ground? :confused:
 
   / Filling in Pond... #9  
PineRidge said:
If you get down to virgin soil and use a sheepsfoot to compact as you backfill you should not have an issue with sinking ground afterward. When they built our pond they compacted the material used for the dam every 6 inches in depth and it's solid.

The problem as I see it is just how deep would you might need to go to hit solid ground? :confused:

I think you have the formula Micropilot needs to follow, Mike. Pick the right kind of fill and compact it properly after first removing the silt. A pond dam is different from a pad site, but I think the methods in this case would be the same.
 

Tractor & Equipment Auctions

Kivel 48in Pallet Fork (A47809)
Kivel 48in Pallet...
2006 FORD F-250(INOPERABLE) (A45046)
2006 FORD...
2016 S & B TRAILER 125KW MULTIQUIP GENERATOR (A47001)
2016 S & B TRAILER...
Amadas 2110 (A46443)
Amadas 2110 (A46443)
2019 ALLMAND V-SERIES LIGHT TOWER (A47001)
2019 ALLMAND...
2008 Chevrolet Colorado Pickup Truck (A46684)
2008 Chevrolet...
 
Top