Silt Happens!

[tinsnip]

That's a serious pond! I have a question though, not being familiar with your climate, do you anticipate any problems with algae bloom? Is there an outlet to the pond?

I ask because I have a small semi-natural pond on my property. It's spring-fed. Stays full almost year round except in the dead of summer or when it's a dry year. (The water is cold enough to keep trout, which I used to stock until the Ospreys found it a convenient lunch stop). There is a small outlet that allows for some excahnge of water and overflow protection, but for a few years I was still getting algae blooms.

I installed a windmill that pumps air into the pond via a diffuser, started cutting the fringe grass around the pond to allow for airflow across the top, and add a colorant that blocks the sun and inhibits bottom growth. In the end I beat it, but it was a mess until I got it all working together. FWIW.

Enjoy your fishing!

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

Jinman, what an awesome project! I've been so busy with work and such I don't have much time to spend here on TBN lately. So I was surprised to see this thread started back up in the middle of last month. Its hard to imagine just what a guy can do with his tractor and 200 plus hours of work. My hat is off to you!
My pond could use a good cleaning out. My FIL and I were talking about "what ifs". What if we clean it out and it doesn't hold water? It held water during this past drought better than any pond around that I know of. While many went dry, ours went down only 1-2 feet. I know I'd have to pump it to drain it, so I'm thinking if I ever hit the lottery, I'd like to get my hands on a drag crane with a mud bucket for a couple of weeks.

 

[jinman]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I have a question though, not being familiar with your climate, do you anticipate any problems with algae bloom? Is there an outlet to the pond? )</font>

Tinsnip: I have an overflow from this pond that goes into a second pond and then into our 15 acre lake. Almost every year, this pond fills and overflows. I've never had a problem with algae, but I have had a lot of pond weeds growing around the edge of the pond. With the steep banks and depth of this pond, I expect to not have a problem with weeds. I think my biggest challenge will be keeping grass of some kind growing. I have lots of work to go with putting rocks on terrace slopes and getting grass started. It was hard to find the motivation with the drought, but now I'm encouraged by the much-needed rain we have received. Things are looking up. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Kyle: Thanks for the compliment. I really do have the kind of place that lends itself to building and filling ponds from all the runoff if the rain comes as normal. This has been a big project with my tractor, but I would have been way above my head without that 2-1/2 days of dozer/track loader work. He moved more in that time than I could have moved in a month working full time with my little bucket. Heck, I'm almost above my head collecting and moving all the rocks I need. Hauling each load 1/4 to 1/2 mile takes a lot of time. The only good thing is I have a gravel road for most of that distance. I thought about using a trailer, but getting the rocks dumped and having to pick them up in the bucket twice just seemed like it would not add any efficiency to my process. I guess I should be happy that I have the rock and don't have to pay to have it hauled in. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[jinman]

My little pond finally made it over the spillway. It has been over a year since I cleaned out the silt. We have been in drought and we still are, but my pond doesn't know it. Maybe this spring I can actually get grass growing around the pond and on my terraces.

 

[Thomas]

Morning jinman.
Like that before and afterwards pics...by the looks you got a lot of seat time.

Once the grass starts growing I bet the wildlife will visit often.

 

[jinman]

Morning jinman.
Like that before and afterwards pics...by the looks you got a lot of seat time.

Once the grass starts growing I bet the wildlife will visit often.

Good mornin' to you Thomas. The difference is amazing. If you didn't know how deep this pond is, you would think it is just the normal little shallow stock pond. However, I think it is about 14' deep in the middle. Soon, I'll have to take some depth measurements.

Of course, with the ponds and lakes, our place is a wildlife magnet for birds and four-legged critters. There are deer, turkey, and racoon tracks everywhere. I hope they stay here and don't come to my garden.

 

[mikim]

with the dirt movement up the gulley ... and the spillway where it is ... do you have another route to get up to "picnic hill"?

 

[dirtworksequip]

Jim, I wish I had seen this thread last year. I would have suggested that you put in an L shaped overflow pipe. As it its now any time it rains and water goes over the dirt spillway and just adds silt to the lower pond and lake. Here's a pic of your pond with a L overflow pipe drawn in. I just drew it to give you and idea of how they are set up.This isn't the location where it should go. It needs to go thru the dam where it can drain into the lower pond. When you had the pond dry it would have been the perfect time to install an overfow pipe. You could have got a hoe and dug a ditch from the inside of the pond to the lower side of the dam. Then laid pipe in the ditch and consructed the stand pipe. The top of the stand pipe being the projected waterline.It's sort of too late now. If you do decide to ever do an over flow pipe DO NOT just run one horizontally thru the dam. They just don't work and over time will wash out. Nice job on redoing the the pond, very pretty site. I know its lots of work and hours and hours to redo a pond. I always say with ponds. Figure out how much time you think it will take you and then multiply by 3!


Grey: ditch for pipe. Graded to drain.
Black: L overflow pipe.
Blue: projected waterline.

http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q259/dirtworksequip/LastYearInJanuary.jpg

 

[EddieWalker]

Jim,

Congratulations!!!

I can only imagine how nice it must feel to have water in your spillway. One day soon, I hope I can experience the same thing, but until then, it's wonderful to see your sucess.

The picutures sure make it look bigger than I remember, but what I really notice is how nice the water looks without the grass and plants ground up through it. Steph spotted a snake swimming in those plants when we were there, and for the life of me, that's what I look for every time I see a picture of it. Hopefully now it's too deep for the plants and they will find other places to hang out!!!

Thanks for the update,
Eddie

 

[Bird]

That does look good. I know you're glad to see it full; just hope the big lakes around here fill up, too, this year. Jim, the tire tracks in the 3rd picture are, of course, pickup truck instead of the Mule. Were they made at the same time as the pictures? In other words, is that ground that firm and solid?