Silt Happens!

jinman · May 1, 2006

Now I can plant some grass too. I've suddenly got plenty of water to keep the grass seed wet until it germinates. I don't think I'll be able to lower this level much. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

If you look far into the background of this photo, you can see our lake too. It's within 2' of the overflow, up about 6' from it's previous level.

Did I mention that my garden got watered pretty well too? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

OOPS! Wrong photo. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

jinman · May 1, 2006

We are supposed to have a little more rain this week. I could easily handle another 2" rain. The pond can come up two more feet before overflow and my second pond where this one overflows is still down over 3'. Here is a photo of my spillway. It doesn't seem to wash out much, perhaps because it is native soil. I do want to get some grass here, but any seed would be washed away. I may end up putting down some rock. Decisions, decisions... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

BB_TX · May 1, 2006

Looking good, Jim. Thankfully looks like you got the rain without the storm damage some got. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Bird · May 1, 2006

( Woohoo! 5" of rain. )

I guess you're talking about that little "storm" Friday night. I got a grand total of slightly less than .75" here; about half was that light rain during the day and the other half during a 10 minute downpour about 10:45 p.m.

wroughtn_harv · May 1, 2006

You got about a quarter of an inch total more than we did here in Wylie Bird. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

But we'll take what we get and be thankfull.

I guess the storm saw "Sunset" and decided to stop for awhile. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

jinman · May 1, 2006

( Thankfully looks like you got the rain without the storm damage some got. )

You are right, Bill. We've been missing the bulk of the rain while areas south and east have had most of it. This storm moved across primarily between 4 pm and 5 pm on Friday night with very little wind and no lightening to speak of. I guess by the time it moved another 30 miles northeast to the Lindsey-Gainesville area, it had gained considerable strength. It was a little "if-fy" in south Wise County around Boyd for a few hours on Friday night too. That's where my stepson and his family live. About 10 pm they were huddled in their bathroom with storm sirens going off. No damage though... /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

OKnewguy · May 1, 2006

I know there were parts of Lake Texhoma that the news said got 8", we got 5" in OKC, and they still have not lifted the burn ban in the state!! Anway, it was great to get some moisture, the pond looks great!!!
Dave

texasjohn · May 1, 2006

jinman, congrats on getting the tank full.. Wish I had one that large!.. I usually say it doesn't rain during a drought, but sometimes it floods!!

Thanks for the post of your rock bucket photos... wish I had that... what brand is it..approximate cost? I am interested in what features you like or don't. Looks like it does a good job. I'd like to have one some day.

Do you have any comments from experience about the advisability of seeking to put long points on a bucket with toothbar and digging rocks that way... I know it wouldn't sift dirt out... would just too much dirt get picked up to make it impractical?

EddieWalker · May 2, 2006

Jim,

The pond looks great!!!

How much erosion problems did you have?

I got 1 3/4 inches of rain from that storm and have huge ditches dug to keep water OUT of my lakesite. The erosion in those channels is just amazing. There is allot of dirt flowing down them and I know when it comes time to start filling the lake, silt will be a big issue.

Eddie

jinman · May 2, 2006

( Thanks for the post of your rock bucket photos... wish I had that... what brand is it..approximate cost? I am interested in what features you like or don't. Looks like it does a good job. I'd like to have one some day.)

John, the rock bucket is a S-Houle brand. My dealer had this 60" bucket as a demo and sold it to me for $1495. I think they retail for a couple hundred more. They are very expensive, but also very tedious to make with the spring-steel tines. For my tractor, the 5' bucket is perfectly sized.

I am skeptical of putting long tines on a toothbar. One of the great advantages of the tines of the rock bucket and the sloping hood of my tractor is that I can see exactly where the tine tips are and their angle to the ground. If the rock is at least football sized on up to the maximum capacity of the bucket, I can scoop it up very easily. Loose soil helps, but it's not absolutely necessary. If the rocks are too small, they fall thru the tines, but that's less than 2" thick.

Heres a link to the manufacturer:
Rock Bucket

The grapple is one I bought from Andy Tatro and put on the rock bucket. I didn't want to spend what the manufacturer wanted to charge for their grapple. Mine works great. Here is a link to the thread where I installed it: Get a Grip

Eddie Walker: Eddie, I had some erosion of dirt on the sides of the pond, but I'd guess less than two yards total. Most of the water comes down my valley for 300 yards and the grass helps to filter it before it gets to the pond. I put several loads of rocks in the channel on the left side of the penninsula so the water could cascade down them instead of eroding dirt. Also, the hillside where we held our fishfry erodes, but that water is redirected and most of the silt and mud stay out of the pond. I think some grass and some rocks in a few strategic places and I'll be set. The erosion pattern is a "roadmap" for where you need to do something. If I get rock on the terrace downslopes, that will take care of a huge amount of the mud. Also, once a pond is near full, the sides don't erode like they do when the pond is new and nearly empty.

I never thought I'd say this, but it has to dry up a little before I can get in there to work again. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

tinsnip · May 3, 2006

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 · May 3, 2006

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 · May 5, 2006

( 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? )

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 · Jan 22, 2007

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 · Jan 22, 2007

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 · Jan 22, 2007

Thomas said:
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 · Jan 22, 2007

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 · Jan 22, 2007

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 · Jan 22, 2007

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 · Jan 22, 2007

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?