(Yet ANOTHER) I want to build a pond!

[dieselfuelonly]

We've been considering putting a pond in the pasture. I'd like to do the work myself because it would be a big project that would give me lots of experience running my skid steer and other equipment, which I plan to use for a small business in the future.

Anyway, I posted over on the "Pond Boss" forum and got a few helpful suggestions but I thought there may also be some here that could give some more insight.

Here are some pictures that may help some. I guess the first thing to decide is whether or not the area is even suitable for a pond. Here is an overhead view of the 6 acres (outlined in yellow) and the pasture (in green). TO the left of the red line the land is relatively flat, to the right the land slopes downward slightly. The orange arrows show the general flow of water when it rains.

Here is a picture taken in the pasture, looking towards the woods behind it (here I am facing the relative direction of the orange arrows in the other picture). You can see the small pools of water in the area.

Here is another maybe 50(ish, I'm bad with distances) feet "back" from the previous spot.

The pasture is the area that receives the most runoff water on our whole property. We get some coming from the side of our house near the pasture, some flows in from our neighbors driveway ditch whos property is "above" the pasture in the original picture (not literally sitting higher, just "above" in the picture).

So what suggestions can you all offer? I'm sorry that I can't post some better pictures, its hard to capture exactly how everything looks and "flows" in a photograph.

I have a feeling that enough water runs through the pasture to keep a pond filled as long as we get rain occasionally. There is plenty of that nasty North Carolina clay in the soil to hold in the water as far as I can tell.

We don't want a gigantic pond that divides the pasture in half. We do have two horses that graze in the pasture if that means anything. I have my skid steer and my tractor and very limited knowledge on how to CORRECTLY build a pond.

Thanks for any advise.

Dennis

 

[have_blue]

You're lucky you have some slope. If you can build toward the bottom of the slope, your digging can be reduced greatly. The dirt you dig on the high side can be pushed downhill to the low side to construct a dam. That way you have much less dirt to transport. Transporting dirt is usually more time consuming than digging it.

There's good and bad news about the clay. Clay is great and even necessary to build a reliable dam, but the bad news is, it's hard to dig even with 20,000 pound equipment.

If you need that Skidsteer for future business, be advised that digging a pond is brutal on small equipment. Even a small pond can wear down the equipment and the operator.

 

[DWCox]

I recommend purchasing the book Perfect Pond . . . Want One? by Bob Lusk (via Pond Boss). It is among the most comprehensive books written for exactly what you have in mind. Likewise, check out your local library or Amazon for Tim Matson's books. The best I have found is Earth Ponds, 2nd ed. rev. These are excellent resources which will answer questions that you never even knew to ask.

Ponds can be dug with a horse and slip-scraper if that is all you have, but renting a dozer is money well-spent. You can do the finish work easily and at your own pace with what you have.

 

[rdln]

And your house is close enough to drain your downspouts to the pond.

do you have downspouts and the elevation to do this?

 

[dieselfuelonly]

Yep, this could be done, I'd just have to run the drainage pipes for it.

I don't want to tear up my equipment doing this project, so that worries me a little.

Would it be easier on the equipment if I broke the ground first, maybe with a small middle buster and my tractor, and then came in and moved the material with my skid steer? I'm not in a hurry to get the project done, working at an easy pace is fine with me. But by the time the project is done and I've ruined my skid steer and tractor, well, maybe its not worth tackling such a project right now.

 

[framer]

Even though your bob
cat wasn't made for that much digging.With patience and good maintenance it will hold up. Own new holland skid 94 model done a lot of digging and demolition
holding up good tires maintenance.Good luck. Framer

 

[philbuilt]

The bob will do good. I would add a tooth bar Its a must!
You may also want to consider tracks, they make after market ones. When the clay gets wet those gum ball tires won't help much.
To dig my pond I wanted to rent a dozer and the rental guy suggested an excavator. His concern with the dozer was if you get it stuck in a wet spot it could cost some coin.
Did you do a layout yet? Set some grade stakes and shoot some lines. Then start at the low point and dig as deep as you can and have fun.
Your tractors will do the job just take your time.
Phil

 

[wushaw]

Building a small pond with what you have is very viable. It also looks like you will have more hole than dam.
Have a 3" or 4" trash pump so you can keep the pond dry for digging.
Use the tractor and middle buster till you get the digging down with the skid steer.
Plan your overflow and spillway accoringly so you won't wash the dam away.
Don't get into a rush and just take your time.

 

[jinman]

That looks like a beautiful location for a pond with a good view from your house. I'm not sure about using the skidsteer for doing the lions-share of the digging, but it will be ideal for scraping off the topsoil ahead of the earth moving and also doing the spreading and finishing off around the pond dam.

Planning your dam should always take into consideration the maximum rainfall and how you will handle normal and emergency overflow. Is there a creek in that treeline where your land now drains? If you change the flow of water to some area other than a creek, will your neighbors have a problem with it? Those are a couple of things you have to consider early-on in your build process. Once you have all the plans down, you can just concentrate on the pond and dam and never look back. Make sure you only have to do things once.

Lookin' forward to watching your progress.