Jump to content

New garden pond


Steve Burke

Recommended Posts

My filter box (Oase Filtoclear) has the normal return outlet, and a knob that exhausts out of another outlet which I connect to a hose to water the garden with all the good nutrients. There is a stirrup type pump that one pulls to compress the filter sponges. You do this a few times, wait until the water from the exhaust is clear, then turn the knob to return to the pond outlet. Takes 5-10 minutes once a month. It comes in various sizes to suit different ponds, and has a built in UV light

The two best times to go fishing are when it's raining and when it's not

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My filter box (Oase Filtoclear) has the normal return outlet, and a knob that exhausts out of another outlet which I connect to a hose to water the garden with all the good nutrients. There is a stirrup type pump that one pulls to compress the filter sponges. You do this a few times, wait until the water from the exhaust is clear, then turn the knob to return to the pond outlet. Takes 5-10 minutes once a month. It comes in various sizes to suit different ponds, and has a built in UV light

 

Many thanks.

 

I'm wondering whether we need to go to the expense of having a filter and pump to begin with, especially if we decide not to have fish. Would just using barley straw to clear excess algae be an option instead?

Edited by Steve Burke

Wingham Specimen Coarse & Carp Syndicates www.winghamfisheries.co.uk Beautiful, peaceful, little fished gravel pit syndicates in Kent with very big fish. 2017 Forum Fish-In Sat May 6 to Mon May 8. Articles http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/steveburke.htm Index of all my articles on Angler's Net

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Straw is hit and miss, and the underlying mechanism by which it (sometimes) works is not well understood. Basic limnology says that algae can be limited by depriving them of any of light, phosphate, nitrate, iron or (where diatoms are concerned) silicate. You can rob the algae of light by shading the water column with lilies and similar floating leaved plants. You can rob them of nitrate and phosphate by controlling nutrient inputs (ie, don't feed the fish) or by growing fast growing plants which will take up the fertilisers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I tried barley straw to no avail. I used Cloverleaf Blanket Answer to get rid of algae & blanket weed. Within a month the pond was clear and I just cleaned out the filter. I was told that because I had a stream the water in it being quite shallow it was prone to the green stuff especially in bright sunlight. I have lilies in the pond along with oxygenating plants which all help. One use of the aforenamed poton has lasted all summer. For reference my pond is about 14' by 6' with a maximum depth of 4' with about 45 fish of varying sizes, a few Orfe, Tench and a myriad of Goldfish,

The two best times to go fishing are when it's raining and when it's not

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, guys.

 

Phone, many thanks indeed for taking the trouble over the link. In fact I'd already downloaded this link regarding my lakes at Wingham, and this is why I brought the subject of barley straw up.

Wingham Specimen Coarse & Carp Syndicates www.winghamfisheries.co.uk Beautiful, peaceful, little fished gravel pit syndicates in Kent with very big fish. 2017 Forum Fish-In Sat May 6 to Mon May 8. Articles http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/steveburke.htm Index of all my articles on Angler's Net

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Steve, I've just finished digging my 2nd pond in the garden. First off, make it as big as possible, 4X3 is quite small when finished. Plants tend to expand rapidly and take up a lot of room, so go for 6x4 at least. Very little difference in the price of the liner, and even if there was, you will never regret buying big :)

 

I've always had ponds in all my gardens and never needed to filter them, they very soon settle down and become completely clear.............apart from the rushes and other plants that tend to take over if left.............a good clearout every two years will allow you to reduce the amount but still leave the pond as natural as possible.

 

By the way, I don't have any fish in my ponds, so no feeding or fish care to worry about, but plenty of other pond life seems to appear naturally :) . My pleasure comes from the lilies and rushes and other water plants.

 

Den

"When through the woods and forest glades I wanderAnd hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur,And hear the brook, and feel the breeze;and see the waves crash on the shore,Then sings my soul..................

for all you Spodders. https://youtu.be/XYxsY-FbSic

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Many thanks for that, Den. I'm glad to see that you haven't needed a pump and filter. We may also go that route to begin with, especially as the pond won't contain fish initially.

 

Your garden is bigger than our own so we may unfortunately have to keep to 4m x 3m.

Wingham Specimen Coarse & Carp Syndicates www.winghamfisheries.co.uk Beautiful, peaceful, little fished gravel pit syndicates in Kent with very big fish. 2017 Forum Fish-In Sat May 6 to Mon May 8. Articles http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/steveburke.htm Index of all my articles on Angler's Net

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Steve, why not forget fish except for maybe a few sticklebacks and have a nice wildlife pond ? You wouldn't need a filter just plenty nice plants.

I'd look into getting clay to line the pond rather than use those horrible liners.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Buy a 3 ply liner, if you choose a liner, from PONDKEEPER and use their underlay also as his will give you a lifetime guarantee so that if it ever fails they replace the liner for you without question.

 

Ensure that when you lay the underlay and liner you wear no footwear. Under the underlay lay cardboard,get it from any shop freely. The cardboard acts as an extra barrier and rots slowly leaving a black humus type layer which holds down stones and sharps missed.

Once you have laid the liner fill the pond and leave for 10 days to settle, do not add your plants or fish yet.

When you're ready for fish add only Goldfish first in the first month and then move to other species as Goldfish are an excellent indicator of water condition.

 

Find some water slater's from a local river and keep them in a mild disinfectant solution for 3 days before introducing them, they do well to break down sludge and decaying vegetable matter and are also great food for the fish. Buy live Bloodworm from your local pet shop and after disinfecting for 24 hours introduce them too.

Add fresh water snails also, ensure they are disinfected before adding them, great food for Carp.

 

To disinfect have a tank with cooking salt in the water @ around 1 teaspoon per litre of water. Only use cooking salt as table salt is poisonous.

 

When you dig your pond add a small shelf all the way around and lay turf into the water to the depth of the shelf. This protects the liner from the Sun and the turf takes excess nutrients from the water helping to keep Algea at a minimum. Fish spawn in the grass at the edge and it provide protection to small vertebrates. Plant Canadian Pond weed as this plant is eaten by the fish and grows fast, again taking excess nutrients, it also is a great plant to keep Oxygen levels high. Plant Lillies as they provide shade and cut sunlight from the water, which in hot weather leeches out oxygen.

At the edges plant Marsh Marigolds and Iris, you will see swathes of insects visiting the flowers. Plant Rushes at the deepest edges.

 

If you are using filtration clean out the sediment weekly to start. and then monthly.

 

Add no chemicals to the water as the plants will purify it.

 

I have had a smaller pond for 3 years now, 15 foot by 11 foot, using the methods above it has been trouble free.

I have Carp, Goldfish, Rudd, Roach, Loaches, Gudgeon, Golden/Green Tench and Skimmer Bream. The Rudd, Roach and Goldfish breed yearly in the grass and I may have a few new Carp this year.

I uploaded a short video of my pond not long after construction so I have shown it to give you an idea of what to do.

 

 

The fish are much bigger now and the Carp weigh up to 8lb now.

 

Good luck.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We and our partners use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences, repeat visits and to show you personalised advertisements. By clicking “I Agree”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit Cookie Settings to provide a controlled consent.