adding stream/waterfall to pond

[talal101]

im planning on adding a waterfall that flows down into a stream and then into the main pond, but i want to know how deep i should make the stream and how wide it should be.
i plan on making it around 10-15 feet long just not sure how wide and how deep.
i don't want it too deep though because i think it would be cool to see my fish swimming up it in shallower water.
i don't have any birds of prey or racoons here...i have seen cats in the neighborhood but only about 4 times in my 5 years living here and only 2 times in my yard {but only because they got scared into it from the care puuling into the driveway}, we have a large road behind our house so i think that the cars are probabley keeping the cats away.

 

[addy1]

Start at least 10 inches deep, it gets shallower as you add the under layment liner etc, you need to have enough depth so it won't over flow.
width depends on you, mine runs from 12 inches to 18 inches wide.

 

[talal101]

i think i will go with 12 inches deep and about 2.5 feet wide just for the extra room and better view and i might just make it a little deeper where the waterfall spills in so that i can plant some plants at the bottom for better filtration

 

[addy1]

great that will work

 

[talal101]

thank you

 

[addy1]

remember the wider it is the more pump flow you need if you want a fast stream

 

[talal101]

I don't want a fast stream at all I want a slow moving stream

 

[addy1]

Even with a slow moving stream you need more water to cover a wider area than a narrow one. But you can easily do a 2.5 foot stream and if it does not flow as you wish add rocks until you are happy with it. Mine is a slow moving stream, the water finds it own little paths down the stream bed. 2.5 feet to cover the entire bottom of the stream would take a pump of 3750 gph if 2 feet above grade

Check out this web site they have a calculator that can help you.

http://www.your-garden-ponds-center.com/waterfall-pump-calculator.html

 

[taherrmann4]

Also keep in mind that if you plan on putting rocks in the bottom this will make it shallower as well. I had a creek that was 18" deep and about 3 feet wide but once you get all your rocks in place and plants it becomes narrower and shallower also depends on the size of rocks you use. I had fish in it but when it came to gettting them into the larger pond for the winter that was a reall pain, too many rocks to hide in and the buggers are fast. My other creek that I built a few years ago is 2.5 feet wide and only 8-10" deep, this is a faster moving creek with much smaller rocks. The first pic is what is left of the old creek, I still use it but very slow water flow and the second pic is of the newer creek which is narrower and faster moving also has the smaller rocks in it.

 

[addy1]

agree taherrmann, That is why the suggestion is as least 10 inches deep and 18-24 wide. The size disappears as you work on it. Mine varied depending on the steepness of the slope i was trying to level out for the stream.

 

[talal101]

Thank you very much guys for the great idea but what I had in mind was not a stream that spilled into the pond but like a stream that is level with the pond so like the pond is 2 feet deep so I will add a stream about 10 inches deep and therefore the fish can actually swim up into the stream from the pond sorry I should have made myself more clear in my explanation but now that I think about it I might make the stream just as deep as the pond so it will look like a spoon basically with the waterfall spilling down some rocks into the handle of the spoon if that makes any sense

 

[taherrmann4]

Are you going to be adding this to an existing pond or are you starting from scratch. The reason I ask is if you are starting from scratch you would want to make it with one piece of liner so as to not have any leaks. If you are adding onto a pond already established you will have to seam the two pieces of liner together to ensure it does not leak and that could be tricky. I do like the idea of this and thought about doing it the next time I do a complete rebuild.

 

[addy1]

The fish could swim into my stream in arizona, here they won't be able too the hill is too steep.

agree with taherrmann it is tough to seam a liner, by your description and what you say you are adding to a pond. You might not want to go as deep as the pond, the deeper you are the more water pressure is placed on your seam.

i had to redo my az pond, we seamed the stream deep in the pond and could not make it hold, 4.5 feet down. Brought the seam up to about 1 foot and had no issue after that, also did many many rows of double side tape, row after row and sealant to hole the two pieces together.

 

[talal101]

No I will be adding it to an existing pond so I will have to seam the 2 liners together but hopefully I will be fine I am not too worried about it for now and thank you It took me a while to come up with this idea but I have finally got it and now I wait till all the snow is cleared before I can put it all together hopefully I will take pictures of the build and put them up here on the site

 

[talal101]

Oh thank you addy I have not thought about that I think you are right I might have to make it shallower