Excited to build a pond!

[Blucifer]

Hello everyone!!
I’ve been chewing on a lot of great information recently as I’m quite excited to put in a pond. 14-16’ stream into appropriately an 1800gal pond. No natual slope so will use the excavation of dirt to slope it as naturally as possible into my yard.
My concerns are winter and freezing as I live in southern Ontario. I’d like to make the water as clear as I possibly can with relatively minimal effort.
Im leaning towards pump in bottom of the pond so I can pull it out easily and make sure the lines are drained at the end of the season. Maybe external pump with an inline filter would be better?Perhaps have askimmer style basket filter for the larger debris that falls into it in the later months and have it pump directly back into the pond for added circulation/airation. Stream will have a wetlands off shoot to also help with filtration.
Would a smallish prefabed pond at the start of the stream with an up flow style bog system be a good idea? My thoughts there are I can attach a 2” drain to it to
1) clean sediment out of it
2) leave drain open so it won’t freeze up and crack on me in the harsh winter

It won’t be near the ratios I’ve been reading about volume/surface area but figured anything’s better than nothing to keep it natural.
Theres more to this than I’d ever thought and any thoughts are incredibly appreciated!!
I’ve a rough sketch sorted it that helps to take a look at and or even pic of where I plan to put it and some knowledgeable people could assist with the design ‍

 

[poconojoe]

Looking forward to following your project.

You don't want to empty your bog water for the winter.
Our bog filter has loads of plants growing in the gravel, many of which are hardy and come back every year.
If you drain the bog, those plants will dry out and most likely die off. Their roots need to be in the water, even if it freezes solid.

 

[brokensword]

you also want to keep your pump IN the pond (as long as it doesn't freeze as deep as the pump) over winter; one cause of dried pump seals is taking it out. If you insist on taking it out, put it in a bucket of water over winter.

I'd also ditch the preform idea and just use a liner; it's easier to form to the shape you want and you won't have any leveling/freeze-thaw issues. Won't crack, either.

A drain isn't necessary for good ponding.

A bog filter is about as minimal as you can get, once established.

 

[j.w]

@Blucifer
Take a look at @callingcolleen1 's posts on her pond that runs all year long in Canada: https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/my-pond-runs-all-winter-zone-2-3.10570/

 

[addy1]

Welcome to the forum!

Agree with above drop the preform idea, I had a few down in warmer MD and they cracked over winter. They were buried in the ground and still cracked.

And I only filter my ponds with a bog.

 

[poconojoe]

The performs need to be perfectly level or you'll see a black wall on the higher side.

You're better off with a flexible liner, as already stated.

I live in northeastern Pennsylvania.
This past winter was the first winter for the bog I added on. I left the bog pump on all winter.
It was fine.
The pump is suspended by a thin rope to keep it off the bottom of the pond so it doesnt suck up any settling debris. The rope also helps for pulling the pump for maintenance.

 

[GBBUDD]

Theres a way to build the pond , and plumb the pond without leaving the warmth of the pond in the dead of winter. That far north is the simplest way to insure nothing freezes and if you leave plenty of height in your edging the ice build up won't stand a chance either.

 

[poconojoe]

Theres a way to build the pond , and plumb the pond without leaving the warmth of the pond in the dead of winter. That far north is the simplest way to insure nothing freezes and if you leave plenty of height in your edging the ice build up won't stand a chance either.

Agree.
All my plumbing is within the pond and bog.
I did that so if anything leaks, it cannot escape the system.
Does that help prevent the plumbing from freezing? Probably to some degree, but the fact that the water is constantly moving has got to help too.

 

[GBBUDD]

The member @callingcolleen1 that was mentioned she builds tents over her ponds in the winter time. I am in new England and i shut my pond down but nothing drains out and dry . But any piping you definitely want to open so there is room for expansion. that way the ice has less of a chance to blow your pipes out.

 

[poconojoe]

The member @callingcolleen1 that was mentioned she builds tents over her ponds in the winter time. I am in new England and i shut my pond down but nothing drains out and dry . But any piping you definitely want to open so there is room for expansion. that way the ice has less of a chance to blow your pipes out.

Exactly.
Leave room for the ice to expand.

Or.... if you're paranoid...you can blow all the water out with an air compressor. That's what we did when we had a travel trailer (camper).

Some camper people pump non-toxic RV antifreeze into their camper's plumbing, we preferred to blow it out with compressed air. We added a Shrader valve ( basically a bolt-on tire valve stem) to do this. Closed all the faucets, built up a little air pressure, then opened each faucet. We started with the ones closest to the water supply. Kept repeating until no water came out.

I suppose you could do this with pond plumbing. Just add a shrader valve somewhere.