Finally starting my pond.....
- Thread starter Dave78
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Today I went out and hand picked my rock, I only got would I could load by myself and by hand. My buddy and I will be going back this evening to get some bigger 2 man stones. It is sandstone, however it is very durable and does not break away or crumble easily.
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you seem to be going for the thin flat rocks so with that im guessing you plan on standing the up. i would dig your walls with a steep angle so you can lay the rocks down and against the sides . i DID MY POND EXTESION THAT WAY. AFTER THE LINER WAY PLACED the fabric was installed. the rocks were layed down leaning on the walls and semi standing up. as i got a few feet done i then grabed the foam gun and installed foam between the rocks this locked the rocks in place and 4 years latter not one has popped off. but i did go through a few cans . well worth the effort and locking everything in place
Honestly, I’m not sure I’m going to put any rocks in the pond itself. I will probably put a few in there to create hiding spots for the fish. I wanted to put 2”-3” river rock on the bottom of the pond but most people say that will cause issues down the road and will be hard to clean. I was definitely not planing on lining the inside pond walls with rock. Not sure if that would be a good choice or not.
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I was lucky that my DIL gave my son a gas powered auger shortly before I asked him to dig my pond. That was a lot of work alright, but we got past it eventually and you will too. I too opted to not rock my pond and I'm glad I didn't as it's just not very big and I wanted cleaning to be easy. I'm glad I didn't but I had to make some hiding spots for the fish. I got some decorative storage totes with holes in the sides and they work fine - algae covers them quickly so they're not even visible now. You might want to put some underlayment beneath your rocks in case of sharp edges.
Looks as if you're making good progress and you're in the right place for asking questions. Cheers.
Looks as if you're making good progress and you're in the right place for asking questions. Cheers.
That size rock might be harder to deal with but a good layer of pea sized gravel (not pea gravel though, which is definitely smaller than a pea!) is a good base. It's easy to walk on, doesn't cause issues with scooping and cleaning debris and is a great place for bacteria to grow. And the fish love picking through it.
Also - get the digger, man. Pay what it costs. You're going to burn yourself out on the digging and not get to the fun part fast enough!
To rock or not to rock is up to you. But I strongly recommend that your edges of the pond be set so that the rocks that breach the surface to hide the line above the water line. Seeing liner out of the water looks like hell . But the liner below the water line will grow algae. One thing I would do is when you get your liner set is to caulk the edges of the wrinkle folds. That way waste won't get trapped in them. Also if you want the ultimate benefit of a bald liner then make your bottom like a funnel all pointed toward one spot . If you put in a drain there all the better.
I have started a unconventional base 3/4 to 2 inch rock. Lesser of the larger they are more so for naturalization. But I did find water was building up between so after watching aquascapes trip to Brazil and seeing the sand bottoms.i have mixed in some sand to a few flat upper areas.the fish love it they take mouth fulls and of course they drop it as the swim over the deep end. While in time it will it will fill the bottom a trash pump will fix that problem every couple years
Ok, so if I’m understanding this correctly. @ GBBUD & Lisak1, a gravel base at the bottom of the pond is not a bad thing over time? I also plan on adding a BOG possibly next summer. The liner will be well hidden, however the very top near the surface will probably show 2-3”. Depending on waterline I guess. I could always dig a shel all the way around the pond and about 6-8” deep. That way I can lay rock on top of that and the liner. This way I won’t have to rock all the way up the side walls. All though a leader 12-18” out toward the center of the pond will drastically shrink the over all pond size… unless I find much smaller cantaloupe size rocks to put around the ledges. I am not sure how unnatural that will look though.
Ok, so kinda switching gears here from the pond bottom to the waterfall weir & skimmer placement. You can see in these to pictures where the Skimmer is going to be located. Also the waterfall weir is just a few inches past 7’ away from the pond. My plan here is to dig down a few more inches where the waterfall basin will sit, and have it tilted forward slightly. I will then build out from the left and right sides with dirt so it looks more gradual and not just the waterfall basin sticking up. I’ll work my way down from the waterfall basin to the pond notching out places for the larger rock to create the flow pattern of the falls. Any tips or things to watch out for when doing this?
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That's what we are trying to explain to you look at your pond like a set of stairs the first step is only 4 to 6 inches deep or deeper depending on the size of the rocks you use to edge the pond with the boulders sit in the water and raise up out of the water. They should be higher than the ground so you can bend/ fold the liner down between the edge / ground and the boulder that is sitting on the shelf. Half in the water half out
Gravel has two sides of that coin. One it provides more surface area for bacteria to grow on.
But on the other hand it can trap debris that would other wise be swept into a drain and to the filters SOONER.
But on the other hand it can trap debris that would other wise be swept into a drain and to the filters SOONER.
Sorry I got a typo there 250 pounds