Hiding Spots?

Joined
Aug 21, 2015
Messages
85
Reaction score
36
Location
Boston, Massachusetts
Country
United States
My pond is half above ground, half below ground. It is surrounded by a stone wall. It is not a “natural” look. It does have a bottom drain and it is recommended that gravel etc. not be added so that the waste can easily slide into the bottom drain. Though not the best aesthetics, I had planned on just having the black liner on the bottom. There is a ledge going all the way around the border. It is about 8” higher than the bottom (and about 8” wide).

Do Koi like hiding spaces? Would it be beneficial to add hiding spaces? I have a lot of rocks from my excavation; I could make “caves” with these rocks and maybe use slate as a roof.

This is what it looks like (all cleaned out now :)

ledge.JPG
 

sissy

sissy
Joined
Jan 17, 2011
Messages
33,086
Reaction score
15,702
Location
Axton virginia
Showcase(s):
1
Hardiness Zone
7A
Country
United States
mine is half above and half below and is rectangular .Thing is a hiding places is good but one that cannot be moved can be bad because lots of poop and stuff will gather under it .A crate is good as long as you can weight it down .Koi get very big .Mine are now over 2 feet long
 

j.w

I Love my Goldies
Joined
Feb 1, 2010
Messages
32,947
Reaction score
20,252
Location
Arlington, Washington
Showcase(s):
1
Hardiness Zone
USDA 8a
Country
United States
I think you could add the rocks around the ledge and up to the top and every now and then you can put the garden hose in the cracks and push all the gunk that collects down to the drain. Just don't put rocks on the bottom or you will have much more to deal w/in regards to cleaning out gunk. Think it would look very nice. I have rocks around the ledge in my pond, not as deep a ledge as you do but I have no problems w/build up and fish love nibbling in the cracks and crannies. Baby fish like to hide in them from the bigger fish too.

IMG_6048.JPG


IMG_7439.JPG
 
Joined
May 6, 2016
Messages
467
Reaction score
247
Location
Upstate CA
Hardiness Zone
7
I think you could add the rocks around the ledge and up to the top and every now and then you can put the garden hose in the cracks and push all the gunk that collects down to the drain. Just don't put rocks on the bottom or you will have much more to deal w/in regards to cleaning out gunk. Think it would look very nice. I have rocks around the ledge in my pond, not as deep a ledge as you do but I have no problems w/build up and fish love nibbling in the cracks and crannies. Baby fish like to hide in them from the bigger fish too.

View attachment 91435

View attachment 91436
Ehem, JW, do you know what that yellow flowering ground cover is yet? I wont stop bugging you till I know, lol! Is that a sedum? Hard to tell from the pics. Its gorgeous and looks tough as nails too.
 
Joined
Aug 21, 2015
Messages
85
Reaction score
36
Location
Boston, Massachusetts
Country
United States
I would have preferred a more natural look but was constrained by the location. After starting construction I had (what we engineers call) “feature creep”. It’s taken a year to get it this far by myself. This is a photo taken several months ago. Note: Pond is actually about 1,800 gallons.

winter castle.jpg


Today it looks like this. I made every brick by hand (I don’t know what I was thinking!)


pond2.JPG


Since it has the “man-made” look, I didn’t think about adding rocks. But maybe I should around the ledge. I was thinking of putting in some kind of shelf; maybe supported by pvc running up from the ledge; which I could put rocks on. Any suggestions are appreciated as hopefully this will be the last time I empty the pond.
 
Joined
May 6, 2016
Messages
467
Reaction score
247
Location
Upstate CA
Hardiness Zone
7
I see that surrounded by plants to soften its look eventually. The bricks are really cool! You handmade those? Wanna come do my walkway in my garden? Lol! JK!
 
Joined
Aug 21, 2015
Messages
85
Reaction score
36
Location
Boston, Massachusetts
Country
United States
I'll give you my secret recipe for the cement. I'm over 50 and this involved carrying thousands of lbs of cement; and sand. You can buy the molds here.

http://www.themoldstore.us/category.aspx?categoryID=21


Making these things look good is an art in itself. But once you have the tools, its dirt cheap to make them. Back-breaking/time-consuming but cheap :)
 
Joined
May 6, 2016
Messages
467
Reaction score
247
Location
Upstate CA
Hardiness Zone
7
I'll give you my secret recipe for the cement. I'm over 50 and this involved carrying thousands of lbs of cement; and sand. You can buy the molds here.

http://www.themoldstore.us/category.aspx?categoryID=21


Making these things look good is an art in itself. But once you have the tools, its dirt cheap to make them. Back-breaking/time-consuming but cheap :)
Umm...you already turned me off the minute you mentioned carrying thousands of lbs of cement and sand...haha...just respect you even more! I look at a pile of rocks I have to move and sit on the couch with a beer instead! LOL!
 
Joined
Aug 21, 2015
Messages
85
Reaction score
36
Location
Boston, Massachusetts
Country
United States
As you can see from the above photo, my pond has a good sized ledge running all the way around (lowering the cinder blocks into the hole, not as much fun as it sounds)
If I completely cover the ledge with rocks and leave the bottom as is, do you think it would affect the overall cleanliness of the pond? I would guess that whatever waste might settle on top of the rocks will otherwise settle on top of the ledge. The bottom drain is a pretty good size for this small a pond. It connects to the skimmer with 3” pipe.

BTW: The pond photos I’ve seen on this site are just beautiful. I would have preferred a more natural look were it not for the space and slope of the yard. Though it will be cool when I build the deck. I’ve already warned my son that if any of his beer drinking friends (all over 21) fall into the pond, they are banned for life.
 
Joined
May 6, 2016
Messages
467
Reaction score
247
Location
Upstate CA
Hardiness Zone
7
As you can see from the above photo, my pond has a good sized ledge running all the way around (lowering the cinder blocks into the hole, not as much fun as it sounds)
If I completely cover the ledge with rocks and leave the bottom as is, do you think it would affect the overall cleanliness of the pond? I would guess that whatever waste might settle on top of the rocks will otherwise settle on top of the ledge. The bottom drain is a pretty good size for this small a pond. It connects to the skimmer with 3” pipe.

BTW: The pond photos I’ve seen on this site are just beautiful. I would have preferred a more natural look were it not for the space and slope of the yard. Though it will be cool when I build the deck. I’ve already warned my son that if any of his beer drinking friends (all over 21) fall into the pond, they are banned for life.
Nono! Not banned! They must drain and clean the pond when needed next time! Hahaha!
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Similar Threads


Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
30,781
Messages
508,568
Members
13,042
Latest member
lucaryan

Latest Threads

Top