How can I add to existing pond?

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Hi,

I am new here. My husband and I just got married and bought a house in the Fort Worth area which has a koi pond. Here is a picture.
575270_718722892223_997530162_n.jpg


We LOVE our pond. It has about 7 HUGE koi, all at least 2ft long and some small goldfish and 2 large goldfish. Thing is, the bottom layer with the koi was only built 1 ft deep. As newlyweds, we dont have a ton of money, and I already tried contacting tons of businesses to see if they wanted our koi or could relocate them. No one wanted to. The water is always in really good condition, I do lots of water tests and we take good care of it, and the fish never seem to mind, but I know they need a deeper area.

So here is to my question-

What is the best, most cost efficient way to either add a third level that is deeper for the bigger fish, or to deepen our pond. And is there a way to do this without draining the pond and removing the fish? We are pretty good DIYers, and can't afford thousands to hire someone to come do this for us. Any ideas, suggestions, etc.? We do have plenty of yard room to expand.
 

sissy

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welcome congrats on the wedding and the new house and boy you have your hands full .First you would have too look at your liner to see if it is in decent shape and if not replace the whole thing .I just replaced my liner and bought it at an online store dr .foster and smith and only 1 that would ship it free ..Most charge 69 to 80 dollars to ship .You will have to either leave your fish in that pond and build new or get a holding tank .Moving koi that size can stress them and i was told it was normal if they bleed a little from there gills but so far all is good with mine
 
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the pond liner is in really good shape. we were thinking of adding a deeper third level to the left, and then having the already lower level waterfall into that. is there a way to build that third level and then connect them without having to take the fish out except for to just move them over that little bit? how would we seal it or connect it so it wouldnt leak?
 

sissy

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If it was lower the upper liner would have to just over lap the lower liner by no less than a foot .If it was higher the same except it would be the other way .I over lap mine by 2 feet to be safe .If they will be even then you would need the seam sealer for epdm pond liners ,if that is the kind of liner you have ,But it does always need to over lap ..Liner would need cleaned so it does not have any gaps in it .I made my waterfall that way .Top liner goes over lower liner .You tube has video's that are good
 
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ok, awesome. it will be lower, so i think the overlapping will work. it kind of want to use a big flat rock for the waterfall area, like the already existing waterfall, so that it would form a cave for hiding as well. i think the lining that is already there is the preformed ponds.
 

sissy

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You could do a second pond right along side and they don't need to connect .You could divide and use the waterfall for both ponds but you would need 2 pumps ,one in each pond .Is there a filter to take out fish waste .Also buy a good liquid test kit to test the water .
 
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we have a huge filter system in place, works very well, and have 2 pumps already, one not being used. and we use the liquid test kits already (i take care of indoor cichlids in a large aquarium). what would you recommend for lining the new addition? and do you think 2-3 ft would be deep enough?
 

sissy

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For koi they do not like heat and depends on if the area is shaded .If not then most koi like 4 ft deep and my pond I am just rebuilding is 3 1/2 ft deep .I used epdm and it is cheapest on dr foster and smith sight and it last for 20 or 25 years and is made like a tire inner tube .At least you understand fish tanks and that gives you a head start .I knew nothing 11 years ago .
 

j.w

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melissa
Yep you can do it and how big are you thinking of making the new part? It will need to be quite large for all those big fish :)
 
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my husband definitely appreciates my experience with aquariums. it is all new to him, but luckily i have been raising fish since i was a kid (and not the easy kind). the pond is in a shady area with blotched sunlight, but in the new area i wanted to add caves to give them more shade and so they can hide from herons. We have one that stalks our yard, even though we have 2 huge dogs and decoys. he is crafty, but so far has only gotten a few feeder goldfish from the tops area, which we dont mind because they started breeding like crazy. could i have it at 3 ft that slopes down to 4 ft in some areas? i am only 4'10 so i guess i am nervous about it being so deep that i cant get in it to clean it if i ever needed to. haha. i guess we could make it a koi swimming pool for me. haha
 

j.w

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Yep you can slope it. Deeper the better for the safety and cooler water in Summer and warmer in Winter. I had to resort to a net finally over mine cuz that darn bird would not stop coming around. Tried everything else under the sun to dissuade him but nothing but the net seems to work. I now have peace of mind knowing he can't get them now.

IMG_5340.JPG
 

sissy

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you can hang cds over your pond or near your pond the constant shine from them moving may scare him or string fishing line over your pond .get a swimming pool net to net the bottom .Just go slow so you do not hurt the fish .And funny i complain about being only 5 ft 2 inches tall
 
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thats a good idea. maybe i could make a cd chandelier near the pond or something shiny. however, if the ridgeback and husky arent deterrents, i think there might be no hope other than creating hiding places. haha, and most of my "short" friends love being around me because i make them feel tall.
 

sissy

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same here I make everyone feel tall .i have a pit bull and 2 chihuahuas but I don't have herons so they scare off the crows
 

addy1

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in_and_out_2.gif
to our group! My pond starts at around a foot deep then rapidly drops to 5.5 feet deep. I made it so I can easily walk out of the pond. Even at 3 feet deep a pond is hard to get out of.
 

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