How do I set up a pond waterfall and a water fountain?

[Angel22]

I'm new to making a Koi pond I need some advice on how to set one up with waterfall and a water fountain and some plants. Second question how many fish should I have in a pond? I have 7 koi and 1 goldfish 2 plecos right now in an aquarium.

 

[Mmathis]

• How much planning have you done so far?
• How big will your pond be?
• And where do you live?
• When are you planning to have the pond completed (7 koi in an aquarium sounds pretty crowded)?

Koi need a lot of room. The usual recommendation is 1000 gallons for 1 koi — and maybe 500 gallons for each additional koi. Koi and goldfish grow fast — and produce a lot of waste which means you’re going to need a good filtration system.

 

[Angel22]

How to set one up with a waterfall and water fountain? To put the water in the pond using Well water do I treat it as if it's an aquarium using Easy Balance and Aqua Safe or how do I go about doing the water or leave it just plain for Well water? I currently have 7 Koi fish and 1 goldfish and 2 plecos in a tank at the moment and my Koi are out growing the tank so I need to set up a pond as soon as I can. Any advice is appreciated!

 

[Angel22]

I plan on making a pond this summer 1000 gallons and I have a image of a drawing my man did and measurements, I live in Illinois. I'm hoping to get it done this summer as soon as I can.

• How much planning have you done so far?
• How big will your pond be?
• And where do you live?
• When are you planning to have the pond completed (7 koi in an aquarium sounds pretty crowded)?

Koi need a lot of room. The usual recommendation is 1000 gallons for 1 koi — and maybe 500 gallons for each additional koi. Koi and goldfish grow fast — and produce a lot of waste which means you’re going to need a good filtration system.

 

[Lisak1]

Goodness. You're asking an awful lot in one short post!

Welcome to the GPF - this forum is an incredible source of information. I would say at this point in your planning you've got the cart way ahead of the horse. 7 koi in an aquarium? You're gonna need a much bigger pond.

I'd recommend you start reading some of the pond construction threads and figure out what it is you need to know. Asking for someone to tell you how to build a pond is far less effective than you reading what's already been shared. Once you've put some time in reading and learning on your own, your questions will be more helpful for both you and us.

 

[Lisak1]

There's an awesome video series from the Ponddigger that will be extremely helpful if you take the time to watch it. Here's a link to part 1:

 

[Mmathis]

How cold are your winters where you are? One thing to consider is how deep you make your pond. Too shallow and this could be a problem if your area freezes.

Agree with what @Lisak1 said above.

 

[bagsmom]

YES ON THE POND DIGGER! (I did yell that -- with excitement and appreciation!) Love Eric Triplett and his excellent tutorials. You will learn a TON!

 

[EricV]

I'll reinforce everything said here so far. Watch the videos. Build a bigger pond or stick to goldfish.

I'll add one: your plecos will not survive the winters here in Illinois. These are warm water fish from South America.

Lastly I'll answer a specific question. Well water does not need to be treated with a dechlorinator.