I need help on building my pond! ANY IDEAS AND TIPS?

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I live in Oregon and I want to build a koi pond. I am a hobbist that cares for arowana and I wanted a new change of scene. I want to build a pond that will house about 5 or so koi. I want to build my pond on an affordable budget because I dont plan on staying at where I am living for more than 4 more years.

I want to build a pond about 7 feet long and 4 feet wide as well as 2.5-3 feet deep.

I really want a waterfall and a good filtration system that I was hoping to be able to do myself. I am just not sure about how to build the filtration system/skimmer and I'm not sure if I should incorporate the filtration system in the water fall or not.

My climate:

- we have cold winters but not too bad
-The pond will be in partial shade

What I want
-I want my filter unit hidden, whether it is hidden in the falls or underground.
-A clear pond so my fish are visible
-Low maintenance
Questions:
-Should I have gravel at the bottom of my pond or what kind of filter should I install to reduce maintenance.


can you please post detailed instructions on the building of a filteration system and a waterfall as well as look at my diagram and let me know what i should change or add. I am thinking about a rectangle pond but maybe an abstract shape would look a bit more natural.

Any opinions, diagrams for a noobie would be appreciated!
 

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Welcome ... I agree with DP ... 500-600 gallons is too small for any koi ... but can be a pretty little pond for various goldfish breeds ....
 

addy1

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I don't have koi, but from what I read, most say 1000 gallons for the first fish. They get huge and need room to swim, move around, turn, very fussy about their water ie filtration
 
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For 5 Koi you are going to want around 2000 gallons. To figure out how many gallons are in a pond you multiply length times width times depth times 7.5. You have to reverse engineer that to figure out the size needed.
 
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Of course, a smaller pond will be ok when the fish are only 4" long, but what are you going to do when they are 2 feet long? Will you take the Koi with you when you move or leave them a miserable life with a new owner in a too small pond? Just something to think about.
 

addy1

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If you want to keep your pond smaller, look at shubunkins, very nice coloring, a lot of different colors, pretend koi! lol But they will do fine in a small pond. I have a bunch of shubbies, just love them.
 

HARO

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timmylucas said:
can you please post detailed instructions on the building of a filteration system and a waterfall as well as look at my diagram and let me know what i should change or add. I am thinking about a rectangle pond but maybe an abstract shape would look a bit more natural.

Any opinions, diagrams for a noobie would be appreciated!
Detailed instructions can be found elsewhere in these forums. Just look them up!
John
 

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