Pond against garden wall

[Knight77]

Hi, I'm planning on creating a wildlife pond, with one side against an existing brick wall that divides our garden with our neighbours. Is there likely to be any problems with the weight of the water against the wall? Is there an alternative solution I could consider, some sort of barrier between the wall and pond? Thanks

 

[j.w]

@Knight77
Guess it would depend on how big this pond is gonna be and tall or in ground and, and, and we need more info.

 

[Knight77]

Hi, thanks for replying. It'll be about 13ft by 8ft. 8ft against the wall. In the ground, 3 or 4 ft deep probably. The wall goes this deep as the ground is lower next door.

 

[addy1]

Welcome to the forum!

With the wall in the ground the pond in the ground the strength should be ok. But do you ever need to work on that wall?

 

[Marck]

Is the weight of the water going to be directly against the wall? I presume there will be some type of liner, but of course that is just plastic. It would be good to see the drawings, but If the wall is actually going to bear the weight of a side of the pond I would put a new wall layer of reinforced concrete between the bricks and the water. Of course the concrete should be coated with sealant as well.

If there is just open air on the other side of the brick wall, or even more alarming, a room of a building. I would emphasize the concrete reinforcement even more strongly.

 

[brokensword]

you'd be better off leaving 2' or so between of soil. The wall may have a footing, it may not. It may start below the ground or right at it. If all the weight/force of the water is below ground, and the wall isn't part of a building but is free standing, the pond should not do any damage. Still, I'd leave some room, working room, just in case. IMO.

 

[GBBUDD]

Your wall is going below grade for probably two reasons.
1. To get below the frost line of your area.
2. A brick Narrow wall can be rather top heavy and unstable. Or at least vulnerable to lateral stresses. One way that this is resolved is to have the sides to a point with even pressures. Being that your in England i am assuming your wall is 6 or 8 feet tall like most are there. Like @brokensword mentioned Leaving soil along side the wall can help to give some insurance that the wall will not have any issues.
If it was i i would probably build the pond right up tot he wall but it would be extremely shallow at that point if not just low enough for the water to get to the shelf but make it a planting area and the softness of plants against the brick will look amazing