Requesting Feedback: Seeking Guidance for Successful First-Time Pond Build

[ChiDIY]

Hello,
First time pond builder & poster here; after many hours of youtube videos & reading this forum I'm finally getting started! Looking for help from folks that have been down this road before - hoping to avoid any big mistakes before finishing excavation and laying down boulders.

Here's my rough plan:

• Natural koi pond with waterfall in climate with cold winters (Chicago - gets down to ~0F / -18C. USDA zone 5/6)
• 12' x 11' by 3' deep with various shelves
  • 20' x 25' 45mil liner for pond
• Skimmer
  • Waterscapes PS4500 skimmer
  • 2,000 GPH pump (for starters - already own a 2K GPH pump)
  • 2" rigid PVC plumbing to bio-filter
  • auto-top off fed by rain barrels connect to house downspouts
  • overflow into dry creek bed or buried catch basin of some sort
• upflow bio filter
  • 150 gallon stock tank
  • breather to avoid siphoning & allow adjusting up-flow rate
  • clean-out for annual cleaning
  • Bio filter flows into waterfall that brings water back to pond
• water level
  • 1" below patio with berm 1" above to divert runoff
    • lowest point of paver patio is the corner closest to the pond (in 2nd screenshot)
  • I think there will be some settling over time

Here's a little pond preview - it rained a ton here yesterday:

Next steps:

• Order rocks
• Finish excavation
• Lay underlayment & liner
• Start rocking it in

Current challenges

• Selecting rocks
  • I want to go with Aqua Blue (screenshot below) but I've heard they are hard to work with and I'll be doing everything by hand (no room for heavy equipment).
  • 
  • Plan on ordering ~4.5 tons of rock (using 1:2:1 ratio) and 2 tons of gravel
• Making stable shelves in sandy soil
  • a foot below top soil is pure sand/rock and I'm worries it won't hold it's shape well

Anything jump out as something I'll regret later?

Thoughts on aqua blue for someone laying stone by hand? Or any general advice on working with rocks/boulders? I want to use the largest boulders I'll be able to move into place myself or with a helper.

Advice for sandy soil?

I appreciate any wisdom and feedback you can provide

 

[j.w]

@ChiDIY
So your pond is about 3000 gallons but w/shelves that will take away some water. Not very big of a pond for koi. I would switch to having Shubunkin goldfish which kinda look like small koi.

Shubunkins:

 

[ChiDIY]

Thanks for the warm welcome j.w! I just watched a video with Shubunkin and they look really cool - I'll keep that in mind. Looks like I'd be able to have a lot more Shubunkin than Koi which might make for a more interesting aesthetic.

 

[bagsmom]

This will be a fun project to watch!!!
I moved my boulders myself - I think YShahar did most of hers alone, too. We both did a lot of boulder rolling - vs. lifting.
I didn't ever get to a point where I needed this but I remember on an Aquascape video, one of the contractors demonstrated using a piece of heavy, scrap underlayment to make a sort of hammock, which allowed two people to more easily carry a heavy boulder.
I'm looking forward to seeing your photos!

 

[GBBUDD]

Hello,
First time pond builder & poster here; after many hours of youtube videos & reading this forum I'm finally getting started! Looking for help from folks that have been down this road before - hoping to avoid any big mistakes before finishing excavation and laying down boulders.

Here's my rough plan:

• Natural koi pond with waterfall in climate with cold winters (Chicago - gets down to ~0F / -18C. USDA zone 5/6)
• 12' x 11' by 3' deep with various shelves
  • 20' x 25' 45mil liner for pond
• Skimmer
  • Waterscapes PS4500 skimmer
  • 2,000 GPH pump (for starters - already own a 2K GPH pump)
  • 2" rigid PVC plumbing to bio-filter
  • auto-top off fed by rain barrels connect to house downspouts
  • overflow into dry creek bed or buried catch basin of some sort
• upflow bio filter
  • 150 gallon stock tank
  • breather to avoid siphoning & allow adjusting up-flow rate
  • clean-out for annual cleaning
  • Bio filter flows into waterfall that brings water back to pond
• water level
  • 1" below patio with berm 1" above to divert runoff
    • lowest point of paver patio is the corner closest to the pond (in 2nd screenshot)
  • I think there will be some settling over time

View attachment 158751

Here's a little pond preview - it rained a ton here yesterday:
View attachment 158754


Next steps:

• Order rocks
• Finish excavation
• Lay underlayment & liner
• Start rocking it in

Current challenges

• Selecting rocks
  • I want to go with Aqua Blue (screenshot below) but I've heard they are hard to work with and I'll be doing everything by hand (no room for heavy equipment).
  • View attachment 158753
  • Plan on ordering ~4.5 tons of rock (using 1:2:1 ratio) and 2 tons of gravel
• Making stable shelves in sandy soil
  • a foot below top soil is pure sand/rock and I'm worries it won't hold it's shape well

Anything jump out as something I'll regret later?

Thoughts on aqua blue for someone laying stone by hand? Or any general advice on working with rocks/boulders? I want to use the largest boulders I'll be able to move into place myself or with a helper.

Advice for sandy soil?

I appreciate any wisdom and feedback you can provide

here is lessons learned from my build and after hanging out on this site

https://www.gardenpondforum.com/showcase/12-000-gallon-koi-pond-full-build.141/

 

[Hound Heaven]

Hello,
First time pond builder & poster here; after many hours of youtube videos & reading this forum I'm finally getting started! Looking for help from folks that have been down this road before - hoping to avoid any big mistakes before finishing excavation and laying down boulders.

Here's my rough plan:

• Natural koi pond with waterfall in climate with cold winters (Chicago - gets down to ~0F / -18C. USDA zone 5/6)
• 12' x 11' by 3' deep with various shelves
  • 20' x 25' 45mil liner for pond
• Skimmer
  • Waterscapes PS4500 skimmer
  • 2,000 GPH pump (for starters - already own a 2K GPH pump)
  • 2" rigid PVC plumbing to bio-filter
  • auto-top off fed by rain barrels connect to house downspouts
  • overflow into dry creek bed or buried catch basin of some sort
• upflow bio filter
  • 150 gallon stock tank
  • breather to avoid siphoning & allow adjusting up-flow rate
  • clean-out for annual cleaning
  • Bio filter flows into waterfall that brings water back to pond
• water level
  • 1" below patio with berm 1" above to divert runoff
    • lowest point of paver patio is the corner closest to the pond (in 2nd screenshot)
  • I think there will be some settling over time

View attachment 158751

Here's a little pond preview - it rained a ton here yesterday:
View attachment 158754


Next steps:

• Order rocks
• Finish excavation
• Lay underlayment & liner
• Start rocking it in

Current challenges

• Selecting rocks
  • I want to go with Aqua Blue (screenshot below) but I've heard they are hard to work with and I'll be doing everything by hand (no room for heavy equipment).
  • View attachment 158753
  • Plan on ordering ~4.5 tons of rock (using 1:2:1 ratio) and 2 tons of gravel
• Making stable shelves in sandy soil
  • a foot below top soil is pure sand/rock and I'm worries it won't hold it's shape well

Anything jump out as something I'll regret later?

Thoughts on aqua blue for someone laying stone by hand? Or any general advice on working with rocks/boulders? I want to use the largest boulders I'll be able to move into place myself or with a helper.

Advice for sandy soil?

I appreciate any wisdom and feedback you can provide

Looks fascinating and well researched. Lot's of experience and generous folks here so keep asking and you'll get good advice. This will be fun to watch especially since someone else is doing the hard work

 

[jgrandmont]

Make sure you have enough depth in the waterfall stream or you'll end up chasing leaks. Ask me how I know.

 

[snoozer]

In addition to depth for your stream, if you have small falls, widen the stream slightly at each point where the water will be dropping in. It helps contain the splashing.

 

[Mgessert]

I would also encourage you to keep goldfish rather than koi In a pond that size.

 

[Mmathis]

Is Aqua Blue a type of stone, or a brand name?

 

[GBBUDD]

Is Aqua Blue a type of stone, or a brand name?

A LITTLE OF BOTH aqua blue is not a technical name but it is how some yards refer to it as

 

[combatwombat]

Just looked up aqua blue boulders and some quarry has a trademark on the name. That's hilarious. What do all the other yards call it? I have a pile of dirt in my back yard called pond berm. It's not official yet, but the trademark is pending.

 

[Lisak1]

Aqua blue is beautiful, but the pros say it's one of the hardest rocks to build with. It's heavier and much more angular than say granite. Also way more expensive. I'll also say it creates a much "moodier" pond, if that makes sense. The rocks absorb light, are all basically the same color and have a definite "vibe".

I'm going to question your measurements. That doesn't appear to be anywhere close to 12x11 - just judging by nearby objects like the bucket, etc. Size is important in determining water volume down the road. Plus you lose volume to rocks and shelves, etc. If you do end up at 12x11, you'll probably have about 1000 gallons total. Goldfish pond - not koi.

I'm in the same area as you. One last recommendation - build your falls with the idea of running your pond all winter. Your fish will thank you and you'll love the beautiful winter views!

 

[ChiDIY]

Is Aqua Blue a type of stone, or a brand name?

Just looked up aqua blue boulders and some quarry has a trademark on the name. That's hilarious. What do all the other yards call it? I have a pile of dirt in my back yard called pond berm. It's not official yet, but the trademark is pending.

Not sure the stone type but another yard near me calls it aqua black which was confusing until reading your post combatwombat (and I agree - ridiculous).

I chose it because our house is prairie style which IMO borrows heavily from Japanese architecture so I wanted to go with a stone that matched that style.

Anywho in the next hour or so 3.5 tons of Aqua Blue™, along with a few tons of smaller stone, will be dumped in the alley behind my house!

 

[ChiDIY]

I'm going to question your measurements. That doesn't appear to be anywhere close to 12x11 - just judging by nearby objects like the bucket, etc. Size is important in determining water volume down the road. Plus you lose volume to rocks and shelves, etc. If you do end up at 12x11, you'll probably have about 1000 gallons total. Goldfish pond - not koi.

It is 12' x 11' at the widest points. The bucket being on a raised bed (the mulch area is about 1' to 1.5' higher than the rest of the ground) and the wide angle lens on my phone designed for selfie-taking ease creates a bit of an optical illusion I think.

I'm now planning to widen the pond out to make it larger and allow for better viewing from the patio. I think the pond should take priority and existing elements of the yard, added before a pond was even a thought, should be modified to compliment the pond.

Add the section in blue (maybe vary the shoreline shape so it doesn't look like a slice of bread)