Rollies wonder garden

[Rollies wonder garden]

Hello fellow pond enthusiasts. I'm in the planning stages of what I affectionately call " Rollies wonder garden" it's a long story. I live in Appleton Wisconsin, zone 5, even though this year it feels more like zone 1. Right now I have a 27' round above ground pool with an attached 16' x 16' deck, that's all coming out as soon as weather permits. Once cleared my garden area will be 30' x 65' which I plan to fence in with a 4' high cedar fence with a covered entrance gate on the northeast end. My plan is for the pond to be a kidney shape and approximately 15' x 20' with a deck in the s.w. corner that will hang over about two feet of the pond. On the east end I plan on a waterfall with a stream, that part of the area is approx. 4' higher so I should have great water flow and hopefully great sound of running water. I'm still not sure on the length of the stream, I will have about 35' to work with. I'm also planning to but a bridge over the pond. I'm an incurable do it yourselfer, I just love building things, I'm a plumber by trade and also a woodworker/ cabinet maker. I've done masonry and tile work plus home construction. I have been doing a lot of research on line this past year. So I guess what I'm looking for is any input you can give me from pond design and lay out to bio filters, skimmers, pumps and any other diy web sites you've come across. Thanks for any help and I'm looking forward to chatting with other pond enthusiasts.

 

[addy1]

glad you joined! We love chatting about ponds

 

[Rollies wonder garden]

glad you joined! We love chatting about ponds

Thanks...I'm really looking forward to starting on my pond. It has been a life long dream to do something like this.

 

[sissy]

welcome and are you near Rhinelander WI if you have no leaves you may not need a skimmer are you using submerged or external pump .

 

[Rollies wonder garden]

welcome and are you near Rhinelander WI if you have no leaves you may not need a skimmer are you using submerged or external pump .

Hi, I'm well over a hundred miles south of Rhinelander. There are quite a few trees, elm, ash, maples, my neighbor has several scotch pine, so I always have the long neddles to deal with. Right now I plan on submerged pumps, one to a bio filter and one for the skimmer.

 

[sissy]

oh OK Reason I was asking dr foster and smith is there and that is where i bought my liner from 2 weeks ago and even through bad weather they got it here in less than a week .Cheapest place I could find with free shipping and I understand they have a nice store and pond and pet center there .

 

[sissy]

You sure do need a skimmer and maybe wonder if you may need more than 1 considering the shape and size of the pond .I use 2 pumps 1 goes out I always have back up ,but both are new with a 4 year warranty gotta love woodworkers

 

[Rollies wonder garden]

oh OK Reason I was asking dr foster and smith is there and that is where i bought my liner from 2 weeks ago and even through bad weather they got it here in less than a week .Cheapest place I could find with free shipping and I understand they have a nice store and pond and pet center there .

I'm going to be up in Tomahawk in a few weeks, that's only baout 20-25 miles away. I'll have to go check it out.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Welcome fellow Wisconsinite! The only thing I can really suggest is that if fish are going in, you might want to consider Shubunkins or Comets instead of koi. I like pointing that out because a lot of people immediately think of Koi but dont realize there are other types of goldfish that also do great in ponds (and wont tear your plants apart).

A good place to find info is on Youtube. There is also a section on these forums for DIY that you might find useful. I hope you stick around and share the process of building your pond. We'd love to see it!

 

[Big Lou]

Welcome Rollie's. Wisconsin is such a beautiful state.

 

[Rollies wonder garden]

You sure do need a skimmer and maybe wonder if you may need more than 1 considering the shape and size of the pond .I use 2 pumps 1 goes out I always have back up ,but both are new with a 4 year warranty gotta love woodworkers

I've had a pool for 6 years, just from that I'm figureing that I'll need a skimmer.

 

[Rollies wonder garden]

Welcome fellow Wisconsinite! The only thing I can really suggest is that if fish are going in, you might want to consider Shubunkins or Comets instead of koi. I like pointing that out because a lot of people immediately think of Koi but dont realize there are other types of goldfish that also do great in ponds (and wont tear your plants apart).

A good place to find info is on Youtube. There is also a section on these forums for DIY that you might find useful. I hope you stick around and share the process of building your pond. We'd love to see it!

Thanks for the info, I've already have thinking goldfish instead of koi.

 

[Rollies wonder garden]

Welcome Rollie's. Wisconsin is such a beautiful state.

It is very beautiful here. Our winters can get a bit long, especially this on, but our summers and autum are the best.

 

[j.w]

Rollie
Wow sounds like a great plan and hope you stick around so we can watch you build it. Take lots of pix, we will love watching you work

 

[Rollies wonder garden]

Rollie
Wow sounds like a great plan and hope you stick around so we can watch you build it. Take lots of pix, we will love watching you work