Tips to redoing a pond

[morewater]

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Yep, this is the Walmart pool.

 

[TAHOE]

My "temp" pond I set up in May whIle building new pond.....Plants were taller this year than ever LOL. Still "building" new ponds.

 

[MitchM]

... but the aquarium was a complete new set up as I went to a dirted planted tank. I had to do the complete cycling with that one. Thankfully I either had enough pumps/filters I could just use
them with old cycled media so I still had active bacteria working even with the new water....

What size dirted tank?
Have you seen my indoor pond/dirted tank setups?

https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/soil-substrate-pond.17305/

tbendl, if you never see ice, then you have lots of time to properly set up a temporary pond with a biofilm layer.

If this was my project, my timeline would look something like this:

-set up and fill temporary holding tank, and move as many submerged objects as possible from the old pond into the holding tank. (day 1)
- add ammonia and monitor ammonia and nitrite levels in the holding tank using up to date testing kits (day 2 to 30)
-once ammonia, nitrite and PH levels match the old pond, transfer fish to temp holding tank (day 31)
-empty old pond and replace liner (day 32)
-fill new pond and repeat procedure that was used for setting up temp holding tank (day 33)
-transfer fish to new pond (day 63)
-empty, clean and store temporary holding tank for possible future use. (day 64)

Give yourself a couple of months for this project. There is no need to rush.
Transferring submerged items from the old pond to the temporary one and then back into the new pond will speed up the process.

Oh, and you mentioned a "bog", what is that?
I know what a "wetlands filter" is.

.

 

[MitchM]

My method may not be popular because of the time involved, but it does emphasize the importance of establishing a biofilm layer before introducing fish to any new environment.

 

[morewater]

Yep, this is the Walmart pool.

The great thing about these pools is the inflation. There's nothing to it, it's just a monster inner-tube attached to a water condom that expands in height as water is added.

Not the most durable of items, but for a one-time use, can't beat the price or the practicality.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

With 5 kids in that tiny pool you can be sure there would be plenty of ammonia (pee) in that water to kick start a healthy bacteria colony.

 

[Troutredds]

With 5 kids in that tiny pool you can be sure there would be plenty of ammonia (pee) in that water to kick start a healthy bacteria colony.

Not to mention the possibility of a 'code brown' scenario.

 

[tbendl]

A few questions..
Let's say I buy a pool, pump the water from the pond into the pool and transfer the fish and plants into it. Replace the liner.
The pool holds roughly 900 gallons, the pond is roughly 1700-2000. If once the liner is replaced couldn't I put the fish back into the pond with the existing pond water and gradually add water until the pond is full?
And as far as filtration during the interim, is there a quick bio setup to use to filter while the fish are in the pool? I have a small pump I could use to circulate the water and could put some bio balls or matala pads or something to use in the existing pond to build up bacteria before transferring to the pool if that would work.

 

[morewater]

A few questions..
Let's say I buy a pool, pump the water from the pond into the pool and transfer the fish and plants into it. Replace the liner.
The pool holds roughly 900 gallons, the pond is roughly 1700-2000. If once the liner is replaced couldn't I put the fish back into the pond with the existing pond water and gradually add water until the pond is full?
And as far as filtration during the interim, is there a quick bio setup to use to filter while the fish are in the pool? I have a small pump I could use to circulate the water and could put some bio balls or matala pads or something to use in the existing pond to build up bacteria before transferring to the pool if that would work.

If you've got your new EPDM liner on site and ready to go, it doesn't take long to install the new liner if you're not going to modify the existing excavation (ie. deeper, wider).

Inflate the pool, use your pump to transfer pond water to the inflated pool, wrangle up dem fishes, fire them into the kiddie pool. As the fish aren't going to be in there for long, filtration isn't such a huge issue, but be sure to provide good aeration for the duration of their vacation (as well as some shade, depending on season, temperature, etc.).

When your new liner is in place, use your pump to transfer the pond water (that's in the kiddie pool, obviously) back into the pond. Fill the pond with de-chlorinated tap water and transfer the fish.

Before doing your re-line, identify the areas of the pond perimeter that you're not happy with (ie. exposed liner, high spots, low spots) and correct these before re-lining. If you don't have planting shelves, this would be the time to add them. I wouldn't go to the trouble of removing the old "liner", simply put the new liner over top of the old.

Buy beer, invite your friends. Just make sure that none of them has ever read "Tom Sawyer".

 

[tbendl]

You've pretty much nailed the plan. I am wondering if I can't drop the water level down just a tad and dig out a small ledge for the rocks to sit at the water line. Other than that I don't anticipate them being out of the pond for long unless I need to keep them out to cycle the 1/2 new water I'm going to add.
I do need to do some homework on filtration though since I'm undecided on rebuilding or adding onto the bog and would like to have a filter in the pool "just in case" I run into delays relining.
So any suggestions for a temporary filtration set up that work in both pool and pond, (in case I pull the bog and rebuild versus adding onto it).

 

[morewater]

You've pretty much nailed the plan. I am wondering if I can't drop the water level down just a tad and dig out a small ledge for the rocks to sit at the water line. Other than that I don't anticipate them being out of the pond for long unless I need to keep them out to cycle the 1/2 new water I'm going to add.
I do need to do some homework on filtration though since I'm undecided on rebuilding or adding onto the bog and would like to have a filter in the pool "just in case" I run into delays relining.
So any suggestions for a temporary filtration set up that work in both pool and pond, (in case I pull the bog and rebuild versus adding onto it).

Definitely dig out a lip around the perimeter of the existing excavation for your perimeter stones to sit on, they'll be partially submerged on pond fill and the pond will appear more "natural".

You don't need to "cycle" the water. There's no point. You're making it harder than it is.

Filtration at this point isn't really necessary. You're not putting a herd of fish in a dinky vessel, you're putting them into roughly 900 gallons of existing pond water. Aeration is all that's going to be needed, even if they're in there for a week. You're not housing Jaws, Shamu or Flipper, are you? Just how big is this herd of fish you're putting into the kiddie pool?

If you're looking for a filtration unit that can be used for both your Fish Club Med application and for the pond, there are some relatively inexpensive pressure filters such as the AquaScape UltraKlean 2000, or a gravity fed biological filter such as the Oase BioSmart 10000.

 

[sissy]

I used my stock tank and set it up on the edge of the pond .I used a 40 gallon one and used quilt batting because I had to add water straight from the well and the hose inside was dirty and I never thought about that .I should have left it run until the water was clear before putting the hose in ,but the hydrant is 100 ft from the pond

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Tara-
What do you presently have in your pond that can be transferred to the holding tank? Rocks? Plants? Decorations?
The potential problem that may develop in the temporary holding tank is a toxic Ammonia level, as was mentioned previously. The use of the existing pond water is to minimize stress induced in your fish in the process of moving them by keeping as many of the pond water's parameters stable. It will not eliminate this stress. When fish are stressed their respiration rate increases correspondingly increasing the amount of Ammonia excreted.
As MitchM pointed out, only Nitrifying bacteria in a fully formed biofilm can oxidize this Ammonia. There may be some of these bacteria suspended in the pond water, but until they are attached to a surface they can not initiate any oxidation processes.
Anything that you may presently have in your pond that can be moved to the holding facility will help in moderating any Ammonia problems as biofilm grows on all submerged surfaces even plant roots.

 

[tbendl]

I have lilies and 4 or 5 milk crates that are supporting plants right now in the pond that would be transferred to the pool. Since this is so far out, would it make sense to drop a bag of lava rocks in to allow a buildup of biofilm to then transfer to the pool when moving day arrives?
And would it make sense to invest/build a biofilter that I could install in the pond early to allow it to "mature" which could be easily transferred to the pool and then back to the pond that would help with the ammonia in case I decide to pull down and rebuild the bog after/during the re-line?