Where can I buy or make these?

[secuono]

I am looking for cheaper alternatives to the matala mats. I'm going to need a lot of them & cannot accept such a high cost on plastic.

I'm also curious about these spillways.
I found one through pinterest, it led me to this forum, but unfortunately, it didn't open to the thread it was from! I've tried searching around here & no luck.
I'll be using 100 gallon troughs, similar to as pictured, and need a 2-3in tall spillway by an uncertain length at this point in time.
Were these premade, and if so, what's the website?
If not, how do you make it, what material & what glue?



Please help!
I'll be digging in the spring and need to have these things ready to go!
Yes, I already have a pond, this will be a huge upgrade. From 4,600gal to roughly 18,000gal!

 

[j.w]

and welcome @secuono
Did you try looking on Amazon for maybe rolls of the Matala? There is a member here who makes the spillways. His member name is @koiguy1969 and perhaps he will see this message and be able to help you.

 

[GBBUDD]

Why would you spend the time energy and effort into something that requires frankly a lot of maintenance. why not pump the water to the bottom and fill it full of pea stone and create a bog . have you looked at bogs at all?

 

[secuono]

Why would you spend the time energy and effort into something that requires frankly a lot of maintenance. why not pump the water to the bottom and fill it full of pea stone and create a bog . have you looked at bogs at all?

I currently have a bog. It's no good for what I need. And the upgrade will not have one. I also have mechanical & bio gravity filters.
My pond is heavily planted, which means I need lost of good mechanical filtration & my DIY sieves to polish the water.

 

[Stephen Noble]

Welcome to the forum! I don't understand. Are you abandoning your bog filtration and exclusively going mechanical with your expanded pond? If so why?

 

[secuono]

Welcome to the forum! I don't understand. Are you abandoning your bog filtration and exclusively going mechanical with your expanded pond? If so why?

Thanks.

Yes.
Because I can't make a raised bog with the space I'll have left and it's not doing much either way.
This year, I didn't even have the bog spilling into the pond because of a leak I couldn't fix. There was no negative effect.

 

[secuono]

This is my pond from August 2020.
Non-flowing bog by fence.

 

[poconojoe]

I'm wondering too. Was your bog not adequate? Adding a bog was the best improvement I made to my pond. I love it and there's no pads to clean or replace. Crystal clear water and no looking back for me.

 

[GBBUDD]

I'm taking a wild stab that it was not the idea of a bog that didn't work but the design possibly. It appears like you have lilies in your bog they are not the best for a bog. plants that grow fast and aggressively are more the desired plants for a bog . I have been on this site three years now and you would be the first who did not have a bog work for them.
Also any return that is gravity through pipes is probably a hint there may not have been enough flow through the bog. Actually I'm questioning how the whole system is designed it looks like the bog starts right next to the yellow fish but then you have the pipes. So I'm confused. but from others that have come to the site when ever i have seen the pipes the bog was generally pretty small

 

[Stephen Noble]

My best guess is perhaps black floor stripping pads? They might work and could be cheaper. But, seems to me they will get all 'gunked' up.

 

[secuono]

This thread is not about bogs.

I need sponges and spillways....

 

[secuono]

My best guess is perhaps black floor stripping pads? They might work and could be cheaper. But, seems to me they will get all 'gunked' up.

Yes, they do clog during the growing season and for a bit when everything is dying back for winter.
The first bin in my current 2 bin, the pads are hosed weekly. 2nd bin roughly every 4wks. Not at all during winter.

 

[GBBUDD]

Good luck

 

[Mmathis]

This thread is not about bogs.

I need sponges and spillways....

If you’re not finding the information here that you need, you might want to do a Google search. I know that there are alternatives out there, however, I have used Matalla filter pads and they are very good.

 

[addy1]

Welcome to the forum.

Can't help with sponges, pads etc, don't use any of them. Spillways I made with nice flat rocks.