Wisconsin Pond Build

[addy1]

Nah never scrap the liner, just seal them really good! That was one problem area I had with my az pond, over seal. We made the mistake of trying to seal the two together too deep in the pond.

 

[herzausstahl]

So Addy how far down in the pond did you try to seal the liners? Mine would be about 3-4" below the surface of the pond and I was going to seal it all along the stream liner to the pond liner. Anything to avoid? What problems did you end up with yours? My goal was the stream would be 10" deep and filled with river stone for the bottom. The water level would only be a couple inches, basically whatever would stay in the stream channel. Also what is a good depth for the header pool to overflow into the stream? My goal is a little header pool at the top overflowing over a stepped falls into a small pool that would empty into the stream, any advice?

 

[addy1]

So Addy how far down in the pond did you try to seal the liners? Mine would be about 3-4" below the surface of the pond and I was going to seal it all along the stream liner to the pond liner. Anything to avoid? What problems did you end up with yours? My goal was the stream would be 10" deep and filled with river stone for the bottom. The water level would only be a couple inches, basically whatever would stay in the stream channel. Also what is a good depth for the header pool to overflow into the stream? My goal is a little header pool at the top overflowing over a stepped falls into a small pool that would empty into the stream, any advice?

My past hubby did it while I was at work, he and a friend sealed it 4 feet down in the pond. I suggested to them that would not work, but ummmmmmmmmmmm he iggied me lol. Well it leaked and leaked big time. They had already put a ton of rocks on the piece of liner going into the pond (I didn't want them either sigh) oh well he and friend did remove the rocks so I could then get the sucker un-sealed.

I then started at the very top of the liner sealing it every couple inches across the connection and down the edges using sealant and double side tape, then taped the the seam with single side tape. The pond liner edge, in the stream bed was lower than the pond level. About a foot down from the pond level, so we had some water pressure we were fighting.

There is always some movement while your pond settles, what ever you use make sure it attaches well to your liner, and I would tape the edge where you overlap. My liner rejects sealants, so when I do a connection I use flashing sealant (for roofs it is flexible), double side tape and single side tape the edges) Sort of overly cautious now.

My header pools for my stream water falls are around 10 inches to 2 feet deep (I have a bunch of mini ponds in my stream, 100 to 300 gallons or so, never really measured them). You want it to be deep enough to collect some water, before it waterfalls over.

Sounds great, keep posting pictures

 

[herzausstahl]

Thanks Addy,
I might order some sticky tape then. I got the roofing sealant to put between both liners. The sides of the stream liner should overlap above the water line, but it is the front that will be below water level so it might not hurt to use the tape across where the two liners overlap just to be safe. Did you seal all of your stream liners the same way you said above? Or did you just use the roofing sealant?

 

[herzausstahl]

Here are some updated pictures. I have tilled all the soil from the pond dig and begun digging the stream. The first picture is the tilled soil (I am using a sprinkler to speed up the settling process) and the second picture is the initial stream dig. The third and fourth pictures are of the stream progress.

 

[fishin4cars]

Wow! Looking really nice! That's coming along very nicely,

 

[taherrmann4]

Wow that is looking good.... That is going to look really good when you get it all landscaped and running....

 

[j.w]

That stream is going to be so nice meandering into your new pond. I don't have a stream and I want one..............I know what I have to do to get one, just don't know how to work it in so it looks right in the location of my pond being right in front of the front deck.

 

[addy1]

Thanks Addy,
I might order some sticky tape then. I got the roofing sealant to put between both liners. The sides of the stream liner should overlap above the water line, but it is the front that will be below water level so it might not hurt to use the tape across where the two liners overlap just to be safe. Did you seal all of your stream liners the same way you said above? Or did you just use the roofing sealant?

Every seam in my stream (and there were lots because of all the turns) I seemed as I stated, double side tape single side tape and goop. Went through lots of stuff, but no leaks.

I can't tell your slope, but you might want to have mini water collection areas in your stream, gives a nice planting area, or visually just a nice look. My stream goes up and down in depth as it heads down the slope.

 

[sissy]

Thats great looking but your only going to make one drop in your stream .For more noise from it and aeration you may want to look at some streams online that have more than one .

 

[herzausstahl]

Thanks everyone! This is my first pond, but I wanted something a little bit more than just a pond, so with the slope I decided to add the stream.

Addy,
I kind of had a feeling that is what you did especially with the steep slope you had to work with. I had planned on adding collection areas, but my liner is only 5' wide, so I stuck with 3' wide and 10-12" deep figuring that will take up my liner. I should end up with a faster flowing stream that is 12-18" wide by the time I add rocks to it. It won't look that bad and I only know this because I went on a local garden walk a week ago and a guy had a similar stream in his garden and it looked pretty cool. The slope is about a 1-2' change in elevation so it isn't too dramatic that I should have to worry about slowing the water down with the collection areas or if it runs dry. I will have a header pool at the top that feeds into a stepped falls though. I will only have 2 liner connections, at the top of the stream and at the bottom as it enters the pool. I ordered my stream liner in one long to piece to avoid them.

Sissy,
I will have a small drop towards the top of the stream (the last pictures were a mid progress pic), but I am going to add a stepped falls right above the stream beginning for noise. Plus the stream should be a little faster flowing so I would think that should help with the noise/oxygen factor, correct?

Here are updated pictures of the completed stream. I have a sprinkler running now to soak the upper part where I dumped dirt so I can begin digging the upper pool/stepped falls area tomorrow. This will be one continuous liner that overlaps the stream liner (which in turn will overlap the pond liner). I have dug the whole thing by hand so far and for anyone digging in clay it is a million times easier to dig in when it is wet vs when it is dry. The first three pictures are self explanatory as they are of the completed stream. The fourth is a pic of the stream entrance into the pond.

 

[herzausstahl]

The first pic is again another view of the stream entrance into the pond. The next pic is the upper half of the stream, and in it you can kind of see the inch channel I dug to see if it will act as a small water guide when I lay down the liner and stones. Thought of it to minutely help direct the water flow in the finished stream while I was digging so I have no idea how it will work. I also plan on picking up a few cans of waterfall foam so I can direct the water as needed when I begin laying stones. The third pic is a closer pic of the channel I dug in the upper half, here is where I will have a slight elevation drop and was going to try to create a rapids effect in this upper area with rocks and waterfall foam (hiding it as best I can, mostly using it to get the water to go around/over the rocks instead of under. The last pic shows the upper half of the garden where I dumped all the pond dirt (so I wouldn't have to haul it away to a garden waste site) and where the header pool will be. I have a 10x15' liner for the header pool/stepped falls area. The falls I plan to only be 2 1/2 - 3' wide emptying into a small pool that leads into the stream. The header pool will empty into the falls. I want a stepped falls not a cascade to help with water loss and to mimic some of the natural areas we have here. Like always I am planning this out, but winging it at the same time. The header pool will be at the very front of the upper garden area to leave plenty of room for seating and plantings (sorry no deciduous trees in this area because I like the all year color of evergreens and don't want leaves in the pond, so I will plant them elsewhere in the yard). Any advice or troublesome areas you guys can spot ahead of time for me are always appreciated as well!

 

[herzausstahl]

J.W,
Do you have any pics of your pond on the forum anywhere? I like to think outside the box at times and might be able to offer some suggestions as to where you could add a stream to make it look natural and not out of place.

 

[j.w]

Here are a few pix shot from different directions. Thanks for trying to help.
After looking at these I think I need to go out tomorrow and take some better distance pix to show you more of the property on the left side of the house. So more coming tomorrow.

 

[99SRXMAN]

Lookin good fellow CHEESEHEAD the fun is just starting.Where in N.E. WI .???:bowdown::surfing: