Top Tips for backyard pond building

Backyard Masterpiece

Backyard ponds are once thought to be owned by only
the wealthy and filthy rich individuals. That was
then. Now, backyard ponds can be built by even the
simplest homeowners. These can liven things up and can
be a good conversation starter for guests and
visitors. It will not only provide a beautiful and
visually appealing backyard but a relaxing one as
well.

From cozy and small to rich and lush, back yard water
gardens can range from almost any design you want.
Just a little background about building a back yard
pond and the right materials is enough to create your
own private oasis.

Step one. Decide where your pond will be situated.

Look for an area in your yard where there are little
trees. Falling leaves are a big no-no to your pond
since it can make maintenance an everyday job. Place
your pond in an area reached by the warmth of the sun.
Aquatic plants need the sun to grow. However, stay
away from too much heat since this can cause some
plants such as lilies to die.

Another advice is to place your pond in a high area.
This can prevent runoff water to accumulate and
overflow your pond causing murkiness and further
maintenance.

Step two. Lay out the area of your pond.

If you want to design your pond to the size you want
it to, trace the perimeter of the pond using a
bendable material like a garden hose. If you are
satisfied by the size and shape of your pond, mark the
area using a spray paint or any marker.

Step three. Use a pond liner.

Pond liners are used to prevent water from the pond,
fishes, aquatic plants, and other pond contents to
escape the pond. In the same way, it also prevents
non-pond materials to enter and cause dirt or excess
nutrients to the pond. Pond liners range from
pre-formed liners to PVC liners. If you are willing to
spend the extra cash, using cement will also be
applicable.

Pre-formed liners are usually utilized by small ponds.
These can be bought at pond supply outlets and can be
easily installed after digging the pond. However, if
you want to create the design and size you want, PVC
liners would work best. These are usually used for
large and complex ponds. Other types of liners are
available. It is best to ask for advice from your
local pond contractor about this stuff.

Step four. Dig your pond.

Dig your pond according to the width and depth that
your prefer. Place rocks on the edges of the pond
liner and fill in spaces with gravel. Do this part
diligently and carefully. Camouflage the area with
stones, pebbles, or plants.

Step five. Assemble the equipment.

Place the filters, lighting, and water supply. Make
sure that these will all function well. Connect them
to the electrical supply and place them in locations
that will suit them best. Do not forget to make a
drainage system for the pond.

Step six. Just add water.

Now is the time to fill the pond with water. Observe
if there is any leaking. Clean out the area first and
then add clean water for your pond. Place the plants
in their rightful places in order to create a
beautiful appearance. Let the plants settle for at
least a week and then it is appropriate to add the
fishes. Add fish one at a time. Fill the pond with
just the right amount of fish. Consider the size of
the pond and your fish. Make sure they are compatible.

And now, sit back and relax. Give yourself a pat on
the back for a job well done!

Goldfish Outdoors

Goldfish Outdoors
By Dane Stanton

How do you build a goldfish pond outdoors?

The tools you will need are a shovel, pond liner and underlayment, a long enough rope, coping stones and decorations, plants, a pump (you will need a pump to run a filter, fountain, or waterfall and it will keep the water circulating and the plants healthy), a filter system and some cooperative friends or family members. Now you can get started.

Time to choose

Several options are available and you could actually build a goldfish pond in a day, depending on the size you want it to be. Begin by deciding where in the garden you would like a goldfish pond.

* It should be near your house, as that would make it more accessible to power supply sockets.

* It should not be at the end of a sloping garden because when it rains all the water along with the chemicals from the garden would run into the pond.

* It should not be under too much of shade, as a pond needs at least four hours of sunlight.

* It shouldn’t be very near trees as the falling leaves and debris would fall in and clog the pond. You would be cleaning up all the time.

Time to dig

* Decide on the shape and size of the pond. Use the rope to outline the shape you want and then begin digging. That’s why you need a couple of helping hands so that the work gets done faster!

* Do not go for a small pond for goldfish because they need space. Also try and keep different levels of depth, as in a swimming pool. Mark out the shallow areas and the deeper areas. This would give the pool a natural variety.

* Usually ponds in moderate climates should be at least 2 feet deep while in more colder climates, you would need to make sure that the pond is deep enough to allow for at least 12" to 16" of water below the freeze zone.

* Dig according to the shape you want and dig a shelf-like level around the perimeter of the pond, which is about one foot deep and one foot wide. Also make provisions for a waterfall by digging a slight slope to one end.

* Time now to position the external pond filters. If you have pond skimmers as well, then you would need to place and level these in the proper places. Also dig a ditch to the external pond pump from the skimmer and from the pump to the external pond filter or waterfall.

Time to line

* Now you have to line the pond with what is called as Pond Underlayment. This is a lining that can be cut according to the shape needed and can be taped together. This underlayment will help the pond lining to stay in place.

* You can now put the rubber pond liner into pond and spread it out.

* Make sure you smoothen the folds and position it evenly. Some folds will still be there but the water will take care of that.

Time for filters and waterfalls

* As the lining is in place, you must now get the Pond waterfalls and streams positioned. Place them to spill directly into the pond and put the pond liner against the pond filter.

* You can use a stone and secure it to the liner with mortar or expandable foam. This will hold back the water allow it to spill over the stone creating the waterfall.

Time to connect
Now you will have to do all the connections as in connect the pond liner to the skimmer and position all the pipes and tubing according to the instructions given.

Time to decorate

* You’re almost done. Use the copingstones to edge the outline the pond by arranging them around the pond folding the pond liner up behind the stone, slightly above the water level. (Use the mortar to if you feel the stones are not heavy enough to be stable). Add some shrubs around the edges too.

* You can create a cobblestone beach edging with gravel and cobbles.

* Make it look as natural as possible and keep a lot of plants to add on later, once the water is in.

Fill it up!

* Open the tap and fill it up with water till it is a few inches from the top and then make corrections if necessary to ensure that the pond is level. As the pond is filling remove wrinkles and make folds as necessary.

* Add dechlorinator to the pond to remove any chlorine or chloramines.

* Put in the gravel and plant the root plants into the gravel or with some soil still attached into the gravel. Plants should be added immediately after the pond is ready. Make sure you plant enough of Anacharis, as this plant helps to fight the algae and is like a natural filter. Put in water lilies as they help to shade the fish.

* Also add packaged bacteria to seed the pond filter and pond.

Point to note: Do not add the goldfish right after you build the tank. You must allow the pond to cycle and create the bacteria and other sustenance needed to support the fish. Introduce you goldfish into the pond after several weeks.

Dane Stanton - www.goldfish-secrets.com

Dane Stanton is an expert on goldfish health care. To visit his website visit http://www.goldfish-secrets.com for more information on Goldfish care and other aquarium related topics.
*Recommended*

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Building Liner Ponds

Building Liner Ponds
By Brett Fogle

Surprisingly enough, it is usually in mid-summer that many
gardeners begin to think about installing a small pond or
water garden. Ponds don't need to be weeded or watered, and
they can supply exuberant color in the form of water lilies
and bog plants.

The sound of a splashing fountain or waterfall is more
appealing than weeding a flower bed or mowing that section of
lawn. Best of all, no matter how hot or wet it gets, the pond
just keeps on blooming!

At this point you may start to think about the expense and
labor of installing a concrete pond, and our 95 degree days
are just about enough to stop this pond daydream in its
tracks.

However, with the advent of newer pond liners and pre-formed
pools, the misery associated with concrete mixing and
finishing is a thing of the past. Heavy duty pool liners with
10 year guarantees are now common, and can sell for as little
as $1.00 a square foot.

Preformed ponds in many different shapes and sizes are also an
alternative method to create a quick pond at less cost than
using concrete. Using these materials, the average gardener
can install a decent size pond in less than one day, and have
it stocked with plants, fish and fountain by the following
morning.

The simplest kind of pond to build is an above-the-ground
pond. Since no digging is required, it usually takes much
longer to fill this pond with water than it does to build it!

There are many variations on this theme, but as an example,
one can use treated lumber planks which are at least 2 inches
thick by 12 inches wide, nail them together to form a
rectangular shape of the desired dimensions, and place the
form where the pond is desired.

This bottomless "box" can be placed directly on the grass,
concrete, a deck, etc., and then the bottom is covered with
some kind of padding or cushioning material. Most books say to
use sand, but I think the perfect material is roofing felt. It
is cheap, convenient, lies flat, makes a barrier to weeds, and
provides a good cushion for the pool liner.

Once the roofing felt is in place, the pool liner can be
dropped into the form and you begin filling the pond with
water. A few staples on the outside of the pond form may be
needed to keep the liner from blowing into the pond, but be
sure to use just a few, and place them at the edge of the
liner.

As the pond fills, the weight of the water will do a good job
in smoothing out wrinkles, but if you are a perfectionist, you
can help smooth them out by hand before there is more than one
inch of water in the bottom of the pond. While the pond is
beginning to fill, you can check the level of the form, and if
it needs to be raised a little on one or two sides, this can
be done by carefully inserting some shims to raise the forms
where needed.

If you prefer the pond to overflow on a certain side (like,
into the flower bed, rather than onto the deck!) then you may
want to leave the overflow side a quarter inch lower than the
rest of the pond.

You should wait until the pond is completely filled before
cutting any excess liner or doing any permanent stapling. This
will give the water pressure enough time to pull the liner
into every nook and cranny where it needs to go; some of those
few holding staples which you used to hold the liner in place
may actually tear loose as the pond fills, but if you stapled
the liner on the outside of the form, near the edges, then no
harm is done... you will be trimming some of that excess liner
off, anyway.

It really does take longer to fill this kind of pond than it
does to build it. I once built a twenty-by-thirty foot pond in
two hours but it took all night for it to fill with water.

I think an ideal depth for an above ground pond is about 14
inches, but it can be deeper or more shallow than that,
depending on what materials you are using for the form.
Railroad ties, landscape timbers, concrete blocks, etc. are
all possible materials for pond building.

Remember that any kind of wood must be pressure treated if you
want it to last more than a year! Although I mentioned
rectangular shape, if you have some carpentry skills, you can
also do triangles, pentagons, ponds within ponds, etc.

Ponds built with treated lumber planks do not need any side
support if they are less than 8 feet or 10 feet long; if you
are building larger than that, you will want to drive a stake
into the ground where the planks are to be nailed together, so
the water pressure won't make the planks bow outward. So, if
you know how to use twelve nails to nail four planks together,
then you can build a pond. If you are feeling lazy, have the
lumber yard cut the planks to size you need. Borrow your
neighbor's staple gun, find those scissors buried in the
kitchen drawer, and you are in business!

Pond liners can also be used to make an in the ground pond.
The advantage is that you can make any shape pond you want,
and the ground itself supports the sides of the liner.

It is a good idea to use a flexible garden hose to lay out the
pool shape you want. Once everyone agrees that it is a
pleasant shape, and it is large enough, you can dig a trench
along side the hose, and start digging.

Remember, the pool does not have to be more than 12 to 16
inches deep, so don't get carried away. If you want a
waterfall, some of the excavated soil can be mounded up near
the pond for later waterfall construction. In some cases, it
may be useful to use some of the soil for a berm around the
pond, so that is another way to dispose of excavated soil.

Once the pond is excavated, check the level, decide which side
you want excess rainfall to flow from, and then you are ready
to line the hole with roofing felt, running it across the
pond, up the sides onto the edges of the pond. Drop the liner
in, weigh it down lightly with some rocks around the edges,
and start filling.

Again, do not trim any excess liner until the pond is
completely filled. Some pond books say you should create a
shallow shelf in the pond before putting in the liner, but
they don't have our river sand and rainfall to deal with. I
think it is better to build the pond to a depth of 14-16
inches, and just use bricks to prop up those bog plants that
don't want to sit too deep in water. This gives greater
flexibility in rearranging the pond plants as you wish, and
avoids the calamity of a shelf suddenly slumping into the
pool. When using pool liners, whether in the ground or above
the ground, it is important to conceal the edges from
sunlight, since that is what eventually breaks down most
liners.

Using stones or lumber planks to finish off the edge of your
pond will make it more appealing, and enable the liner to live
up to its ten year guarantee. Even the heavier, preformed
plastic ponds should have their edges covered by sod or some
paving material, so the sun can't reach it. Some final
pointers: if possible, locate your pond away from trees, in a
place that gets at least five hours of direct sun daily. This
will allow you to grow a wide variety of pond plants.

Be sure to use a dechlorinating product when you first fill
the ponds... the new chemicals in our drinking water do not
dissipate quickly and they will kill your fish and damage your
plants, even ten days after you have filled the pond!

Be sure you are pleased with the size and shape of your pond
before you start - so you won't say "I should have made it
bigger, or longer, or rounder, etc.", within two hours of
filling it!

Rule number one in pond building is that no matter how big
your pond is, you always want a bigger one.

Last, but not least, if you decide to do an in-the-ground
pond, why not serve refreshments and get some friends to help
. . . friends will have all kinds of useful ideas on how you
should do it ... which is fine, as long as they keep
digging...

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Brett Fogle is the owner of MacArthur Water Gardens and several

other pond-related websites including
MacArthurWatergardens.com

and Pond-Filters-Online.com. He
also publishes a free monthly

newsletter called PondStuff! with a reader circulation of over

9,000. To sign up for the free newsletter and receive our FREE

'New Pond Owners Guide' visit MacArthur Water Gardens today!

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