pit to pond

[duc]

so i had enough with my "pond" and decided to add a few gallons

[tsunderl]

You graduated from pond to lake! How many gallons is it going to be?

[duc]

more pics

[omgitskacie12]

beautiful!

[duc]

You graduated from pond to lake! How many gallons is it going to be?

9500k or so

21x11x5.8'

i wish i went deeper....

[EAST_TX_RN]

Wow, just wow! Only in my dreams!

[duc]

and some more...

[alta678]

:eek: That is an A1 class swimming pool for koi! I am loving this pond!! :hehe:

[duc]

and some more...

[alta678]

Please give us details! Did you plan it and do it all by yourself? Will you add plants? Landscape around it? I am all ears and eyes!!!!

[duc]

last ones

[alta678]

Could this be the home of a TCU horned frog? :D

[duc]

2 4" aerated bottom drains to nexus 200 and nexus 300 w/answer
nexus returns to waterfall
2 savio skimmers to bead filter with return to tpr
2 medo 80lpm (one for bottom drains, one for nexus KI bio area)
1 57 watt UV (may need 2)

waterfall was built by contractor by drilling hole in bottom of fish (get ones made in vietnam as they are fired at higher temps). he told me mexican fired ones will not last more than a year in this application.

thanks everyone for your comments. been in the hobby 5 years and you know what? if i would have spent the money on my pond back then, i would have enough money to do another one today! as i've easily spent money upon money to improve/fix my first DIY job.

wished i joined the dallas koi kichi group beore i started, would've gotten the guidance needed to avoid my first pond.

live and learn.:rolleyes:

duc added 0 Minutes and 59 Seconds later...

Could this be the home of a TCU horned frog? :D

how did you guess?

GO FROGS!

TCU Class of '96

[bassmaster]

wow that is remarkable

[masroberts9]

that is impressive. thanks for sharing.

[alta678]

Now will you build a pump house to cover the filters and pump from the weather?

Something about that purple and white horned frog rang a bell.......;)

[bhughes]

So now you can offer swimming with the koi :hehe:
That is beautiful. keep coming with the pictures!!!!

[duc]

Now will you build a pump house to cover the filters and pump from the weather?

Something about that purple and white horned frog rang a bell.......;)

just had the electrician come out to finish up the wiring for all the stuff back there.

i need to find some time or find a contractor to build a cover for the filter area to protect everything from the environment.

i'll post pictures of that once it is finished

[tsunderl]

I'll offer up my backyard for your next project. :D

[cichlid-dave]

That looks like a small inland sea!

[duc]

I'll offer up my backyard for your next project. :D

if you fund it, i will build it! :D

[tsunderl]

I wish... I don't even think I've got enough in my change bucket to fund a goldfish bowl. :spend:

[masroberts9]

if you fund it, i will build it! :D

that doesn't sound like a bad deal!

[China8USA]

Wow that is very impressive. The pictures are gold. Can you tell me if the cinder blocks needed rebar and concrete fill? Or are they attached another way? And the facing looks great with the stone. 9500 gallons. Sick.

[tsunderl]

that doesn't sound like a bad deal!

Mason, if you fund it, I'll let him build it. :hehe:

[masroberts9]

yeah, i can fund it with my filter sale money. think that'll cover it? :hehe: that wouldnt cover a single rock.

[duc]

Wow that is very impressive. The pictures are gold. Can you tell me if the cinder blocks needed rebar and concrete fill? Or are they attached another way? And the facing looks great with the stone. 9500 gallons. Sick.

hi,

thanks for the compliments.

first a footer is poured with rebar spaced for every other block.

the blocks are mortared in place and filled where the rebar is to provide support.

at this depth, this is absolutely necessary to prevent the pond from collapsing.

if your contractor doesn't have this in the write up or doesn't think this is needed, drop them. find someone to do it right. i can give some references.

i did my "pit" without blocks and it started to collapse 3 years in and was really bad earlier this year and it was only 4' deep at one end. the other end was 2'.

save yourself the pain now and do it with reinforced blocks the first time....

best,

duc

[alta678]

i need to find some time or find a contractor to build a cover for the filter area to protect everything from the environment.

i'll post pictures of that once it is finished

I have seen pictures of pond builds where people used Rubbermaid type sheds or other "prebuilt" sheds to cover the pump, filter, etc.

[AndrewH]

That is definitely one impressive setup!

I suspect you're going to keep kio, anything else? Do you plan to add plants?

How is the liner attached under the top lip?

[juice04]

When is the tour? :)

[duc]

That is definitely one impressive setup!

I suspect you're going to keep kio, anything else? Do you plan to add plants?

How is the liner attached under the top lip?

thanks Andrew,

koi and only koi for now, maybe a wakin or ryukin in the summer time. i saw a sturgeon at Watergarden Gems down in San Antonio that was pretty cool looking. they can live w/koi.

No plants! Nothing but trouble and degrades water quality. i've had plants in my previous pond and that was a chore to trim the dead lily pads and the organic load was not healthy for the koi.

not saying plants are bad, just not for me.

liner is underneath the flagstone caps, so nice and snug.

Best,

[Kat]

Excellent looking koi pond!

Koi & plants definitely don't get along unless like you say you've got to do a lot more maintenance.

[Rock-Sales]

Ok, So, I don't have much to add but can't "Not" say something. Wow. Impressive.:eek:

[FishAddict]

Thats really impressive, i just read through the whole thread. Nice job... im jealous! Thanks for sharing!!

[radioaktiv]

outstanding job

you make it hard to resist moving to an outdoor setup

[bristlenosedude]

Why liner instead of one of the paints you could have used? Liners will always have wrinkles, you're putting a flat sheet into a square box.

[duc]

Why liner instead of one of the paints you could have used? Liners will always have wrinkles, you're putting a flat sheet into a square box.

good question. many options for the pond.

it comes down to cost:benefit for each individual

liner
fiberglass
polyurea
gunite

the ground shifts so much in my area, the liner option was the most affordable option for me. it's the least eye pleasing of the options, but it works.

if i had the funds, i would've done the gunite. decided to spend the money on the filtration system instead.

best,

[duc]

water cleared up nicely since turning on the UV

some koi pics to share.

and a video of the koi in motion
YouTube- duc's pond dainichi showa omo shiro.MPG

[ilicurtisili]

:bd:

[Haiven]

OMG! :drool2:

I'm so impressed that I'm speechless! (this seldom happens....)

[donkey]

WOW thats super nice.I have dug my own ponds and know how much work that is and time consuming.I can't imagine ever going through that much work but it sure looks worth it.How long did this project take you?Did you dig it by hand?

[Typical Tony]

i want a pond now

[duc]

WOW thats super nice.I have dug my own ponds and know how much work that is and time consuming.I can't imagine ever going through that much work but it sure looks worth it.How long did this project take you?Did you dig it by hand?

Hi Jeff,

dig this myself? roflmao not a chance, the clay is tough. this project would still be ongoing since 2005 if i were to dig this up myself! :hehe: the original hole was dug out by a bobcat and a few guys for a case of beer and $150 in 2 hours.

the 2nd dig was done by the contractor and 2 of his crew. the dirt was posted on craigslist and someone came to pick it up so no worries about finding a place to dump it.

project typically takes 3 wks but due to all the rain we had this past summer in July and August, it took 2 months.

Joel Ramos of http://elohimaquatics.com/main.htm did the work for me. Stand up guy if you need anything done. yeah, it cost some money but if you calculate the cost of doing it yourself + time spent, the extra cost of a contractor along with a professional job==more time to enjoy the hobby + time with the family.

Best,

[duc]

i want a pond now

what's stopping you? this is the best time to buid a pond actually...most contractors are not as busy and you can get better pricing. and the pond supply companies such as azponds.com and justliners.com are running specials to move inventory.

if you plan it early enough, your pond will be done just in time for march/april when koi dealers will be having spring sales! such as the Texas Koi and Fancy Goldfish Society of San Antonio annual spring koi sale where over 1000 koi will be available. www.texaskoi.com (http://www.texaskoi.com).

so, what is holding you back? :cool:

[AndrewH]

Very nice vid, and awesome pics!

And definitely one dramatic pond you have there! Impressive!

[ElijahTurtle]

Dude! How the heck did I miss this thread! Awesome!

[northtexasfossilguy]

That sure is one giant ce-ment pond, even the Hillbilly's would be proud!:D

[plantedpufferfreak]

Wow!

[housefish]

I concur. WOW

[Holey_Rock_of_Texas]

did you say pond or pool lol. nice.

[Incaico]

Wow, Wow, Wow!!!

[Typical Tony]

what's stopping you? this is the best time to buid a pond actually...most contractors are not as busy and you can get better pricing. and the pond supply companies such as azponds.com and justliners.com are running specials to move inventory.

if you plan it early enough, your pond will be done just in time for march/april when koi dealers will be having spring sales! such as the Texas Koi and Fancy Goldfish Society of San Antonio annual spring koi sale where over 1000 koi will be available. www.texaskoi.com (http://www.texaskoi.com).

so, what is holding you back? :cool:

$ <----- that's what is holding me back :hehe:

[pam916]

Wow, that is nice!

[duc]

thanks guys

next dallas koi kichi group meeting will be at my house on june 5th at 12pm. we will have an interesting program on "who's your daddy" talking about koi varieties and how they come about along with a vet pending availability to discuss koi health.

if you are interested, let me know and i will forward you directions.

best,

[Sigmar]

Hmmm wondering how hard it would have been to put in window in there. Impressive setup!

[duc]

Hmmm wondering how hard it would have been to put in window in there. Impressive setup!

thanks.

i would've love to put a window in there like how the brits build thier ponds.

next time around, need to save a little more money for that though.

best,

[Typical Tony]

any updated photos?

[alta678]

Yes, please! I go back and drool over your pond pictures every so often. :drool2:

[duc]

nothing new to post. did add a few new koi in the pond and have sold off the 2 shiro utsuri. i'll post some new koi pics when i get some time this weekend.

best thing to do is come to the club meeting on june 5th. you can see the koi in person. nothing like seeing the real thing instead of pics. :)

best,

[duc]

new video from this month.

YouTube- pond june 18.mpg

the pond was very green 2 wks before this video was taken. the filters finally got matured enough to balance system. no chemicals were added to make this water clear.

[BC1976]

That is an impressive piece of work. Truly awesome job. Don't know much about keeping a pond so I am going to embarrass myself and ask any ways. Do you have any type of sediment at the bottom or just liner? I ask because with a body of water this size and depth I would be tempted to introduce fresh water clams for natural filtration.

[Typical Tony]

new video from this month.

YouTube- pond june 18.mpg (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCpZRpSscYs)

the pond was very green 2 wks before this video was taken. the filters finally got matured enough to balance system. no chemicals were added to make this water clear.

that is amazing

[duc]

That is an impressive piece of work. Truly awesome job. Don't know much about keeping a pond so I am going to embarrass myself and ask any ways. Do you have any type of sediment at the bottom or just liner? I ask because with a body of water this size and depth I would be tempted to introduce fresh water clams for natural filtration.

hi, don't be embarrassed. asking questions like this will save you hours of work cleaning out a pond, building the wrong pond and $$$ in the long term while not getting the enjoyment out of it that you and your family should.

there are 2 bottom drains down there. each bottom drain has an effective radius of 5-6 ft. the volume of the pond is approx 10K gallons. each 4" bottom drain is piped to its own settlement/filter. the turnover of this filter circuit is 2 hours. there is aeration attached to the top of the drains to promote an upward flow of the water column to help move debris to the drains as well.

i have another circuit that draws water from the surface (2 skimmers to a bead filter) that turns over every 2 hours as well.

there is enough flow to adequately sweep the floor of any debris.

the dangers of clams is that they get into the piping and restrict flow. also, if they die....that would cause some water issues.

[Dabula]

WOW, truly awesome! Hope to be able to something like this some day... I want to make sure it will be in home that I will stay in for many many years though first... maybe our next place... AWESOME PICS!

[duc]

pictures of the bottom drains, these are made for liners.