Does anyone have a fish pond?

[Adillo303]

Just curious, DW and I built one about 3 years ago now. It is small as our yard is small. We enjoy it a lot we created a small "oasis" in our yard where we can sit away from city life. Anybody else?

AC

P. S. If you have one, do you have / use a pond vac, if so what kind how much $$, etc. Thank You

AC

 

[pacanis]

No, but a part of my property is slowly turning into wetlands

That looks very nice, AC. Every year I give some thought to adding a small pond like yours, more for aesthetics for my customers than anything, not that I wouldn't enjoy it.
Do you have to keep it heated in the winter?

 

[quicksilver]

Pretty and I bet soothing listening to the water fall.
I wanted one down here, but the assoc. won't allow perm. changes to any property.
I did buy a bird bath, drilled a hole in it to wire a submersible pump, then sealed to whole with aquarium caulk, covered pump with an upside down terra cotta pot with whole in its bottom for water spout to come out of, and buried base of bath about 8" down in the ground so it only sticks up about 2' from ground level.
I adjusted the pump so it only trickles. It's just outside my kitchen lanai, so I can sit out there. It's very calming, and surprisingly cooling, but not usable for the birds as they don't like the moving water, I guess. Although they and butterflies land on the ground around it to drink? the splatters. It's only about 6" deep so I have to replenish it an inch or so a day, unless it rains. Every week or so I have to scrub it with bleach/water, for algae.
But it's fun. And it was an easy project for those interested. If your going to drill though, get a masonary
drill bit just to be sure you don't crack the bowl.

​

 

[GrillingFool]

I'd love a pond.... but my black Labrador retriever would love it more.
I would have an expensive dog water bed. sighhhh

 

[LT72884]

I wouldnt mind having a pond and waterfall setup, but i will get that when i buy my house. Hopefully that will be in the next 5 or 6 years. Maybe less, depending on work.

My dream place is a Lakehouse, and no i have not seen the movie. I want a nice cabin on an awesome lake surrounded by a crap load of trees.

 

[suziquzie]

M&FIL have one, about the size of yours.
They now call it the love pond....
They bought cheap goldfish just to have in it for the summer....
Have never heated the thing and the fish abound, 5 years later!
We've got one on "the list".

 

[Jeekinz]

Looks great AC.

No pond just yet, but something the size you have would be manageable in the future.

A friend of mine has a Coi pond which is very entertaining.

 

[roadfix]

Very cool!

I don't have a pond but my next door neighbor has a nice koi pond. Its been a few years since I've seen any koi in it though.....

 

[LadyCook61]

I have a natural spring pond , I don't think there is any fish in it but slider turtles and frogs and dragonflies abound.

 

[Adillo303]

Thank you all for the compliments. Yes, it makes a wonderful evening. When it is cooler, we have amini firepit on wheels, so we can sit there for coctail hour and watch the embres.

To answer some of the questions.
No you do not have to heat the pond in the winter. the fish winter just fine. You have to put a very small heater in the pond to keep a hole open for them to off gas.At 55 degrees they all hibernate. Strangely at about 57 degrees they are active again.

There are nine fish in there. 4 koi, 1 Sarassa Comet and 4 Shebunkins. It is fun to watch them scramble for food and just swim around. Sometimes around sundown, they jump. They also are very active at sunup.

The pond is 4' X 7'. It is a bit over 3' deep at the dep end down to about 18" at the shallow end. DW and I dug it by hand. We trucked in 3,500# of rock for her to hand place for the falls. I did all the electric and plumbing. we really like it.

Oh yes! We have a black and a chocolate lab. The black "Liam" has been in. The Chocolate "Bear" will not go in, but drinks out of it. Liam will try anything, Bear needs to be able to tough bottom, that is why he won't go in. they both absolutely love water and play like kids at the lake.

AC

AC

 

[pacanis]

I like watching them build ornamental ponds on the DIY channel. It always looks like a fun project with a real sense of accomplishment at the end. That's really cool that you and your wife did this yourself.

 

[shortchef]

When we bought our house it came with a koi pond. We put the heater in during the winter to keep a hole in the ice, put algicide in once in a while but the snails usually take care of the algae pretty well; other than feeding the fish that's pretty much it. It helps that we have a good-size waterfall (recirculating) that goes into the pond. Another thing that helps keep the water clear is a little bale of barley straw.