Leaky Pond????

B2620 · Feb 9, 2009

The weather has warmed up and some of the snow has begun to melt. I can see water running in the trench into the, I hope, pond. However, there is not water accumilating.

As my land is mostly shale, I was afraid this might happen even though there was some clay to spread on for the top layer.

Is it possible that after the soil becomes saturated that it may hold water? Or, will the leak just get bigger and bigger?

I have heard of some people putting a liner in their ponds. Do any of you have any experience with liners in ponds? How well do they hold up and what do they cost?

radioman · Feb 9, 2009

try checking out pondboss forums. they seem to be helpful in figuring things like this out. One thing i read on that site is putting bentonite down as a soil amendment to stops leaks.

dodge man · Feb 9, 2009

I work for a civil engineering firm and I can tell you what happens for a engineered dam. First off we take soil borings and make sure the soil will hold water. Second, when we construct the dam. We dig a fairly deep trench and fairly wide (maybe 10' deep by 10 feet wide) to make sure there are not any field tile or sand seams that will drain the lake or allow the dam to fail. We then fill the trench back in. Third, we take soil compaction test to make sure the dam is compacted properly. The compaction is usually done with a sheeps foot roller. I have the feeling none of these steps were done for your pond, and for a smaller pond, it really isn't needed. The water is probably leaking through the dam or under it. On a big project, they can build a slurry wall, kind of a concrete cut off wall drilled into the ground and rock that will stop the water from flowing under ground. Its expensive. Unless you can find a point leak, such as a field tile, its possible your pond will not fill.

Bird · Feb 9, 2009

The two most common methods I've heard of for stopping a leaky pond is liner and bentonite, neither of which is particularly cheap. But a neighbor of mine had a real nice fish pond on his place and told me that when it was built, if wouldn't hold water. So he and his son busted up bales of some old hay he had and spread all over the bottom, then put good hay right in the middle of the bottom for the cattle to feed on. He said the cattle tromping that old hay in obviously worked and that pond has held water just fine for many years now.

NubsNob · Feb 9, 2009

B2620 said:
The weather has warmed up and some of the snow has begun to melt. I can see water running in the trench into the, I hope, pond. However, there is not water accumilating.

As my land is mostly shale, I was afraid this might happen even though there was some clay to spread on for the top layer.

Is it possible that after the soil becomes saturated that it may hold water? Or, will the leak just get bigger and bigger?

I have heard of some people putting a liner in their ponds. Do any of you have any experience with liners in ponds? How well do they hold up and what do they cost?

B2620: This site will provide information regarding liner material. www.btliners.com I have used their product for my pond project and would recommend it. There are many types of liners available, however after my research, I found this type to be the most durable, cost effective, and ease of installation.