New pond - gray water

[pilot-werx]

We are currently in the middle of building a new manufacturing plant for our business and the town required that I put in some sort of water reserve for fire suppression. As I have a constant spring source, I decided to build a 80'x100 pond that is roughly 15' deep. The top six feet of the bank has a layer of geotextile and is covered with rip rap. I thought we got lucky as the pond itself is totally dug in clay, however the water is now gray from the suspended clay.

Does anyone know of a method that could be used to clarify the pool? I keep hearing about alum and gypsum but was wondering if anyone has tried that route?

Any help would be great!

 

[sld]

Gypsum will work but so will hay bales placed around the shore line in the water. As the hay degrades and breaks down it will cause the clay particles to clump together and sink. The gypsum does the same thing. Don't know the cost of gypsum but the hay bales might not be pleasing to look at. Also don't know how permanent either method is.

I have done the hay bales before and it does work. IIRC, I used about 20 for a one acre pond. It lasted long enough for vegetation to get established and this helped keep it clear. It will get muddy / cloudy after run off but settles out after a few days.

 

[forgeblast]

People use I think its barley straw to cut down on alge too, might be a two for one if you use that.

 

[MMagis]

Barley hay is commonly used to clear up ponds, but I don’t know how well regular hay works. I’ve never tried it and don’t think I’ve ever heard of anyone trying it. Would be worth a shot. However, it sounds like you need to wait a bit before doing anything. New ponds are always discolored and take quite some time to clear up. Some are worse than others, and some take longer than others, but being discolored is perfectly normal for a new pond.