Pond Questions

[sdkubota]

Not sure what is located downstream from your pond but in the event of a failure and sudden release of water...you will be liable to any downstream property damage. Hopefully that will not be any issue with your location. Any storm sewer pipe smaller than 18" is prone to plugging. As far as sealing it goes...old timers claim ducks actually seal ponds to protect their water source. Might be the concentration of duck pooh.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Here in Arkansas the conservation folks require that any pond built to their specs (they pay a bit of money if you build it to state specs) has an overflow on the upper end. They say you cant properly spec and overflow pipe due to unexpected rainfall conditions. You have to install an upper end (at the inflow end)spillway rather than pipes. They work pretty well and you dont get any dam erosion from overflows and no material cost other than some rocks to line the spill way to prevent erosion till grass gets started.
Your drainage problem might cure itself as fine clay particle wash in and settle. You likely have a sandy area that is filtering the water back underground. If it doesnt stop naturally, you could spread Bentonite clay in the sandy area when it dries up and work it into the existing soil structure. It will expand when wet and seal off the area.
I have heard the same thing about duck and goose poo sealing up leaking ponds but you need a lot of poo if you are loosing water like you say.

 

[sdkubota]

You could leave your outlet pipes and install an emergency overflow along the dam and a slightly higher elevation. The emergency overflow is nothing more than a lower area where the water will spill over before overtopping the dam. Rock placed in the overflow channel or even well established vegetation can minimize and erosion during an emergency discharge event.

 

[SuperCobra]

I ran into something similar. Dug a pond in a day just before Sandy. Didn't get time to finish it. No overflow and no culverts. Although there was no dam per say, I dug down and put a packed clay key in on the downhill side. I say no dam per say because the lower end is at ground level. It filled up over night but within a week it was dry. I think I got too aggressive and went down too far and broke through the clay. After it dried out I went back and and packed clay in the bottom. It seems to be holding now. I'll slowly build up the downhill side so that it is raised and will put in the overflow then.

Here are some pictures of the first attempt if they load properly and aren't too big:

 

[20 20]

Not to rain on anyones parade but one thing I have learned from digging my own ponds(8, all range from 6' to 12' actual "low" water level measurement) and talking with the prodiggers, you'll want to be down no less then 4' but deeper is better. If you're to shallow sooner or later you will have weed problems, especially cattails.

As far as the leakage problem it's hard to tell what is going on without seing it up close. Not all clay is equal and if it's not solid (bad mixes) it'll leak. You can find liners that will fit, I perfer a good clay, but if in a bind would use a liner. Your pond looks good but from the pictures seems much shallower then 7', how did you come up with the measurement? I'm just asking because I have had guys tell me they went down 12 feet but when a true measurement was takin they might be 6 to 8'. Of course it's hard to know what the actual water level depth is until the pond fills, sits for a time and then a dry(not drought) spell comes along. I know one thing I've learned deeper is better, when I dig now I get to a depth I like then add to it, atleast a few more feet. The nice thing about going deeper is IF a drought comes knocking and the pond is stocked you'll have atleast some what of a chance in keeping your fish population. Some say going too deep, over 12-15' water level depth, is not worth the time, I completely disagree. If the fish don't like the depth they stay shallow but if a drought happens they'll be happy for the depth. Another plus to going deeper is build up of sediment, especially if your located near trees. I have had many folks tell me they knew for a fact there pond was ____deep when it was dug but for some reason now it's not even half that depth? I will write dredging is a pain, better to over build in the beganing then have to go back and fix later. As you can see your water is already chocolate color you'd be surprised at how much dirt is running/filling back into your pond, from the fresh dig. Again another reason to go a bit deeper, until the fresh build has a chance to grow in. Sorry for the long post, wish I could help more with your leakage problem, but like I wrote to many variables to figure without seeing in person.

 

[tractorshopper]

Nice pond Super Cobra. Your soil looks a lot like mine. 20 20 - I measured the depth. The pictures stink, but the deepest part is closest to where the water comes into it from the ditch. I did that on purpose to have a deeper spot to catch sediment. I have a shallower end on one side too, but I'd say average depth to bottom of drain is 4.5-5' except shallow end near island, which is mostly like 2-2.5'.

 

[VPFarm]

I had a second pond dug into my property, the first had/has issues.

After speaking with a number of people (Professionals in our area) they eluded to the fact that if you dig the pond too deep into the ground and hit rock that you'll never get it to stop leaking...... I hope this isn't your issue. My lower pond, without adding lime or bentonite, sealed itself in about 9 months (The part that leaked was the actual dam face since the pond was cut into a wide gully.

In the past 6 months or so I've been taking a small portion of our stream and having it pumped into the upper pond (The one with problems). That additional water source brought a lot of organic material/s into the pond. With this change the pond is leaking less and doesn't go dry in summer and I'm starting to see algae, frogs, dragon flies and other plant matter slowly starting to develop which is helping to further sealing the pond (I notice that less water is needed to keep it full).

As far as clarity of the water, I think that kinda depends on your area (from what I've seen). Runoff can make it suddenly cloudy and then in about a week it would settle and clear (in TN), but further south (TX) my pond waters would never clear unless I added lime and brought the pH up to around 9. It could be that your runoff is what's making it cloudy (Hard to know without studying it a bit).

Culvert -- I added a 8" pipe into the face of the dam to handle the runoff. It was cheaper than repairing the dam face if it overflowed and cut into the soil.

 

[srstanfield]

The proper way to core a dam is to dig a minimum of 6 feet below grade and pack with good clay until you build it up to desired height based upon amount of area you want to contain water.

I had a second pond dug into my property, the first had/has issues.

After speaking with a number of people (Professionals in our area) they eluded to the fact that if you dig the pond too deep into the ground and hit rock that you'll never get it to stop leaking...... I hope this isn't your issue. My lower pond, without adding lime or bentonite, sealed itself in about 9 months (The part that leaked was the actual dam face since the pond was cut into a wide gully.

In the past 6 months or so I've been taking a small portion of our stream and having it pumped into the upper pond (The one with problems). That additional water source brought a lot of organic material/s into the pond. With this change the pond is leaking less and doesn't go dry in summer and I'm starting to see algae, frogs, dragon flies and other plant matter slowly starting to develop which is helping to further sealing the pond (I notice that less water is needed to keep it full).

As far as clarity of the water, I think that kinda depends on your area (from what I've seen). Runoff can make it suddenly cloudy and then in about a week it would settle and clear (in TN), but further south (TX) my pond waters would never clear unless I added lime and brought the pH up to around 9. It could be that your runoff is what's making it cloudy (Hard to know without studying it a bit).

Culvert -- I added a 8" pipe into the face of the dam to handle the runoff. It was cheaper than repairing the dam face if it overflowed and cut into the soil.

 

[AGRIMAN]

The proper way to core a dam is to dig a minimum of 6 feet below grade and pack with good clay until you build it up to desired height based upon amount of area you want to contain water.

I agree that properly coring the dam is the most important part of building a pond or second only to picking the right location. Remember that a leaking dam may not necessary shown up as a wet spot on the dam. Sometimes a leak will run underneath the dam and it may not surface to several hundred feet below the dam. If it continues to leak, you may want to check the areas below the dam.

Here are a few pictures of my newest pond. Dug in 2010.

 

[duke7595]

I agree with Paguy all trees should be removed , once they die and rot they cause a natural drain though their root system. Any new trees beginning to grow
on the pond bank as well as cat tails should be removed.
If cat tails are not controlled they will soon take over your pond.


PAGUY
Silver Member
Join DateAug 2007Posts191Locationsoutheastern PATractorKubota BX2200, Gravely mower
Re: Pond Questions
ts - I wonder if that tree in the middle of the pond could be your problem. From reading about pond projects I got the message that trees will eventually die when surrounded by water. In your case I wonder if the root structure of that tree is acting like a drain. Might have been better to have removed the tree and small island and covered that area with clay. JMO - PAGUY