Any pond experts on the board?

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diymirage

diymirage

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Bought a new house recently and it has a little pound out back
So, I got a few questions on how to keep the green floaties of the top, what and how many fish I want in there, but my biggest question right now is can I use old rail road ties to build up the bulwark on the side...kinda like a dock

And of course, all other advise on the pond is welcome
 
get some mosquito dunks to throw in, it controls the larvae. the fountain is probably your best investment, stagnant water aids in the development of algae and mosquitos.
 
Railroad ties and creosote in water may not be good for your fish. I built a dock on my pond with the green telephone poles and it didn't hurt my fish. I have hugh catfish and blue gill or brim in my pond. I added 100 fingerling catfish twice in the last 30 years. It's about 250' x 150'.
 
ll toss some pictures up tomorrow to show what im talking about (might be able to find some on my phone)

Bad Sport said:
Install a fountain in the middle, it will keep the water moving which will help in keeping the algae down.
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there is a pump that runs on a timer, about 12 hours a day
it pumps water out of the pond up to a waterfall that runs from the patio back to the pond, so there is some circulation


fishmens67 said:
get some mosquito dunks to throw in, it controls the larvae. the fountain is probably your best investment, stagnant water aids in the development of algae and mosquitos.
Click to expand...

are those fish?
i noticed i got my first skeeterbites the other day, so keeping those down will be good



SGBARRACUDA said:
Railroad ties and creosote in water may not be good for your fish. I built a dock on my pond with the green telephone poles and it didn't hurt my fish. I have hugh catfish and blue gill or brim in my pond. I added 100 fingerling catfish twice in the last 30 years. It's about 250' x 150'.
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i wondered about the creosote...mostly wondered how long it will take to seep out of a log in the rain and what not
the idea with the ties is to dig out a section and frame it in to basically make a harbor for the kids paddle boat


im guessing the pond is about 10,000 sqaure feet, about 1/4 the size of your pond
 
found some pics n my phone, just to give you an idea of the size (you can see the waterfall in the foreground, all the rocks, going around the tree)

IMG-20170331-WA0000 (1).jpg


20170414_135258 (1).jpg
 
Phosphates (laundry detergent) are algae/plant growth stimulants. Make sure there is nothing infiltrating the pond.
A fountain in the middle of pond will also create dissolved oxygen. That is crucial for habitation for fish and for water quality. Circulation sometimes isnt enuf. A waterfall works good too.
Or tell the cutie in the paddle boat to work a bit harder lol
 
I wouldn't use railroad ties. Mosquito dunks are great. They are actually a form of bacteria that is safe for animals. Bacillus thurigus isrealanus prob messed up on my spelling. It also keeps gnats down as well as other pesky bugs. When the bugs digest it the bti(afor mentioned bacteria) begins growing and breeding inside the bug and blocka off their digestive system causing them to die cause they can't $π|+ basically. I also will take a small amount and break it down and water my indoor plants if I have issues with gnats or such with my indoor gardening and house plants.
Add a fountain like previously stated as well or a water pump especially if u plan on having fish in there. Circulating the water helps to keep sufficient oxygen in the water for your fish to breathe. My mom kept koi in hers and they made it thru a few winter's getting completely frozen
 
i believe the water quality to be decent at least, based on the presence of water striders (the little water skating bugs) which i have been told only thrive on ponds with good water quality (something to do with the surface tension)

the waterfall definatly gets some movement in the water, as well as bubbles (oxygen)
perhaps not as much as a fountain would though


im not sure if the pond is spring fed or not
it looks pretty natural to me google earth tells me there are 7 or 8 ponds close by which (according to my neighbor) are all connected


so far i know there is bluegill in there, and one big white fish probably close to 16 inches long, which im guessing is a koy?
im also told there is bass in there, but i have yet to see one

speaking of seeing one, my boy was out on the paddle boat today and he saw a fish (probably a bluegill) try to take out a bug that landed on the water
how cool is that?
 
Large mouth bass are always fun to fish. People often have crappie in their ponds as well but I read a few years back that that's a common mistake, so I'd pretty well recommend stocking bass and since you already have bluegill you shouldn't need to add any of those. Might want to add some minnows that only get 3-4" long to give your bluegill and bass more food.
 
We have a pool and a pond... The pond would be good for you....

 
diymirage said:
i believe the water quality to be decent at least, based on the presence of water striders (the little water skating bugs) which i have been told only thrive on ponds with good water quality (something to do with the surface tension)

so far i know there is bluegill in there, and one big white fish probably close to 16 inches long, which im guessing is a koy?
Click to expand...
Could be a large goldfish. they get really big in a pond that size.
Put some minnows in there. they will eat the mosquitos.
 
Are these the same minnows I would buy to go fishing with?
 
I have a 1/4 acre pond, I just throw in a bale of barley straw each year for algae, minnow or larger fish will thake care of the insect larve also, and no on the RR ties to much creosote on them even old ones.
 
Bring in Cat fish as soon as you can, they will keep the bottom sealed and create natural fertilizer, and kids love catching them, no railroad ties, I would do a floating dock
 
Get you some grasscarp fish. They will eat all the algebra etc. That is what my grandmother used in her catfish ponds
 
Yes on the grass carp :thumbsup: you will only need about 4 to 6 in your pond that size
 
75slant6 said:
Those idiots should be fined for throwing them back in. Those are Asian carp, they're not native to the us and they're a major nuisance.
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Just be glad this video wasn't shot in california...the carpet would have received a drivers license and unemployment before being tossed back
 
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