Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Selecting a site Wish Me Luck!!!!!

Finally found the perfect place - I thought? 400 acres of runoff and a perfect place for a 10 acre lake on my 115 acres. Even though NRCS said the site should/would be a great location, Bob and others recommended I have the soil tested. Had a company do 5 holes approx 10' deep in the dam, main lake area. Unfortunately, they discovered a lot of sand and said it didn't look very promising. I should have the lab test report and their recommendations by Monday. This maybe the best $1000 I ever spent? Thanks to all who provide solid advice on this site. It may have saved me thousands of dollars. Wish me luck.

Stan,
Any PB member with the will and wisdom that you display will always carry the best wishes of his brethren. Is this truly a potential "totally lost cause", or can you scale (way) back on size and borrow good soil from elsewhere, packing clay to mitigate the problem areas?

Well, I finally got the soil report back. It appears that the dam and main lake site are primarily sand. They recommended lining the lake with 12" of clay. Anyone know what clay sells for in South Texas? Anyone want some sand?

Better have deep pockets Stan. You're talking 16,000 cu yds of clay to line a 10 acre pond 1' dp. Just getting it to the site will cost a small fortune.

You would be better off to sell the property and find one more suitable for a pond. In this thread the owners of a 35 acre lake spent several hundred thousand dollars to seal their lake. It took 4200 loads of clay and they were very lucky to find it only two miles away.


http://www.pondboss.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=20;t=002438;p=1#000002

Stan,

Are you right on the Lavaca river? If so, it is a sandy, sandy place.

Stan,

How deep did your soil samples go? You may find clay at deeper depths that you could use to line your pond.

Good Luck.

I met with Stan last week and looked over his site.
The property has good fall to it, downward into a creek. Lots of trees in the watershed.
All the dirt samples were taken from the creek bottom area, where one would expect to find the worst soils. Dirt in the bottom of a creek are typically soils easily moved with water. None of the samples were taken from the top part of the site. Also, samples were taken by auger, from 5 to 8 feet deep.
Here's the recommendations I made.
Next, do due diligence in dam design, to determine how much clay would be needed to build a dam. Watershed covers 387 acres, so there is plenty of water to fill the lake, and keep it full, even if the dam leaks a little bit.
Then, bring in someone who can 'read' the dirt, put them to work with a backhoe, digging holes up top, looking for good clay. I believe there is good clay somewhere on his ranch.
I also suggested he find a forester to evaluate the trees which must be removed to build the lake. There's enough trees there to have value, if a market is nearby.
This is definitely a site which deserves more exploration.

115 total acres + potential 10 ac lake + mega watershed + the Lusk factor = flickering green light. Exciting equation; I hope it pans out. Good job with the math, Stan. You deserve pay-dirt.

Enjoyed the morning Bob and I spent talking and walking. Learned a lot. Following his advice, I contacted a local dozer/backhoe operator who just happened to have grown up on this specific piece of property, 30 - 40 years ago. He and his son came out and dug 9 new holes as deep as 12', 6 close to, but not in the creek bottoms. Three back in the dam area. Found quite a bit of clay in 8 of them. One was primarily sand, but 15 feet away in another was a lot of clay. The clay was grayish/white in most holes and pink/orange in a few others. Plan to get it analyzed at a different lab than the one used the 1st time. Paid $1100 for the 1st digging and testing. Paid $250 for this digging and got some road work thrown in to boot. Live and learn.

Still haven't found a forester, but have some feelers out. I've asked NRCS to determine the dam size and location. They balked at a project this big, but finally agreed to "see what they could come up with."

If you know of a good lab or forester, please email me. Still moving forward.

Stan