HOwdy ya'll. I posted a while back about a site but the deal fell through. Now im looking at another site with good potential but would like some advice before I get on the phone with Mike. This area has a good spot for a 2.5 acre pond with a 425 ft crescent shape levee. The problem is the water shed is only about 10 acres large which is a little short for that size of a pond. There is a small stream that is 200 feet away on the property. Now I will dig a well to top this off and support my alpaca farm- the problem is that water is found at about 300 feet deep in these parts and that would take alot of energy to supply that big a shortfall on watershed. It seems that it would be alot easier to use the stream to fill up the pond. Is it possible to drop a pump and pipe from the stream to the pond. Are there filtering problems etc. Just seeing if this is possible. Thanks in advance. Im attaching a topo of area and hoping to have the lake rim the 262 elevation with the levee in front of the trees. Probably dig the whole pond down 2 feet to supply the levee and have a final depth of 10 feet in the deepest part. Thanks in advance.
It's possible, but you need to check into the legalities of it. It varies from state to state.
As for a screen, I'd use a couple of sections of well screen. I believe you can get them in different slit sizes, I'd look into the smallest slit size that is offered. I'd put at least a few lengths together. More slits - more filtering, and less chances that they'll clog.
It won't protect the pond from getting some small nasties, but it will most likely stop any fish from getting from the stream to the pond.
Not sure what type of stream you have but thought I'd put my two cents in since I am doing exactly what you want to do. My creek can go from 6 inches deep (spring fed, sand bottom) to 6 feet deep in a matter of minutes depending on how fast the rain comes down. I tried well screen but it clogs too easy and its very hard to clean it out after that.I tried different sizes too didn't help. After many tries and a lot of failure I decided to try and build a floating device that would house a submersible well pump ( most reliable pump I've tried)They are built like tanks and can push water up the 70ft hill I have without any issues. Here's what I did. 2 pieces of 6 inch pvc about 3 ft long with caps on each end, these are the floats. In between and just below those are a piece of 3 ft 4 inch pvc where the pump goes in. One end has the outlet pipe for the pump and is closed off from the creak water. The other end I attached a smaller piece, about 18 inches long of 4 inch pvc with one inch holes drilled all over it. I also used a wing nut to attach it to the pump pipe so its easy to get on and off. For the final screen I just slide a piece of drainage tile sock over the 18 inch piece of pvc and use a bungee cord to hold it on. Finally I use steel cable and attached the whole thing to some tree roots and when the creek goes up so does the pump when it goes down so does the pump. By floating it you keep most of the dirt out of the filter because most of it is on the bottom. Might sound like a lot of work but will save you hours of frustration if your creek is anything like mine. Mine has been running since about July and I only need to go down and check the filter about twice a month. And that just means taking the sock off and replacing or rinsing it off and using the same piece. Hope this helps and hope i explained it well enough.
Consider downsizing the pond to more accomodate the watershed. A smaller pond has a better chance of being build well sealed that results in less water seepage or loss and requires less supplimental water to keep it full. Creek water always has potential for contaminating the fishery by contributing unwanted species that often become problematic if one of the goals is to have good control of the fish species present. always having to fill from a creek also can post other problems such as excessive nutrients and turbidity during rain events.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 12/12/1110:22 AM.
aka Pond Doctor & Dr. Perca Read Pond Boss Magazine - America's Journal of Pond Management
Thanks ya'll. Sounds good, I will see if I can make the pond smaller, and I have the NRSC calculating a more accurate watershed for me. I didn't even think about turbidity problems and contamination. Thanks for the build idea Jason, if I cant squeeze enough water out of the land then I'll give the floating pump a whirl.
