Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Selecting a site New pond

This is what we have a pond sight that is river rock and gravel when we tested the water table we dug done 11 feet hit water. Would like to fill this pond up to around 1-2 feet from ground level but I believe the water would leak back to the water table. Water isn't a problem but when we dig this pond its going to fill with water so can it be sealed with water in it?

Arnold,

I bestow upon you the king lurker award. 98th registered forum member and this is your first post.

You must have clay. If when you dug your test hole, you did not hit clay, I'm afraid the your pond will not hold water.

Maybe you could provide a little more information for the forum. Will this pond be completely excavated or are you backing up water with a dam. Tell us more about the material in your test dig. How large is the watershed and what is soil composition.

I agree with Gumboot. Water tables can vary. They are essentially an aquifer that can give but most often takes.

I would fill the gravel area with several feet of good clay and hope it works.

We will be digging done about 10 feet and building up about 8 feet. We hit no clay but have access to alot of it. Water isn't a problem, we have a well that produces 100 gpm and have tested it for 30 days running none stop with no change in flow. We are with in a 100 feet of a river. I have thought about digging it a than lining it with a foot or 2 of clay but, with the water table how can I keep the water out too dump and packwith clay. Thanks alot for the info.

And the soil is gravel, sand, small and large river rock.

Arnold,

How fast did the test hole fill? If the recharge rate isn't too high, could you dig a sump pit to collect the water and then pump this back to the river while you attempt to lay down the clay liner?

Second thought: You initially stated you dug down 11 feet and hit water. Your next post mentioned that you were going to dig down 10' and raise the banks 8'. Do you still hit the water at 10'? If you have the option, would it not be easier to construct your pond by building up the banks to the desired pond depth as opposed to taking the risk of dealing with a water table?

The test hole was done at a location with higher elevation. I guess i didn't tell you the pond is goin in a sunking area and we will be digging it down another 10 feet with deepest spot being about 15 feet without the dam height. The water filled the test hole to a depth of a foot in 5 minutes. I am thinking that we can dig a trench away from the work area and do just that pump the water out than line with clay.