Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Renovating a Pond or Lake? Leaking overflow pipe

I am new to the forum and need some advice on how to resolve an issue with a leaking overflow pipe.
Background: (see attached photos)
~ 2 acre pond (before it drained).
- Summer of 2011, the 6 inch steel vertical overflow pipe broke off about 4inches above the elbow.
- I repaired by inserting a 4 inch PVC pipe inside the 6inch steel pipe/elbow and sealed with a rubber reducer and clamps. Then encased the joint with cement.
- However over the next 15 months the pond only rose a couple of feet and now has drained completely dry. I went back and dug around the horizontal pipe going under the dam and I found a serious looking crack. I suspect this is the reason the pond drained.

I'd like to know some options:
1) plug the existing and old steel pipe under the dam...and go with a siphon system? If so, what is best way to plug the pipe?
2) encase the cracked pipe in concrete?
3) Other?

Once the rust has gotten to that stage, and the pond is dry, I believe I would dig it out. Repack everything well and go with a siphon system.

I would tend to agree with Dave.

Welcome to the forum...sorry for the troubles.

But heres a crazy idea and I have no idea whether it would work. If you would put concrete around it, trying to seal it, I would think that the water would find its way along the pipe to the outside of the concrete. So I think that by itself wouldn't work. However, what about the possibilty of putting an antiseep collar on each side of the crack and then pour concrete completely enclosing all that? It may not be worth all the work, with the metal pipe being so old.

Thanks for your replies. I have an update.
I went out late this afternoon to examine the crack in the pipe
and took a hacksaw to test to see how solid the pipe was. The pipe had no integrity at the crack and I was able to saw thru the pipe in less than a minute :-(

It appears the pipe was welded together at the crack.

I have a question regarding the suggestion of "dig it out"...you mean
get someone with a backhoe and dig the dam down to the pipe and re-pack the dirt?

Yes unless you can pull it out and put in a replacement pipe with a water tight seal.

My thought is that the integrity of the entire pipe, and thus the dam, could be compromised. You really can't know whether there is another bad spot. I believe that the simplest and probably cheapest fix would be to dig it up and remove it.