Pond Boss
Posted By: Keaton72 New pond construction journey - 10/20/18 09:35 AM
Hi all. Thought I would start a photo diary thread on my potential pond construction to maybe help anybody else out on the road to having a pond. I will try to avoid asking direct questions in this thread, but if any of the pros see something that is out of place or want to give advice I am all for it. I will also try to update as quickly as possible.

So a little background first. I live outside of a small farming community in NW Ohio. We bought the house almost 2 years ago and love having the 2.5 acres to play with. However, our side yard is pretty large and we really don;t do much with it so I thought a pond would be great. We are thinking 1/4 to 1/2 acres depending on price and what not.

So far all I have is a soil sample I took a few days ago from only about 1 foot down. I do have my pond builder coming out next week to dig true test holes but I have attached the picture of my mason jar test. I will keep everyone updated on the construction the best I can. We are aiming for early March to break soil.



Attached picture IMG_1019.PNG
Posted By: Bill D. Re: New pond construction diary - 10/20/18 12:05 PM
Hi Keaton,

I look forward to following along on your pond journey! I do have one question. What are you going to do with all that extra dirt once you dig it from the pond site?
Posted By: Keaton72 Re: New pond construction diary - 10/20/18 12:34 PM
Originally Posted By: Bill D.
Hi Keaton,

I look forward to following along on your pond journey! I do have one question. What are you going to do with all that extra dirt once you dig it from the pond site?


I was wanting to make a small hill on the north side if the pond as a kind of natural privacy fence. This is my first pond so I’m still researching quite a bit.
Posted By: Keaton72 Re: New pond construction diary - 10/22/18 08:33 AM
No real updates as of yet but here are some pictures of the proposed site. The aerial image is of a 1/4 acre pond.

Attached picture pond site.PNG
Attached picture pond site 2.PNG
Posted By: Keaton72 Re: New pond construction diary - 11/05/18 10:21 AM
Well just giving an update or lack there of. Couldn't have my test holes dug on the count of torrential downpours here in central Ohio. Looks like there is more on the way so unsure of when this might happen.
Posted By: snrub Re: New pond construction diary - 11/05/18 04:04 PM
Seasonal weather can be a real challenge building a pond. In our area starting a pond in the fall I would want a good weather forecast long enough for completion. For us early summer starting into the dry summer season is the best time to get good weather for pond building.

Good luck on your "hurry up and wait"!

Here is one of my threads on my pond building efforts to whet your apetite while waiting. grin

my RES/SMB pond build
Posted By: Keaton72 Re: New pond construction diary - 11/06/18 06:02 AM
Originally Posted By: snrub
Seasonal weather can be a real challenge building a pond. In our area starting a pond in the fall I would want a good weather forecast long enough for completion. For us early summer starting into the dry summer season is the best time to get good weather for pond building.

Good luck on your "hurry up and wait"!

Here is one of my threads on my pond building efforts to whet your apetite while waiting. grin

my RES/SMB pond build


My plan is to get the test holes dug soon just to confirm the soil is even good for a pond build. I believe it is based on web soil survey and some top soil samples I took but of course the true test hole will be the deciding factor.

As for the actual pond construction, I'm wanting to try for late winter or really early spring before it really starts to rain so possibly early to mid March??

Again, this is my first pond so I will likely be going with the guidance of my pond builder and any info I obtain from these forums. It would be nice to have the pond completed and hopefully close to full pool by the end of summer 2019.

Thinking of stocking RES and possibly some SMB thanks to your thread snrub. That seems to be a decent combo in a small pond.
Posted By: Keaton72 Re: New pond construction diary - 11/08/18 12:35 AM
Got the test hole dug today and everything looks pretty good. The soil being former farmland, it had a thick very dark layer of top soil so grass seed should take well. Did hit a small sand vein about 3 foot down but at 5 feet down almost entirely clay with lots of blue clay. Pond builder recommended a 1/3 acre pond at about a 12 -15 foot max depth.

I’m pretty excited to get this started come February March time frame.


Description: Finally verifying the soil!
Attached picture IMG_1030.JPG

Description: Hit solid clay about 5 feet down
Attached picture IMG_1032.JPG

Description: Hit a nice blue clay mix about 7-8 feet down
Attached picture IMG_1031.JPG
Posted By: Meeksman Re: New pond construction diary - 12/04/18 06:09 PM
I want to build a 5 acre lake, What is the going rate around east,Tx canton area per cubic yard? Approx 25000cy to be moved, and build a dam. If some pro could give helpful advice it would be much appreciated. If there is anyone around east Tx that could give me a quote it would be much appreciated. I have 63 acres nothing needs to be hauled away. Tia.
Posted By: Keaton72 Re: New pond construction diary - 02/11/19 04:20 AM
No real updates really. The weather here in West central Ohio has really slowed things down for my builder so really just waiting on a date from him to get everything started. I'm hoping for the last week of February but we will see. Getting pretty antsy about it all though. Warm weather is on the way and I am really hoping this pond can be filled close to full pool by around June pr July hopefully sooner.
Posted By: Keaton72 Re: New pond construction diary - 04/01/19 08:50 AM
I apologize for not keeping up with this thread. My pond is finished and I will get pictures up as soon as I can of the whole process.It all went quite well for the most part and the pond ended up being closer to 1/2 acre than 1/3 which is fine with me. I has a max depth of 12 feet. My pond will not have much water shed so I am using a 3 inch trash pump to fill it up from a creek about 250 feet away. Just about 3/4 of the way full now. Plan to stock RES, SMB, and possibly some grass carp.
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