I live in PA, but my son lives near Monticello, NY on Gregory Rd in Swinging Bridge. He has a pond, but not a good one. He wants to make the pond deeper and bigger. How deep does a pond have to be to stock fish in all winter? Anyone know who does this type of work. Thanks, Tom

After looking at the map, it seems like he does not usually get lots of extended snowfall in his area. To be on the safe side I would have the pond dug so it would hold 14' to 17' of water. This should allow it to maintain adequate oxygen levels all winter for many years. If the new pond will be over an acre then the entire bottom will not have to be the maximum depth. Large ponds with expansive flat bottoms in your area would only have to be 11' to 12' deep over most of the bottom with one area 20%-25% deeper. However if the pond will receive lots of leaves each fall, I would build the pond on the deeper end of the range maybe even 18 to 19 ft deep in some area.

Bottom aeration and addition of microbes or bacteria products will be important to help "process" any heavy leaf inputs.

As for pond builders he should contact the local Soil and Water Conservation District office for a list of pond builders in his area. Ask them for "off the record" of which builders are most reputable and successful. Cheaper is not usually better when it comes to building ponds. Seek references.

Give Catskill Pond a call. 845-888-0084. They did a great job on my pond this year. I'm very close to Monticello.

Swingin Bridge Pond Lot of Rock.

We usally get 4' total snow fall,a min. 2ft. Ice lock last year 3ft. of ice was common till late april.

I didn't realize those areas so close to NYC got that much snow each winter. Heavy snow cover for extended periods requires deeper ponds to provide dissolved oxygen all winter. Go deeper for maximum depth if possible; 18 to 20 is good, 22 to 25 ft is better in areas with heavy snow.

Bill
In this neck of the woods we have heavy ground cover there are a couple of problems when going for depth rock,sand and gravel after the hard pan. Also a place to put all the dirt without cutting down trees. Most of our customers are in heavily wooded areas. Most of the ponds we dig usally end up from 12 to 18 feet in depth. These have no problem holding fish over the winter months. The bare minimum depth is 10

feet. The other problem getting depth is my darn dozer operator usally calls me every name in the book when I tell him keep going. I have found that if I call him lollipop from a distance he
will go a few feet deeper after some choice words.

Scott


will go a few feet deeper after some choice words