Hey guys, Me and the wife just bought a place in northern Beauregard parish that has a small much neglected pond approx 1/2 acre in size. Once I told one of my co-workers about it, he told me about this site, and I love it. I will be retiring in Dec and the pond will be one of my projects. We haven't even moved into the house yet. Still trying to sell our other one. Right now I'm just reading a lot trying to educate my self and determine the best route to proceed. Will be back with some questions later own. I see there are some pond owners on this site not far from us. Keep up the good work, Tim

Tim, welcome to PB. What do you mean by neglected?

Welcome to PB Forum.

If you get a chance tell us what your expectations, goals are for the pond. Having a vision of how you want the pond to turn out helps every one else on the forum help you towards YOUR goals rather than how they would envision the pond being if it were theirs.

Lots of good information and good people here. Then there are the well meaning members like myself!

Welcome from deep east Texas!!

Congrats on the pond and retirement. Welcome to the club!

Thanks for the welcome guys. Dave, The house and property has not had anyone in it for quite a few years. Lots of brush has grown up around the pond w/ lots of limbs and leaves and such in the pond. Pretty much completely shaded out. we haven't even taken possession of the place yet, but will in a couple of weeks. The realtor says that we shouldn't go to the property w/o her with us, something legal. once I can go there and spend some time I can give more details. I'm not going to do anything w/ the pond until I get some ideas from you guys. I would think that it may need draining or pumped out and then cleaned. Not even sure how ell it holds water, may need sealing. Also, after a pond sits unattended for so long does the fish population get out of whack or something. May need to set a trap and see what's in there. Another thing is that when we actually get the place the pond is not high on the priority list at first. The house needs some work so that will be the focus. If a person was to see the house I live in now and see this house we are buying, they would say I've lost my mind. But we need another project and it's way out in the country close to a lot of fishing hunting and trapping. And I'm fixing to have a lot of time on my hands. Thanks again guys and I will let yall know something as we move along. Tim

Best of luck and welcome.

Like John and Dave said, set your goals and work towards them.

snrub, I actually want a few things from the pond. With it's size I'm not sure how much fish production we can get from it. Also I know the wife is going to want to landscape around it. It's just the two of us so we won't eat an extreme amount of fish. A very small dock or pier. Prob some type of aeration out in the center. That prob just about covers it. i hope it's not too much to expect out of a small pond. Will be filled with well water.

Also guys, Prob to begin with I need to go with a mix of fish that is easier for a beginner. I mentioned it would be filled with well water, I meant kept to the correct level. A few weeks ago, our part of the country got an extreme amount of rain, my wife drove up to the property like the day after and said it had overflowed its banks. I wish i could have gone so I could have put some type of gauge to see how fast or slow it loses water. I work in the oilfield, and at present am working straight time(away from the house) and couldn't make it. This schedule won't last much longer and I will be able to spend some time there, once the deal goes thru(no more than a few weeks). Hopes this helps with some ideas. The place is beautiful, 10.7 acres, large live oaks, all forested except for about an acre that the house sits on. Thanks, Tim

Hey Tim,

Welcome to the family!

Exciting time for you! IMO your goals are definitely within reach. My pond is about the same size as yours and we love it. I do suggest you have a pro take a look and advise you on whether the pond needs a clean out, restart, etc. You want to spend your retirement enjoying the pond, not being a slave to it. Sounds like you already know that and want to do it right. Good luck and please keep us in the loop as you move forward.

Bill D.

Thanks Bill, I will check for local help. Maybe the few businesses that sell the fish can suggest someone. My older brother has 3 ponds in North Louisiana, but he ain't no expert. He has had several problems, and still doesn't have them fixed yet. He hasn't completely retired yet, so he just doesn't have the time to devote to it. Maybe when I become an expert I can go help him out. Tim

Tim, when you become an expert, let me know. I've been doing this for about 30 years and am still screwing up and learning every day.

BTW, the brush around the pond can be killed off without much problem. If there are tree on the dam over 4 inches in diameter, it may be safer to leave them. Rotting roots can become a source for a leak.

I was joking with my comment about becoming an expert. About the trees, there are some large trees at the waters edge. Once I get back home and can get some pics from different views I'll try to figure out how to post them, maybe yall will have some ideas. I've only been to the place one time and that was to look at it before we made the sellers an offer. I only got a short glimpse of the pond and did a quick guess at the size. Not even sure where the overflow goes. It was so grown up and I didn't have my boots with me. The piney woods along the Sabine River have some rather large Cotton-toothed rattle mocasins.

I knew you were joking and so was I. The general issue with older ponds is, as you referenced, maybe silted in. Another is water quality. Years of dead leaves, etc can create an unhealthy mess. Pine tree country also can take some periodic doctoring of the water. Retiring, you will have lots of time to ponder it.

How far is the possibly snake infested water hole from the house?

Dave, the pond is prob no more than 200' from the house. I may take a few days off from this working straight time, so I can take a better look at the place. If the Atchafalaya River comes up any more, the work may be over anyway. Suppose to crest a week from tomorrow. Thanks for the responses guys.

Tim, isn't that also gator country?

Yes sir Dave, SW Louisiana is gator country. Not so much where the new place is. Beauregard Parish has two parishes between it and the Gulf Coast. It is due north of Lake Charles. Where I work at the oilfield dock in Morgan City, La is a t the south end of the Atchafalaya Basin, probablly one of the largest swamps in the US. Right now the Atchafalaya River is coming up and the water is over the dock, we just work in hip boots. No lie, the gators swim thru the yard. Just this evening we had one at the foot of the steps to the office. I had to run him off to walk to the living quarters. While I got you here Mr Dave. I wanted to ask which of the forums should I ask about the 1st steps in determining what this small pond needs. I saw where someone else gave alkalinity, hardness and pH. Also about the muck and debris in the bottom. I'm guessing in the Renovating a Pond or Lake. You don't need to answer here if we need to put this somewhere else. Don't want to get in trouble on the Forum right off the bat. I wish I had my camera with me a could get a pic of approx 7 or 8 gators in one pic, by standing on the porch. Those critters are really a nuisance down here. But don't get caught killing one w/o a tag. Also they are great to eat fried, but you got know how to clean em

That is just priceless.

I have got to quit complaining about deere and wild turkeys being a problem.

As far as getting into trouble, stay away from politics and religion and you are pretty safe. Just click on the "Forum List" and choose the best one you can find. I sometimes have trouble deciding on which forum to post a new thread.

If you want to keep track of a discussion, yours or someone else, use the "watch list" feature. You can "watch" a thread by selecting it at the top left of the thread under "topic options". Otherwise when the forum gets really active it becomes almost impossible to find an old thread you were interested in.

Thanks snrub, I'm going to continue reading as many posts related to what I'm trying to start and I can ask some educated questions. I was just in the middle of one. Thanks again guys.

tim, you might try downloading google earth pro. it has a timeline that you can look at different images of your place at different times. the timeline on my place goes back about 12 years with several different images. i can see my pond at full pool and when it was just filling up. you may be able to see yours at different times of the year and know if it is leaking or not.

you can also use the measuring tool to see exactly what size it is. it is very accurate if there is a good image to see.

Thanks Scott, I just saw your post early this morning, I got it downloaded but I need to go in the office, still dark so I to watch for gators, water came up some more last night. When I get chance later on this AM I will fool around with Earth Pro and see what I can figure out. WOW. Technology.

You're right about alkalinity, PH and hardness being the biggest consideration. And, I expect that you're right about needing to drain and start over. That's easier said than done. If you drain it, you will find quite a few ft of pudding like mud. It has to dry before being removed and that takes time and hot, dry weather. Don't get in a hurry. Fix the house first. You might want to spray the trees first and kill them. For that I use Remedy mixed 1:4 with diesel all around the trunk.

It is sometimes easier to just dig another big hole above it. If there's any dirt left over, dump it into the existing one.

How big is the property? If big enough to justify it, get a couple of 4wheelers to get around on. Add a shipping container, with a covered lock, to keep them from being stolen. That way, the Grandkids will visit. Since I'm spending your money, a 30 or 40 horse tractor with a loader and 4wd will be a purchase that you won't regret. A tractor without a loader is only good for farming. And, a loader without 4wd is useless.

Scott, I made it back to my computer and found our place on Google Earth Pro. Today the pond is surrounded by trees and in 1996 it was still covered by trees. The app did reveal some other things about the property though, which may be a big help. I can tell from the old view where the pasture was. I have to open up a spot for one horse(a retired race horse my wife just acquired from her uncle, I could have done w/o this), but yall know how it goes.
Dave, I saw where another guy had posted his sample results, so that's why I asked about maybe needing those results to make a decision. The property is 10.7 acres, mostly all wooded. I have a gallon of Remedy already, so I'll start with that. My tractor is not quite that big. It's 25 HP, 4WD John Deere, with a box blade. I can get a couple more attachments if I need. I lso have a small disc and a dirt bucket that scoops up dirt and dumps it somewhere else, these may come in handy. Can't wait to take some time off and get up to the place and look around a little closer. Thanks again guys. I really enjoy talking with yall, lots of ideas and knowledge.

Tim, I've stayed out of this because you're you're talking to some of the most knowledgeable guys on the forum and Beauregard Parish makes your property more like that of east Texas than south Louisiana. But working in Morgan City makes you a neighbor and I hope that you can find the time to visit me at my place. Ordinarily, I would PM you but my ad blockers seem to interfere with PMs.

Coordinates are 29 41 12N, 91 23 20W. Take a right about 1/2 mile before you get to the Wax Lake Outlet, then left on Ratcliff then right on Hunting Road. At the end of Hunting Road, the gate on the left puts you on the property. If you call my cell 985-312-6831, I'll make sure that the gate is unlocked. You'll learn nothing from me but I'll make you a cup of instant coffee.

Hey guys, I said I would try to get a pic of the gators here at the dock in Morgan City. Not sure if it works or not. These gators were underneath that power pole when the power company came to work on the line. No one was interested. They even called the mayor and he came over and got a kick out of that.

Mr. Landry, I appreciate the invite and I would love to drop by for just a little. Unless we close for the high water I will be working in MCY for a couple of months. I will get back with you to find out when is convenient for you. Do you have a pond on that place? I had to check with a local today to see if the Wax Lake Outlet was the same as what I call the Calumet Cut. They said it was. Man that water is coming thru there right now.

Tim, if coming from Morgan City, you'll have to cross the Calumet Cut since my property is west of the outlet which sometimes looks much like a whitewater river. Look forward to meeting you. Pond is on the property.