Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Soil questions Bentonite!!

What is Bentonite? Where do I get the stuff? How much is it? I am hereing alot of people talk about this matrial and it sound like I need to get a hold of some.....

Koi clay is something of an amusement for me to follow on 'aquatic' message boards, I marvel at all the comments and speculation made of the stuff... 'koi clay' is basically any smectite type clay which is quite common over many parts of America, while manufacturers might claim only their 'koi clay' is the real thing because they have 'refined it' any type of processing is losing quite a lot of the clays trace minerals... If you can locate either kitty litter (without additives) or clay processed for the oil industry, or find beds of it to dig yourself, you can tinker with it on a grand scale if you want to.

The industrial minerals association has defined 'bentonite' aka smectite aka koi clay quite well at this url:

http://www.ima-na.org/about_industrial_minerals/bentonite.asp

Most of the ponds here are dug directly into the stuff, lol, so far the only obvious merits of the clay is it makes life difficult for free floating algaes to establish and some quite fickle varieties of water lilies seem to like the range of minerals in it, thats about it, otherwise its fairly good at holding water as far as I can see... yup, something in clays (smectite clays aka kitty litter aka bentonite aka fullers earth aka koi clay etc) has noticeable benefits from the trace minerals, I've found rose arey hardy water lilies grow well if it is present whereas it will struggle in plainer soils, what is amusing about the stuff is how retailers seem to impress that only they have the 'right' stuff, when bentonite clay is commonly available from many other sources, even trying to sell it to folk who quite possibly live directly on top of it.

Water gardeners have reported that their bio filters function faster, within days rather than weeks when the microbes have the wide mineral range start that koi clay provides. One of the 'big things' for water gardeners is that many are ponding in a closed environment with liners, and koi clay can provide many of the trace minerals in the water that a fertile pond naturally has...

If you check out us geologic survey information you will find there are extensive cretaceous deposits scattered along the east, some a few feet, others 300ft. While they may not be commercially used, 'smectite' type clays are extensive over many parts of America

quote: 'Smectite is locally abundant in discontinuous sedimentary geologic units of Tertiary age and younger along the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the Gulf Coastal Plain of Florida (Witczak, 1972; Tourtelot, 1974). These sedimentary units consist of sand, clay, and soft, porous limestone. The following Tertiary units containing swelling clay are extensive in the coastal plains of the southeastern United States':

http://www.surevoid.com/surevoid_web/soil_maps/reg_ea_cons.html

The brand 'koi clay' is not entirely owned by folk in the retail business and you may not want to believe everything you read that 'only' certain suppliers can get the 'real thing', lol. A decent grade of bentonite clay could be ordered more cost effectively from folk who supply the oil industry, rather than folk who 'promote' koi clay methinks

Regards, andy

big pond - Betonite that I've used is a very very fine white dust refined from clay. It can swell up to ten times its size when wet. There are two main types of bentonite but one of type is used primarily for sealing ponds and making soil more impervious to water passage through the pores. Betonite is also availabe in sheets abt 4'x8'. Most well drillers know where to get betonite since they frequently use it. Other speciality contractors use it. Look in the yellow pages under bentonite you may get lucky.
I cannot tell you where to look in your area because you did not include where you live in your PROFILE.

Bill,

I got 50 pound bags at a farm supply near me for $5.00 a bag.I think it was called sodium bentonite and is used to mix in with feed to bulk it up or something. I purchased 10 bags and that was enough to seal my small holding pond that is 25 by 30 feet. It was granular and sank immediately.

Where did you get it for 5 dollars a bag? Where can I get some in Atlana GA.

I got it at a local farm supply. They had to special order but it came in quickly.

Big Pond, I need to go to the Feed and Seed store in Putnam county tomorrow. It is in the middle of cattle country. Want me to see if they carry it and the cost?

Just remember. No Bentonite dealer will guarantee the stuff. It worked for Cecil. It didn't for me and I have tried it twice. If you don't get 110% coverage, you are in trouble. I'm sure there must be some more success stories or they couldn't sell the stuff. Has anybody else gotten positive results?

If there is any oil well drilling around your area, there will be Bentonite for sale. Look for oil field drilling suppliers. I think I paid seven bucks plus change for 100 pound bags.

But Dave when I drained the pond I must have broken the seal as it started seeping again but not as fast as before I applied the bentonite. I have high clay content soil but the contractor was too lazy to remove the sod before building the dike. The high clay content soil my be why it worked for me.

Yeah Bill see what they have!!

We used bentonite last year during the drought many ponds dried up due to leakage around rock formations,spill pipes, inward springs that back drained. Most applicatios worked out very well but on others it was not the magic cure. We used 30 mesh and mixed it with sand wash from the local quarry we sealed a hole in the bottom of a 2 acre pond approx. 100 foot area that was lacking fine clay particles.
A base of 12" of sand wash was put down then Knitted into existing pond bed then bentonite approx.5 pounds per square foot was mixed and knitted in then compacted. Pond was filled slowly and is still holding after one year. our sucess is always mix with sand .

Hope this helps Scott Trava

Scattering bentonite over a leak is the same as putting a piece of plastic wrap over it. Mixing it with sand and knitting the materials you make a thick sponge affect that becomes a greater mass and thicker seal.