Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Soil questions soil type on property deed

Hi,
I'd like a house on water, but sometimes it's just not available or is too expensive. So, I wondered if I can build my own lake. I guess that's the most common question and I know that the answer is generally yes. But, I wondered if the soil type indicated on the property deed can be a sure or at least probable indicator that the chosen site is going to work for a new lake.
One property I'm looking at in southern, middle Georgia is listed as A4 agricultural. One site shows soil productivity rating at 3 while another shows 8. The soil itself appears to be rather sandy. With my limited knowledge of the subject, it seems sand is not a good thing for lake building. Suggestions?

Thanks.

Welcome to the forum!

NRCS has an office in every county in every state. Go to them with the property address and ask them if putting in a body of water the size that you want is feasible. Not only is it the soil type, but if it's of any size, it will need rain run-off. They can tell you if the watershed in the area that you want your lake will be enough to keep it full.

http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/site/national/home/

How big did you want it to be?

Thanks; that's great info.
Are there regulations as to the maximum size based on the area
or the watershed?
Editing this note since I missed your question about how big.
We have not purchased the property yet. If I can find one in our price range that already has one, then that would be best. But, I suspect we might have to do our own thing. The size will very likely depend on how much it costs to dig it and also any restrictions that might occur.
Ideally I'd like it to be about 10 to 12 acres but I suspect that will be too expensive.

Every state has it's own rules and regulations. It might also vary county by county. The NRCS office should be able to tell you that info. too.

You're smart for doing your homework first. I'd bet over 90% of the people here first came here because of problems with their pond, and quite a few have said that if they'd found this place first, it would have saved them lots of $$ and many headaches.

Don't go away because you don't have a pond yet. Stick around and pick our brains. There's LOTS to think about before you even turn over one shovelful of soil.

I surely will stick around as I do want to pick your brains some more.
For instance, has anyone worked out a reasonable gross average of cost per acre to create a pond or lake?
I realize it will depend on the depth, but I imagine just getting the equipment to the site is a good deal of the cost.
Let's say 8 feet deep if you need a figure. I guess another issues is whether the dirt gets hauled away or just piled up into
a hill on the property.

Thanks again and I've sent an email to the county agency that you posted. Hopefully I'll hear back in a few days.

Jeff, welcome to Pond Boss. Getting the equipment to the job site isn't expensive. Using it is. I'm not sure anybody has worked out the cost per acre to dig a water hole. There are too many variables. And you're right about sand. It doesn't work for a pond.

The best short cut on getting an education is in the book "Perfect Pond, Want One?" by Lusk and Otto. You can order it here. It will answer critical questions that you can't imagine having to ask.

One thing to keep in mind is that a lot of people know how to use a dozer but not a lot of them know how to build a home for fish.

The subject of cost comes up a lot, and the answer is typically "It depends".

Per acre mine was expensive since I wasn't simply damming a basin, I had to get a large bomb crater dug on the side of a hill. Others here have been blessed with a much lower cost scenario of building a dam across a creek bed. Others have started off cheap and ran into soil type, dam building, and rock problems which drove costs quite high.

Mostly AFAIK if things go well it is the cost per hour of moving the required soil to make your pond. Figure about $90-$120 an hour for a competent operator on a decent machine with a reputation for building ponds that hold water. When you settle on a location of choice, get a couple estimates for your site to get a rough idea of what it will cost.

There is a lot of great literature available through this site that you may wish to dig into, such as "Perfect Pond, Want One?" That will give you a great head start in how to pull together your dream.