I'm digging a pond this winter that'll be approximately one surface acre with an average depth of 8 feet. Will I need to aerate this? What other questions should I be answering to determine if this is necessary or not?

What are your intended uses and goals for the pond?
What species of fish are you thinking of stocking?
Do you plan on feeding the fish?
What are the watershed and surrounding vegetation like, wrt the amount of organic material that can be expected to wash or blow into the pond each year (I realize in Newbraska, you are unlikely to be located in the middle of a National Forest)?
Would you be able to physically remove part of the snow cover from ice on the pond in the Winter, if needed to help prevent a Winterkill?

Mainly for fishing, but a very small swimming area is in the plans as well.



Bluegill, largemouth bass, and channel cats.



No. I plan on stocking 400-500 bluegill and 50 channel cats. Once the bluegill spawn, stocking 100 or so LMB.



The pond will basically be a triangle. One side there is a creek with very tall banks (pond will be much higher elev. than creek) and the other 2 sides it's crop fields.







Yes, I could do that. I own a skidloader so that shouldn't be a problem though I'd be a little frightened the first couple times getting that out on the ice.

I'd be VERY skiddish about taking a skidloader out on the ice. Of course, that depends on the thickness.

Aeration is kind of insurance against fishkills, both Winter and Summer (along with it's other positive aspects). The more biomass one crams in to a pond, the more likely a problem becomes. Not feeding lowers the total biomass; less insurance is needed.

Perhaps our Nebraska contingent would have the best ideas on how successful an unaerated cornhusker pond would be escaping fishkill problems.

To take a slightly different tack, what are your reasons for wanting to do without aeration?

Yeah, I wasn't too thrilled about that idea. I'll probably just go with a snowblower or get a bunch of kids together to brush it off.



Cost mainly, though I admittedly have not found a lot of information about the cost of aeration.

Omaha, I sent you a PM, Theo ring the bell again for Bruce !!

He may be busy.

BRUCE?

Hello?,,.,,,Hello???

I'm on a five minute per day allowance on my wife's computer.

Hence the virtual absence of late.

There's a brown box on the front step right now. Maybe the new computer???????

If it's on fire, don't step on it to try and put it out.

Omaha - Not all snow needs to be removed. If your winters are snowy where snow 6"-12" deep or more lays on the pond for longer than 4-5 weeks then the need for snow removal becomes much more important to minimize chances of winterkill. Also I notice your pond will be in a wooded area. The more leaves that enter a pond in fall the more likely a winterkill will occur due to lots of leaves trying to decay absorbing dissolved oxygen under the ice while snow cover eliminates light penetration through ice. Sunlight under the ice results in phytoplankton producing lots and lots of dissolved oxygen for all the varied life processes during winter. Removing 15% to 30% or the snow cover within 7-10 days after a snowfall should be adequate in your case (in alernating strips or one main area in center). Sometimes wind exposed ponds get most snow blown off the ice thus no need for snow removal.

As an alternative if you make a protion (25-40%) of the main basin of the pond deeper close to 16-18 feet deep this will also help prevent winterkill by allowing more water volume present that contains dissolved oxygen (larger bank account of oxygen available that lasts longer during total darkness).

edit! edit!.......Same visionary of what you deleted of mine about the cub scouts.

Yo Omaha - I'm in Lincoln and have been working pretty steadily with Bruce on my own ponds for the last year - I'm not even within shouting distance of the level of knowledge the moderators and other vets can provide, but can add my humble Nebraska two bits...

While I can't relate a ton on the scientific side, it boiled down to a pretty simple decision for me. My pond projects were something that I dreamt a lifetime to realize. It has become a part of my family - and something I have been known to occasionally obsess over. With that in mind, the risk of losing my fish to O2 depletion was something I couldn't even consider.

I am installing Vertex aeration systems to my four ponds this Spring which will not only help to insure the health of my fish, but will also allow me to aggressively feed and improve the growth rate of the fish.

Again, many can provide much more detailed information than my experience yields, but I would consider strongly investing in an aeration system. If you're lucky enough to have access to electricity - that's great - yet Pondboss has many great suppliers of windmill aeration systems also - from what I've read.

That's my NE take. Good luck.

That sounds doable Bill, thanks.



This is why I proposed that I make a small portion of my pond deeper actually in my pond thread (http://www.pondboss.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1408780, though I was only thinking about 12 feet or so.

Yep, that sounds very familiar.



I wouldn't be able to get electricity to the pond so I'd be very interested in a windmill aeration system if it's necessary.

Omaha:

With a brand new pond, it takes a couple of years for the fish you stock and their initial offspring to max out the biomass in the pond. Also, during this early period, aquatic plant growth has usually not reached climax levels yet, and there has not been time for a lot (compared to what will be in the pond when it is older) of organic sediments to blow or wash into the pond yet. Thus during the early years, three of the major demands on oxygen in a pond (fish using O2 all the time, aquatic plants using O2 at night or under snow-covered ice, and the decay of organic sediments) are relatively low.

This all boils down to the fact that if you will eventually "need" aeration, there is a grace period early in the ponds life when the need is likely not critical. You can use this period to think over your management goals and methods (mine changed a lot after I actually had my first pond), look at different aeration methods & systems, and (if needed) garner resources to obtain & install an aeration system if you decide you will want one.

Also, compared to some things like bottom dirt sculpting, aeration is a piece of cake to add after a pond fills.

Very good stuff, thank you. I will keep the aeration idea on the backburner then.

Omaha

Are you a subscriber to Pondboss mag? I would recommend. Also, I am really interested in learning more about windmill aeration myself [even after I spent $12k running juice back to my parcel]. I think from what little I've learned a windmill may be able to do the trick for a pond with your dimensions.

Question for you - looked at your photos - is that a LIVE creek running through the property? If it is, will it be used to fill your ponds? If so, bear in mind the risk of infiltration of bullheads, carp, gar or [gasp] the dreaded white perch. Something to keep in mind.

I'm just down the road from you - PM me sometime if you so choose. Looks like a great project you're about to begin - and I know a great engineer and dirt guy that services Omaha and LNK....

TJ

Yeah, I'll be subscribing soon for sure. I think I'll ask for it for Christmas.



It is a live creek and that's why I'm going to use it as little as possible. If I'm able to use it to simply fill the pond, I will have to make sure the inlet pipe has a filter or screen of some sort to insure those types of fish don't get in. 8-10 pounds cats have been caught in this creek, I'm guessing flatheads. And there are a number of very small fish throughout the creek so Lord knows what those are.



Awesome. It's actually my dad's farmland, he's just given me permission to put in the pond. When I get to going at it with the skidloader I may want some advice at that time and see what you might suggest, if you want to come check it out sometime this winter. I have a contact in the DNR and a Forestry major for a cousin so I like the resources I possibly have at my disposal to ensure this pond's survival and health.


Another question that I have is in regards to something I read a while back and have yet to see anything else on. Something like a silt catch or trap. Basically, a couple feet down the bank, under the waterline, a little ledge to catch silt from entering the bulk of the pond. Has anyone heard this or suggest it? As I said, after that initial reading, I have yet to see anyone suggest it or even mention it. Something like this:

Otown -

Would be fun to walk the parcel - exciting stuff for sure. Silt trap I bet many guys here will provide a lot of practical advice. You have found the honey hole of info for pondmeisters and every guy here is vastly more learned than I and much brighter.

Keep in touch, and watch those flatheads - they have a voracious appetite!

TJ

if the creek was feeding pond directly the need for a silt trap would be much greater. if yer pond is isolated from the creeks, and unless yer surface runoff is unusally violent, i wouldnt think you need that feature.

my pond is fed directly by a creek. i installed a fairly large silt basin and dam feature on the upstream side of pond, which has worked very well.

Those are great pics DIED - I was traveling most of the time my guys were engineering and building...missed a lot of great opportunities to record the process. Very cool.

thanks T57....that was one project i was intimately involved with from design, to renovate, to fill.....i made the mistake of complaining about my old leaking shallow puddle of a pond to a buddy of mine who, shall we say, is a git er done kind of guy. he instigated, i followed, and together we did the whole thing ourselves. i took 3 weeks off of work and look back at it as one of the best and most productive times of my life.

before:




after:

Very cool Dave. I had never seen (saw, sawed, seeified, whatever) the before pictures before. Jeez I can't talk today.

DIED, haven't I enjoyed some pics of the flora around your pond too....? I thought you posted some wildflower pics once???

May I ask what species you have swimming in that little slice of heaven?

T57 - check out the hydroseed thread i did a while back under habitat,

http://www.pondboss.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=132801&fpart=1

sorry for the hijack omaha, i'm pretty good at it but dont really mean to be.

Hey, that's a beautiful piece of water there, nothing wrong with that.

cool, thanks omaha, some folks (me not included) get really irritated at thier threads getting jacked.

T57- to answer yer other question, i have BG, RES, and most importantly, GSF.... also gams and one very happy LMB.

omaha, one of the reasons i started looking at this thread is i have a ~1 acre pond (when full) and i aerate. it has made a world of difference.

Those are the ones DIED - pretty breathtaking photography - nice work. I am going to sow some more fescue, brome but include a wildflower mix in the spring. I take it those are reseeding themselves year after year?

I'm sorry too, Omaha - for hijacking the thread - but it seemed to be petering out - promise this is my last comment.

TJ

Man, I just cant believe that beautiful water is being wasted on those, those, green things. Now to put on my stealth tinfoil full body armor. (undetectable by the deathstar raygun.)

For future reference, because of the large numbers of people donning tinfoil protective coverings we are currently developing a Plasma Cannon. This device will fire a burst of charged particles that will be attracted to metal. We are just waiting for TomG to complete our portable fusion reactor. Once this device is on line you may want to remove or relocate your tinfoil jock strap (or not it's your call).

oh my, what a waste......

oh my, what a waste......

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Died, I knew I could chide you into posting that pic again. Now little green things of that size are just not normal. But would be welcome. I dont see how you do it. Now, do you feed with auto feeder? What forage do you have again? Can you feed year around?
I believe you lose much water in summer, they have a field day with the forage?

amazing how i can take an aeration thread and turn it to the majestic GSF..... hope you like GSF omaha,

ok burger, i fell for it hook line and sinker....am i that predictable?

hand feeding (about 100 pounds a season), no supplemental feed december thru february, massive water loss in summer, aeration, GSF on top of food chain......the first year class of fish from the ones pictured above are over 8-inches now and showing no signs of stopping growth.

aeration and seasonal water loss in the one acre pond has been key.