Hi all, and thanks for all the comments and suggestions in another of my threads "Clay or Pond Liner." There I describe the trouble I've had with a nice pond that continues to seek down about 6-8 feet every year.
I've done, and contiunue to, research bentonite clay and pond seal, which is a form of it. I've gotten a lot of info and now have an idea what works in certain situations.
The next thing I'm interested to learn about is a secondary core ditch. I thought about getting a track hoe on top of the dam and digging down to the elevation where the lake seeps down to each year, and then going a little deeper. I thought it might solve at lesat one thing, and that is to see if and where the sand pocket is. If we find one we can dig all of it our and pack it with good clay dirt. If nothing else we can back fill it a couple of feet wide with good clay dirt. The sheer volume of dirt required would probably make bentonite cost prohibitive. The area would be at least 200 feet long, 10 feet deep, and about 2 feet wide. That would be a lot of bentonite. Bentonite and pond seal would be fine for a shorted length.
I also thought about getting the track hoe to start on the water side of the levee at the peak water line and dig the core ditch from there. Packing it with clay dirt might seal it off before the water got to penetrating too much into the levee and finding more ways to seep out. I would also require less digging and less fill dirt.
In essence, this would not disturb the original core ditch, nor be right on top of it. It would be a secondary core ditch a few feet closer to the lake when it's full. I suppose a pond liner could be put in the ditch also if that might help more.
Any comments, suggestions and/or ideas will be appreciated.
Pictures of the levee and lake are in the other thread abuot hte pond liner. I'll see if I can link something here also.
