I used to think that my fish wouldn't swim through the 4" pvc pipe that is used for the low drain on the pond I raise HBG in. I made a fancy expanded metal screen for the main, 12" vertical spillpipe just to prevent their escape. Didn't give a thought to the puny 4" horizontal pipe. The water level was below it anyway when I stocked the 3-4" fish. March, 2009.
Then, two weeks after stocking, we had a big rain which brought the water level up.
A week later, we were fishing in the pond below the HBG pond, which receives it's overflow, and low and behold, my son catches a HBG. They were never stocked in my other ponds, and no GSF are present.
That was a couple years ago. This spring, I noticed a large HBG sitting on a nest in the lower pond. How many escaped? who knows.
I USED to think they wouldn't get near the pipe. Now I know better.
I don't know what kinds of fish Titan50 wants for his pond, but I would hate for a non, or limited reproducing species, (trout, HSB) to get flushed away because there were no provisions to keep them from entering the spillpipe. If it's the usual LMB, BG pond then I would say the effects would be minimal.
Last edited by sprkplug; 08/01/11 08:59 PM.
