Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Why so deep?

I am located in southwest georgia where our winters are mild and our summers are hot(we are always humid). I have noticed that many of the ponds/lakes mentioned on this site are 20 to 30 foot deep. I know that a deep pond can be easier to aerate, especially if the deep part is close to the middle. What are the other reasons/advantages? Is it due to cold weather? We are swampy and flat. This means to have a pond 20 foot deep we have to do a lot of digging.

One reason in texas is that when a drought comes along the pond doesnt go dry.

I thought that might be one reason for Texas. We have a lot higher annual rainfall here. Also, I know some areas are not as flat as we are and might locate a pond between ridges or in valleys. I was curious if there were particular advantages that would or would'nt be advantageous to our area.

swampstalker,
The only advantage to having deep water in your area that I can think of is to deter submerged weed growth. I'm sure some of the experts will respond after they get through with Christmas.
Merry Christmas!

In the SE, like to see very little 3.5 feet or shallower water to deter weed growth. Other than that I see no advantage to having lots of deep water. I think the pond is easier to fish if lots of 4-8 feet of water, and very little 10 feet or deeper water.

ALso, in marginal threadfin shad water depth can be an advantage.

In addition to drought, you have to be aware of silting. Most pond soil is a sandy loam. When new, rains wash the sand out of the soil and down into the new pond. You can lose several feet of depth over time. Actually some siltation will usually take place over the life of the water hole.

Here's a few more facts for this mix.
Your pond needs to be deep enough for water storage.
It needs to be deep enough to accomplish your mission. For fish, 8-10 feet is deep enough, as fish inhabit down to about 6 feet most of the year.
If you want to irrigate or otherwise use water to be removed, make it deeper.
It can be deeper than 10 feet, if you need the depth to gain the soil for your dam.
It needs to be deep enough to manage water during excessive rains. That means the "freeboard" from water level to top of dam should be considered, based on average annual rainfall.
The bigger your watershed, the deeper the lake.
The less dirt disturbed peripherally, the better your lake bottom will be.
So, don't dig deep, unless you need the dirt elsewhere, or your watershed is big, or you want to irrigate.

Water depth on my ponds, especially near the dam, is deep because of the excavation necessary
to build the dam. The elevation differential
from the dam site to common water line elevation
points may only be 10 or 12 feet, but excavation
for the embankment can drop it another 12 to 15
feet.

You are confusing the efficiency of aeration with need to have depth in a pond. Aerating from the bottom up is more efficient with depth but you don't build a pond 20-30 feet deep to aerate, you aerate because the 20-30 foot depth has a problem holding oxygen. You want to have reasonable depth to have volume to create stability in a pond and also prevent aquatic weed invasions, but you also want the depth to be optimal for a healthy pond. In the SE you don't need to go any deeper than 10-12 feet and you can get by with as little as 7-8 depending on the size. Anything greater than 15 feet is not necessary in any size pond. It would help to know what size area you are talking about.