Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Building a dam We got a leaker

I noticed my water level lowering more than I would expect. I found what appears to be a leak at the base of the dam in the deepest part of the pond, 15 ft south of the overflow pipe. I saw no evidence of animal intrusion. The pond is 7 years old and had no issues until our severe drought last year. Is it a full excavation of the spot to fix and recore? Any advice.

I would first contact teehjaeh57 on here and talk to him about the polymer sealant that he has. I would try that first. If that doesn't do the trick, then yes, a drain/recore would be my recommendation. Depending on what you find when it's dug out a recore of the whole dam might be needed.

I am not a big believer in coincidences. If the pond did not leak for seven years, then something has changed.

I assume there was no woody debris in the soil materials that they used for the dam construction? Wood might have rotted out after seven years, allowing a leak path. (Probably unlikely.)

Was your water level this year the lowest water level since the initial filling of the pond? If so, that might be the cause of the change. (More likely.)

That could manifest in several ways. Wave erosion on the dam face could have removed enough material to open a leak path through the core that was previously obstructed. Alternatively, a desiccation crack could have formed in the clay core itself. Clay above the water line typically wicks water upwards and remains moist. However, there is an upper limit to that process.

Do you see any slumping of either the face of the dam, or the backside of the dam? Movement of either face can also allow the core to shift and possibly develop a crack.

Just throwing out more ideas to help you analyze the problem. esshup (and TJ) have much greater knowledge of actually fixing leaks, so I would follow their advice.

Good luck on getting your pond back into proper condition!

I haven't seen any slumping but the backside is covered in thick foxtail so it would be hard to see. Last year it was at the lowest point since it initially filled.

I would bet it was either the soils in the dam dried and shrunk, allowing cracks to pass water, or else wave action exposed a weakness that already existed.

Trying to figure out how to post pics as it says my pics are too large. Anyway other than drizzle thursday we have had no moisture in December. It's so wet behind the dam your foot sinks in and you can see where water has cut a channel into the ditch behind the dam.

Darn!

Definite confirmation of your leak.

I would definitely talk to TJ now.

Since you do not suspect a larger diameter leak pathway, it sounds like you may have a situation that fits the capabilities of his SeekLeak product.

No wind days have been rare this spring. Treated the pond yesterday with calm winds. Today are also calm which is ultra rare. I'll report back on how it does after 3 weeks, or if I notice a difference.

I remember being around Mike Otto and Bob Lusk when Mike told Bob “ Quit telling people how to fix leaks.Dirt is porous and is always going to suck up water leak.”

13 days in and no appreciable change. The instructions say to give it 3 weeks.

It's weird how it was water tight since it was built, and suddenly has all these problems.

Does your pond have an overflow drain pipe? I’ve come to the conclusion that I have a leak that follows along the drain pipe. It has the seep collars, but I don’t think it was sealed very well when it was put in. Its a very slick plastic. No matter how hard I pack clay next to it, I think water still gets down the outside of the pipe.

It does, however I would assume the leak would follow the pipe. This one is off by itself south of the pipe. I will say seek leak has made my pond crystal clear.

I expect that it just took awhile to find a path from the inside to the outside. You might have to tear it out and start mover. Hate to say that.

You sound like you have the equivalent of a bucket with a hole in it.

Thinking about cutting the dam and abandoning the pond idea. Plant it back to shrubs etc and cut my losses.

Or now hear me out , get some pigs , fence off the pond with a strong ass electrical fence , hog wire panels work too, put said pigs in pond and let them do their thing, they will compact the soil, until any leak has been pressure smushed shut, now it’s a old remedy but I saw it work in a small scale.

Had three years back the had this one place they mud wallowed in no time it was a non leaking hole that kept water in it, wasn’t very deep but proved the idea does work,

Then after ponds fixed take em to freezer camp n got pork for the rest of the year

Or treat it again with seek leak

Shame to waste a pond, if it held once it can hold again , just keep at it

Finally got a call back from a pond builder everyone said to call. He came out and looked. He says they sell granulated bentonite clay at the local farm and ranch store. He recommends trying it. He said it will be a lot cheaper than draining the pond and breaking the dam. He also said make sure it is granulated and not the podwered stuff. I will give it a try.

From what Ive experienced with bentonite, I have fixed leaks in a number of ponds and lagoons with it, always the powdered stuff, never tried the granulated stuff, but it will have to be incorporated into the soil a good ways to be effective, even if it did temporarily stop the leak for a while by applying it to the surface, a simple rooting from a catfish, or even a bluegill building a spawning bed, or a crawfish, would open it right back up. imo
Good Luck,, let us know how it goes.

Applied the bentonite yesterday. We have been exceptionally wet and the pond filled back up. The bentonite was only $11/bag so we gave it a whirl with 30 bags.. Time will tell.

Bentonite did not work. I guess wait for another drought and cut the dam to fix it. Judging by the water behidn the dam it looks like perhaps it has increased.

That sucks.

Sorry to see this. I have plans to try a repair on the overflow pipe on my dam, but the good news is we’ve had enough rain, my pond is staying full. My brother in law has a place in eastern KS with a leaky pond. He brought in a number of dump trucks of bentonite, and he’s still got the leak. So frustrating. Hopefully you’ll get it solved.

Thinking about waiting on a drought then redoing the pond. If I have to cut the dam anyway, I will make the pond much larger since the runoff appears to be way more than the NRCS initially led us to believe.

IMO, the time to cut the dam is BEFORE the drought comes. The sediments at the bottom of the pond can stay mucky for a long time!

Do you have a low spot downstream such that you can set up a siphon now to drain the pond?

Once I committed to breaching the dam (sorry, that sucks), I would pull down the pond and cut through the dam ASAP. Then your material can start drying. If you get a hot, dry spell in the forecast for late July - early August, then you might be able to get all of your dam/pond rebuild work done in that window and your dirt movers do not have to fight rainwater trying to re-fill your pond during construction. (That always adds time and costs.)

(If your current pond bottom has some loose sediment on top of the firm bottom, there is also a point where it is mostly dry where it would be most effective to push that material through your dam breech and recover your full pond depth.)

Just throwing out some thoughts for you to consider, since you have actual eyeballs on the problem, I am sure you can improve on that.

What a bummer. Makes me wonder if there is a sand vein or similar just under the pond basin, and water is making its way in through multiple or a general location. I hope you find the problem and get it fixed! I too would enlarge the pond, but in so doing create a fairly deep keyway under where the dam will go, and pack it solid. It will give you a chance to see what is down there and hopefully find and block any sneak paths at the dam.

I can't even get a pond builder to call me back. Must be enough business out there for everyone.