Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Soil questions Bentonite versus Soil-floc

Greetings everyone,

I am new to the site and wish I had found it sooner. I have an existing pond in western Montana (approx 75'x75') that I dug out this past summer as it was really shallow on one of the ends. I used an excavator and reached out as far as I could and made the pond deeper so I had more volume in the heat of the summer when my water gets turned off (due to water rights).

The good news is that my pond is now 3' deep where it used to be 3". Unfortunately I have now learned that when I removed the muck and got down to sand I likely broke the seal of the pond. Knowing this I have thrown a ton of bentonite into the pond. I literally scooped it out of 50# bags and spread it around (I did not mix it with the soil).

This summer was really hard on the pond as I lost a ton of water. I am not sure how to rectify the problem of losing water. The area where I excavated is roughly 25' out from the bank by 125' long.

Question: Do I try more Bentonite? Of is this a candidate for Soil-Floc? If Soil-floc is the answer, how much do I need and how do I apply it?

Thanks in advance!

Howdy and welcome, DC.

I can't help since I live on a great big mound of clay, but we have folks who can and they'll be along. (Allow for seasonal delays.)

Welcome to the forum DC!

I help folks with Pond Construction, rehab, and leak abatement and I’m happy to learn more about your situation and offer my insights. I’m a volunteer moderator here and my time is always free to the Pondboss family – feel free to reach out anytime and we can hop on a call. Glad to help however I can.

TJ@hudlandmgmt.com