Pond Boss Forums Thread Like Summary - 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 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 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.