Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Pond fill rate??

ok, this will be long winded, but your answers will be very helpful to me.

i am days away from offering to buy a piece of ground that has a pond on it that is about 2.7 acres. this pond was just dug last summer, but has never been filled. the property owner dug a hole in the bottom of it that lets the water drain out through an old agriculture drain tile. where the pond was dug is directly above where the old "main" tile runs. there is about eight 4" tiles that used to connect into the "main" drain tile. all of the tiles now run into the pond. the tiles drain constantly, but the water runs out the hole in the bottom of the pond (which is about 3 feet in diameter). OK, now to the part that i am concerned about. the average depth of the pond is probably about 8-10 ft. we have had a rough winter and the snow and ice has just recently melted with the warm weather and the rain. there is a BUNCH of watershed into this pond, plus all of the drain tiles that run into it. NOW REMEMBER, THE POND HAS BEEN DRY EXCEPT ABOUT 3-4 FEET IN THE DEEP END. wednesday i noticed the pond had actually come up about a foot maybe, then thurday we got a little over an inch of rain which also melted the snow. TODAY, I VISITED MY GROUND I WANT TO PURCHASE AND TO MY ASTONISHMENT, THE POND WAS ALMOST FULL, ABOUT 2-3 FT FROM THE OVERFLOW PIPES. now at first this seemed fine, then i wondered if i would have a serious "silt" problem, have problems with my fish coming out the drain pipes, or worse yet have the muddiest pond in existence.

i know that's alot of reading, but i have some serious reservations about this and i would love some input from the pros here, before i blow my dreams on a mud hole. thanks in advance for the help.

Craig,

After reading your post I dont see anything that concerns me. You may have some sediment issues. Everybody has some sediment issues. make sure that all areas in your control upstream have rooted vegetation. you dont want any bare earth along stream banks that can erode quickly. Most ponds that are filling up will be stained/muddy. I would expect the "mud" to settle.

most new ponds around here have filamentous algae problems for the first few years. you can order a back issue of pond boss for the "how to" for algae control. March-April 2000 is a good one.

keep in mind to may be difficult (impossible) to fertilize the pond. Not sure if you were even considering this but lots of flow will flush the pond before fertilizer has a chance to work. around here ponds with lots of flow (large watershed) have very clear water and tend to have weed problems due to the clarity.

be sure to read up on proper stocking rates for your area. This is where most people mess up. stock the recommended rates of fish, stocking more will only crowd the fish and reduce growth. Bass, bluegill and catfish will not escape, at least not enough to effect the overall population. Grass carp are a different story. If you stock grass carp make sure the drain has some form of screen or expect these fish to leave the pond in a hurry.

when I was a kid I fished a pond like yours. a few days after large rain storms we would fish the creek behind the pond. The drain made a nice pool directly behind the drain. The fish were easy to catch in that little pool, keep that in mind if you have kids.

Shan

i do appreciate your response shan. i hadn't thought about it that way. could anyone else reply?