Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Selecting a site Bad Dirt in South Texas

I have a place in S. Texas on which I was hoping to build a 2 acre lake down in a draw using a combination of excavating and impounding. Unfortunately, I got some lake construction guys out there last weekend and with a large backhoe dug down and found good topsoil/silt for planting, but only porous sandstone that they say will never hold water.

My site is currently non-nego, as it is out in front of my home-site. If I went down to an acre and wanted to construct and seal the soil, should I use bentonite, clay, or a liner? I understand the liner would cost about $20K per acre before installation.

Thanks, DWL

DWL
1. Where in S Tx. are you?
2. How deep did your "guy" go?

Ahvatsa,

I am west of Cotulla about twelve miles, two miles north of the Nueces. I do have some areas with good clay and good tanks, but I erroneously thought that in a draw and down on my southern end toward the river I would be okay.

I believe he went down 15-20 feet, digging in pretty much the center of the draw.

DWL

Sounds as if you are a liner candidate. I have been involved with a couple ponds in western Wilson Co. and 1 in Frio and have been able to find clay 14-20'. Good luck to you.

It doesn't do much good to dig thru sand to find clay. You still wind up with sand on the sides that sucks water. To learn more about liners, you can call the PB office and get Mike Ottos recent article about them.

Has anyone used the ESS-13 product advertised in Pond Boss, by www.seepagecontrol.com? Looks like it should work better, than pouring black pepper into a leaky radiator.

DWL 4,

Here's some other options:

1) Talk to George Burton, the owner and operator of the sodium bentonite mine in Texas. Tell him your specifics and he can give you some numbers which you can use for a cost estimate. His number is 325-885-2339 and he is a good guy.

2) Talk to Mark McDonald, former editor of Pond Boss, and currently located in Boerne, I believe. Mark handles pond liners, is a great guy, and has a lot of experience with liners in your area. Sorry I don't have his contact info with me but can e-mail to you next week.

3) Get a price estimate for hauling the necessary clay into the pond basin as a liner. Your pond guy should be able to gve you an estimate of the number of yards required and then try to find a nearby source to get an estimate.

Do a cost compare of the options and an risk assessment. With that info, you can make a more informed decision and select the best option for your needs. Best of luck and I hope your pond dream is realized.

p.s. found the last e-mail address I had for Mark. Try : markmcd@ktc.com