Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations New Member, New Pond, Questions

First post here. I live in New York's Hudson Valley. For the first year in our new house, we had a problem with standing water in our front yard. It was a soupy mess. We decided to put in a French drain, but upon digging we discovered two or three natural springs burbling up through the ground. We have clay soil here so our landscape guy suggested digging out a pond and draining the overflow to the drainage swale on our property line. This sounded too good to be true to me - I'd always wanted a pond, and this was like nature's way of insisting that I have one now...

So they dug the hole, about 15-20 ft in diameter, 4 ft deep in the lowest parts and it filled rather quickly. Since the initial fill, the level has steadily dropped. Yesterday I dropped a garden hose in there to try to bring the level up (since my wife is now beginning to worry that instead of a pond, we have a new mud pit in our front yard). It didn't seem to make much difference. The water level is still a good 6" below the level of the drain pipe. Now I realize the soil needs to compact and seal up, and the pond/hole has only been there for about two weeks. The landscape guy who dug the pond says it's just evaporation. Now granted we haven't had much rain the past few weeks, but it hasn't been hot and it seems evaporation shouldn't cause that much water loss, as it should be replenished by the spring. If this is evaporation, then I hate to see what might happen when we have a two or three week dry spell in July.

Is it possible the soil is still becoming compacted and hasn't fully sealed yet? Is it possible we need to use some sort of product to help seal it? Is it possible that I got talked into a pond but am going to end up with a muddy pit as the focal point of our front yard (which likely will lead to me being murdered by my wife)?

I've read other threads on similar cases, but thought I'd present my own set of circumstances and see what you guys thought. Thanks in advance for all advice and suggestions!

The Mule,
It sounds as though you have a groundwater pond that will be changing depth with the level of the ground water. That’s why when you turned the hose on to fill it up it didn’t seem to make much difference. Just my initial thoughts but wait until an expert tells you what they think. Good luck!

Interesting, Heppy. Thanks.

I agree with Heppy.

A good analogy would be if you built an in-ground hot tub beside your swimming pool and used a connecting pipe to fill the hot tub.

The hot tub will fill up to the water level of the swimming pool. However, if you open the pool drain the water level in both will go down. If you had a check valve in the connecting pipe, then only the water level in the pool would go down and your hot tub would stay full (except for evaporation losses).

Unfortunately, it is not possible to put a "check valve" on a spring. However, it might be possible for you to cheat the spring a little bit!

Consider the pipe between the hot tub and the pool. If that pipe is 1 foot from the top of the pool, then water will go over to your hot tub every time the water in the pool rises above the pipe. If the drain is subsequently opened on the pool, then your hot tub will only drain to the level of the pipe - even if the pool is completely drained.

If one of your springs into your pond is very well defined, then you might be able to control your pond water level. Was there a nice sand/gravel spot of water inflow that you could observe when your pond was excavated?

One option would be to seal the sides and bottom of your pond and then drive a sandpoint on a 2" pvc pipe back into the location of the spring. (I would even drive it at a slight downward angle.) When the groundwater level is high, the spring will fill your pond. When the groundwater level goes down, then your pond will only drop to the level of the pipe. (Assuming your pond was perfectly sealed.) You could then make up evaporation losses with your hose if needed.

You could do a similar arrangement by building a gravel trench into the area of the spring (like a french drain) and then having a pipe connection to your pond. I would definitely recommend anti-seep collars in that situation to ensure a better seal for your pond.

Finally, you could even attempt to compact and seal your pond to the elevation of the springs, but then leave everything above that level uncompacted.

All of my hare-brained schemes are easier the more clearly the limits of your springs are defined.

Good luck on improving your pond project! It sounds like you have turned lemons into lemonade.

P.S. Another option is to just observe your water level for the first year. It may turn out that the low point of the groundwater level is still perfectly acceptable for your usage of the pond.

Mule, if you are able to take some pictures, it may help others give some advice.

Thanks so much for the detailed and informative reply, FishinRod! This is very good information for me to have as I move forward. The pond is only a few weeks old, so I think I'll just observe for now and see how it does for now and take action next spring if necessary.

And yes, I'll get some pictures up. Let me see what I have on my phone...

OK, a few images attached. One of them shows the pond on the day it was dug and filled, one is from the day they regraded around the pond, and the other shows the beginnings of my landscaping with ground covers - much more to come with that.

Here's Mule's pics:

Mule, that tree right next to the pond.... did it have a lot of root system where you excavated? I see what look like roots in the dirt.

Some of the roots from that tree did get cut. The landscape guy said it should be fine and I have to trust he knows what he's doing.

Oh and thanks re posting the pics!

I agree on the 'wait and see' approach for now.

Sometimes with ground springs, they flow positive until the pressure/weight of the water in the new pond becomes too much to overcome.

That's what I'll do!

Just thought I'd update... The pond has continued to drain to the point that there's only about a foot of water left at the very bottom. Looks like a giant muddy crater basically. So I think we're going to have to seal it as per FishinRod's post.

For this application is there a specific method for sealing that would be recommended? I'm sure my landscape guy knows about this stuff but I thought I'd get an opinion here from folks who won't be charging me to do the work! :o)

I've read about SoilFloc and Bentonite, and it seems SoilFloc is the choice for ponds that already have (some) water in them. But I'd love to get some feedback on this from you guys.

I would be surprised if a landscape guy has experience sealing a pond.

You may well be right about that. He is the one that dug it for me, but I suppose I may need to consult a pond installation company for sealing it. Or is it something that can be done as a DIY project?

I guess I'm not clear on what the water source is for this pond.

If you seal the basin, doesn't that also stop water from coming IN to the pond?

More info needed here.. Is runoff your source? Well water pumped?
What is soil composition?
If you are building this for a fishery, why is it just a muddy crater?
I say we take a second look at this, doesn't sound like your contractor had enough knowledge to perform the task you were asking for.
EDIT: just got pics to load...
Any roots cut will decompose and create a void-more than likely.. Any roots that were not cut will enter pond anyway.

It is supposedly spring fed - I saw the water coming up from the ground. It filled quickly, but then the level has since dropped consistently and it is now a muddy hole. I guess the groundwater level is very low?

FishinRod's suggestion was to seal the pond and then drive a sand point into the source and create sort of a standpipe so that the level would always be at the level of the top of the pipe.

The soil here is mostly clay. The stump in the middle of the pond is going to be dug out, so those roots will be gone. Roots from the live tree on the right will have to stay, obviously.

The level is likely dropping because the trees are increasing up-take.

Oh wow... I hadn't even thought of that. I guess I'm pretty much screwed then. Certainly not going to chop down that tree. How disappointing.

Are there any solutions here that don't involve chopping down the tree? It's a swamp maple, so I am sure it does drink a lot of water. It's frustrating though because the whole reason we dug the pond in the first place is because there was standing water in the front yard. Like deep puddles of standing water. The previous owner foolishly chopped down two other swamp maples in the yard right before we bought the place and once those trees were no longer there, the water started accumulating. I guess that one tree has gotten much thirstier than it was before.

I could fill the hole in and turn it into a rain garden or something, but I had gotten my heart set on having a pond. If anyone has any ideas I would love to hear them.

I don't want to ruin your ideas.. I'm sure there is a way. You're in the right place to figure that out. Let's see what others have to say before throwing in the towel.

Haha. I believe John Lennon said, "there are no problems, only solutions." Will not throw in the towel just yet! :o)

Would it be possible to excavate a little more on the opposite side of the pond (from the tree), place that earth at the tree's base to cover the existing roots and then put some sort of impermeable barrier down between the roots and the pond?

It doesn't seem like we have a solid water source for this pond that would keep things filled to the desired level.

I may be wrong, but in general, 'ground water' isn't really going to push up more in some spots as opposed to others; in other words, that ground water will be at the same level for that water table. Certainly it could rise or fall with rains or lack of rain, but it's not really a spring that flows out of some hole.

If you sealed up the pond basin, you could theoretically keep it topped off with city water, but you'd still have to contend with that tree's thirst. Even if you had no roots penetrating the new pond basin, roots would eventually grow through. That's why I was asking about that tree earlier in this thread.

This may be possible, but I still think you have an issue with the source of the water which I was addressing before you made your last post.

DELETED

Ah, ok. Hmmm. Any other ideas? I guess moving the pond far enough to be clear of the roots is not an option. What would you do? Any other ideas?

We aren't on city water; we have a well, which happens to be located right next to the pond. Would there be a way to use that to fill it somehow?

I didn't read every post, but I would very strongly recommend using a rubber liner, and disregard the spring other than perhaps a nearby shallow well with a small pump in it for a source of water to keep it topped off. A few reasons why:

1. Initially the ash tree will rob you of water. More than you would think. Roots will regrow and they will be more than happy to grow back into the pond and cause problems.
2. The Ash will die. Emerald Ash Bore. The roots will rot or the tree will fall with roots all on one side removed. You will have more places to water to go or you will get a larger unwanted pond with a large root ball in it.
3. Your island is robbing you of a great deal of water volume. Remove it when/if you put in a liner and instead build a floating island if you still want one. The island will provide a refuge for future fish from herons, and will provide some shade to keep the water cooler and fish happier.
4. When/if you put in a liner, it will look much better at the front of the house, and the rubber acts as a weed barrier making it easier to maintain. Of course this means covering the exposed line with stone.
5. You can clean it out FAR easier than a clay bottom. Drain it with a trash pump, scoop out the crud with a bucket and rake. Brand spanking new again. Especially important with tree leaves.
6. You can run the water right up to the same level as the grass if you wish with the rubber liner. Border with rock cobbles, build shelves in the basin that holds plants, etc.

Expect about $1K or so in cost though, and you will need a felt liner between the soil and rubber to prevent punctures.

I have a 1/2 acre field pond, and a garden pond a little smaller than what you show here with a rubber liner. I only occasionally (2-3 times a summer at most) need to top it off with a hose when it gets one or two inches down as our evaporation rates in NY are just a hair shy of our precip rates. Meanwhile, the farm pond will be down 3ft from seepage and evaporation combined.

Thank you very much, liquidsquid. That sounds like a winner. I didn't know about the tree & the ash borer. So are you saying that the tree is doomed to be victimized by that insect?

When I said 'city water' I just meant whatever water source you use at home, so yes, the well can be used.

Only basing it on bark and location, yes I believe this is an ash tree. It is doomed. All of our are effected this year and I have had to cut down many. I have been planning for the loss of my trees by planting others to replace them. Oaks, Hickory, Hazelnut, Mulberry. All wildlife food sources to replace the Ash seeds.

OK, well I'll hope that you're wrong but prepare for the possibility it will need to go.

Mule,

I originally typed a very long post to convey lots of information. However, for a new pond person I should have put the key points in bold.

One of the important ones was:

"If one of your springs into your pond is very well defined, then you might be able to control your pond water level."

The other key point was:

"Another option is to just observe your water level for the first year. It may turn out that the low point of the groundwater level is still perfectly acceptable for your usage of the pond."

It appears that you did not have to observe the groundwater level for an entire year to evaluate using groundwater to keep your pond full. If it is too low now, then imagine where it will be at the end of a dry summer. Unless you have a very well-defined spring that you can see dripping water down the bank of your pond, then I think you definitely need to scratch my suggestion!

The groundwater level is controlled by the amount of water into the system AND the amount of water drawn out of the system. Unless you had an exceptionally dry spring, then I believe Snipe is correct about the trees starting to draw significant amounts of water out of the groundwater system.

I definitely DO NOT support cutting down your tree to keep the pond. In my opinion, it is not your tree that is "stealing" the groundwater from your pond, it is ALL of the trees in the area that are now sucking up groundwater out of your aquifer.

After seeing the size of your pond, I personally really like liquidsquid's suggestion to install a liner. That is by far the most secure way to keep water in the pond and discourage roots so that they stay out of the pond. Many of the ponds on Pond Boss are too big for that option, but it should work very well for your pond.

Also, I believe your pond is going to be a "yard pond" with lots of trees sharing the area with your pond. Leaf build up in a pond leads to deposits of "muck", which eventually fills in a pond over time. Since you are going to have leaves and short grass in your yard, then some leaves are going to end up in your pond. However, if you have a liner in your pond, then it may be possible to use a pool vac or some other device to clean the muck and leaves from your pond bottom every few years. (I am not a pond liner guy, maybe one of those experts can chime in on the best way to reduce muck in your pond.)

I think installing a liner correctly, and then doing some attractive landscaping, and then keeping your pond topped off with well water should give you an excellent final result. (The liner installation may create a little berm around the pond. You can probably find some good ideas on the internet on how to turn your liner edging requirements into an attractive feature. That is exactly the kind of project I turn over to my better half!)

Good luck on your pond version 2.0!

P.S. Being "pond nuts" we all latched onto your pond design questions. However, your real reason for digging the pond was because your front yard was so soupy. Was your yard more useable this spring? If you do install a pond liner, then your pond will no longer serve to drain your front yard. However, you have now performed a long-term test on the interaction between your yard and the local groundwater aquifer. If you need better drainage in the future, you should now be capable of designing your own french drain or a similar solution.

Thank you again, FishinRod. I think it sounds like a very good plan as well. I'm going to call a pond installing company in my area tomorrow and get someone who really knows what they're doing to come over here. We'll excavate the dead tree stump, make the whole thing a nicer, sort of kidney shape (rather than round) and install a liner.

Yes, once we dug the hole for the pond, the entire yard became perfectly usable - no more standing water anywhere. I do plan to plant MORE trees in the yard this fall, so next spring hopefully they'll take care of whatever ground water was seeping up into the yard. And if they don't, then - as you say - a French drain will do the trick.

I'm so glad I found this forum - you've all been very helpful! Thank you.

Pro tip: Happy wife, happy life!

When I have been in a similar situation, it worked out well when I did the equivalent of going out to the yard when it was green and pretty and asking my wife how exactly she would like the pond shaped and situated, and what trees she would like in the yard, and where she would like them planted to have the yard just the way she wants it 10 years from now.

P.S. People on the forum really enjoy seeing good "after" pictures when you get the project finished the way you wanted it to go!

I'll happily share some pics once this thing is looking more like I'd envisioned it!

Got a rough estimate from a pond installer today, based on pics I sent and a description of what I wanted done:

"Ok. you have some major ground water issues that have to be addressed first if you are going to put a pond there. As far as the size and shape, it really comes down to budget as we can build any pond shape and size from a small 5’x6’ turtle pond for about $6,000 to an unlimited budget pond. I consider all water features as an investment and do not consider any of them inexpensive. Think of them like an in-ground swimming pool but slightly more expensive to build; the only difference is a pool doesn’t add much to the value of your home, while a pond does add equity.

The pond you are describing is complicated and would require a considerable investment. The biggest thing to consider to lower the overall cost is that, the deeper you go, the more expensive it becomes. At 5’ deep things such as bottom aeration and water jets are required to eliminate water stratification layers; therefore I would recommend not to exceed 32”.

Based on that information, our 15’l x 22’w x 30”d starts at $30,450, and as seen in the picture below is $45,750 (not including the flagstone patio). This pond (as seen) has a few extras including, a bio-falls and a spillway to oxygenate the pond, lights, aeration system, landscape package, and two small streams.

The bottom drains for the water mitigation issue you have would add another $3,890, bringing the total for a similar pond of this size to $49,640."


Those numbers are WAY higher than I'd imagined. I will get a few more quotes to be sure, but are the problems he's envisioning really problems that will cost that much to correct? Or could I just excavate a better shape and size basin, remove the stump and put a good liner down and call it a day? Granted, he is used to installing ponds that will house expensive koi... I just wanted to keep a few bluegills in there for mosquito control. With a fountain for water movement and surface agitation.

Thoughts?

I didn't like the sound of only 32" depth, but then again with all the features dude is talking about, the 'pond' will never freeze up.

Those costs seem very, very high to me.

I agree. I laughed when I read his email. I want the depth to be 5 ft all around. Size to be 15' x 20' or so with an irregular kidney shape. Do I need all that aeration and drains for the bottom and all that other nonsense? How would you filter a pond this size?

I have another guy coming by in the next few days to give another estimate.

I would consider other options.

1) Fill the hole to within a foot of grade and use the space for a bog garden

2) French drain from the hole to the nearest drainage, fill the hole, cover with sod

3) Neighborhood mud wrestling pit - perfect for settling HOA disputes

Option #3 sounds great!

Seriously though, I may be leaning towards something along the lines of option #1. Or just fill the hole and plant more trees around the area to drink up the excess ground water. Then I could just do some sort of fountain installation to get my water feature fix.

Anybody else care to weigh in? I'll be disappointed if the pond doesn't work out, but I definitely don't want to spend tens of thousands of dollars to make it happen.

I am not a pond liner guy, but I had a buddy that used to install koi ponds and decorative water features.

He said some of his biggest (and most profitable) jobs were where he would use liners to create a series of pools and waterfalls that would go down the hillside in the backyard of a wealthy person's house. They would spend $30,000-$50,000 for the project, but everything was expected to be perfect!

The other end of the scale is larger ponds (like most of the people on Pond Boss) where the pond is at their farm or property. The liner is for the pond to hold water efficiently, rather than as a decorative feature. They are built fairly cheaply on a square foot basis, but still more expensive than a large pond where you have a good water supply and clay for sealing. Based on your very high initial cost estimates, I would consider scaling the project to fit your yard, but copy the way they do it for large, non-decorative ponds. (You and your wife can do the "decorative" later.)

I have watched some videos of installing the liners on larger ponds. You either need some power equipment or a crew with lots of people (like when they have to pull out the rain tarp at a major league baseball game).

Are you fairly handy? Do you have a few buddies that could help install the underlayment and the liner? If so, I think you could probably do it yourself!

I agree with you, I would rather have 5' of depth than thousands of dollars of bottom drains and circulating systems. Your idea for a fountain may be enough by itself to aerate your pond for BG.

One word of caution - will your pond be easily accessible to neighborhood kids, or in a well-fenced backyard? If available to kids, then your pond will almost certainly become an "attractive nuisance". That means that if someone trespasses into your yard and drowns in the pond, it is your fault.

Even if the pond is safely fenced away in your yard, you will need to design a way for people to walk out of the pond. A pond liner with a little algae on it will be VERY slippery! (When I was asking questions on Pond Boss about the most efficient way to do my shore slopes for a pond in my pasture, several people commented in my thread that my pond needed a safe way out - even in the middle of a country pasture!)

My advice would be to do some Pond Boss and/or internet searches for pond liner installations. Once you see how some pros do it AND how some amateurs do it, then you can make an informed decision for your project.

I've seen some of those videos and yes, it looks like all the guys running the tarp out onto the baseball field. I could probably round up a group of guys for the job. I'll continue to think about it... And the point about the attractive nuisance is definitely something to give me pause. Back to the drawing board!

For a liner the size you are going to install, I don't think you need the baseball crew, just a couple of buddies?

If your pond is in the front or side yard, maybe you just have to go 2' deep for safety reasons. That depth might rule out a true pond, but maybe your wife will let you keep a few BG in a tank in your basement to overwinter? Or you could just re-stock every year with some gambusia (mosquito fish) every spring.

The overwintering idea could work. I do have a few extra aquariums in the garage I could throw some bluegills in. I'll sleep on it. Maybe I'll watch a few of those pond liner youtube videos again and see if I can recruit a few friends. I did a little reading and I THINK the general rule is anything deeper that 4 ft requires a fence around it. So maybe I could go 3 ft or so and be safe. A small child could drown in 10" of water though, so I'll be sure to research that thoroughly.

FWIW It cost me $800 for both felt liner and the rubber liner 15 years ago. It was I think 40ftx30ft and I cut it down to size once I laid in the hole.
Search for pond liner suppliers on-line. PondBoss may have some great suppliers for this as well, though I don't know who is a supporter.
Anything over 20x20 is frigging heavy and awkward. You will need friends to help or a small tractor with a fork. I had a teenager slave labor.

Process is as follows:
1. Measure size, calculate depth and liner sizes needed. Order parts. (Measure what you have already)
2. Rent a machine for rough hole digging. The vast majority of material is removed this way. Use a small trash pump to keep water out when working. Or use existing hole, though you need to remove that island.
3. Dig hole with rough features with rented machine (maybe a few hours more to remove island). In your case maybe you will need to dig a drain out to a road ditch from the hole as well. Maybe a powered small dump to move soil elsewhere, or you can pile the soil as part of the pond feature on one side for plantings or future waterfall. Don't make too tall, spread wide and low or it will look like a mini volcano. (I was lucky and a neighbor had a machine and worked it for free, and I used a manual wheelbarrow to move soil, it was hard)
4. Use a laser-level and hand shovel to pull material from the basin and create a at least 1ft wide level rim around the perimeter. Use wood stakes with the level line marked to fill to. I set mine about 2" above surrounding lawn level to drape liner across as weed barrier. This is a lot of manual effort. Great way to get in shape. I'm too cheap to pay someone else to dig.
5. Manually create tiers/steps/bottom features to hold plants and allow yourself easy access to the basin. The stairs should angle towards the sides a bit so you don't fall in easily. Expect to slip in anyways when working on it, so always wear bathing suit once full. This process isn't too bad, but is manual work. For the most part it is just arranging soil in the basin to make the features. The key feature is a step starting at about 1ft under the water line that will support stones/cobbles from that point up and over the rim of the liner once the liner is in. A bonus would be to add a rim on the edge to prevent things from easily sliding down. A thick rope staked down would do the trick, or 0.5x1 treated lumber set down a little. You don't want to need stone all the way to the bottom. That can use pea gravel or leave bare or just a few larger rocks here and there. You can use landscape blocks for stairs, just be careful of sharp edges. Double up in the felt on those features if concerned.
6. Remove all roots and check for any sharp edges. Lay down the felt. It comes in easy to manage sizes.
7. Pull liner across with friends. Tamp down, re-adjust some features, push into corners, make folds as needed. Easy. Maybe an hour or two.
8. Cut liner to the outside of the rim you made, It should still go up and over and that's it.
9. Use baseball and larger size cobbles and start building up from the shelf. I interspersed with large rocks, 2ft diameter stuff for a natural look. Some I left isolated out in the water. I have plenty of rocks on my property to work with, but did need more rocks from a local gravel pit for more interesting stone. When all placed, use pea gravel and sand in the gaps. This sort of locks things in place.
10. Fill.
11. Buy some plants, get them in there where you would like.
12. Wait about a month before introducing fish. Rubber liner ponds take longer to settle the nitrogen cycle than soil-based. Goldfish can take it, but not much else.

Your largest problem may be the liner trying to float up from the high water table. Using a variety of stone and gravel to pin it down will be important. The drainage ditch for the groundwater to help with your wet spot could double as a source for water if your well isn't up to snuff.

Using your own labor, you can probably get the cost well under $3K total including ordering stone, pipe for drainage, and renting equipment.
Don't go deeper than 5ft, any deeper and it is hard to maintain. Use a simple air line to an indoor diaphragm air pump at the house. It is all you need to turn the water over and prevent complete ice-lockup in the winter.

That price you got quoted is OBSCENE. A flat out joke. Who would spend that much on a project that is rewarding, easy, and for the most part can do yourself unless you have health issues?

Here are some pictures from the progress. Note the dates on the images to give you an idea how long it took:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/KQAwb6mzwq3bRFHj6

Yours is larger, it of course will take longer.

Hello.

Another example.





In the bottom there is a pool liner, between 2 cheap liners.

I took the largest pool liner available , 27 feet it's much cheaper.

Don't forget that it must be solid because you will have to work inside.
A+

Beautiful

liquidsquid,

Thanks so much for chiming in with that long post.

That is exactly the advice I wanted to give to mule, but I didn't have the expertise to do so!

azteca,

Great pics of that pond and setting. I usually focus on the "pond" items, but that landscaping is just fabulous!

I was hoping mule would get to view some results like that. If he gets the pond liner installed correctly, then he and his wife can gradually beautify the landscaping as the budget and time allow.

Pond Boss magazine devoted an entire issue to liners. It was a couple of years ago. Quite comprehensive.

They sell back issue copies. If interested, contact the PB office. Cheap education.

Bend Tarp Liner makes liners that are much more lightweight than the EDPM liners. https://www.btlliners.com/

Look at their AquaArmor line of pond liners. It's a fabric, so it's relatively thin and lightweight, but it's water tight and it's VERY tough. You can call them and get a small sample sent to you.

From reading the start of the thread to now it seems that you have a high water table in that area, and you dug the pond to have a place for the water to go. So, that precludes using a liner or sealing the pond, because when you do that then the water that is in the ground can't migrate to the pond.

If you line the pond, then you have to have a source of above ground water to fill the pond. Either runoff or a well/pump.

The stump has to come out of the pond if you want to keep and seal the pond.

If you want to keep the pond, then you will have to put in a liner or use SoilFLock or a similar product to seal it because the water in the pond is just the water level in the ground. There is really no "spring". The water level in the ground will bounce up and down according to how much rain/snowmelt you get.

In any case I'd dig a cistern in the front yard. It could be a tube stuck down in the ground with holes in it to allow water to get into the tube. You will have to use a filter material on the outside so it doesn't fill with soil. Put a hard top on it so nobody falls in or twists an ankle.

Have a pump in the ground attached to a float, like a sump pump. Have it attached to a "T" with one side going to the pond, another side going to the curb. Bore thru the curb to the gutter in the street, install that cistern, plumb it to the pond and to the hole in the curb. With the pond being lined, pump water into the pond from the cistern to keep the pond full, but during high water table times, pump the cistern dry and shove it to the curb. That way your yard will stay dry.