Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Building a dam Water swale to my pond question

My neighbor who has 5 acres is building the land into a RV/boat storage and fortunately for me my pond is catching all the run off from the parking lot. They are installing piping through a part of my dam with flappers/valves that only allow water to run into pond. The water will becoming to pond from a main drain in what the engineers called a water swale ( pretty much a wide shallow ditch) My question is 2 fold. We have black dirt where I live and I want to make sure the dirt that is put back on piping will not cause a leak in the dam, what would be the best dirt to put around piping ? Second my pond is pretty low right now and I have seepage at full pool or close to it. I used Damit and it helped to some degree, but looking for a better permanent solution. I am thinking while the water is low and well below area where it seeps maybe spreading pond liner against the dam wall . what do ya'll think? My pond is about 1 acre. Thanks in advance.

That flapper is not going to hold the water in your pond, it will seep right back out and your water level will only be to the bottom of that tube in no time unless this tube is run downwards into you pond

The original constructor of my pond did the same thing and it seeps right back out

The proper soil material and compaction is very important for a pipe through a dam. However, I think they need to add two anti-seep collars. That is your best insurance against a trickle along the pipe route eventually growing into a dam blow out (IMO).




"Seepage at full pool" can be caused by two different problems. First, when the pond is at full pool, the hydrostatic pressure of the water in the pond is at its maximum. Sometimes that last little bit of pressure can be just enough to start pushing water through tight pore spaces in your soil material.

However, the alternative is a leak at a certain elevation of your pond. That leak may be close to the elevation of your full pool, so that is why you only leak at full pool.

I know it is difficult to differentiate, but if your pond leaks fast at full pool after a big rain, but then the leak dramatically slows after you lose a foot or two of water, then you might have the second problem. If your pond leaks fast at full pool, but still leaks at a progressively slower rate as the water level goes down, then you might have the first problem with a leak down low or in the bottom of the pond. With that type of leak being a function of the hydrostatic pressure, it might be a good option for a fix with more Damit or Soilfloc.

There are several leak experts at Pond Boss. They usually say correctly identifying and locating the leak makes it much easier to fix the problem.

I definitely agree with your plan to try doing some more work on the leak while your pond level is low.

Good luck on all of your upcoming pond projects.

I second the information about the flapper not being a 100% seal. IF the parking lot is higher than your pond, then look at Agri-Drain https://www.agridrain.com/shop/c85/manual-water-level-control-structures/ and give them a call. I am not sure but I think you can manage the water level with a flash board riser system.

I think this will be very beneficial to you. This way if they have an oopsie and have a big fuel or other type of spill on the parking area you can add more risers to stop that mess from going into your pond. They can get a vac truck to suck the mess out of the pipe before you allow any more water to go to your pond.

I agree with the anti-seep collars you will need 2 like was said. Clay will need to be brought on site if there is none available. They will have to pack clay in the bottom of the trench with a whacker packer (jumping jack style compactor) or sheepsfoot roller on the excavator arm. Then use the whacker packer to pack the clay around the anti-seep collars and the pipe itself.to prevent water from following the pipe back out of the pond.

If Damit isn't working 100%, Call Tom Hudson. It may not be working because you lost positive pressure in the pond and underground water forced the Damit back out of the cracks. Once you have a full pond and a way to keep it full, that problem should be resolved. Putting a liner around the edges won't do a darn thing except make your wallet lighter. Think of a bathtub. It has a liner all the way around it except for that hole in the bottom. Once that plug covering the hole is pulled, how long will the water stay in the tub? Same with the pond.