im planning to build pond in near future thought ild ask people who have attempted this. as i am thinking of a big pond its a semi cirle and 1 metre deep so fish keep warm in winter. bout say 10ft long.
was going to do sump cause i think thats best
I live in a townhouse and have put a small pond in the front courtyard...
The pond is about 50cm deep(any deeper than 60cm and by law in Queensland the pond should be fenced) and about 1.5m in diameter.
I have a small raised area at one end of the pond in which is a large terracotta pot full of zeolite.
A pump in the pond runs a small fountain and also pumps water into the bottom of the terracotta pot full of zeolite....the water overflows from this pot into the raised pond and then flows back into the main pond.
I have irises and other bog plants in terracotta pots in the pond , aquatic grass in the terracotta filter pot and bull rushes beside the pot in the elevated pond. Water sprite and hortwort in the pond .
I have a large foam pre-filter on the intake to the pump which I clean every 2 months or so.
Water is alway crystal clear.... Goldfish and white clouds repopulate constantly.
where bouts u live mate man wouldnt mind coming some day for a look. sounds awesome, and thanks for the advice of by law fencing it.
below was when it was first put in...
http://img240.imageshack.us/my.php?image=10019506ny.jpg
http://img219.imageshack.us/my.php?image=10019565ea.jpg
and this is the easy and cheap filter made from bits and pieces i had laying around the shead.
http://img49.imageshack.us/my.php?image=10019756vx.jpg
http://img163.imageshack.us/my.php?image=10019741zv.jpg
it probable took 6 to 8 weeks for everything in the pond to settle down, now the water is clear as, and all i do is change the filter wool once a month and the rainbows and sword tails are breeding like rabbits. one thing there is a lot of in the pond are plants. they are planted in pots with a good soil and a few drops of maxicrop seaweed plant food concentrate....good stuff.
on top of the soil put an inch of gravel out of one of ya tanks, helps keep the soil in the pot.
hth
I've had ponds for years, usually around 40 to 50cm deep and 1.5mtrs wide, I usually keep goldfish in them because they look nicer when looking down into the pond.
You dont really need filters for ponds if you grow plenty of plants, but they look good as a fountain and keep the water a bit cleaner.
Try to find a reasonably shady spot or the flaming thing will always be green.
And if you're going to keep bigger fish like Goldfish, you'll need some bird netting over the top to keep the Cranes away, because they [b:a6f8364f23]will[/b:a6f8364f23] eat your fish. Believe me they will find your fish.
Theo
hhhmmm so shade is best, i was under the impression sun is good to keep water warm. can u guys show me pics as i love looking at peoples ponds.
the area i was going to do it has full sun, which would meen i would have to cover it with something to give it shade
i would def put filter in to give it water fall effect and make nice place to sit and watch and keepwater crystal clear.
bout this birdeating thing is a bit of a worry, but i may put other types of fish in , ill experiment and stuff, maybe even saratoga
Sun is good, but this is Qld, temps in summer 36 plus. Plant a couple of small trees or shrubs around it to give it some shade, or put it in the shade of a tree. Also water Lillies help as well, a couple of different colors to make it look good.
You'll never keep a pond crystal clear if its got a lot of sun, no matter what the filtration.
Birds are a definate problem, the best stuff to use is a black nylon bird netting, you can hardly see it, you can get it at Bunnings and its very cheap.
Theo
Slug gun and a 6 pack works best.
Whats the six pack for? to pay off the Cops when they arrest you for shooting a Crane 8)
Anyway I'm putting up a pic of one of my ponds below. Hope it works okay.
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~tronbar/Pond.JPG
Theres 3 colors of Water Lillies and quite a few other plants. Over 13 large Goldfish, various colors, and about 20 of their babies, and some huge Mystery snails( about the size of a fist) which lay eggs all the time, and no filter.
You can see the netting in the foreground, hardly noticeable.
Also I've just made another one in a lot more shade, I'll show a pic later.
Theo
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~tronbar/Pond.JPG
[quote:dd2c9fefd6="Rod54"](any deeper than 60cm and by law in Queensland the pond should be fenced)[/quote:dd2c9fefd6]
My local council (Rockhampton in CQ) told me I could have it any depth I wanted and not need a fence. I asked if I could excavate my entire yard to a depth of a couple of meters and he laughed and said if I wanted to I could. It only has to be fenced if you swim in it.
Ring your local council and ask for clarification of this.
James
I just hope your local council will come and sit on your lap(In Court), after somebody's kid drowns in your pond and the parents sue your arse.
Theo
[quote:c56c61d751="Anakist"][quote:c56c61d751="Rod54"](any deeper than 60cm and by law in Queensland the pond should be fenced)[/quote:c56c61d751]
My local council (Rockhampton in CQ) told me I could have it any depth I wanted and not need a fence. I asked if I could excavate my entire yard to a depth of a couple of meters and he laughed and said if I wanted to I could. It only has to be fenced if you swim in it.
Ring your local council and ask for clarification of this.
James[/quote:c56c61d751]
My council said the same (that there's no law in QLD regarding decorative ponds), but of course said you would be open to legal action if a child drowned in it.
I guess the real question is whether the public liability insurance component of your home insurance would be void over a certian depth or without a fence or both?
[quote:d46faafa86]Ornamental Pools and Water features
Q. Do fish ponds/ornamental ponds on residential properties need to be fenced?
A. No. The Act relates only to swimming pools for residential dwellings and Class 2 dwellings. There is no requirement to fence a fish pond or ornamental pond. [/quote:d46faafa86]
full article here http://www.poolfencing.qld.gov.au/?id=70
this is up to date as of Nov 2005
Quote from that article for those who can't be bothered reading it..
"Ornamental Pools and Water features
Q. Do fish ponds/ornamental ponds on residential properties need to be fenced?
A. No. The Act relates only to swimming pools for residential dwellings and Class 2 dwellings. There is no requirement to fence a fish pond or ornamental pond."
dont forget to cane toad proof yor pond too :evil:
Yes there is no requirement under the Qld pool fencing legislation to fence ponds....Sorry to provide information that may be incorrect.
I can't recall where I got the information from...but...at the time it seemed to make sense given the neighbour had 2 toddlers.
Perhaps it was just a recommendation...Good design practise? that I misinterpreted as a Law.
Maybe it's just me....but I don't think I'll be taking advantage of this new bit of information anytime soon.
[quote:1a7d2b8d1b="Ronin"]dont forget to cane toad proof yor pond too :evil:[/quote:1a7d2b8d1b]
How do you do that? A physical barrier of some sort?
yup,birdwire will stop the big ones, adding some salt to the water will discourage them too and wont worry most pond fish. Ever seen what happens to a toad if you cover it in salt? not pretty its like acid to them.
I don't know that adding salt is going to deter cane toads. They're can be found in almost pure sea water- Buffo marinus, "marinus" meaning marine. I think if you pour pure salt on any amphibian it's going to cause them serious problems. From what I'm told you're better off having a raised pond if you can manage it, apparently they're shit climbers, but that's not always practical.
Raised pond is the only way to keep toads out. They are lousy climbers.
Birds are a big problem as Theo said. Always seem to find fish especially goldfish due to bright colour. Lots of Water Lillies gives the fish a little cover but nothing other than the net is really effective. I did hear of a water shooting movement detected thing that was supposed to be real good. Just don't forget it, as you'll cop a blast from it too but have heard they are very effective. I may be wrong but I thought Aquarium Warehouse had them a while back.
Cheers Linda
rats will also catch and eat fish out of ponds as well
depends on if the fish are big enough to eat the rats or not! 8O
Rats????
You guys need to clean up the backyard i think.
no mate just have bird breeders and people with chickens close by so plenty of food for em .i have my rodent cat catcher in the back yard.lol
Watch the rodent catcher too. He may fancy a seafood diet.
Did hear a couple of years ago that one of the Pleco Breeders lost about half their breeders to Water Rats. Don't know if its true but thats what we were told. Seems had to believe but they can swim well. Don't know about holding their breath and diving for Plecos in 2 mts water????. Still thats what we were told.
Cheers Linda
If you have ever seen the size of a true Water Rat you'll know that they would take out a cat probably a small dog even. They probably were touching the bottom of the pond walking LOL. Big bastards they are.
If you have ever seen the size of a true Water Rat you'll know that they would take out a cat probably a small dog even. They probably were touching the bottom of the pond walking LOL. Big bastards they are.
Dont forget platys look great in a pond also and can mix in with you golfish 8O