How to make a pond...

[dbHunterNY]

Following up on db's comments, a pond for wildlife will be quite different from a pond for gamefish. If you want ducks, herps, etc. you don't need deep water. My next pond will be a vernal pool.

 

the 3 duck ponds are 2.5' at their deepest.  banks separating them just tall enough so waterfowl can't see any others in any of the other ponds.  so many duck boxes per pond. etc.  I know of some that have an outlet for vernal pools off a main pond.  stone wall leech separating the two.  vernal pond so shallow that every so often you drag it in spots like a farmer lays out strip crop fields to have growth start over.  our game fish pond was pretty much one but then we decided it'd be a good spot for a bigger and deeper pond.  bottom composition I think is important depending on what you want out of a vernal pond I've been told.  a lot to building ponds and a lot of it is beyond my knowledge.

[airedale]

There are rubber liners that can be used where there is leaky soil, it will certainly add to the cost but if one is determined to have a pond it is possible to dig one almost anywhere.

 

Al

[Doc]

I watched a neighbor down the road construct a huge pond (several acres), and he encountered a leaker. This guy has more money than God, and he sunk a huge amount into it into this hole in the ground trying to build it and then fix it. First he diverted some water from another creek into it. That didn't work. It went away as quick as it came in. And so be began the bentonite treatment. He was messing around with that stuff for a couple of years and eventually got it to hold some water. He had to have spent thousands of dollars trying to make that stuff work, and I assume that he finally sealed it.

 

It's funny, and shows how tricky some of this pond stuff can be. His pond is approximately 200 yards from my Dad's pond which maintains it's level perfectly year around and has for about 30 years or so. And here are these two failed ponds on each side of his. So, like I said, you just never know exactly what is under the ground (test holes and all). No gravel under Dad's but this neighbor and I both found veins of grave. Basically water veins (Gravel conduit for water) ....lol.

[Doc]

Clay that's what you need, I dug a 20' x 40' hole up in the woods , wet weather spring fed with a very good flow. packed the sides and bottom pretty good with whatever clay I could find while digging. It filled up about 1/4 of the way and then the water found a spot at the bottom to drain out. It  now makes a good burn pit.

What is on top is no indicator of what is underneath. Perhaps some backhoe work with test holes might have shown a little of what is under the floor of your pond.

[growalot]

The biggest problems with woodland ponds are tree roots...tree roots can and do travel surprisingly long distances.

[thphtm]

I know what is under the floor the same thing as ever place in area that is ROCKS, there is more of them then soil. Every thing front tennis size to some the size of a full size pickup truck.

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[philoshop]

The biggest problems with woodland ponds are tree roots...tree roots can and do travel surprisingly long distances.

 

The biggest problem with private ponds is that the Federal Government doesn't want them to be private. As of yesterday the Federal government has extended their "jurisdiction over navigable waterways" to include ponds, creeks, drainage ditches, and even occasional mud-puddles.

President Obama yesterday vetoed legislation that would allow you to maintain your own pond as you see fit, and handed that task over to the Federal bureaucrats.

 

I have no idea what they intend to do with their new power, or how they will enforce any new procedures or regulations, but I find it discomforting that they now have a 'legitimate' reason to enter my property simply because I have a drainage ditch.

[peepsight]

Boy O Boy do you have that right  !!!!

[LET EM GROW]

A friend of mine just put a 2 acre, 20' deep pond in on his newly bought 110 acres of woods.. they quoted him $16,000, ended up billing him for $20,000... They settled it somehow at $16,000.

 

Was hoping to win some of that powerball, Lol!! i always wanted to get in to hardscapes, get a truck and dozer and do this kind of stuff(ponds, food plots, etc..) as a hobby for the poor guys like me...  

[Merlot]

I have an estimate on a re-dig of a pond in Wyoming County. Pond is 200 feet by 100 feet and needs to be re-dug. Any thoughts on contractors in the WNY area who can give an estimate? Already contacted D and H in Arcade. Thanks.

[growalot]

Researching equipment costs...buying,  compared to hiring them out or rentals  One could be better off taking out that loan to buy the equipment...Doing the needed research and handling the job themselves and any other jobs needed, say in a 2-3yr span. Then giving the equipment a good scrub,grease and lube,  maybe a paint job and reselling it. Possibly coming out ahead in the end,after paying off loan.