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Like southrangefamily, we had a pond dug in OH. We had a dry hydrant put in and enjoyed an insurance reduction because of it. We loved watching the herons, ducks and other wildlife which stopped at it. The kids swam in it, fished in it, and had a paddleboat. The only thing detrimental was that we had to spray it a couple of times in the summer with copper sulfate to keep it clear of weeds. They do require maintenance. If you put in an aerator, it keeps the weeds down. If you like fishing...we had an agreement with our fish; they would immediately hop onto our hooks, and we always threw them back.
Somewhere around your pond there will be an overflow, which if dug deeper, would drain the pond. The folks who dug it could probably easily fill it in, but then you'd have the guilt of killing all the fish and other things that live in it.
IF you ever wanted to get a geothermal system, a lot of people put the coils into their ponds.
Like southrangefamily, we had a pond dug in OH. We had a dry hydrant put in and enjoyed an insurance reduction because of it. We loved watching the herons, ducks and other wildlife which stopped at it. The kids swam in it, fished in it, and had a paddleboat. The only thing detrimental was that we had to spray it a couple of times in the summer with copper sulfate to keep it clear of weeds. They do require maintenance. If you put in an aerator, it keeps the weeds down. If you like fishing...we had an agreement with our fish; they would immediately hop onto our hooks, and we always threw them back.
Somewhere around your pond there will be an overflow, which if dug deeper, would drain the pond. The folks who dug it could probably easily fill it in, but then you'd have the guilt of killing all the fish and other things that live in it.
IF you ever wanted to get a geothermal system, a lot of people put the coils into their ponds.
Copper Sulfate? Does it do any harm to the critters (frogs, salamanders, birds, etc.)? Will it kill the tall reeds?
BGMV90, I never saw a snake in my pond, but I do know they are all around my property. You don't have to be afraid of them. Most of the time they are just garden snakes. They are more afraid of you.
Living the country life is wonderful, as long as you don't try to change it. I love going down to my pond in the Spring in search of wildlife. You'll see things you could never see in the city. One day I saw something going on in my pond and when I walked over I couldn't believe what I saw. A frog killed a bird in less then 60 seconds and had it in his mouth. He held onto that bird for over two hours until, I guess he realized it was to big to swallow. You'll see something new everyday.
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Copper sulfate depletes the oxygen as it kills the plant growth. Only part of the pond should be treated at a time. If the entire pond is treated at the same time, the fish have no place to go, and suffocate. It also kills all of the snails, and clams.
My pond is 10 years old. I only had to treat it one time with Karmex. It's a herbicide that does the same thing that copper sulfate does.
I asked some people about how much it would cost to build a pond... they told me that it would be less than 10k for about an acre... is that right? I prefer ponds that are at least 5 feet deep and an acre in size...
Location: The Raider Nation._ Our band kicks brass
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That's very reasonable. An acre is 208 x 208. That's a lot of pond. Mine is 90 x 300 Two different quotes were 3, and 4 grand. That was to push the dirt about another 150 feet away into a big mound for shooting. It was also 10 years ago.
I'm 12 feet deep on the ends. The length connecting them is 5 feet deep. There is also a channel down the middle that is the width of a bucket. It's another 2 feet deep.
You should really have a deep spot so the fish have a place to go when it's really hot, and when it freezes.
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Removing a pond on rural property may be more complicated from a permitting standpoint than you realize. It is possible that the pond in question qualifies as "waters of the US" or "waters of the state" or as a wetland and, ridiculous as it may sound considering that this is probably a man-made pond on private property, you may have to get a series of permits from the Army Corps of Engineers or other regulatory body in order to get rid of it. A lot depends on what state you live in and how they define state waters. If it is defined as a wetland, you may not be able to get rid of it.
That's very reasonable. An acre is 208 x 208. That's a lot of pond. Mine is 90 x 300 Two different quotes were 3, and 4 grand. That was to push the dirt about another 150 feet away into a big mound for shooting. It was also 10 years ago.
I'm 12 feet deep on the ends. The length connecting them is 5 feet deep. There is also a channel down the middle that is the width of a bucket. It's another 2 feet deep.
You should really have a deep spot so the fish have a place to go when it's really hot, and when it freezes.
Good to know... I plan on having a pond one day... didn't realize it was really that cheap... for some reason I thought it would be like 50k or something... really glad it isn't...
Good to know... I plan on having a pond one day... didn't realize it was really that cheap... for some reason I thought it would be like 50k or something... really glad it isn't...
Check too with Soil Conservation office in your county - sometimes they have grant money available to assist with pond construction.
The copper sulphate was for cloudiness and algae. We used the powder form, dissolved in a sprayer. We walked around the edge and sprayed as far as the spray would reach. It worked great, and all our fish, frogs and turtles remained perfectly healthy and happy.
We manually removed cattails, and I believe we used a weed killer around the edge which was safe for around ponds. It sounds like a lot, but really we only spent a few hours a season on it.
Removing a pond on rural property may be more complicated from a permitting standpoint than you realize. It is possible that the pond in question qualifies as "waters of the US" or "waters of the state" or as a wetland and, ridiculous as it may sound considering that this is probably a man-made pond on private property, you may have to get a series of permits from the Army Corps of Engineers or other regulatory body in order to get rid of it. A lot depends on what state you live in and how they define state waters. If it is defined as a wetland, you may not be able to get rid of it.
This post above is your very first step in doing anything with a pond, either creating one and particularly eliminating one. The ACOE will be your first contact,, then your wetlands commission in your town. Redirecting surface water is almost a crime in the US these days, and if you do it without "permission" from the nanny state, you may be liable for flooding government land, private property, or even creating wetlands on your own property. As crazy as this sounds, it's all true, and it is wise to check with all of these parties before you even take one shovelful of soil away or add into any pond on your property.
And we think we live in a country where we have "private property".
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