Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The pond is pretty large, about an acre in size, not sure how deep, but it is frozen over now in the winter, up in the north east. It's surrounded by tall woods, so it might be slightly shaded in the summer, but not sure how much.
Other issue is that only half of the pond is owned with the property, the other half belongs to the neighboring property.
Not sure how the pond got there, looks natural. It is at the bottom of a hill, and it does seem to have a stream running into it, or at least wetlands, I can't figure out which.
So what are the major factors to watch out for? I noticed a few ducks in it. Will I see duck crap all over the property? What about drying up and smelling? Mosquitos?
Should this pond be a + or a - for the property value? I know, there are probably a lot more factors for me to find out, but this is all the info I currently have.
Well Off the top of me head-
can the owner show you pictures from when there is no snow?
I would try to find out if it has the stream feeding it or maybe a spring. Or it could just be a catch basin for runoff.
I would want to know if there is a dam supporting any portion of it.And if it is safe. If it is natural or was built/dug.
Also what is the arrangement with the adjoining property owner as far as any maintenance. Like it there is a overflow drain- who checks or maintains.
What is the liability as far as if the property is fenced in or open. Could someone 'trespass', get hurt, would you need extra insurance protection.
do you have young children who you would need to keep an extra eye on.
Personally I think it would be neat! Doesn't sound like you would need to worry about alligators LOL
and the ducks- or wildlife? just don't feed them- they need to forage & look after themselves
See how big/close it gets and keep in mind, we've had two 500 year floods with 15 years-- you may or may not believe in global warming, but it seems to be raining more than it used to in some spots. Something to keep in mind.
We owned a property with a similar sized pond, but in a different state. Liability and insurance will vary from state to state.
When we bought the place, the house the acreage and the pond were all one. We fenced off the back portion of the property with the pond. Installed a gate with lock. Still found neighborhood kids back there from time to time who had jumped one of the fences.
According to our insurance company, having installed fence around the pond and put in a gate, we were not liable nor negligent if someone hopped the fences and met with misfortune in our pond. Without the fencing, we could have been found both negligent and liable if someone had strolled uninvited onto the property and become injured. Get a fence.
Ducks are good. Encourage them. Ducks eat mosquito larvae and aquatic plants. We installed ducks in our pond and kicked the mosquito problem. Geese are good too. Avoid swans as they are very aggressive birds. Beautiful but marauding.
You will love the pond. If you can find local livestock markets, you will be amazed at the kinds of beautiful aquatic birds and ducks and geese there are in this world and you will want to buy all of them to float in your pond. In the winter they will flurry around a small area to keep the water open and stop ice from forming. Ducks on ice are the funniest thing you have ever seen in your life.
I've got to admit, I love ducks. When it rains they stand up in line and have a parade. In the evenings they paddle around the pond making soft clucking noises. They raise adorable squadrons of little duckie babies. Sadly, they are ground nesting birds and subject to lots of predators. Duck losses can be high.
I'm including just a couple of duck pics. Powder puff ducks, wood ducks, mallards.
When we almost bought a house with a pond, I started checking out info - there is a pond website - some of these people are really serious about ponds - so do not talk about filling it in! I wanted to get rid of catfish in the pond - and was LAUGHED at - it seems that ponds NEED fish and wildlife in order to not become ICKY - city woman's word for non-cement pond.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
