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We bought a house last summer with a 10' round fish pond in the backyard that's about 5' deep. It takes up a good 25% of the lawn, so we decided to remove it. We gave away the fish last summer, removed all the equipment and pumped it of most of its water (there's still about 6" of water, due to the pump dying before we could completely empty it).
The pond was surrounded by stacked rocks. Many of these rocks had fallen into the pond, so removing the liner became really difficult. The liner is actually three layers - a rubber liner, a green turf liner behind that and then another black film liner that it up against the dirt layer.
My plan was to cut away as much of the liner as possible, but I'm afraid that a small portion at the very bottom will have to stay, because heavy rocks are sitting on top of it. Since we don't have a need for all the rocks, we plan to throw them into the hole to try to fill the bottom 3 feet or so. Then, I was going to dump sand on top of the rocks to try to fill the hole some more and then top soil for the top 6" or so, with the intention of planting grass on top.
My assumption is that the rocks topped by the sand will allow for proper water drainage, even if a portion of the liner remains at the very bottom. I'm hoping that with the liner being 5 feet deep, the water will drain outward before it reaches the liner that far down.
I'm guessing that over the years, the soil/sand will continue to settle into the rock layer and we may have to top the area off frequently, but other than that am I making any serious missteps?
csteen,
Remove everything. Is there a reason you are leaving a liner in the hole?
You don't know anyone who can come over and help you get the liner out?
Remove that liner.
Dump all therocks in after you remove the liner.
Then, go order some clean fill. Call your local privately owned nursery and
ask them a phone number for someone who will deliver clean fill.
THey will fill the hole (without the liner), with local SOIL.
Do not fill it up with sand.
You don't want sand.
THen if you want lawn, just throw seeds on after the fill is delivered.
The guy will dump it right in the hole if you move things out of the way for him.
Otherwise, it will be a PITA to carry all that soil in a wheel barrel to the hole.
Do it right the first time, or don't do it at all.
Set the pond up and enjoy, or do it right.
csteen,
Remove everything. Is there a reason you are leaving a liner in the hole?
You don't know anyone who can come over and help you get the liner out?
Remove that liner.
Dump all therocks in after you remove the liner.
Then, go order some clean fill. Call your local privately owned nursery and
ask them a phone number for someone who will deliver clean fill.
THey will fill the hole (without the liner), with local SOIL.
Do not fill it up with sand.
You don't want sand.
THen if you want lawn, just throw seeds on after the fill is delivered.
The guy will dump it right in the hole if you move things out of the way for him.
Otherwise, it will be a PITA to carry all that soil in a wheel barrel to the hole.
Do it right the first time, or don't do it at all.
Set the pond up and enjoy, or do it right.
I really can't remove the very bottom layer of the liner. It's covered by three feet of large, heavy rocks and the pond had not been maintained for almost 10 years prior to us purchasing the house, so I'm NOT getting in there and I wouldn't subject anyone else to that, either. I've cut away as much of the liner as I possibly could and all that remains is the very bottom circle that I couldn't reach with the shears. It's 5 feet down with dirt walls surrounding it.
My question is just whether to fill it part way with sand and then top with good quality top soil or just to use clean fill dirt and top with top soil. I don't know if I need the sand for drainage or if I can use the dirt.
csteen,
Remove everything. Is there a reason you are leaving a liner in the hole?
You don't know anyone who can come over and help you get the liner out?
Remove that liner.
Dump all therocks in after you remove the liner.
Then, go order some clean fill. Call your local privately owned nursery and
ask them a phone number for someone who will deliver clean fill.
THey will fill the hole (without the liner), with local SOIL.
Do not fill it up with sand.
You don't want sand.
THen if you want lawn, just throw seeds on after the fill is delivered.
The guy will dump it right in the hole if you move things out of the way for him.
Otherwise, it will be a PITA to carry all that soil in a wheel barrel to the hole.
Do it right the first time, or don't do it at all.
Set the pond up and enjoy, or do it right.
lol. Did you read the OP?
Fill the thing in. I've done it before, liner still in place on the bottom, no problem. You could always punch holes in as much of the liner as you can get to if it makes you feel better about drainage.
Csteen,
Well, just call and have some clean fill delivered.
There is a thing called settling. Ground settling.
Do not use sand. Because of settling.
You want clean fill to be as close to your natural local soil
as possible, and usually the fill will be from someone local.
Order a little bit more than you think you need, and if possible, just
save it for later this fall, the ground will go down for you.
You can plant grass on it or whatever you want, if you see by next spring
the ground has sunk in a little bit, you can just put more of the extra clean fill
on top.
Clean fill. No sand. Sand sinks fast.
Good Luck to you.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Sand is a bad idea, you can end up with water accumulation above the liner and quicksand-like soft areas that can cave in when you walk on the lawn after a heavy rain. It need to be filled with topsoil, and compacted as you add it. Rocks at the bottom will also create air gaps that will fill with soil over time and cause sinkholes.
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