This will be my first pond - I found a turtle in my yard last year and he's been living with some goldfish and some plants in a rubbermaid tub since; I'd like to give him a better home, add a turtle or two and more goldfish, maybe a koi depending on if the pond can support it...
I've just been reading up on this site and others, other than that I have no experience. The pond will be about 9x7 and average two feet deep, which is about 850 gallons. These plans might be overkill for a small pond, but I like making stuff so I don't really mind overkill, especially if it means I get a nice low-maintenance pond. On the other hand, my ballpark cost estimate is over $2000 now, which is more than I was thinking; and I don't really like spending money if it doesn't add much...
Here's a picture of the yard:
I'm in coastal San Diego and this is pretty much in full sun, so I plan on having a lot of plants in the water to provide shade. The ground slopes slightly up to the right in the pic, like the right side of the pond area is about three inches higher than the left - I plan on having a short cinderblock collar (like maybe one or two blocks high) that will be about 6 inches above ground on the left and 3 inches above ground on the right, with water level a few inches below the top. The pond will be 3 feet deep up near the top of the picture and shallower down near the bottom (there’s gas line there so it has to be shallow). I’m planning on putting the pump and some filter stuff behind the planter box in the upper right hand part of the picture. There’s about 8-10 feet along the length of the planter, but not that much space in the other direction (like maybe 2.5 feet between the planter and sprinkler lines that are in front of the plants against the fence). The falls will be small (like 6-9 inches wide) and maybe six inches to a foot above the surface of the water. Here’s a schematic-type view of the filters and plumbing I had planned:
I was planning on stuff like this for the filters, but maybe using something smaller than 55-gallon barrels.
S&G filter: https://www.koiphen.com/forums/showth...-Gravel-Filter
Settlement Chamber: https://www.koiphen.com/forums/showth...chamber-design
Bio: https://www.koiphen.com/forums/showth...uid-Bed-Filter
I figured about 5 feet of friction head using 2'' pipe. The pump would be right around the same height as the pond surface, depending on how deep I wanted to dig and place it.
For the pump, etc… I was think of the stuff listed below. These choicess aren't really based on much, it was just so I could get an idea of costs, and so I could ask if I’m picking stuff that’s inappropriate for some reason:
Pump – Evolution ES3500
Bottom Drain - 3’’ Koi ToiletII
UV - 15 watts – Aqua ultraviolet
If anyone wants to provide any advice, comments, etc... I'd really appreciate it. I've got a couple weeks off before new years, so I'm hoping to get my plans and equipment set up and then start digging around then.
Thanks a lot in advance!