Hey Folks,
I'm finally wide-open on the pond build after a slow winter of building a retaining wall and revising by design over and over. I am going to re-run the numbers when I have a better idea of the final shape but it is between 25,000 and 30,000 gallons. Some features include:
- 6 x Rhino II Bottom Drains - 4" Pressure PVC + 1/2" PEX for Air
- 12 x 1.5" TPRs - 3" Pressure PVC
- 2 x Pond Return Skimmers - 2" Pressure PVC
- 8 Foot Diameter island
- 2 x 24 inch x 48 inch windows
- 70 linear feet of CMU retaining wall with a hefty footer and way too much rebar.
- Earthen retaining wall for the remaining perimeter
The Utility/Filter/Business end is in the back where I have trenched in filtered well water, unfiltered well water, 2 x 20A GFCI Breakers circuits and a backup air supply from the garage (not on GFCI for no lightning trips) and 2 x Cat6 cables to the house. The island has a dedicated 3" drain and a branch circuit in case I want power some day.
CMU Wall Construction
Attachment 608673
Pond Windows Newly Set into Wall
Attachment 608674
Wall Complete
Attachment 608675
Excavation in Progress
Attachment 608676
Ready for Laying Pipe that goes under earth retaining wall. Trying to move as much dirt as possible before excavator rental is over. It looks like my son is playing in the mud.
Attachment 608677
4" BD Drain Lines are rough-in where I need to backfill.
Attachment 608678
I finished backfilling the wall. I'll get some new pictures soon.
So... as you can see, I am dealing with some groundwater. I am wracking my brain as to hope to cast the BDs into concrete while dealing with so much water. I can try to wait out the water by running the sump pump and hope for dry weather. However, the slopes wound up being much steeper than 1:1 (I was having too much fun on the excavator). The bouncing water table is causing erosion and eating at the slopes slowly. I think it's stabilized for now but I'm a bit anxious that it will become a structural problem by undermining the soil supporting the footer. If anyone has dealt with this situation before, I am all ears! :)
...more to come. As always, any wisdom from you guys/gals is welcome as I go. This forum and the guys at Play It Koi have been phenomenal in helping me!
Regards,
Brent