How To Use This Pond Landscaping Website | Estimating & Avoiding Problems

In choosing the style of water garden you have in mind it would be advisable to browse through the rest of the pages on the site familiarising yourself with the style and presentation employed. In so doing you can then note the pages relevant to your project and thus build up what will be your own personal recipe for the water garden you had in mind. You can use the grid style index to tick off the topics that are relevant to you too.

Each major project lists tools and materials whilst guiding you through the tasks, pointing out potential problems on the way. A guide for estimating quantities involved can be gleaned from next pages.

The Water Feature Excavation

Soil doubles in volume as it emerges from the ground. There is always more than you need for further landscaping. The average large skip holds 6 cubic metres and always costs more than you can imagine.

4 inch or 10cm Building Blocks.

For lined ponds in the ground, double the length and breadth of the pond in yards and then double the number for the required number of perimeter blocks. For example if the pond is 4 by 3 yards then you will need 14 x 9 = 126 blocks to edge the perimeter.

For raised ponds, take the height in inches and divide it by 9 then multiply the perimeter number of blocks (see above) by this number. Allow extra blocks for the creation of the marginal shelf in raised ponds or ponds set in unstable ground. For example if the height is 18 inches then you will need 18/9 x 126 = 252 blocks.

Block-work for lined streams or waterfalls differs from project to project, but a common sense figure can be deduced from the height of the head of the stream in inches, divided by 9, then added onto twice its length in feet.

Flexible Pond Liners.

Remember to add double the depth to the length and breadth to estimate the size of liner. Economically it is best to design the pond in one dimension (plus twice the depth) to fit in with one of the standard widths of liner sizes.

If you have dramatic indentations in the pond shape, measure round the contour to measure the extra liner that is required to accommodate this shape.

Stonework and Rockeries

I always estimate the quantity of stone for a rockery by multiplying the height by the width in feet and regard each square foot as accounting for 1cwt (112 lbs) or 50kilos of stone. This is the same for estimating rockery surrounds for the pond or the stream face. Good stone walling stone usually covers about 4 sq yds per ton; natural stone paving covers about 11sq yds per ton; gravel or chippings to dust for footings, 1 ton covers about 10 sq yds in 2 inches of depth.

Cement and Sand

Allow one bag of cement for every 4 of similar weight of sand.

Allow two large bags (1cwt - 50kilo) for each 4 sq yds of walling face, but more if there is a lot of backfilling.

Sand under the pond liner. Sand covers approximately 15 sq yds per ton at 2ins.

Cement mortar. Generally a 4 to 1 sand to cement mix is adequate.

Cement mortar underwater. All underwater surfaces must be treated with silglaze or pondglaze to draw out excess lime.

Pump and Pipework.

Always go for the largest practical diameter hose. This allows the pump to perform at its most efficient. Nevertheless for every 10 feet of hose it may lose between 60 to 100 gallons delivery power, even on the level. For the same reason keep fittings to a minimum.

The performance in pumping vertically (the head) varies considerably from one make of pump to another. Manufacturers on their products boxes generally give details on individual pumps performances. Go for more power than you will think you need. If you are running a fountain from a waterfall pump, it is going to reduce the performance by up to 500 litres per hour (100 gallons). On the performance table, the volume of water you need to move to the required height should be about half way down its performance curve.

Streams and Waterfalls

A flow of 300 gallons per hour will flow over a 3 inch wide sill at about inch deep; and over a 6inch sill about inch deep. Allow a flow rate of 50 to 60 gallons per hour per inch of sill. This translates to roughly 100 litres per hour per cm.

To avoid plant disturbance, turn over only half the total volume of the pond every hour.

Pond Bio Filters

Biological filters need to be able to cope with the flow of half the volume of the pond every hour to be effective. Therefore a compatible, submersible pump is required to deliver this. It must be specifically designed for working with biological filters i.e. capable of handling solids. Many people run Ultra Violet Clarifiers with biological filters nowadays. This too must have a similar capacity to the pump and the filter to be effective. It will be fitted in the line of the inlet hose to the filter.

Biological filters need at least a month to get fully operational in a digesting capacity. Since biological filters function with the aid of micro-organisms, which depend on oxygen to do their job, a continuous flow of well oxygenated water is essential, which must be kept flowing continuously.

Aquatic Plants

See later, but I stress that oxygenating plants like Laragasiphon major (Elodea crispa) are the most essential ingredient of the pond. The ultimate aim is to have the pond 60% full of oxygenators before you are anywhere near guaranteeing a perfectly balanced system and therefore perfectly clear water. 1 bunch for every 2 sqft will set you off.

Pond Fish ... koi, goldfish, orfe, tench and others

Never introduce too many fish in one go. Wait for 2 to 3 weeks after planting and take care when introducing them to the pond. Float them in a plastic bag on the surface of the pond for 15-30 minutes, gradually introducing small quantities of water from their new home to the plastic bag. This takes the stress out of changes in temperature and alkalinity. Then the fish can very slowly introduced to their new environment. The maximum number? Allow only 2 inches of fish per square foot of surface area.

APOLOGY.

I apologise for mixing my measuring units and quantities, but where a unit of measurement has a particular mentally visual potency like the foot or the hundredweight, I have used it, particularly when it is still a standard unit of measurement used at the trade counter.

In the drawings that are included on the site I have tried to add an idea of how the work is done by including two figures, Eric and Kevin. Not for good reason do they look as though they are built like brick outhouses. They serve as reminder that building water gardens can be hard and strenuous work. So take it easy, mind your back and try to get some help. Good luck.