/r/ponds

Photograph via snooOG

Anything about ponds, but posts about making ponds are especially encouraged.

/r/ponds

83,408 Subscribers

2

growing lights

hello.

I am looking into an indoor pond. i have minimal sunlight will grow lights work instead? will they able to sustain plants even with 0 sunlight? how to know the one am buying is legit like what specs does it have to be to sustain plants? am sorry if this is a stupid question but i read somewhere that they are uselless.

https://preview.redd.it/qph532k6xhde1.png?width=1473&format=png&auto=webp&s=7e506963b8a05cfa686c08bbd9cea0ac4559497c

https://preview.redd.it/pyl9hb77xhde1.png?width=1281&format=png&auto=webp&s=47a8e7bead3de4dea6799912eec4757527ea6bff

4 Comments
2025/01/17
06:12 UTC

3

What substrate do I se for growing plants?

This is my first time setting up a pond, I’m unsure about what substrate I should use for my plants? I would preferably like the plants to take nutrients from the water and not have the substrate mess with the water parameters too much.

The photo I have attached is the pot they will be in. I have some plastic pots for plants that need deeper water aswell.

The plants I currently have are:

Brahmi Mini umbrella grass Dwarf arum lily White gnome

4 Comments
2025/01/17
02:18 UTC

21

Pond instead of conifers?

Playing with the Idea of replacing these conifers with a wildlife style pond. Roughly 6m x 3m area at least 2m away from the front door! Not sure about keeping the monkey puzzle tree. Will be planting up the rest of the garden eventually. Watched Joel Ashton on YT and feeling inspired... all advice welcome.

14 Comments
2025/01/16
19:40 UTC

7

My little pond in the snow

The amazing amount of snow we've gotten here in southern Ohio and the frigid temperatures didn't have my little pond completely frozen over. The snow has made it near impossible for the birds to use it like they normally would all winter (at least the non-frozen bits).

https://preview.redd.it/an5jy0qd5dde1.jpg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=822690ddfa4f804fbf1468324caccfbdb346b822

4 Comments
2025/01/16
14:09 UTC

26

Found the world’s happiest dragonfly. Freshly hatched.

0 Comments
2025/01/16
07:39 UTC

2

Winter into Spring Barrel Pond

Hey guys. I built a small whiskey barrel pond last year that was very successful and rewarding. My plants and tadpoles thrived and I even had a water snake show up! My question now is, do I need to change out the water for this coming spring? It has been sitting dormant for the past 3 months. I cleaned a ton of leaves from the bottom and have tried to keep it clean. It still gets rained in regularly and many of the underwater plants are still alive. It does have a ton of green fuzzy algae that clings to the walls and large rocks under the water that did not used to be there however. Is this algae good or do I need to clean it? Should I replace the water with my rain collector water before spring? Give me your best advice! How do I best prepare it for optimal life and success this coming spring?

0 Comments
2025/01/15
16:26 UTC

325

Just got my first pond for free! Now I have to dig. I'm so excited

17 Comments
2025/01/15
13:54 UTC

2

Pond filter tripping electric

I recently bought a house and the sellers asked if we wanted to keep the fish (koi) in the pond, they said they would leave all the supplies they had so we agreed.

What they left was a pond filter that trips the electrics the second it hits water. It will run fine outside the pond but not in it.

The filter is a hozelock easyclear 6000, any suggestions on what to do before i buy a new one?

2 Comments
2025/01/15
12:36 UTC

2

Raised Pond Build

The wooden deck in our backyard has come to the point of needing to be replaced and I am debating putting in a raised pond on top/inside the new deck but I am not sure the best way to move forward.

I would probably like to have the pond be raised above the decking but also extended a bit below for some depth to the pond.

For the exterior it will either be lined with wood or some kind of plastered brick wall, but I am not sure what to use on the inside of the pond.
Fiberglass seems too hard and expensive to manage doing on my own so it is out of the equation so I am looking for other options.

Of course a classic liner is always possible but I am worried that any folds will stick out like a sore thumb, for this reason I have been thinking about how a stainless steel inside would look and function, maybe a glass ball blasted finish would look good?

Would there be any downside to having a stainless steel container instead of a classic liner?

If I would go with the stainless steel there would still be an outer shell made from bricks to make sure the inside does not bulge from the water and some form of insulation to keep a stable water temperature.

The pond would most likely be inhabited by Koi and goldfish.

I can't seem to find any similar ponds using a stainless steel container on here or YouTube so any thoughts will be appreciated.

8 Comments
2025/01/15
10:04 UTC

1

Thoughts on Aqua Ultraviolet Filters?

Specifically this one https://aquaultraviolet.com/product/ultima-ii-1000-filter/

600ish gallon pond btw

10 Comments
2025/01/15
04:50 UTC

284

Today was Pond Filling Day. ~3100 gallons with a bog filter.

6 Comments
2025/01/14
23:29 UTC

3

Pond motor

I have a backyard pond that is...I don't know, maybe between 1-2000 gallons. We have a 1/2hp Bluffton motor that powers the pump/filter, and the motor seems to be kaput. The spindle/shaft is completely seized and I cannot crank it even with a fairly large wrench.

I have two questions

  1. Is there a good go-to motor I should look at for a replacement?

  2. Is it bad for the motor to turn it on and off once a day? This motor has been running for 6-7 years, but in the last 6 months I've had it set by remote switch to turn it on when the electric rates are low and off when the rate is high for the day. So it's been power cycled once a day. Could that be what killed it?

1 Comment
2025/01/14
19:56 UTC

5

snow covered pond cover - do I need to be peeking in on the fish?

Outside DC, and this is the longest we have had snow on the ground since I built my pond, and it's all over my pond cover too, so I can't lift it to check on the fish. They are in a semi-above ground pond with insulation, and there is a small pump circulating surface water. I normally just peek in on them every day, but we have had so much snow on the cover I can't lift it. Now I'm panicking because I haven't looked in on them but once in a week, and I couldn't see them at all because I couldn't lift the cover up enough. I think it' s finally melted enough that I can get into it tonight. I have fancy goldfish, dojo loaches, and some assorted cloud minnows.

is snow on top of the cover (polycarbonate insulation sheets) an issue, do I need to remove it next time? I thought it might keep it warmer, kind of like an igloo. there's about 6-8" of gap between the water and the cover, and there is good surface movement still, not frozen and haven't frozen yet.

6 Comments
2025/01/14
18:32 UTC

0

The Power of Alum

6 Comments
2025/01/14
08:35 UTC

5

Pond upgrade.

I'm looking to upgrade from a container pond to a small garden pond. I've no idea where to start. I'm thinking I'll go with preformed instead of a liner. I'm in the Midwest, I'm sure that will affect my plant choices. Any startup advice is helpful.

6 Comments
2025/01/13
18:29 UTC

6

Fluff in my pond won’t go away.

Pond was overgrown for a couple of years and had lots of fallen leaves in it, almost 1/3 full of them, took out most of the plants, cleared out almost all of the fallen leaves. Topped up with clean water, cleaned filter twice a day, drained 1/3 of the water and refilled, still have a lot of fluffy material in the pond. Only a couple of fish and is 500 litres. What else do I need to do?

20 Comments
2025/01/13
06:40 UTC

153

Slightly larger than a pond.

14 Comments
2025/01/13
06:39 UTC

2

Raised wooden pond advice equipment and materials, etc?

Hello new to ponds

Planning on making a raised pond in the back garden.

6ft x 4ft and 3ft deep about 500 gallons.

What materials will i need and equipments?

Can i use railway sleepers?

What pump and filtration?

I got advice that it's dangerous to have pond with small children? But there are covers like nets isn't.

How many fish i can keep? Koi and goldfish?

Thank you in advance 🙏

6 Comments
2025/01/13
02:00 UTC

3

Confused about bog filter/pump use for optimal filtering of bigger debris

I am getting ready to set up a 300gal Rubbermaid stock tank pond, with two 50gal stock tanks above it, and possibly a half barrel above that (water pumped to top container and waterfalls down; plants and bog material in all for max filtering). I bought a vivohome 1800gph pump with “14ft” lift height, so I expect it will be plenty to lift the actual <6ft. My question: on this pump (or even the Pondmaster I am still debating) large debris like leaves cannot get through. So does this just collect at the bottom of the pond and decompose? I’ve read about skimmers but I don’t have a vision for how to make that work in this design. Is there something else I need to set up to catch large debris prior to the pump (other than a pump bag, which I understand protects the pump but doesn’t address debris? Thanks!

Any other random tips greatly appreciated!

7 Comments
2025/01/12
12:50 UTC

1,039

Kick off your shoes and enjoy the pond tour. Never ending source or joy and projects.

Moved in 4 years ago to a grass lawn. Wife and I have been working away ever since. Loving the progress and how much relaxation it brings to our lives. Remember, it’s never too late to take a second to breathe. Love to all.

28 Comments
2025/01/12
03:05 UTC

2

How would you build a pond/wetland in an area that is a hamada desert?

For clarity: A hamada is a type of desert landscape consisting of high, largely barren, hard rocky plateaus, where most of the sand has been removed by deflation.

This is just a theoretical question.

4 Comments
2025/01/11
22:02 UTC

22

My little pond.

When I moved in 15ish years ago this place had several water features and they were all in disarray. The pond had a huge tear in the liner but at least the hole was there! So, slowly over the years, I built my own patio, revamped the pond and front fountain., even threw in some aquariums. I don't really think about them a whole lot but anytime people come over they are enamored. Sometimes I forget how relaxing they are. My only regret is I should have dug the pond out a little deeper when I rebuilt it. Taking all those stones and moving them was a real treat also by myself. There was some Egyptian style leveraging going on with me and a 2x4.

https://preview.redd.it/vwghp07mzece1.jpg?width=4080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b155c644987193d268219e965427c4e48b2acc05

video

https://preview.redd.it/ibpd9cl51fce1.jpg?width=4080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9b552031279ae350f264b35e1026c7006d9774ea

10 Comments
2025/01/11
18:42 UTC

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