What important things do I need to consider for my new pond?

Question

My partner and I are building a pond, and would like to keep fish. We thought that we would start off with gold fish, and eventually move on to other varieties once we had gained more knowledge on the subject. Is there anything in particular we need to consider to keep fish successfully?

Answer 1

Watch out for herons - they'll eat your fish.

You'll need to either cover your pond with some wire (doesn't look too nice) or get a model of a heron sized bird (like a flamingo) the heron will see this and not fish in your pond. We lost a few fish before we learned about this.

You'll need to get some plants (they stop algae growing) and the water should be constantly moving (to avoid freezing). You should have a fountain or a pump that moves the water around and a filter to keep the water clean.
Otherwise, just make sure the pond is clean and your fish are well fed.

Check out the link below, it has some good tips for setting up a pond

Good luck.

Answer 2

First off is location. Where are you going to put your pond. If you are going to have fish, they will need sunlight but also a shaded area where they can move from one to the other when they choose. You will need a filter. I suggest a skippy filter. They are easy to make and work better than anything I've tried so far. Also you need to consider how big of a pond you are going to build. How many gallons. This will determine how large of a filter you need and how many fish you can support. I would definitely recommend a bottom drain, if you are going to have a large pond (over 1000 gallons). Most of this you can find if you google "garden ponds" or "koi ponds". You will need to have the pond at least 3 feet deep to give the fish enough room to swim and get exercise and to survive over the winter if it doesn't get to cold where you live. I would suggest goldfish or shubunkin as starter fish. They are real pretty and can get fairly big but are easy to care for and can be quite friendly.

Answer 3

We've had a backyard pond for the last 10 years (12'x10'x4&1/2') and have found that pond filtration and the proper size pumps are the most important tools for keeping your pond circulating properly. We have Japanese Koi and some large goldfish, if you live where the water is going to freeze, make sure your pond is at least 4' deep so the fish can go deep enough for their dormant period for the winter months. Build a small cave like structure in the deepest end for them to go in and under for when they go dormant. Stop feeding them when the water temp hits 56 degrees fahrenheit as the food will only sit in their stomachs and rot from not digesting properly if they begin to go dormant for the winter. Water hyacinths, sensitive plants, horsetail, water lettuce plants are all the best ones for their vegetation needs. You should leave your pond pump running all year round especially in the winter for circulation, and if the top freezes over in the winter, just make sure you keep a medium size hole open in the ice for the methane gas to escape from the decaying plants, just don't 'knock or bust' a hole in the ice as the shockwave WILL kill the fish, pour warm water into one area to melt the ice. Good Luck.

Answer 4

Other than koenigsegg's excellent idea (gave you a thumbs up for making me giggle mate!) I wuld suggest getting a net for your pond. These nets are purpose made, and the gaps are big enough to let frogs in and out of your pond (frogspawn will be a positive feature of your pond and one point or another), but prevent herons and cats from helping themselves to your nutritious swimming predator-snacks. This will keep your fish safe.

Yes, you also need a filter, and some plantation in your pond to begin with. I would advise filling your pond with rainwater that you have collected in a rain butt, at least in part, as fish etc often don't manage well in pure tap water. This also encourages the growth of algae which serves as nutrition for various forms of pond life.

Carp probably are the best idea for your pond, but they're pricey.

Search your question online and have a look at various sites. Some are very informative.

Answer 5

DO NOT line the pond with LIME STONE!!!

The water will leach the lime out of the stone and the PH will rise and Kill ALL the fish!

Use river gravel in making the pond, and keep all stones other than that, out of the water.

Get some plants that will live in the water so the fish can feed off of them, also have it aerated enough to give the fish oxygen. (Either trickling water or a pump to push water into a fountain so that the water will splash and oxygen is inserted in the water that way).

Read a book! Its the best way, as fish can get expensive after awhile.

I wish you well..

Jesse

Answer 6

Hi, There are a few things to keeping fish successfully. It starts with designing a pond that is easy to maintain. Using a system that has a skimmer box, UV light, some type of waterfall for water movement, and rubber liner(for flexability of shape of pond) helps alot. It is also important to concider the size. Design the largest pond you can afford. It is easier to keep the water in balance the larger it is. Once the pond is up and running, dont add fish for at least a week. There are different chemicals to prepare the water, such as chlorine remover. There are also beneficial bacteria products to add as well.It is also better to add 1 or 2 fish every couple of weeks, to help keep the water from getting out of balance. There is a formula to guide you in the amount of fish you can keep in your pond for optimum health and ability to grow to full size. I'm sorry I dont know it , but it is how many gallons of water is needed per inch of fish. I would also start with koi, they grow very rapidly,and small ones are inexpensive. Walmart sells 3 to 4" koi for around $6.00. The koi get larger then goldfish and so many different colors.Please contact me, I would love to tell you more. I have installed ponds for my clients and I have a 4,000 gal. pond myself for eight years.

Answer 7

be careful what fish you put together. some are carnivores and might kill your most treasured fish. talk to an expert from which you buy the fishes to know which can leave together. gold fishes are nice and if the pond is deep with some lilies and a few rocks where they can hid they will have babies soon. also gold fish mix nicely with koi but for each koi you have you need approximately 1 sq meter of water or something like that because they are BEAUTIFUL but they grow BIG. with fish you have to talk to an expect and experience person.do not forget the oxygenate.

Answer 8

needs to be deep enough to allow the fish to choose the best hieght for temperature ( low is cooler in the summer, warmer in the winter )

needs to have shelves for plant life
Needs to have airating plants
Need ot have shade for fish (lilies or overhanging plants.
UV filter to keep algea clear.

Way of draining or adding some water in case you need to change some of it.

Can't advise of size of shelves etc because a pond can be any size, but they should be proportional to the pond

We've got 3 ponds.
One has no shelves and is 8 feet across.
The middle one has shelves about 1 foot across, about 1 foot deep, the pond is 15 foot diameter adn 5 feet deep
The big pond is 75 feet across, the shelves are 10 foot wide and about 3 feet deep, the cente is 12 foot deep

As you can imagine these are constructed in different ways: Brick, liner and clay lined. All have thier merits.
Finally toy need a bench so you can watch the world go by, this needs to have a little table for the beer/wine

Answer 9

It depends on the area you live in. Here in the Northeast, we usually recommend about 30" depth for fish. You also want to consider which area of the yard you will put the pond in. If it's too shady, many plants won't do well. If it's too sunny, you'll be subject to more algae blooms. Also, watch out for lower areas in the yard because they can be subject to run-off or water pockets, causing your liner to float. Whatever you end up doing, you'll love the pond and good luck.

Answer 10

I agree with badshoppers idea. You NEED a filter of some sort to keep the water moving..and to stop freezing. Gold fish will get HUGE also snails wont hurt to keep some algee away!


best of luck!