Building our own Duck Pond

[Miss Lydia]

. . .the rum barrel pond in action . . .

Cheers'

Dan

I think that is the neatest pond set up yet. did you see this somewhere or was it your own design? does the pond work on a filter system?

 

[tdd2]

It's a similar physical design to my better half's 250 gallon koi pond, and actually mirrors her pond on the other side of our yard (her's is fully 'Better Homes and Gardens' landscaped) - we didn't beautify landscape around the duck pond, knowing they would just snack on it anyway....

And yes, the 'rum drums' are in front of a 100 gallon Bio-filter (Google 'skippy filter')

 

[Miss Lydia]

It's a similar physical design to my better half's 250 gallon koi pond, and actually mirrors her pond on the other side of our yard (her's is fully 'Better Homes and Gardens' landscaped) - we didn't beautify landscape around the duck pond, knowing they would just snack on it anyway....

And yes, the 'rum drums' are in front of a 100 gallon Bio-filter (Google 'skippy filter')

You did an awesome job on it. now if we could just get a look at the Koi pond, I bet it's beautiful I love fish I have a 110gal stock tank gold fish pond in my yard, nothing fancy but I do enjoy the fish, will do off to look up skippy filter.

 

[tdd2]

Removed for privacy.

 

[tdd2]

We did do all of the work ourselves - she, the koi pond, and I the duck pond. The koi pond took several months, and several revisions before she was happy with it. The duck pond went much quicker!

Both ponds use a 250 gallon Rubbermaid poly stock tank, buried 2/3 of the way into the ground, and that made (relatively) quick work of the ponds.

The koi pond obviously looks much better cosmetically, as she has done amazing work with all of that stone!! (you really can't tell that there is a 250 gallon stock tank for a pond - and the 100 gallon stock tank bio-filter behind the waterfall is near invisible!)

The duck pond needed to have easy access for the ducks to enter/exit, and little stone covering the edges to allow for the largest available surface area for playing.

The bio-filters are each based on a 100 gallon Rubbermaid poly stock tank.

Cheers'

Dan

 

[Miss Lydia]

We did do all of the work ourselves - she, the koi pond, and I the duck pond. The koi pond took several months, and several revisions before she was happy with it. The duck pond went much quicker!

Both ponds use a 250 gallon Rubbermaid poly stock tank, buried 2/3 of the way into the ground, and that made (relatively) quick work of the ponds.

The koi pond obviously looks much better cosmetically, as she has done amazing work with all of that stone!! (you really can't tell that there is a 250 gallon stock tank for a pond - and the 100 gallon stock tank bio-filter behind the waterfall is near invisible!)

The duck pond needed to have easy access for the ducks to enter/exit, and little stone covering the edges to allow for the largest available surface area for playing.

The bio-filters are each based on a 100 gallon Rubbermaid poly stock tank.

Cheers'

Dan

Well "one day" lol tell her it looks very professional but with her own special touch. I love the duck pond idea too, Just don't see it happening in our mountainous ground either one actually. But sure enjoyed looking at ya'lls. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Ramblin Rooster]

We did do all of the work ourselves - she, the koi pond, and I the duck pond. The koi pond took several months, and several revisions before she was happy with it. The duck pond went much quicker!

Both ponds use a 250 gallon Rubbermaid poly stock tank, buried 2/3 of the way into the ground, and that made (relatively) quick work of the ponds.

The koi pond obviously looks much better cosmetically, as she has done amazing work with all of that stone!! (you really can't tell that there is a 250 gallon stock tank for a pond - and the 100 gallon stock tank bio-filter behind the waterfall is near invisible!)

The duck pond needed to have easy access for the ducks to enter/exit, and little stone covering the edges to allow for the largest available surface area for playing.

The bio-filters are each based on a 100 gallon Rubbermaid poly stock tank.

Cheers'

Dan

Very nice! Its looks very nice! How well do the bio filters work for you?

 

[tdd2]

Very nice! Its looks very nice! How well do the bio filters work for you?

Thank you

The bio-filters work phenomenally, all things considered!

The filter for the koi pond keeps the water crystal clear year round (with 20+ fish). We change out the koi pond water once a year in the fall to allow for a full pond cleaning.

The duck pond filter keeps up very well in the summer when the plants in the filter are thriving, keeping the water much cleaner than without. But in the fall, it's not quite enough as the plants die off for winter, and I end up changing the water out monthly Oct-Dec.

I do turn the pump/filter system off in late December for winter, and drain the filter tank - come spring we will refill the filter, add new plants to it and start again. The pond itself is still full and usable until the temps freeze it over.

I do drain and refill the duck pond every two months over the spring/summer/fall months, simply to clean the bottom of the pond of leaves and other solids. Takes less than an hour altogether, and we pump the dirty water into the plant gardens around the yard.

It is a lot less work, and less water usage than our previously using a kiddie pool and dumping/cleaning that every couple of days.

Cheers'

Dan

 

[Ramblin Rooster]

Thank you

The bio-filters work phenomenally, all things considered!

The filter for the koi pond keeps the water crystal clear year round (with 20+ fish). We change out the koi pond water once a year in the fall to allow for a full pond cleaning.

The duck pond filter keeps up very well in the summer when the plants in the filter are thriving, keeping the water much cleaner than without. But in the fall, it's not quite enough as the plants die off for winter, and I end up changing the water out monthly Oct-Dec.

I do turn the pump/filter system off in late December for winter, and drain the filter tank - come spring we will refill the filter, add new plants to it and start again. The pond itself is still full and usable until the temps freeze it over.

I do drain and refill the duck pond every two months over the spring/summer/fall months, simply to clean the bottom of the pond of leaves and other solids. Takes less than an hour altogether, and we pump the dirty water into the plant gardens around the yard.

It is a lot less work, and less water usage than our previously using a kiddie pool and dumping/cleaning that every couple of days.

Cheers'

Dan

Nice! Where can I find an unexpensive bio-filter?

 

[tdd2]

An inexpensive Bio-filter is going to be hard to come by, especially with the capacity needed for use with ducks...but I'm sure if you already had some of the components, found something used, or found alternatives to things, it could be done at a relatively low cost.

But this is basically what my Bio filter is comprised of...

Tank: $150

Http://m.tractorsupply.com/en/store/rubbermaidreg;-structural-foam-stock-tanks-150-gal--capacity

Filter media (2 layers (1 sheet) of each of 3 densities): +/- $65/sheet,

Http://www.matalausa.com/subcat24.html:

Pump: $67 (was $150!)

Http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0009YWNQ6/ref=pd_aw_sbs_petsupplies_20?refRID=123MVCTF04J7ABH0ARGB


Add to the above the plumbing lines to and inside the filter tank, the outlets from the filter to the pond, and any other bits needed as you go and it can get pricey - upwards of $500.

I'm sure cheaper substitutes could be found, but if you cheap out at the start, you end up paying more in the end with lower quality and shorter lifespan of the parts.

Cheers'

Dan