I finally started my pond
- Thread starter Bindian
- Start date
Bindian
Member
Erik,
The open faucet drained it down about 8 inches overnight. It rained last night, but I do not see any new signs of seepage. I am hoping it just needs to settle and set itself in place.
hugs, Brandi
Bindian
Member
Bindian
Member
I saw minnows in the water by the culvert in the middle of my pasture today. So I got out my minnow trap and baited it with bread. Imagine my surprise when I hoisted it out of the water and found 15 or 16 perch about 2 & 1/2 inches long. I might have done wrong, but I put them in Lake Marie, along with two minnows that were in the trap.
hugs, Brandi
hugs, Brandi
Brutus
Member
About your seepage problem:
Might it be that you didn't achieve a good compaction and water is seeping around strata of clay in the dam?
Also, if some of your clay has a sandy mix and some does not, water will find its way through the sand and seep away.
I'm thinking it's more of a compaction issue and with time, it will settle and seal itself.
Might it be that you didn't achieve a good compaction and water is seeping around strata of clay in the dam?
Also, if some of your clay has a sandy mix and some does not, water will find its way through the sand and seep away.
I'm thinking it's more of a compaction issue and with time, it will settle and seal itself.
Bindian
Member
I added 6 inches to a portion of the dam and seeded it with rye grass seed. I think I had a seep at the pipe running under the dam to a faucet in the pasture, as my front tire went down further, about a foot, in that area than any other area while packing the clay.
My driveway now has a tilt around the dam. With new rain a few days ago, it hasn't shown any signs of seepage.
The water level right now is about an inch below overflow.
The white square in the water is a PVC pipe "feeding ring".
The fathead minnows have been hitting bread and dog food in little schools around 5 pm every evening.
hugs, Brandi
hugs, Brandi
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Bindian
Member
Luke and I released 25 Blue Catfish fingerlings today. Well there might have been more than 25, as we forgot to count them. There was two shiners in the bag. We threw them out for Booger to have some sushi. He didn't eat them, but ate 4 perch fingerlings that we threw on the backside of the dam. There was also a large bullfrog tadpole in the bag with the cats. So now, Lake Marie is stocked! I'll let you know when they are large enough to go fishing.
hugs, Brandi
hugs, Brandi
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Brandi, if you feed the catfish, they will grow in a hurry - around a couple pounds a year. I like to eat them when they are in the 3 - 5 pound range.
I stocked my pond in 2003, and in 2008 I was catching some that weighed 10 pounds. Fortunately they have been reproducing too as each summer I can see some that weigh about 1 pound.
Good luck with yours.
Bob
I stocked my pond in 2003, and in 2008 I was catching some that weighed 10 pounds. Fortunately they have been reproducing too as each summer I can see some that weigh about 1 pound.
Good luck with yours.
Bob
Keifer
Senior Member
Brandi:
Thanks for the step by step progress on your pond. And, the pictures really show the work you have done.
I plan on building a small pond on our property here in sw PA but will need to wait until the snow is gone. We have about 20 some inches on the ground now. I have a John Deere 110 that I will use to dig. The plan I have right now is a pond maybe a little larger than what you have constructed. I don't know how the digging will go as after a bout a foot of topsoil I run into shale and sandstone. Mostly shale. Sure wish I had some of that clay you were working with. I think I am going to have to run some irrigation pipe into it for it's water source. Hoping I'm not digging a mud hole.
Anywho, Brandi, you gave me some ideas on what I might be able to accomplish.
Keifer, a (KUBOTA) RTV wannabe
Thanks for the step by step progress on your pond. And, the pictures really show the work you have done.
I plan on building a small pond on our property here in sw PA but will need to wait until the snow is gone. We have about 20 some inches on the ground now. I have a John Deere 110 that I will use to dig. The plan I have right now is a pond maybe a little larger than what you have constructed. I don't know how the digging will go as after a bout a foot of topsoil I run into shale and sandstone. Mostly shale. Sure wish I had some of that clay you were working with. I think I am going to have to run some irrigation pipe into it for it's water source. Hoping I'm not digging a mud hole.
Anywho, Brandi, you gave me some ideas on what I might be able to accomplish.
Keifer, a (KUBOTA) RTV wannabe
Congrats on getting yours stocked Brandi. You got me to thinking ...that's something I keep meaning to do (add some catfish) but it to easily slips to the back of my to do list and never gets done. I'm now planning to add 25 or so to my pond about one month from now. Should be warm enough by then to get em started. 
What do you feed them Bob? Sounds like fun. I look forward to getting some cats active in my little pond (it's only about 1/4 acre). We used to have a big ole cat in there but he's been gone a few years now. Someone must've snuck down there and caught him.
What do you feed them Bob? Sounds like fun. I look forward to getting some cats active in my little pond (it's only about 1/4 acre). We used to have a big ole cat in there but he's been gone a few years now. Someone must've snuck down there and caught him.
Very nice!! Water is so peaceful to be around- something about the wind blowing across it and the ripples the pond life make. Bordercollie
On that seeping problem, Have you asked the county agent about that? Sometimes they are pretty good with advice. I had heard adding bentonite clay will help seal leaks but have never done that yet. Our coop sells it by the bag for small jobs. It is the same type of clay along with some other stuff that metal casters use to make molds with in the forming boxes. Good Luck. Bordercollie
What do you feed them Bob? Sounds like fun. I look forward to getting some cats active in my little pond (it's only about 1/4 acre). We used to have a big ole cat in there but he's been gone a few years now. Someone must've snuck down there and caught him.
Doc, the hardware and feed stores around here carry Gamefish Food in 50 lb bags. Kinda like dog food, except the pellets are about the size of the eraser on a pencil.
You feed them all they can eat in 15 minutes. Hard to judge at first how much that is, but you can quickly see when they stop eating. You don't want food laying on the top of the water uneaten.
My fish have trained themselves. When I walk down to the pond apparently they can sense my footsteps and they meet me in the corner and follow me to the pond house where I feed them. Guess they are trying to get the food first.
Here are a couple pictures of my catfish eating. Needless to say, they get very excited.
Bob
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Bindian
Member
Thanks guys!
I am feeding them floating catfish food.
Also they have Fathead minnows to eat, but right now they are about the same size.
So I got the fish food, which the minnows are hitting also.
The leak problem went away with adding 6 more inches of clay on top of the dam and packing it down.
The mess in the curve of the driveway has been scraped away and crushed concrete added.
hugs, Brandi
I am feeding them floating catfish food. Also they have Fathead minnows to eat, but right now they are about the same size. So I got the fish food, which the minnows are hitting also.The leak problem went away with adding 6 more inches of clay on top of the dam and packing it down.
The mess in the curve of the driveway has been scraped away and crushed concrete added.hugs, Brandi
