| Nancy & Joe's Pond Rebuild |
| Write me at: pondgal@gridcom.net |
| Audio sounds provided by www.Freesound.org 38391- volivieri water flows over rock.wav 72722 - Manuel Calurano - Conversation between a nightingale and a frog.mp3 |
I actually bid Nancy & Joe's pond reconstruction late in 2010, but we all knew there was no way a project of this size was going
to get done in what was left of the 2010 season, so we made plans for ordering the materials we would need and starting the
rebuild first thing in the spring.
to get done in what was left of the 2010 season, so we made plans for ordering the materials we would need and starting the
rebuild first thing in the spring.
I know it doesn't look very big in this picture, but Nancy & Joe's pond is actually 15' x 25'! The reason it looks so small is because
Nancy and Joe have a HUGE back yard! I don't know if it's a full acre, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was. It's actually so big
that it wraps around the back of the neighbor's house.
Nancy and Joe have a HUGE back yard! I don't know if it's a full acre, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was. It's actually so big
that it wraps around the back of the neighbor's house.
These pictures were taken in January, when we had
the materials delivered. Here's what I knew about
Nancy & Joe's pond:
Originally, it was a concrete pond, installed 80 - 100
years ago.
It was 15' x 25' x maybe 4' deep.
As with all concrete in our part of the globe, the pond
had cracked, causing it to leak, so about 15 years ago,
a rubber liner was installed.
It had no filtration to speak of.
The lot is heavily wooded, so even though they tried to
scoop the leaves out every fall, leaves and debris had
accumulated in the pond and turned to anaerobic
sludge.
They had a large lotus that had gone wild, and they
wanted to keep some of it as a container plant in their
newly constructed pond.
the materials delivered. Here's what I knew about
Nancy & Joe's pond:
Originally, it was a concrete pond, installed 80 - 100
years ago.
It was 15' x 25' x maybe 4' deep.
As with all concrete in our part of the globe, the pond
had cracked, causing it to leak, so about 15 years ago,
a rubber liner was installed.
It had no filtration to speak of.
The lot is heavily wooded, so even though they tried to
scoop the leaves out every fall, leaves and debris had
accumulated in the pond and turned to anaerobic
sludge.
They had a large lotus that had gone wild, and they
wanted to keep some of it as a container plant in their
newly constructed pond.
The boarder rock was sparse and due to it's size, was
unstable, so I knew we needed a BUNCH of rock!
Since were weren't excavating the pond from scratch,
we would also need some dirt to build up around the
new waterfall for planting areas, but because dirt
compacts so much, I intended to construct the base
support for the waterfall out of concrete block and
finish up with pulverized black dirt.
Joe had said that he thought the bottom of the pond
had fairly level shelves to the bottom, so I planned on
installing concrete block and sand inside the pond under
the liner and retro-fitting the bottom drain. We would
only lose 8" of depth by doing this, and since the pond
was supposed to be 4' deep, it wouldn't be a problem.
We ordered 16 ton of rock, as well as three full pallets
of concrete block. Because the pond is located at
about the halfway point in the yard and Joe is an avid
gardener, we had the rock and block materials delivered
in January, when the ground was frozen so the skid
steer would do as little damage to the many gardens on
the property as possible.
unstable, so I knew we needed a BUNCH of rock!
Since were weren't excavating the pond from scratch,
we would also need some dirt to build up around the
new waterfall for planting areas, but because dirt
compacts so much, I intended to construct the base
support for the waterfall out of concrete block and
finish up with pulverized black dirt.
Joe had said that he thought the bottom of the pond
had fairly level shelves to the bottom, so I planned on
installing concrete block and sand inside the pond under
the liner and retro-fitting the bottom drain. We would
only lose 8" of depth by doing this, and since the pond
was supposed to be 4' deep, it wouldn't be a problem.
We ordered 16 ton of rock, as well as three full pallets
of concrete block. Because the pond is located at
about the halfway point in the yard and Joe is an avid
gardener, we had the rock and block materials delivered
in January, when the ground was frozen so the skid
steer would do as little damage to the many gardens on
the property as possible.
| In the spring of 2011, this is what awaited us. Not a pretty sight! (The black tub next to the Japanese maple is something I brought to keep the lotus tubers in while the construction process was underway.) |
In the picture above, you can see the tiny waterfall on
the left side of the pond. This would be moved closer to
the fence along what looks like the back side of the
pond in this photo.
Here's what I DIDN'T know about Nancy & Joe's pond!:
The leaves in the picture to the left that I thought were
floating on the pond when they got trapped in the ice
were actually just laying on top of years of accumulated
sludge and filth. There were actually plants that were
coming up in the center of the pond (supposedly 4'
deep) that were growing on top of all the sludge!
I also didn't know that the pond edges sloped
dramatically down to the bottom of the pond, making it
impossible to retrofit with concrete block and sand, as I
had originally planned to do.
Over the years, the original concrete pond had leaked
and the previous owners had attempted to re-seal it with
another layer of concrete, so there was about 4" - 6" of
broken concrete under the entire pond, which had to be
removed by hand.
the left side of the pond. This would be moved closer to
the fence along what looks like the back side of the
pond in this photo.
Here's what I DIDN'T know about Nancy & Joe's pond!:
The leaves in the picture to the left that I thought were
floating on the pond when they got trapped in the ice
were actually just laying on top of years of accumulated
sludge and filth. There were actually plants that were
coming up in the center of the pond (supposedly 4'
deep) that were growing on top of all the sludge!
I also didn't know that the pond edges sloped
dramatically down to the bottom of the pond, making it
impossible to retrofit with concrete block and sand, as I
had originally planned to do.
Over the years, the original concrete pond had leaked
and the previous owners had attempted to re-seal it with
another layer of concrete, so there was about 4" - 6" of
broken concrete under the entire pond, which had to be
removed by hand.
This is how far we were able to drain the pond down before we had to start scooping everything out by hand. Since Nancy & Joe
wanted us to salvage as many lotus tubers as we could, we couldn't just go in with a shovel and scoop to our hearts' content.
Every tuber had to be followed to the growing end, carefully removed and set aside in the tub. I was surprised to find lotus
tubers all the way at the bottom of the pond - a depth at which I thought lotus refused to grow.
wanted us to salvage as many lotus tubers as we could, we couldn't just go in with a shovel and scoop to our hearts' content.
Every tuber had to be followed to the growing end, carefully removed and set aside in the tub. I was surprised to find lotus
tubers all the way at the bottom of the pond - a depth at which I thought lotus refused to grow.
5 gallon bucket by 5 gallon bucket, we scooped out the sludge
and piled it where the waterfall would eventually go. There
were, of course, large rocks at the bottom of the pond that had
presumably been put there to set plants on (or maybe just to
annoy me) that were vacuum sealed into the muck with 15 years
worth of lotus tubers wrapped around and under them.
I know it doesn't look like a lot in the pictures below, but all that
sludge compacted very well in a very short period of time. It was
so nutrient rich that some of the small lotus tubers that we had
missed actually grew!
Also, I should note that the filter box in the picture below is not
set in it's final resting place. Ultimately, it was moved to the left
of the tree and forward several feet on top of a concrete block
foundation.
and piled it where the waterfall would eventually go. There
were, of course, large rocks at the bottom of the pond that had
presumably been put there to set plants on (or maybe just to
annoy me) that were vacuum sealed into the muck with 15 years
worth of lotus tubers wrapped around and under them.
I know it doesn't look like a lot in the pictures below, but all that
sludge compacted very well in a very short period of time. It was
so nutrient rich that some of the small lotus tubers that we had
missed actually grew!
Also, I should note that the filter box in the picture below is not
set in it's final resting place. Ultimately, it was moved to the left
of the tree and forward several feet on top of a concrete block
foundation.
Once the sludge was removed, we were able to pull back
the liner to see the full extent of the damage to the
original concrete pond. The edges just fell apart, and
even if they hadn't, you can see how sloped the sides
were, making it impossible to retrofit the interior of the
pond with block. Fortunately, we had a BIG space where
the waterfall was going to go, so instead of building that
space up with block, we utilized the old concrete from
the pond.
The extra block I had ordered to build up the waterfall
was used to build new plant shelves in the pond, and
fortunately, whoever put this monstrosity in those 80
years ago, had lined under the concrete with sand, so we
were able to use the sand on site to backfill the concrete
blocks instead of having to bring in a load and haul it to
the back yard in wheel barrows.
the liner to see the full extent of the damage to the
original concrete pond. The edges just fell apart, and
even if they hadn't, you can see how sloped the sides
were, making it impossible to retrofit the interior of the
pond with block. Fortunately, we had a BIG space where
the waterfall was going to go, so instead of building that
space up with block, we utilized the old concrete from
the pond.
The extra block I had ordered to build up the waterfall
was used to build new plant shelves in the pond, and
fortunately, whoever put this monstrosity in those 80
years ago, had lined under the concrete with sand, so we
were able to use the sand on site to backfill the concrete
blocks instead of having to bring in a load and haul it to
the back yard in wheel barrows.
That's a LOT of concrete! Fortunately (?) for us, most of it
was already broken up into manageable pieces, or could be
broken up with a sledge hammer. Hauling the pieces out
of the pond and placing them around the filter box was not
such an easy matter for this old girl! We did enlist some
help from some young muscles for some of this project,
but they continually evaporated when they found out just
how hard the job was!
was already broken up into manageable pieces, or could be
broken up with a sledge hammer. Hauling the pieces out
of the pond and placing them around the filter box was not
such an easy matter for this old girl! We did enlist some
help from some young muscles for some of this project,
but they continually evaporated when they found out just
how hard the job was!
I know it's difficult to see the finished
plant shelves that were installed from
these photographs because the pond
is going through it's "green stage", but
in the photo to the right, you can see
how level the pot that contains the
huge papyrus sits.
We also set a couple of larger rocks
on the upper plant shelf (which can
be seen just to the left of the
papyrus) for frogs to sun themselves
on.
Did I mention that this yard is full of
snakes? Oh yeah, snakes! They're
just gardener snakes, but those little
things can be feisty! I kept trying to
catch them while my male helpers ran
screaming like little sissy-girls. They
do kinda startle you when you move a
big 'ol rock and a snake comes
slithering out. (The snakes, as well
as the screaming sissy-girls.)
plant shelves that were installed from
these photographs because the pond
is going through it's "green stage", but
in the photo to the right, you can see
how level the pot that contains the
huge papyrus sits.
We also set a couple of larger rocks
on the upper plant shelf (which can
be seen just to the left of the
papyrus) for frogs to sun themselves
on.
Did I mention that this yard is full of
snakes? Oh yeah, snakes! They're
just gardener snakes, but those little
things can be feisty! I kept trying to
catch them while my male helpers ran
screaming like little sissy-girls. They
do kinda startle you when you move a
big 'ol rock and a snake comes
slithering out. (The snakes, as well
as the screaming sissy-girls.)
This project took us most of the season to complete, and we actually had to leave for several weeks to work on other clients'
ponds and come back. We ended up with 1 extra flat rock and 1½ extra concrete blocks. Now that's what I call cutting it close!
Below are some before and after shots, taken from approximately the same angle, for comparison.
ponds and come back. We ended up with 1 extra flat rock and 1½ extra concrete blocks. Now that's what I call cutting it close!
Below are some before and after shots, taken from approximately the same angle, for comparison.
Because of all the concrete backfill we had from the original
pond, we only needed one tandem load of black dirt delivered.
Eventually, as the dirt makes it's way down into the cracks and
crevices between the concrete rubble, more dirt will need to
be brought in to top up around the waterfall, but there's only
so much you can pack in when the dirt is new and unsettled.
As you can see, there is plenty of new planting area for Joe
along the back side of the pond and all around the waterfall.
pond, we only needed one tandem load of black dirt delivered.
Eventually, as the dirt makes it's way down into the cracks and
crevices between the concrete rubble, more dirt will need to
be brought in to top up around the waterfall, but there's only
so much you can pack in when the dirt is new and unsettled.
As you can see, there is plenty of new planting area for Joe
along the back side of the pond and all around the waterfall.