Pond Help Needed - First Time?

Question

I just dug my new pond. It is 10' X 6' and 4' deep. It is 1,800 US gallons. It is going to be mostly Sarassa Comets but maybe 3 or 4 Koi. I live in western NY, winters here can be pretty brutal.

1. Should I use pond liner or concrete? I heard concrete lasts longer but does it really matter?

2. I also have read that you should put 1 clump of Anubias per sq. ft. Is this true? Plus, will anubias survive the harsh winters or would you re-plant every spring/early summer?

3. Is a skimmer necessary? I have about 18 trees in my backyard but I want to make sure it is worth it before I buy anything.

4. How do you "cycle" a pond? I have cycled a couple of aquariums but not sure how that would work in a pond.

Sorry for all of the questions! There may be more since this is a learning experience for me. Any help is welcome.

Answer 1

1. a concrete would be stronger.  However a mostly liner pond are not deep enough to let the fish survive during winter.

2. comets and koi will destroy your plants.

3. Skimmers not needed it is optional

4. ponds will become different if you have plants on it.  but koi ponds is a lot nicer minus the plants.

koi needed 1000 of gallons if you got the good bloodline of kois which will become jumbo but some kois bloodline will not grow much.

kOi keeper & goldfish keeper

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/world...

http://www.geocities.com/koiphilippines/...

Answer 2

I find this very interesting because I want to get a pond for my goldfish as well, but I live in Florida so I have the opposite problem. It gets to hot here lol

Anyway 1 koi needs a thousand gallons so I would skip the koi altogether.

Answer 3

1.  really your preference.  Both are fine, and technically it is called gunnite(sp) because concrete is slighty porous(sp).

2. again, its your pond....are you going for more of water garden with fish? or a koi pond with plants?  Also any "bog" type plant will work, I prefer floaters such as water hyaciths, water lettuce/cabbage, and parrots feather they are low maintence, and offer shade to reduce algae, roots offer a healthy snack, and they are great filtration.

3. Skimmers offer a great way to provide added benefits, but aren't completely nessicary if you have a good pump/filter.  But with that many trees i would look into making a PVC net cover, or something to prevent leaves from destroying the quality of the water.

4. ponds are quite different from aquariums....this is mind set people get in...think about a natural pond.....first i would make the pond and added water, let the pumps and filter get broken in, wait a couple days then slowly introduce the fish.  don't freak out if you see algae growth, as it is vital to the small eco system you are creating.  

5. the older a pond gets the more "broken-in" it will get, and comets make great fish to start with as you will be able to watch them grow to amazing lengths.  i have comets in my pond and i bought them for $0.15 at a local pet shop....they started about 1" long now they are all about 4" and i have koi in the upper 7-8", and its fun to watch the comets school around following my kois around the pond.

Good luck with your pond, and dont rush it, and dont freak out when you see algae growing...its almost like you have to let a pond grow..and revert to a natural state, but within a controlled environment....just remember, its a pond....not an aquarium, dont treat it like one