Author Topic: New Koi Pond with Bog Garden Incorporated (Read 15972 times)

Timgod · « **on:** May 01, 2007, 10:33:30 PM »

I was on vacation last week and spent the entire 7 days building a new koi pond for the wife's babies.
It is 8 ft wide by 10 ft long. 2ft long by 8 ft wide is a bog as a filter. It is about 1800 gallons.
As you can see in the pictures it is both above ground and dug almost 3 feet down at the same time for a 4 ft depth.
The only filtration on this pond is one 1800 GPH pump to circulate through the bog. The Rocks in the bog are 2 ft deep.
All debris sucked into the pump is trapped in the rocks before the water seeps back through the cinder block wall.
Beneficial bacteria grows and thrives in the bog to break down chemical issues before they are a problem.
There is also a pump used to run the fountain. That is not really used for filtration. It is for decorative use as well as the breaking of the surface adds air to the water and discourages predators.
As you can see even though the rocks were dumped and dirty( I bought 3 yards od rainbow rock) the water is already clear and will only become more so as the plants that I just planted in the bog grow. They will feed off of excess nutrients and fish waste and in turn their roots systems provide a further filtration of the water.

For anyone who wants an easy, trouble free system for clear water, this does the trick. You will notice there is no skippy, skimmer, UV clarifier that needs to be maintained and cleaned.

Tim

Timgod · « **Reply #1 on:** May 01, 2007, 10:39:18 PM »

As you can see in the last two shots above, the ones where I am in the water and finalizing the setup. The water if pretty dirty from the 1.2 cubic yards of rock that I put into the bog section.
It only took a couple days for it to clear up.

One other note... the plants in the bog were dug up from the back yard to be placed in the bog. that is why they show a little droopiness. They were in the shade and they need to acclimate to the sun. They were put into the bog, dirt and all. this feeds the plants and the dirt is covered with more gravel so it does not get into the pond.

Tim

SheilaJ · « **Reply #2 on:** May 02, 2007, 04:22:24 AM »

I like it!

CT · « **Reply #3 on:** May 02, 2007, 06:51:59 AM »

I do too and to complete it in a week. Impressive

Timgod · « **Reply #4 on:** May 02, 2007, 10:07:43 AM »

Thanks ladies. My wife does to. I told her that I should be good through Mother's day and her B-Day.

Tim

CT · « **Reply #5 on:** May 02, 2007, 12:31:12 PM »

..and right into Christmas

Teresa · « **Reply #6 on:** May 02, 2007, 01:23:01 PM »

Gee Tim, do you give other husbands lessons?

very nice pond . . . .

CT · « **Reply #7 on:** May 02, 2007, 02:39:45 PM »

If he does then I'm enrolling my DH

Jonna · « **Reply #8 on:** May 02, 2007, 02:59:48 PM »

I like it a lot Tim, especially the simplicity and the ability to use the bog for planting. Where is the pump that sends water to the bog? Is it also an UW pump and is it sucking from the bottom or is there a bottom drain and an exterior pump? Is the water at the bottom of the bog going in through a couple hoses or is it spread more evenly over the whole bottom with some kind of diffuser? What keeps the water from coming right back into the pond from the bottom of the bog? Are the concrete blocks cemented together and in place so no water goes through them? I know, a lot of questions but it is one way that I've been considering for the ponds in Mérida. I want to keep them simple.

SheilaJ · « **Reply #9 on:** May 02, 2007, 06:27:07 PM »

Yes, we need a class for husbands, and handcuffs and a whip to get them to attend it!

Timgod · « **Reply #10 on:** May 03, 2007, 12:20:37 AM »

Ok ladies, I might be able to assist with some pointers, however whips and handcuffs and other husbands sounds like a way different kind of forum... LOL
It is an 1800 GPH pump to circulate through the bog. It sits on the bottom at the opposite end from the bog. In the past they suggested to go through your rocks, out of the pond and to bury the line under ground before coming back up on the bog end. That is outdated thinking at this point. I went straight across the bottom with flex hose. It is connected to 1 inch PVC that is coming through the bottom of the cinder block wall. That way if there is ever a blockage or problem I don't have to dig up the yard. Less turns in PVC and no major changes in hight mean less resistance so I get a truer amount of water circulation. The PVC under all of the gravel is shaped as follows...

8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8
******8*******
Cinder 8 Block Wall
8

I even ran a stalk of pipe up through the gravel so that it ever get full of gunk in the PVC I can run water or even force air down through the PVC to flush it out.

There are 2 ways to do the wall. I have them interlocked but it allows the water to seep through the miniscule spaces between them. This way water comes up through the PVC and filters through the rock and then clean water seeps back into the main body of water. I had added a bog a few years ago retroactively to my other above ground pond. The only way to make it work was to build a box at a slightly higher elevation, fill the new box with a liner that overlapped into the original. This makes the bog self contained and creates a waterfall coming off of the bog. It works just as well but I didn't want a waterfall in this new pond plus it would have been tougher to do the liner by going up and over the cinder blocks.

There is no bottom drain. I don't have a lot of trees. This type of pond is what they have been doing down here in Texas for about 5 to 7 years. It doesn't matter if it is 50 gallons or 10,000 gallons. The principle is the same. I have good water quality and the water is crystal clear. Even my 500 gallon had no sign of string algae throughout the winter.
This is very close to the pump I bought. I have a large basket assembly to stop large debris like leaves and such from entering the pump.

Hope this answered some of your questions. If you want more info on bogs, this pdf explains just about everything...
http://www.nelsonwatergardens.com/data/resources/other/1_Bog%20Filter%20Construction.pdf

Tim

Jonna · « **Reply #11 on:** May 03, 2007, 12:41:00 AM »

I really like your modification of just running the flex hose along the bottom of the pond, much easier to deal with later. Also the blowout pipe is a good idea.

It looks like you have a little water over the top of the gravel, do you have a problem with mosquitoes breeding? If the water is an inch or so under the gravel could mosquitoes still breed there?

To me it kind of looks like a skippy that is built in, I'm really liking this as an option for the ponds at the house in Merida.

I'd love to see a picture of the one with the waterfall. <hint> <hint>

El Jefe · « **Reply #12 on:** May 03, 2007, 06:33:29 AM »

Timgod Awesome job! In order to make that work for my pond I would likely need to build one that size or bigger and utilize the entire surface area. Great concept ! Andy

Timgod · « **Reply #13 on:** May 03, 2007, 10:35:45 AM »

Thank chief.

Jonna, It has rained off and on the last few days and during construction. I keep the water level just above the rocks. When I need to I just pump off the excess after a rain. I haven't had any mosquito issues. If I did ever have them show up I would just fill it a little higher and put a goldie in there to eat the little monsters before they become flying vampires.
I put a few white goldies in the pond when I first finished it as a "canary" test. Didn't want to lose any koi. I picked out white ones so they would be easy to see against the black liner. The 2nd day we could only find 1. The other had swam up over the cinder blocks and was hiding under the bacopa. He had evidenly been having it as a salad as well.

Tim

El Jefe · « **Reply #14 on:** May 03, 2007, 01:14:52 PM »

Tim,
With a few modifications on a theme I think I can build that into my existing pond. I have an above ground pump and I have been working diligently to figure out what I could do to clear the water, first thought was a Sand filter followed by a Mechanical filter to pick up the smaller particles that pass. However this concept may work as well. Andy

Timgod · « **Reply #15 on:** May 03, 2007, 07:45:15 PM »

Here are a few more shots on how it is layed out.
The 1st two are the pump and hose going to the PVC in the bog.
The 3rd shot is the pump.
The 4th shot is the PVC for flushing the pipes purposes. The plan is to let the mint grow up and around it to hide it.
You can see the pipe in the upper left portion of the 2nd picture.

Tim

Timgod · « **Reply #16 on:** May 03, 2007, 08:05:45 PM »

Jonna,
Here is a pic of the bog that I retrofitted to the other above ground pond. It is 4' * 2'.
It is a normal rock bog but I filled the upper portion above the rocks with some plants as well as anacharis to help filter even more. It's funny to watch the goldfish climb out of the water below to eat on the anacharis.

Tim

enzo · « **Reply #17 on:** May 09, 2007, 12:28:15 PM »

that is sweet

Ky Kim · « **Reply #18 on:** May 09, 2007, 07:13:38 PM »

Wow, fantastic job. It looks great now, but wait till those plants fill in.

Kim

Jonna · « **Reply #19 on:** May 09, 2007, 09:28:35 PM »

Yes, that is wonderful. It gives me some great ideas for this Merida pond I'm building in my head. Simple, effective, nice looking and I've had such good luck with the skippy in the desert that I really want to go with a filter that is full of plants. I really like it, thanks for the pictures.

the Julles · « **Reply #20 on:** May 10, 2007, 06:27:21 PM »

I live in Houston, too. Met Tim at our watergarden shop, and he turned me on to this site.

In March, I, too, took a week off work, and expanded my pond by 3' (from 400gal to 550gal). I put my old Tetra bio filter up on Freecycle.com, and put in a bog filter.

It's the BEST! Besides giving cleaner water, the parts are cheap, there's no maintenance (once every year or two you break it down and thin out the plants), and it's very attractive, with the variety of plants and flowers, plus decorative rocks and doo-dads.

I'm so thrilled, I'm going to enlarge it again! (A larger filter means you can cram in more fish, right?

)

For anyone putting in a new pond, or revamping an existing one, I highly recommend a bog filter.

Tim, are your ponds going to be on the pond tour in June?

Timgod · « **Reply #21 on:** May 11, 2007, 06:33:10 PM »

Sorry Julles Dear,
Working in retail, I can't get a weekend off to go to the pond tours, much less get my yard in perfect condition for a bunch of visitors.
I love the way my yard looks but it is always a work in progress.

Tim

SheilaJ · « **Reply #22 on:** May 12, 2007, 05:06:49 AM »

Tim, my yard is always a work in progress too. I can't keep up with all of it at once, so at least one bed is in semi to complete disrepair at any given time. If I could just get my family and my job to leave me alone the entire month of May (good luck with THAT!) , I could whip that place into shape!

Timgod · « **Reply #23 on:** May 12, 2007, 04:20:23 PM »

Family and work.... boy they can sure interrupt good plans for water lilies and such can't they?
Oh well I guess you have to put up with the interruptions as part of the "for better or worse."

Tim

miguynmkoi · « **Reply #24 on:** May 20, 2007, 10:00:56 AM »

Great and simple! I like

This is definitely a keeper. Now....to show Hubby

GAjen · « **Reply #25 on:** May 28, 2007, 06:47:04 PM »

Timgod you have a pm ..... my hubby has been looking at this hard.

Timgod · « **Reply #26 on:** June 06, 2007, 10:51:50 AM »

Well it has been just over a month since the first post.
I thought I would show some updated pics on the pond and bog which is quickly filling out.

Hope you like it.
Tim

Timgod · « **Reply #27 on:** June 06, 2007, 11:02:12 AM »

My wife has been looking at various oriental statuary that is made of wood, stone, marble, pottery etc.
Some have been up to $500 dollars.
She figures that if she has Koi she just has to have something with an asian look as well.

We went to lunch last week and on the way home we stopped at "World Market".
It is one of those stores that imports all sorts of items from all over.

She found this little statue. It is 2 pieces. It is pottery that has been painted, finished etc..

The price said $19.95. When we got to the checkout, it rang up as $10.00.
She was so happy she drove across town to get another one. She hasn't placed the 2nd in yet but you get the idea.
It looks perfect next to the color of the jar I bought for her.

Tim

Jonna · « **Reply #28 on:** June 06, 2007, 03:59:00 PM »

Beautiful Tim! Your water is certainly crystal clear. We've started work on the small pond next door and it will have a bog as the filter. You gave me the confidence to just do it.

GAjen · « **Reply #29 on:** June 06, 2007, 05:14:43 PM »

Oh Lord.....you and that wonderful pond of yours. Hey I got my Red Flare today....

! Have you got yours?