?? about cement pond

[joejoe123]

I talk to my local pond lady today and she said if i cement my pond i would have to wait 2-3 years before i could put fish in. I was wondering if i cement my pond and do the venigar thing 2 times and paint it with a black coat of paint if i would be able to put fish in it this year ??

Joey

[Mikey]

I know for a fact that people with cement ponds do not wait a year to add fish.  Hopefully someone here will have experience but I think a vinegar wash as you suggest will be fine.  I'm not so certain about painting it though.  Try Googling "vinegar wash for concrete pond" or something similar.

[Bonnie]

Joey I would NOT use black PAINT. 
As far as a concrete pond, it will possibly raise your PH level for sometime but all you would have to do is test the water and add baking soda if needed.

[miguynmkoi]

There is a coating you can apply to the cement that will work.  Don't know what it is but I did it to my cement pond (earthquake put a hairline crack in it so had to use the liner).  Pros use the coating on very large ponds I've seen.

Anyone know what I'm talking about?

[Jonna]

I'm interested in this too.  Both my new ponds will be cement, I think they are going to finish them just like they do the swimming pool. 

[Bonnie]

There is a coating you can apply to the cement that will work.  Don't know what it is but I did it to my cement pond (earthquake put a hairline crack in it so had to use the liner).  Pros use the coating on very large ponds I've seen.

Anyone know what I'm talking about?

I've heard of people using both Sani-Tred and Poly Shield and using a roller to apply.

There's also Polyurea but what I've read this is used by professsionals only.

[Johns]

Cement (Concrete) ponds will leak unless sealed as they are porous.  The most common sealant is Drylock or Thoroseal, both cementitious materials that are mixed with water and can be aplied with a wallpaper brush.  The yboth also may be colored with any cement colorant, powder or liquid.  Use of a black colorant will produce a charcoal or dark grey finish. 

There are also epoxy based sealers available.

Two of my ponds are concrete, both sealed with Drylock.

[Julles]

Why not plop in a rubber liner and be done with it?  The cement won't hurt the rubber, will it?

We had a similar qu recently about cinder blocks, and most people advised against using them in a pond with fish.

[Sunbeam56]

Having owned a couple of concrete ponds, I can safely say that you don't need to wait a year to put in fish.
One pond we used a pool coating - the same grout that they finish off pools with. In about two weeks it had been coated by algae, and there was no problem.
Another pond, we painted it with one of the commercial coatings that you paint on. It was black. It also was covered in algae in about two weeks. The paint-on was less satisfactory, because the paint bubbled up after about a year.
If I ever build another concrete pond, I'm going back to the pool finish.

But either way, as soon as algae coated the sides and bottom, it was safe for fish.

[models916]

POLY ROLL ON TRUCK BED LINER WORKS GREAT AS A POND LINER. Safe for plants and fish, lasts forever. Walmart sells it in the auto dept.