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ingg · Post by **ingg** » Sun Jun 28, 2009 10:31 pm

You can always skin it, would just take 5" from the surrounding landscaping... sorry hubby!!

I'm really kicking back and forth because I'm not sure how stuff'd winter in the raised wall - either plan would be somewhere in between in size, either the sitting wall itself or a reflecting pond ringing the outside of the sitting wall.... maybe like 12' long or so.

Post by **krisw** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 6:56 am

Actually, my bricked pond is actual a treated core, with the brick facade. In addition, it's not entirely above ground, as the bottom foot is probably below the surrounding area. I haven't tried overwintering fish, but some snails and plants do come back from year to year. (I suspect that many are from eggs and seeds though.)

I'll agree that the masonry piece takes FOREVER! My small 4'x2' was a whole weekend's work for me. I'm sure someone with experience could have slapped it together (with less mistakes) in a day. Either way, it was fun, and whoever moves in after me can either use it as a pond, or just fill it with dirt and have a nice raised flower bed right off the patio.

Post by **krisw** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 6:58 am

Sherry, I was wondering how you did the electrical part of your pond and filter. Do you just have an extension cord running from outside outlets, or did you put in a dedicated circuit, or extend the circuit out there? That's one other piece on mine that I could improve. Currently, I'm just using a solar-powered pump to circulate water, but it's only as consistent as the sun, and isn't quite as strong as I'd sometimes like.

DelawareJim · Post by **DelawareJim** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 7:35 am

Sherry;

Thanks again for the tour and the plants. I've really got the itch to get my pond in and get our place certified.

For those who may be interested into looking into a certified backyard wildlife habitat, visit the National Wildlife Federation at
http://www.nwf.org/gardenforwildlife/cr ... 3B1CEC801B

Cheers.
Jim

sherrymitchell · Post by **sherrymitchell** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:14 pm

Kris, when we had the screened porch built, we had three plug-in receptacles put in out there. I just put a hole in the screen and ran an extension cord to the filter for the pump from one of the outlets. You don't even know it's there unless you look for it. We looked into getting a dedicated outlet out there but they want like $600, so that is on hold. Mostly I just run heavy-duty extension cords to whereever I need the power from outdoor outlets.

A dedicated outlet/switch in the electrical box would be great though. In the winter I'm constantly popping the breaker when the pond-deicer is in, the Christmas lights are up and I turn on my hair dryer, LOL. All are on the same switch in the electrical panel.

The solar panel is a great idea, but they are weak. Better ones can be had, but they can be expensive. Actually, Dr. Foster Smith has a solar pump on sale right now for a very good price:

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=15815

Still though, even the bigger one only filters 100 gallons an hour....

Bigger ones are also on sale:

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=14715

It doesn't say how much the larger ones filter.... There is even a solar powered air pump, which is cool....

Post by **krisw** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:52 pm

Sherry, thanks for the info on your electrical situation! Noted on popping the breaker. I imagine we wouldn't want to run too much stuff out there.

I think the 100 GPH one you linked is the same one I have. Unfortunately, I've gone thru two of them, as the pump is sealed, and seems to get gunk in it that can't be cleaned out. With the limited input power of the solar power, it gradually grinds down to 0 GPH. I've found on eBay for cheaper than DFS though. The larger system looks really nice, but that's a heck of a price jump compared to an extension cord and $50 powerhead.

DelawareJim · Post by **DelawareJim** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 1:31 pm

I think you need to go more heavy duty on your solar pump.

Check into a solar energy supplier like Sierra Solar. They've got equipment that's more in line with what a pond person is looking for; up to about 500gph not the HD/Lowes wannabe's.

http://www.sierrasolar.com/manufacturer ... urer_id=57

Cheers.
Jim

ingg · Post by **ingg** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 2:28 pm

See, the thing is, you can buy 20 of these

http://cgi.ebay.com/7V-Solar-Fountain-P ... 7C294%3A50

For the price of one of those small ones. Lots of output(150 l/hr * 20 is 3,000 liters/hour, or around 750 GPH....)

Granted, 20 solar panels might be a bit silly, but....

Does it matter if the flow all comes from one place? Other nice thing about multiple small units is if the condition Kris is talking about it chronic, I'd rather replace a couple $20 units a year than an $800 unit every 5 years....

sherrymitchell · Post by **sherrymitchell** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 3:38 pm

Actually, If I were serious about going solar on the pond, I would look into the REALLY BIG panels for the roof of the house, which would feed into a bank of batteries which would power the pump 24/7. For my 2000 gallon pond that would probably do the trick nicely. I have a feeling it would be spendy though!

I asked a similar question on the PVAS form a few days ago. Namely, how many of those big solar panels would I need to power large air pumps for my entire fish room (30+ tanks). It would sure be nice to get off the grid for that. I know next to nothing about solar though.

DelawareJim · Post by **DelawareJim** » Mon Jun 29, 2009 3:39 pm

From my understanding, the big boys like the $800 unit should last 20 years. So your talking what, $40 per year prorated over the life.

Think of them as the Volvo of the solar pump world. They cost twice as much but last three times as long, so they're cheaper in the long run.

Cheers.
Jim

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