raised bed trellis pond

eon aquatics

Aimara
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Jan 16, 2021
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im probably going to make a pond surrounded by raised bed trellises on each side
it gets very cold in the winter where i live so no fish
it will require a backhoe to dig the pond and they are expensive to rent so i might as well make the pond as large as i possibly can dig within a day of renting one
concrete pond walls/bottom
ideas for the size/depth of the pond and species of vines for the raised bed trellis?
how thick should the concrete be?
does the concrete need to be coated in epoxy or a different chemical?
 

The Masked Shadow

Redtail Catfish
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Jul 19, 2020
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How big of a pond Do you want to go? Does it get so cold as too freeze over? How cold?

kendragon kendragon
 
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eon aquatics

Aimara
MFK Member
Jan 16, 2021
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renting a backhoe costs like $300 a day
so if i could make the pond like 20x40 feet and like 4 feet deep that would be nice
 
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jjohnwm

Potamotrygon
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Mar 29, 2019
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-10 degrees? Yeah, brutal... :uhoh:

We have regular stretches of -40 here, so water freezes to a thickness of several feet. I still keep fish outside, simply bringing them in for the winter. If sufficient steps are taken...i.e. deep enough water...for the pond to not freeze solid to the bottom, fish like goldfish, natives, rosy reds, etc. can stay out all winter and survive quite handily under the ice. They get no feeding and their metabolism is so slow that they utilize very little oxygen.

I have friends who utilize livestock tank heaters to prevent solid freeze-up. They seem to have more problems with fish die-offs during the winter, and I think it is due to their insistence on providing food which likely goes uneaten and fouls the water.

It's also best to remove live plants before freeze-up, as otherwise they die back and their decomposition competes with the fish for the available oxygen.

If you are excavating a pond that is 20x40 feet, I think it would be a huge mistake not to have at least a portion of it that is much deeper than four feet.
 
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jjohnwm

Potamotrygon
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Mar 29, 2019
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I live in the interlake region of Manitoba, roughly an hour north of the provincial capital of Winnipeg...often pronounced and spelled Winterpeg. ?
 
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