Cement Pond?

[TimeBomb]

Hello.. I"m new to this site and am not too much of a fish keeper (though I am interested in fish a bit).. I was directed here from a reptile forum that I frequent looking for some help in making a cement pond. Here's the scoop... I have built an indoor enclosure for a pair of caiman and had constructed a pond originally out of plywood and epoxy, which leaked tremendously (I know what I did wrong, I've had lots of success using this method previously). So without having to tear down the enclosure and rebuilding, I'd like to make a concrete pond inside of my already formed plywood box. One person had suggested in his method to make a form to pour concrete into but I don't know that it is possible as the door to this enclosure isn't huge. My pond area measures a bit less than 6X6X1.5 (feet) so the volume of the pond is around 400 gallons, which isn't huge. I am not experienced with cement, all I have used is standard thinset to spread over cement board so I have become fairly good at mixing consistencies. What I'm wondering is if I screw mesh reinforcement to my sides (and bottom if necessary), can I pour concrete into the bottom of my pond and trowel over the sides? Or will gravity cause my sides to slip? My enclosure will not be exposed to extreme heat or cold and I will seal it with 2 coats of 2 part epoxy. I do also have a glass window that extends approximately 4 inches below the water level at the front of my enclosure and my thought on that was to apply cement around the bottom of the glass, paint it and silicone to seal the seam. Can anyone give me advice on what I'd like to do? I have tried searching for methods of building ponds from cement but most sites are for very large outdoor ponds. Lastly, can anyone give me an estimate of how man bags of cement it will take?

Thanks in advance!

Matt

 

[MyFishEatYourFish]

in my opinion cement is not the way to go at all. it will make your enclosure nearly impossible to move and more expensive than it has to be. i would definitely use pond liner insead, thick pond liner, it alot stronger than it look and will be fine with your caimins. also it will make it possible to expand later on when they outgrow it.

 

[Dr Joe]

You can do it the way you describe but it's a multi person job and you need to use a mixer.for the concrete. Mix the concrete stiff so it won't slump (there are waterproofing / coloring additives too). Screw the mesh down but pull it away from the backing to get the concrete behind it. Start at daybreak (weather permitting (not too cold)), one trusted person on the mixer, one to bring you the mud and you applying it till the job is finished (2 people applying would be better). I'd start at one end and do the sides and bottom and keep backing up till it's done (that way the sides / bottm are pretty continuous).

Post some pix of the tank and the entrance so we can see what your up against

Dr Joe

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