Koi Pond Project

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Went to Eddies Aquarium today and got the schematics and priced alot of things out, sadly I think the island is going to get leveled. Without it I can use a 25X30 liner which is half the cost of the 30X50! Looks like total Im still going to be spending alot of money though.. Heres the rundown on what they suggested

Firestone 25X30 45mil liner
ShinMaywa 4800 Pump
Oase 4000 Filter
Savio 31'' waterfall wier
and misc tubing/fittings

They also recommended a skimmer, but I would be looking at another ~$500 or so..
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Look online for liner and compare liner costs to yours locally. As backwards as it seems buy the liner last after you have everything else 100% planned out. Planning now will save a ton of time and money in rebuilding later.

No experience with that pump, but you can get a nice external or two for similar or less money that will last a long time and use less energy. The pump should be picked after the filter and plumbing plan to decide on how much head and flow you need.

You can mod a pool skimmer for very cheap, Around $50.

Think bottom drain.

A few things to search online, use the word "koi" with "sand gravel" "settlement" "Fluidized" "skimmer" and "bottom drain"

Keep the details coming, its a lot at once, but the info is out there and its much easier to plan right than to get frustrated for a few seasons, replan and rebuild :-)
 
I am looking for Info on DIY Skimmer's. They are so expensive!!!!!!!! All I need for mine is a Basket/skimmer.
 
Anubias;4088290; said:
18" at the shallow end is fine. Where in NY are you located? City, Upstate, Buffalo? Your winter freeze depth will govern your required pond depth. I agree with an earlier post, deeper is better, your fish need deep water to escape the heat and the cold. 3 foot is probably the minimum I would go.
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Im in Albany, the deep end is 45'' so I should be ok
 
mrunlucky07;4088599; said:
Look online for liner and compare liner costs to yours locally. As backwards as it seems buy the liner last after you have everything else 100% planned out. Planning now will save a ton of time and money in rebuilding later.

No experience with that pump, but you can get a nice external or two for similar or less money that will last a long time and use less energy. The pump should be picked after the filter and plumbing plan to decide on how much head and flow you need.

You can mod a pool skimmer for very cheap, Around $50.

Think bottom drain.

A few things to search online, use the word "koi" with "sand gravel" "settlement" "Fluidized" "skimmer" and "bottom drain"

Keep the details coming, its a lot at once, but the info is out there and its much easier to plan right than to get frustrated for a few seasons, replan and rebuild :-)
Click to expand...

I sat down and talked to a pond expert today and here is a schematic of what she gave me. Its a bit different than I thought it was gonna be, and Id rather run flexible 2'' hose inside the pond rather than the PVC outside of it..

KoiPondSchematic.jpg



Feel free to leave any feedback on this! I thought having the pump/pickup in the middle would be better. Can I get away with no having a bottom drain? Id like to put an additional Pentair fountain kit in the center as well. Idk..
 
I looked at the DIY skimmers, I tried building one a couple years ago. I was never satisfied with its performance. There is a fine balance to be achieved. The skimmer built from a utility sink looked promising.
I bought this skimmer for my pond.
http://www.petmountain.com/product/pond-filters/522567/proline-pro-5000-pond-skimmer.html

Regarding the drawing, the layout looks OK if the pump is inside a skimmer. The flow in a basic rectangle pond should be from on end to the other end. The waterfall weir will help keep the water moving and debris moving toward the other end of pond, skimmer will pick up large debris and floating trash, leaves are the worst. 3 or 4 large leaves can clog a pump intake fast. I am not familiar with an Oase 4000 filter but know that they are expensive. Why not use a large skippy style as your waterfall filter and possibly an upflow 55G drum prefilter behind the waterfall. You can hide it with rock and landscaping.
 
Anubias;4090513; said:
I looked at the DIY skimmers, I tried building one a couple years ago. I was never satisfied with its performance. There is a fine balance to be achieved. The skimmer built from a utility sink looked promising.
I bought this skimmer for my pond.
http://www.petmountain.com/product/pond-filters/522567/proline-pro-5000-pond-skimmer.html

Regarding the drawing, the layout looks OK if the pump is inside a skimmer. The flow in a basic rectangle pond should be from on end to the other end. The waterfall weir will help keep the water moving and debris moving toward the other end of pond, skimmer will pick up large debris and floating trash, leaves are the worst. 3 or 4 large leaves can clog a pump intake fast. I am not familiar with an Oase 4000 filter but know that they are expensive. Why not use a large skippy style as your waterfall filter and possibly an upflow 55G drum prefilter behind the waterfall. You can hide it with rock and landscaping.
Click to expand...

Hmm, so I would run the 55g instead of the Oase? Would it be buried in the ground or above the pond level? ThankS!
 
94Gt5.0;4073017; said:
Well today I finally decided to take the plunge and start building a Koi Pond in the back yard, got it all layed out and looking how i wanted it, then started going to town with a shovel, and a whole lot of water! Its about 21' long, and 11' wide at its widest point and will have varying depth levels throughout the pond with the shallow end being 10-12", going to 22", then the deep end being about 3' deep. I got the shallow end pretty much done today and started the transition to the 22" around the island, still alot of work to do though!! Doing the quick math the pond came out to over 2000G! Couple pics from today:

KoiPond001.jpg


KoiPond002.jpg


KoiPond003.jpg


KoiPond004.jpg


Im new to the whole pond thing, so if anyone has any suggestions for fish in a non-heated setup other than Koi let me know! Im in Ny, so winters do get pretty cold, and I dont want to drain/remove fish every winter if at all possible. Leave any constructive criticism or comments.
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Have Fun and Good Luck with your project. By the way I like your fire pit. Do you know where I can get one like that online or at local store in Cali .or Please give me the company name and modle # of that fire pit. I will search for it. Thanks
 
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