Hi everyone,
I'm attempting to build an above ground pond (well half of it above ground at least) for a pair of Arapaimas using fresh river water. Currently, what I have is a very crude above ground concrete pond measuring 22ft x 15ft x 3ft build over a year ago by two of my workers both of whom have never in their lives built a pond.
The pond has a continuous flow of river water via several PVC pipes which my workers joined to create an inlet that is placed roughly 400m upriver. The water then overflows back into the same river through an overflow pipe. We have buried the PVC piping and disguised it as a mini waterfall which along with some plants have slowed down the flow of the water which can be very strong during the rainy season.
Aside from some netting placed at the inlet of the PVC pipes upriver to block debris from entering and clogging up the pipes, there is no form of filtration whatsoever and sediment from the river is able to enter the pond. Initially, we put in 2000 catfish fry each roughly the size of my thumb and basically they were bred as food for my friends and family. This is the the quality of the water taken just recently before all remaining catfish were removed and cooked. Considering the fact that we've experiencing some of the heaviest rain in years, the water is not at all murky however the depth is only 2.5ft.
This is basically the river that runs for about 200m through my property and the inlet pipe for the pond is further up from this point.
This is the view downriver, meaning the pond is about 30-40m after the gazebo and the overflow exits at the end of the 200m stretch that marks the end of my property.
Based on the dimensions of the current pond, the volume should be about 6000 US gallons going on the basis of 2.5ft water depth as the pond's height is 3ft. (You'll have to forgive any mistakes in calculations as I've had to use online calculators to figure out US gallons so that MFK members can better relate - here in Malaysia we tend to use liters).
Now that the pond is empty, I will be demolishing it to expand the dimensions to 30ft x 20ft x 6ft which should give me a total volume of just under 25000 US gallons based on depth of 5.5ft as the height of the pond is 6ft (this sounds a bit too much if someone were to help me confirm these figures I'd very much appreciate it). Of the 6ft in height, half will be above ground while the other half I'll dig 3ft into the ground. I plan to increase the number of outlets from one to three or maybe four to avoid 'dead space' and double the number of overflow pipes.
My questions for the experts on MFK are:
1) What form of filtration system should I use considering the fact that the system is not pumped but powered solely by the river flow?
2) Currently the water is clear despite heavy rain daily but I don't think it will remain that way once the pond's depth is 5-6ft. What can I do to overcome this?
3) Should the PVC piping flow through some filtration media before entering the pond to remove as much sediment as possible or would I need some form of powered filtration system in case the filters slow down the river flow too much?
4) Instead of overflow pipes which are located just at the surface of the pond, should I instead switch to bottom drainage?
Thanks in advance for any advice, criticism etc. I just want to be able to provide a proper home for a pair of Arapaimas and if the size is too small, then please advice what's the best size for two of them to grow until adulthood. This is actually my first choice of where to place the fishes and I do have several other options but if possible I'd much rather have them here as this is one of the houses in which I spend most of my weekends at.
Thank you!
I'm attempting to build an above ground pond (well half of it above ground at least) for a pair of Arapaimas using fresh river water. Currently, what I have is a very crude above ground concrete pond measuring 22ft x 15ft x 3ft build over a year ago by two of my workers both of whom have never in their lives built a pond.
The pond has a continuous flow of river water via several PVC pipes which my workers joined to create an inlet that is placed roughly 400m upriver. The water then overflows back into the same river through an overflow pipe. We have buried the PVC piping and disguised it as a mini waterfall which along with some plants have slowed down the flow of the water which can be very strong during the rainy season.
Aside from some netting placed at the inlet of the PVC pipes upriver to block debris from entering and clogging up the pipes, there is no form of filtration whatsoever and sediment from the river is able to enter the pond. Initially, we put in 2000 catfish fry each roughly the size of my thumb and basically they were bred as food for my friends and family. This is the the quality of the water taken just recently before all remaining catfish were removed and cooked. Considering the fact that we've experiencing some of the heaviest rain in years, the water is not at all murky however the depth is only 2.5ft.
This is basically the river that runs for about 200m through my property and the inlet pipe for the pond is further up from this point.
This is the view downriver, meaning the pond is about 30-40m after the gazebo and the overflow exits at the end of the 200m stretch that marks the end of my property.
Based on the dimensions of the current pond, the volume should be about 6000 US gallons going on the basis of 2.5ft water depth as the pond's height is 3ft. (You'll have to forgive any mistakes in calculations as I've had to use online calculators to figure out US gallons so that MFK members can better relate - here in Malaysia we tend to use liters).
Now that the pond is empty, I will be demolishing it to expand the dimensions to 30ft x 20ft x 6ft which should give me a total volume of just under 25000 US gallons based on depth of 5.5ft as the height of the pond is 6ft (this sounds a bit too much if someone were to help me confirm these figures I'd very much appreciate it). Of the 6ft in height, half will be above ground while the other half I'll dig 3ft into the ground. I plan to increase the number of outlets from one to three or maybe four to avoid 'dead space' and double the number of overflow pipes.
My questions for the experts on MFK are:
1) What form of filtration system should I use considering the fact that the system is not pumped but powered solely by the river flow?
2) Currently the water is clear despite heavy rain daily but I don't think it will remain that way once the pond's depth is 5-6ft. What can I do to overcome this?
3) Should the PVC piping flow through some filtration media before entering the pond to remove as much sediment as possible or would I need some form of powered filtration system in case the filters slow down the river flow too much?
4) Instead of overflow pipes which are located just at the surface of the pond, should I instead switch to bottom drainage?
Thanks in advance for any advice, criticism etc. I just want to be able to provide a proper home for a pair of Arapaimas and if the size is too small, then please advice what's the best size for two of them to grow until adulthood. This is actually my first choice of where to place the fishes and I do have several other options but if possible I'd much rather have them here as this is one of the houses in which I spend most of my weekends at.
Thank you!
remember filter wise your building for purely mechanical
