Tag Archives: pond

An Animal-Free Pond is Cleaner

If your pond seems to be missing fish, then there is a good chance that something wild is feeding at it’s edges.  This is not only hazardous to your animals, the feces, feathers and other things that stray animals leave behind can be odorous, toxic and turn your pond into a slimy mess.  Furthermore it is not fun to be retrieving the dead body of smaller furry animal from the bottom of a pond where it might have slipped and fell.

 

One of the most common predators of our fish is the heron. The most common sight, especially in the southern United States is the Great Blue Heron that stands about four feet tall and has a six-foot wingspan. These birds primarily feed on fish and frogs. ). There are different species of herons scattered around the country, but the most seen around the pond is the Great Blue Heron.

 

One way to discourage herons from visiting your pond is to use a decoy of a fake heron.  As herons don’t like to feed on another heron’s turf, they will respect the fake heron’s feeding territory and stay away.

 

Leaf netting, a scarecrow, artificial and electric fencing (not really recommended but apparently effective) also can keep these clever bird away and also discourage as smaller furry animals like raccoons and foxes from feasting at your waters.

 

Leaf netting should be placed over the pond over the fall and winter to keep hungry birds from feeding and eliminating near the pond.

 

You can use a sprinkler alarm like the Scarecrow.  This is a sprinkler with a motion sensor that only activates when animals are near. When a heron, or anything else, crosses its path, it emits a burst of water, frightening away the birds.  However, the Scarecrow may not deter birds that swoop down to feed such as owls, seagulls and kingfishers.

 

The electric fence can be installed around the perimeter of the pond, giving a small jolt to any creature that decides to venture to the pond as well.

 

Raccoons are the most common visitors to residential ponds. As raccoons are nocturnal creatures, they tend to creep into your yard and swipe your fish at night. One way of dealing with this is to call your local animal control that can deal with the raccoons in a humane fashion by releasing them into the wild.

Do not be afraid to get professional help if the problem is out of control.

Water Outflow Matters to Keep a Pond Clean

Ponds can look like a mucky mess if you do not maintain the pond’ outflow pipes. If your pond has dark water and smells then the issue might be your water outflow.

 

Whether it’s a spillway, a sluice gate, or a pipe, your pond’s outlet must be durable enough to funnel pond overflow year-round as well as withstand damage done by winter frost and ice.

 

Pipes sticking out of pond beds can look ugly so many homeowners create a spill way through landscaping. Natural spillways eliminate pipe costs and risks of leakage.

 

The simplest pond outlet is a natural earth spillway. It may be prone to erosion, but usually this is overcome with stone, ledge, or other reinforcing material. If your pond is flooding, consider using a large rock or ledge made of rock or wood to prevent the erosion process.  You can also build one of concrete but often concrete will crack in the winter or develop leaks. Upkeep is very necessary for a landscaped pond opt always look good so if this is not something you can figure out yourself you might be dealing with a lot of pond maintenance all the time.

 

As with your inflow pipes make sure that leaves and other debris don’t clog the outflow channel. Sometimes a spillway will draw floating leaves and debris to the outlet, where it must be skimmed or regularly of raked out.  Even the wind can blow leaves into the outlet and suddenly you have a flooded back yard.

 

Ponds are usually piped through either a horizontal or slightly tilted overflow, or through what’s called a trickle tube (also known as a drop inlet). A horizontal pipe is relatively simple to install just a foot or so below shore level, with a slight downward tilt. Pipes are often used in embankment ponds because they offer no-erosion overflow as well as the option of attaching a drain for repairs and clean-outs.

 

During spring, the ground beneath the pipe can erode and can drain the pond, damaging the embankments in the process. One remedy for this is to attach what is called an anti-seep collar to your outflow pipes. The collars may be plastic, steel, or concrete.  Usually tar is used to seal the seam.

 

A small leak or modest amount of erosion round a horizontal pipe should not be difficult to fix by yourself.  Sometimes laying a stone or a log over the leak and tamping down the earth around it solves the problem.