How Long To Dig A Pond?

Well years ago I cleared out another area and had a Goverment Man come out.He told me it wouldn't work where I wanted it.He told me that where the springs are is the only fesable place.

There isn't any Permits needed.I won't be cutting off water to my neighbor,I have 3 springs and he has 2 running into this drainage.There is nobody living down stream.

Our main concern first is if it will hold water because of the soil.But across the road they dug out a hole for road work and it always has water.And I have seen times when if you get to doing major digging around some of these springs you cut them off and don't get water.

Where I'm thinking of putting in the Dam there is a narrow place in the holler,where two points come together with about a hundred foot opening.Plus I know to have Big enough Pipe for overflow.

big rockpile

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Thats a mighty big pond (if its to be more than 5' deep) and around here would need to be designed by an engineer after all sorts of tests and then be submitted to authorities for approval (and the regulations are about impossible to comply with). Some proceed anyhow and are subject to fines amounting to many 10's of thousands of dollars.

Hey.

I guess it's best to dig some three foot holes and dump some water in to see how long it lasts. Hopefully the area around your spring isn't considered wetlands.

RF

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MO is pretty laid back and where big rockpile is at He would prably be fine. A lot of ponds that big are dug around here with out anyones say so.

BUT BIG ROCKPILE Im a little concerned about your statement that there is no one living downstream from you. Where did every one from New Orleans go?

I'm getting a dozer to divide one of my larger ponds. It's about a D6 and costs $125 and hour with operator plus a one hour drop fee.

It sounds like you are building an impoundment pond. Be sure to carefully design and build a good spillway.

What is your soil type? Subsoil?

In MN there is a certain threshold for the number of million gallons that can be held without triggering permits. It is also based on height (or depth). There is also a permit required when more than 1 acre (or something like that) is exposed with raw dirt. It requires silt fencing too.

Done right it sounds like heaven to me.

Some places have government agencies which will assist with the cost and planning of ponds, too. It's been a long time since I looked into it, but it might be the Soil Conservation Service or some other agency. You might want to ask around and see if anyone in your area has ever gone that route.

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Rock, are you meaning a man and a dozer is 60 per hour? or were you meaning to just rent the dozer, and do your own work?

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Thats for the man and Dozer.I found one cheaper but he had a smaller one.

Mennonites said they would do it cheaper.Plus I've had them do work before and was happy with it.

big rockpile

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Cheaper isn't always cheaper.

usually when its comes to dozers bigger is cheaper

I thought thats what you meant, but after reading some of the other posts, I wondered. The biggest problem in our area, is in a gully, you usually have lots of gravel. You'll need someone who knows how to dig, because you'll have to get down to a solid clay base to start your dam on-and if the gravel is pushed anywhere into the dam, it'll seep through. As me how I know. Our first pond was built by a long-time operator, 40 years ago, still holding. the second, By a man who knew better, left gravel near the bottom, never held. my nephew had his built last fall-dont think the guy knew what he was doing. cost them 6,000--and its leaking thru the dam, near the bottom--going down over a foot a day,
. your biggest problem building in a gulley--will be getting the base tight--and they have a map at your soil conservation office, that can show you the drainage area that will flow into your pond.. the lake we'd "like (money?) to build would have a drainage area of over 800 acres.

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ceresone the problem with our soil is we have Clay but it is sandy.Great for Gardens as far as drainage and workablity.But for Ponds its horrible.

I had one Pond dug but it never held I hauled clay in and everything on it.Had it filled in couple years ago,the guy that did it said he couldn't find nothing wrong with it.

I'm thinking the people telling me the holler is the best spot are telling me this figuring the spring will fill it faster than it seeps out

big rockpile

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If I need a Shelter
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two emergancy remidies sheet plastic and or bentionite

Done did the bentionite.High $$ and didn't work.

big rockpile

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I love being married.Its so great to find that one person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.



If I need a Shelter
If I need a Friend
I go to the Rock!

At what point does a pond stop being a pond and become a lake?

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The way I understand it is a pond just catches runoff.A Lake has another source of water such as a sping,creek,or river.

big rockpile

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I love being married.Its so great to find that one person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.



If I need a Shelter
If I need a Friend
I go to the Rock!

There's a book(you might check the library) that has a LOT of good information on ponds. It's called Earth Ponds, by Tim Matson.

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My bil just finished having repairs done to the dam on his pond. when he bought the property the dam had broke because the previous owner had tried to use pipe for an overflow. this pond fills with run off from a dry feeder creek when it rains. as you can see the pipe blew out. this dam is 100ft across. when he had it fixed a spillway with riprock was put in off to one side and has handled the water very effectively.

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It only takes about 20% clay to make a watertight pond.

The 220' dike I'm having built will be built with material scraped up on the spot and be about 1300+ cu.yds. Since it's an internal dike I don't care if it seeps through to the other pond.

Both the contractor and I estimate it will take around 5-6 hours.

The 5,000' of dike I built previously cost about $5 a linear foot. That was 1998 cost ($85/hr for D8 and big hoe). It has a 12' wide top, 3:1 slope and is 5-6' tall. The property has 3-4' of sand and silt overlaying 20' of silt and clay. I had the contractor scrape the sand off and then dig a keyway into the pure clay. He then refilled the keyway with pure clay and build the core of the dike with clay. Then he pushed the sand and silt over the core. The ponds are pretty tight but in the drought we are having even the clay sucks water.

I would take a post hole digger out and sample the area where you think the dike should go. Then measure the spot where you think it should be built. That will give you a much better idea how many yards of material your are talking about and and final cost.

I think that seepage can be slowed by stocking white suckers or some other rooting type fish. Bullheads or catfish won't do the trick.

The local definition around here is, when you can water ski on it, or it's so far across, you don't know whether you can swim it, it's a lake. My pond/lake is on the borderline, I'd hate to have to swim across it, and I could ski in circles (700' dam).

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