advice needed about pond

[larry@stinescorner]

this is our pond in pa, It is full to the brim now,but it drops fast if there is no rain ,in july it dropped 3 to 4 ft, the neighbors ponds stay full, I have asked the neighbor,he said if I dug a trench in the upper corn field we might be able to hit a spring,because there is a wet spot in the upper part of that field, It is our property,my neighbor farms it, If we hit a spring and put in a pipe and gravel maybe it would be able to keep the pond from going low so fast? The little stream that is feeding it relies on runoff from rain and it seems that the pond needs more spring fed water, looking for advice,,,Larry

 

[FBH44]

Don't have ponds but I alwqys thought it took hooved animals using the pond as drinking water source, for several months, to pound the mud down and properly seal one. In the summer they would get into the middle and cool off, and pound it down more.

 

[wfw]

I don't farm but have family land that has been farmed. I have a field that has a spring in it that my grandfather blind ditched. as I understand it, he found the spring, dug it out, dug a ditch for it to drain into the nearby creek, laid three logs in a triangular shape (two on bottom and one on top) and then covered it back up. there is no sign of a spring, I wish I could find it but dad did not remember or know and granddad passed away when I was little. I am 58 now so no one knows exactly where it is.
you could find the spring, if it is there, dig a ditch, place a pipe for the spring to feed your pond into then cover it back up. should work, I guess. hope this helps.

frank

 

[Lumpie]

Yup, run a couple strings of tile along those sidehills in the background and you should get a little groundwater seeping in there.

 

[Frank A]

It looks to me like the big tree could be a source of drianage. Not much can be done about it. Adding a continous water supply couldn't hurt.
Good luck and let us know how it works out.

Frank A.

 

[BillinCentralMO]

Where does the water run out at? Are you having any seepage on the low side?

 

[VicS]

I agree Hooves will help. Around here they say if you dig a pond in a springy place water will leak out just like it comes in. We have learned you have to dig them out at least 1 ft deeper, then bring clay dirt back in and pack it down. Some people even mix drilling mud back in and discing it in. I ended up digging a new pond just down from the first one and doing a better job on the second one. It stays full year round being fed from the original one. Sorry there is no magic bullet.Vic

 

[Janicholson]

Clay might be an option. If the earth burm in the photos shows dampness when the pond is full, the percolation of contained water is a likely source of loss. I think experimenting with a mix of bentonite clay, and sand as a filler might be cost effective. Jim
Leaking pond help

 

[larry@stinescorner]

in the last picture you can just see the pipe on the left if you look real close, sorry i didnt get a closer picture of it, There doesnt seem to be any leakage out of the bank

 

[Paul from MI]

If that little stream that feeds iut ends up hill from the pond near any trees, you may want to cut them. My brother tiled out a little spring to a stock tank many years ago. It dried up in summer. There were a few willows in the fene row near the spring. Cut the willows down and it never dried up again.

 

[TonyIN]

Couple thoughts... (assuming you don"t have a leak)
Not sure the size/surface area, but the smaller the pond, the quicker the level seems to drop. Had a couple droughts here of late and you see the smaller ones (1/4 acre +/-) drop a few feet. Mine"s about 3/4 acre and will drop about 18". Neighbor has one around 4 acres, don"t see much of a drop in level, maybe a foot if that. All 3 were put in right and are sealed up. Evaporation is the culprit.
The springs can certainly help, but depending on your area, they may dry up when you need them most -but can"t hurt to direct them. The springs around here are mostly low pressure springs and where they seep out of a hillside normally, you can"t find them in a drought.
If you have a way of directing more surface area runoff that would be best - will still fill up/overflow during wet times, but during dry, what little rain you get - you get more in the pond.
Also, not sure how close that barn really is or the grade fall, but a gutter off of it piped to the pond will help too.
I know no real solution offered here, but maybe will help with figuring one out.


Good Luck
Tony

 

[Rick Kr]

Looking at the fall off on the backside of your pond it really looks like the water may be leaching past your berm. Unless the pictures are deceiving. Your water could be leaching below the surface and you"d never see it, especially if the pond wasn"t sealed.

Thats the first thing I would think of when you say all of your neighbors ponds are not dropping like yours. Let us know what you try.

Rick

 

[john in la]

With that much land leaning toward that pond you either have.......
Ditches cut in the edges of the fields diverting run off away from the pond. (does not look like it in the pictures)
OR
Live in a area with little rain fall. (not normal for Pa weather)
OR
A major seepage leak.

I would guess your pond bottom does not have enough clay and your water is just seeping straight down into the ground faster than the rain fall rate.

Spring fed water is a bandage that MAY work if you have a spring.
If this is a fish pond spring water may not be good for a pond that small.

 

[Anonymous-0]

If you have a field with a wet spot, tile it. If you run it to the pond and it provides more pond water great but you should fix the wet spot in your field. Land is too valuable today not to.

 

[tractorhead]

go to pondboss.com

 

[Anonymous-0]

always heard a couple ducks or geese will seal a pond. Just put them a house on stilts in the middle so nothing can get to them easy and bring em in when it freezes solid.

Dave

 

[randallnMo]

I can't tell exactly from the pictures, but it "appears" like the pond dam has eroded and sluffed off in places. These look like it could be leaking maybe? One of the best products to use to seal up a pond dam is used sheet rock (or scraps). I"ve seen several leaking ponds where the owners layed in sheet rock scraps along the dam and it stopped leaking. One neighbor used a boat and tried to cover the entire pond bottom.....with success. It's non polluting, not harmful to fish and works. It's also usually "free" for the taking from housing projects.
Another observation is your pond appears to be shallow. You will get greater evaporation from shallow ponds as opposed to deeper. 'Nothing you can do about that though other than digging it out deeper. That can be done too with the right trackhoe.

 

[Az. Peapicker]

Nice loking pond is it stocked with fish?

 

[larry@stinescorner]

yes,we have largemouth bass and bluegills or sunfish

 

[jrh009]

I agree with a few other posts concerning the low end, can not tell from the pictures but it looks like ther may be a potential head differential at the low end. If so there is too much seepage or leakage along this face.

A liner, or clay may seal it. Is the toe of this slope always wet on the outside face ? This would indicate leakage. A combination of making this slope less permeable and adding some drainage tile from the higher slopes to the pond may increase flow. If the upper slopes do not have any granular layers in them you may not be able to create additional flow.