How to Build a Pond

Materials and Tools:

garden hose
shovel
level
sand or felt liner
pond liner at least 45mm thick (found at hardware stores)
large rocks
pea gravel
pond pump
pond pump hose
synthetic steel wool
chicken wire
clamp
limestone flat rock

Use a garden hose to outline the perimeter of the pond.

Steps:

1. Shape your pond
Your water garden can be absolutely any size that you want. She chose an area of about 12 x 12 feet for her pond. Start by taking a long hose and arranging it in the outline of the pond.

2. Dig out the pond
Once you have placed the hose in the shape that you want, you are ready to begin the hardest part of this project--digging! One must for this project: the pond must be at least 18 to 22 inches deep. Rebecca made her pond in two stages: she dug out the soil to create a lower pond and then placed it on the top side to create a beautiful running stream. When you start digging, keep in mind it's really important to put ledges in your pond for placing plants. Typically, ledges should be about nine inches down and about six to nine inches wide. Mark where your ledges will be inside the arranged hose.

Now that you have dug the outline of the pond, you can remove the hose and dig the rest. This will take a long time and a lot of hard work, so you might want to call in some buddies to help. And finally, once the hole is dug, smooth out the bottom by removing leftover stones and debris.

3. Check level of sides
This is a critical step in the pond-making process. Make sure the edges are flat by using a level. This is important because you don't want your pond to be lopsided. If one side is higher than the other, either add soil to the low end or shave soil off the high end.

Adding some water will displace the weight and help the liner fit all the crevi

4. Add liners
Next, you're going to create a cushion for your pond by adding a layer of sand or felt. This layer will protect the pond liner from sharp objects like roots. Then add the pond liner. Buy a liner that is at least 45 mm thick. Lay it in and around the pond. Before cutting, be sure that there is at least three inches of overhang around the edges. Cut the liner and pleat it to fit as tautly as possible.

5. Add water
Now that you've got the liner down, you can see that it's not snug around the pond, so you want to add some weight. Adding some water will displace the weight and help the liner fit all the crevices. The liner will even shrink a bit, but the extra overlap will accommodate that. As you are letting the water fill up a bit, don't worry if it is murky. You can always drain it using the pump, and refill it later.

Make the rock placement look natural. Remember that it may look like too much rock at first, but when plants are added, the boulders and gravel will fade into the landscape.

6. Add rock
As the water is filling, start adding large rocks around the edge, leaving a pocket of space a little bigger than your pump. The large rocks will weigh down the liner while adding a natural look. After the large rocks, add smaller stones and pea gravel. The trick is to make the rock placement look natural. Remember that it may look like too much rock at first, but when plants are added, the boulders and gravel will fade into the landscape.

7. Install pump
This is a step in the project where you have a lot of choices. You can buy a pond pump at your local hardware store. For a job about this size, use a submersible pump, but make sure that the one you select is not too strong. If you look on the front of the box, you will see the pump's horsepower. A one-fourth horsepower pump can move 1,260 gallons of water an hour, which is way too much for a small pond. A one-sixth horsepower pump is just right for a pond this size.

The pump needs a hose to move water. Slide a clamp over the hose, attach the hose to the pump and tighten the clamp. For a quick homemade filter, wrap a chunk of synthetic steel wool with chicken wire and loosely secure it around the base of the pump.

8. Finish the main pond
Drain out the pond to get rid of a lot of dirt and debris. Do this several more times to make sure it is completely clean. Create a well on the side that will hide and house the pump. Layer rocks over it to hide the pump and create a natural stream with a running water sound. But before you completely finish the main pond, you will want to carve out the stream on the upper level of the pond.

9. Create the stream
On the upper side of the pond, where the extra soil was placed, carve out a shallow course for the stream and cover it with a long piece of pond liner. Before you add the rock to this liner, insert the pump in its well. Take the pipe and lay it into place, along the length of the stream. Cover it with rock and soil, so it's concealed from view. Line the stream with rocks, and choose a flat slab to become the waterfall ledge at the bottom. And again, add water. If your rocks were dirty, the water will start out murky, but don't worry, it will settle. At this point, make sure the pump works and the flow from the stream to the pond is acceptable.

After all that hard labor, your result will be a naked pond. Let the water sit for a couple of days to allow the sediment to settle and the chlorine to dissolve. In the coming weeks, you can fill your water garden with plants and fish.