Pond Build

Hi All
When I signed up here I posted some pics of my garden pond. It's a raised pond as in it's a cattle water trough that I didn't sink into the ground. It was free standing on an old patio and the plan was to build something around it, either a wooden frame or a wall depending on funds. The idea was to insulate the pond for the winter and to make it more appealing in the garden. Well, major breakthroughs since then. I came across a lot of free cavity blocks, paving slabs and loose sandstone from an old dry wall. All free.

So, over the course of the last week I've moved several tons with the help of a neighbour and have been very busy in the garden. First I built up a wall using cavities, I didn't cement them as I may need access to the pond in the future and the amount of soil between the pond and wall is quite minimal so there's no strain on it. I then topped it with some sandstone slabs that were cut to make a nice shelf to top it off. I'll use a little mortar to fix these when everything is properly in place and I'm happy with it all. In the midst of all this I'm also paving most of the garden so I'm flitting between the pond and the paving. Anyway, here's a few pictures so you can see the progress.
I've also decided to make a waterfall/spillway using my existing pump and will attach some hosing and run it up under the shelf on the waterfall and hopefully create a nice feature which will blend in nicely with all the stone in the garden. We'll see how it goes, if it works it'll be great but if not I'll just plant up the shelves with some nice evergreen plants. It's all trial and error and has cost me nothing so far but some hard work.
Anyway, here's the pics of the progress so far, and the mess!

I welcome comments and suggestions if you have any


Second tier of the waterfall, debating whether to add another.


I left a gap in the wall for cables


Start of waterfall and sandstone shelf around the pond wall.


View from front


Before waterfall construction, I built up a stack of blocks behind the pond to evenly distribute the weight of the stone for the waterfall. Also a nice view of the sandstone slabs.


The view from the back door. Excuse the mess


A little pic of the pond at night.

That looks great well done I'd say you are very happy with the way it after turning out.

Thanks It's getting there, bit by bit. I am delighted, will be even happier when it's finished though.

nice. that's quite a volume of water too

It looks bigger than it actually is, holds almost 900 litres and is home to 10 goldfish. I filled the gaps between pond and wall yesterday and stuck a few plants in, will post pics as it progresses.

Bayta wrote:

It looks bigger than it actually is, holds almost 900 litres and is home to 10 goldfish. I filled the gaps between pond and wall yesterday and stuck a few plants in, will post pics as it progresses.

in a suburban garden 900L is pretty friggin' big in my book

Good point. I guess it wouldn't be feasible in most gardens but this little space is purely for my own relaxation and enjoyment and the pond is the central feature. I'm sure the neighbours think I'm nuts but their kids are still young and the trampolines are bigger

My garden in not so big, but squeezed in a 200 x 200 c 60cm pond.







One good thing about sons is that they will dig for beer...

CrustyCrab wrote:

My garden in not so big, but squeezed in a 200 x 200 c 60cm pond.





One good thing about sons is that they will dig for beer...

does that mean you just tell them there's beer under the garden and not tell them otherwise until they're deep enough?

That it. And sit sipping on a pint watching them dig

Bayta wrote:

Good point. I guess it wouldn't be feasible in most gardens but this little space is purely for my own relaxation and enjoyment and the pond is the central feature. I'm sure the neighbours think I'm nuts but their kids are still young and the trampolines are bigger

I'm hoping to build a raised pond in the next 12-18 months with a square container, 525L. hope it turns out as well as yours

I'm hoping to build a raised pond in the next 12-18 months with a square container, 525L. hope it turns out as well as yours

Thanks LemonJelly. Good luck with it. I can honestly say this build is near killing me, but am really enjoying it and think when it's done it'll be worth every bump and bruise. And doing it very cheaply is great as well, minus the plants and fish it has cost me about €120 so far.

I did a raised pond a few years back, filled an ugly gap between two sheds. It's about 1000 litres with waterfall. It's hard work alright but you get a great sense of satisfaction every time you look at it knowing what went into it.

LemonJelly wrote:

Bayta wrote:

Good point. I guess it wouldn't be feasible in most gardens but this little space is purely for my own relaxation and enjoyment and the pond is the central feature. I'm sure the neighbours think I'm nuts but their kids are still young and the trampolines are bigger

I'm hoping to build a raised pond in the next 12-18 months with a square container, 525L. hope it turns out as well as yours

i have a square container about that size if you want it, thing is i not going to dublin unless its on the motorbike lol

Build update, in the final stages now.


Waterfall almost finished, just a few final tweaks and I'll be happy. Need to devise a way to keep the hose for the falls hidden.


A lick of paint and a bit more tidying up and it'll be done. I do plan to plaster the walls with hypertufa in the future but paint will do for the time being. I also need to get some planting along the edge at the base, was thinking small lavender or thyme, something fragrant and tough.

I like the idea for the waterfall construction. Nice and simple

looking great how are the fish getting on any baby's yet

LemonJelly wrote:

I like the idea for the waterfall construction. Nice and simple

Thanks, it's exactly the look I was aiming for, easy to take apart if there's a problem and easy on the eye.

irish-zx10r wrote:

looking great how are the fish getting on any baby's yet

Thanks, no babies yet but I completely emptied it a few weeks back and gave it a good scrub so I'm kinda back to square one with it. I didn't check for babies when emptying it, I was a bit ruthless and just emptied it into the flower beds. The fish are still spawning though, saw them at it again this morning. I'll be doing a partial water change tomorrow. To be honest, I don't really want any babies in there, cute and interesting as they may be, I'm afraid of overpopulating it. Tomorrow's water change will probably be the last until spring so we'll see what happens. How's your pond coming along?

It's at a bit of a stand still I am after having a bad time with the main tank and over 20 dead cichlids so that has knocked me back a peg or two hopefully I get back at it soon

irish-zx10r wrote:

It's at a bit of a stand still I am after having a bad time with the main tank and over 20 dead cichlids so that has knocked me back a peg or two hopefully I get back at it soon

Oh that's awful, I'm so sorry to hear that. Do you know what caused it? Hope you manage to get up and running again with the pond before too long

Bayta wrote:

irish-zx10r wrote:

It's at a bit of a stand still I am after having a bad time with the main tank and over 20 dead cichlids so that has knocked me back a peg or two hopefully I get back at it soon

Oh that's awful, I'm so sorry to hear that. Do you know what caused it? Hope you manage to get up and running again with the pond before too long

Poor filter not enough oxygen and not enough water changes
All things that could be avoided if I had bit more know how. I been offered some help
So I should be back up and running soon only this time I have it better and the same mistake won't be made twice.
I have some great ideas for the pond so I be back working on it soon.

Hey Bayta.

just wondered how the pond is looking...

Hi, haven't been here in ages and so much has happened since. I now have two ponds and 200 baby goldfish! I'll get some pictures up in the next few days. The original pond has been great all summer and now has 12 goldfish and three koi. The second pond came from a chance find of 5 babies whose eggs were attached to a plant the fish had uprooted and I threw into a bowl with water in and forgot about for weeks. When I found them I decided to get a second pond, I had been thinking of one for a while anyway but this was perfect justification for it. Anyway, I bought a second hand rigid liner and put it in the garden and filled it about a third full and decided to put the big fish in it while i cleaned out their pond. They spent two days in the new pond and when they went back to their own pond I added the 5 babies to the new one and just left them. They must have spawned in it as a few weeks later I was sitting beside it trying to catch a look at them when I noticed that there was a hell of a lot more than 5 in it. It was still only a third full and completely unsupported so time to sort it out. I caught each of the babies, including the 5 bigger babies and put them in a container and got busy installing the pond. It is buried about a foot deep and like the original pond, I built a wall around the top of it and filled with soil and planted it up. It is painted the same as the older pond and has the same sandstone capping but is at a lower level and they are adjoining so it is a tiered setup. I'm very happy with the result and will have pictures asap of both ponds.

sounds like you have being busy you cant have much room out back with two ponds lol
great to here u still alive and doing well.

Good to hear it's been going well. This summer has been a good one for breeding goldfish. They only really breed with space and when the water temp stays fairly high, over 23c I think. I spent an afternoon pulling dozens of centimetre long babies it of my dad's tank. Looking forward to seeing what the new pond looks like

Thanks, can't say the same for my computer which decided to die a few months ago and I hate using the phone for forums There's hardly any room left out there but I'm the only one who uses the garden so it's great It's become a little haven. Did you get my message on youtube about the waterlilies?

irish-zx10r wrote:

sounds like you have being busy you cant have much room out back with two ponds lol
great to here u still alive and doing well.

I've had a really good year with the fish, spawning all summer long and no illnesses, I just hope we have a mild winter so the babies survive. Will have pics soon

LemonJelly wrote:

Good to hear it's been going well. This summer has been a good one for breeding goldfish. They only really breed with space and when the water temp stays fairly high, over 23c I think. I spent an afternoon pulling dozens of centimetre long babies it of my dad's tank. Looking forward to seeing what the new pond looks like

Bayta wrote:

Thanks, can't say the same for my computer which decided to die a few months ago and I hate using the phone for forums There's hardly any room left out there but I'm the only one who uses the garden so it's great It's become a little haven. Did you get my message on youtube about the waterlilies?

irish-zx10r wrote:

sounds like you have being busy you cant have much room out back with two ponds lol
great to here u still alive and doing well.

Yes i got your message, we have another baby since so the pond build is put on hold till she is 14

Congratulations on the new arrival, you'll be kept busy.

irish-zx10r wrote:

Bayta wrote:

Thanks, can't say the same for my computer which decided to die a few months ago and I hate using the phone for forums There's hardly any room left out there but I'm the only one who uses the garden so it's great It's become a little haven. Did you get my message on youtube about the waterlilies?

irish-zx10r wrote:

sounds like you have being busy you cant have much room out back with two ponds lol
great to here u still alive and doing well.

Yes i got your message, we have another baby since so the pond build is put on hold till she is 14