Enough space for small koi pond? design suggestions?

I agree that the pond should come out farther. Especially if you want the waterfall in the corner. My mother had a pond that was about 4-5" from her fence, which gave her plenty of room to build a gradual slope to the waterfall, room for small shrubs/small trees, a bench, and using a waterfall with lava rock and scrubber filter pads.

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Also, I would check a local pond club for min. depths for your area.

Might also rethink that whole "hope I don't hit any pipes or lines." Your little pond project might become rather expensive, if not deadly, once you start chopping away at the hard soil below the soft top soil.
 
i wont be bringing in a back ho or anything for the digging, i doubt anything would be there ( pipes ), it's just backyard, not near any house.

but how would i make sure that there isnt any pipes down there?
 
Are you on sewer or have a septic tank? Well or public water suppy? The town hall should be able to provide you locations for utilities before you start digging, plus they will be able to clue you in to other code such as fencing around it.
 
city water supply from front of house i believe, and sewer, to front of house also i think.

i'll give the gas CO. a call to see... do they have to come out and inspect it first? or will they be able to tell me over the phone in most cases?
 
Cable, phone, and even power lines are sometimes put in underground, so it's best to do a thorough check. Also, please consider that ideally, you want about 1000 gallons per EACH adult koi you are planning to stock.
 
Bigger the better for KOI. I would say 30" minimum depth. Shelves should be about 8-12" deep. The trees roots probably run all the way under that fence. I'd suggest a new location for the pond. Maybe take a pic of your yard, and we can suggest a new location.
 
We have to call "Julie" in Illinois before digging :grinyes: Then they contact all the utility companies and they send ppl out to mark where the lines/cables and such are.
 
Jchicago, that pond is gorgeous!

I agree with everyone so far, that wouldn't be big enough for Koi, you need a minimum of 1000 gallons per Koi. They get absolutely huge, between 24"-36" fully grown, they need a lot of room. And they are very messy, requiring excellent filtration systems. They also rip apart plants, eating them, etc. And I just want to warn you, you will need to cover the pond in the fall with possibly a net, with all the falling leaves from the tree....

Goldfish on the other hand are much easier to maintain and don't need as much space. And there are some very pretty types of goldfish, such as Sarasas and Shubunkin.

I am in SW Ct., and have a pond about 5' x 7' feet, and 29" deep at it's deepest. It does have a shelf around the edge. I dug the pond myself a few years ago, it was hard work, I'm a 5'2" tall woman. We did know there were no pipes or wires in that area though, from previous work on the house. I was just lucky not to run into any boulders or large rocks; that's pretty common here in Ct. I have five shubunkins, comets, and sarasas goldfish, and one koi. The koi was an accident, I bought him very small a few years ago in a goldfish tub at our local farm store. Imagine my surprise when I noticed his barbs. (whiskers) Now I will need to find him a new home, my pond is too small for him, and he has more than doubled in size already.
 
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