Replicating Lake Tanganyika
#1
Posted 14 February 2009 - 08:24 AM
after a few too many Jacks cans last night i have made a decision to build a mini lake Tanganyika in my back yard.
i have always set aside an area for a pond but it will mainly be to have tangs in it in summer.
everything is open for discussion , and if youve seen my tanks , everything must be pre-planned , i want almost everything hidden , easy to clean and want to give some consideration to how i will catch fry out . im thinking mainly gobies and featherfins and sand sifters , so i will require a large footprint , but i am unsure of depth required.
if ponds are anything like cars , then ."theres no replacement for displacement" so the larger the colume the better.
i want to use a lot of lime stone and pool filter sand as a substrate . im planning on using bricks and morter to build the shape and height of the side walls but unsure of the planning for filtration etc etc.
anyone who has constructed a pond from scratch or whom have a pond , but see room for improvement please comment.
i am hoping to start with the shovel in about 3 weeks. so time to learn from all you knowledgable people out there
thanks in advance for any help/idea's on constructing my own LAKE TANGANYIKA
Cheers
Steve Green
#2
Posted 14 February 2009 - 08:38 PM
I can't offer much in the way of info, but I suggest a depth of about 1m otherwise it will get too hot for them in summer.
Are you planning to install a shade-cloth cover ?
What I can offer you is a heaps of Limestone rocks, as many as you want for free, just bring a trailer.
Sorry, but I broke the handle on my shovel and can't see it getting repaired for a few months......
Good luck... you are a brave man.
Cheers
Col
#3
Posted 14 February 2009 - 09:04 PM
Cheers
Den
#4
Posted 14 February 2009 - 09:32 PM
Why not oversized limesand instead of silica/pool sand? At least you'll get some pH buffering. I'd be worried that sand sifters may stir up the pool sand too much. Are you going to have some decent water current throughout also?
Are you going to go above or underground. Above with a viewing window would be awesome!!
Daz
#5
Posted 14 February 2009 - 11:47 PM
Den - i was planning on varying depth , this way i can drain it at summers end and have the deepest area with all the fish in it , easier to catch. gobies are from the surge habitat at a water fall will be a must have - vallis bed for sure also.
Dazza - there will plenty of limestone for sure mate , ive been breeding sandsifters for a while and they dont stir up pool filter sand they just build huge spawning holes in it , seeing 3 or 4 spawning pits within a couple of meter's will be insane minimum size will be a large dinner plate ( seesh im gunna need a lot of sand ) water flow im not sure of , i will have a surge habitat for gobies (shallow area well oxygenated by waterfall ) but yeah flow will be important , how will i achieve this? i dont wanna see any power cords or pumps in the pond when veiwing )
the pond will be below ground ( maybe i could keep digging and have a 6 foot under veiwing platform LOL.)
i have an area 2.5m by 5m that ill have for construction i dont nesseserilly wanna use all that space would like it too look fairly natural im planning on building a fairly high rock face around certain parts(will help with shade) to mimic the Tanganyika shore line and try and choose plants that replicate theirs in the surronding garden beds.
heres a mud map of my back yard , at the mo the grass paving and planter boxes are complete , not work has started on the deck and outdoor kitchen/entertainment are as yet , i fugure pond first then i can make the decking have a slight over lap
what shape do you reckon would look good , i plan to have the flitration on the fence line.
Cheers
Steve Green
Attached Files
#6
Posted 14 February 2009 - 11:52 PM
Since you are trying to replicate Lake Tanganyika, why not the same shape?
#7
Posted 14 February 2009 - 11:58 PM
Cheers
Steve Green
#8
Posted 15 February 2009 - 12:08 AM
Cheers
Steve Green
I know which is why it will be awesome to have one 1 in WA and in your backyard lol
I will settle for half then you can choose which half north or south portion
#9
Posted 15 February 2009 - 12:20 AM
comments ?
Cheers
Steve green
#10
Posted 15 February 2009 - 04:49 PM
Can't offer any advice but if you need alot of limesand, ask Kev at Aquarium1, he's throwing the stuff away lol.
It's the stuff from the old marine set ups he had.
I have about 50+kg left, it's not much but if you want it it's yours
#11
Posted 15 February 2009 - 05:04 PM
maybe one of the mods can move the post to PONDs section where i can get more technical , hints and tip , materials type input
Cheers
Steve Green
#12
Posted 15 February 2009 - 08:45 PM
#13
Posted 15 February 2009 - 09:04 PM
I believe Terry uses a similar system to good effect on his pond.
#14
Posted 16 February 2009 - 08:30 AM
Thats my 2 cents
#15
Posted 16 February 2009 - 08:08 PM
that sounds like a great idea. definitly something id give ago when i can aford to buy a house. plan looks great. and the bonus is tha the hole doesnt need to be that deep due to all the dirt that you will be removing.
rick
#16
Posted 16 February 2009 - 10:28 PM
so seal the concrete and throw in the lime stone? then build the waterfall and cap the edges?
im unsure of the step process to make it look natural from above??
please explain
Cheers
Steve Green
#17
Posted 16 February 2009 - 11:53 PM
But wheres the fun in THAT!!! just imagine building the pond exactly the way you want it. Do your research take your time and you'll enjoy building it as much as admiring it when its done.
Sambo
#18
Posted 19 February 2009 - 08:42 AM
so seal the concrete and throw in the lime stone? then build the waterfall and cap the edges?
im unsure of the step process to make it look natural from above??
please explain
Cheers
Steve Green
Steve,
Basically thats the idea if you are laying out the cash for it to be concreted that is what I would do make a small pool and use the lime stone to get the effect i want.
I would seal it and cap all the edges prioir to adding limestone and the waterfall.
Remember there are no rules to doing this but personally i would have someparts of the limestone built up so high that it actually comes up and over the lip of the pond and this would be the exact way i would build the waterfall.
If you want you can pm me and I will send you my number and explain it better as sometime its hard to get it right with typing
#19
Posted 20 February 2009 - 07:03 PM
If you want to sink the pond below ground level and want it reasonably deep (75cm) to give protection from birds etc , you will need to make sure that your ground water table doesn't put too much pressure on the pond, particularly if you use liner.
When I was doing the research for my pond, I saw all kinds of ponds "popped" out of the ground by pressure from the ground water.
The same thing apparently happens to swimming pools.
I originally wanted a below ground pond but had to make compromises due to our winter ground water level, even though we live on deep sand,
but I love my pond now, so I'm not complaining
#20
Posted 21 February 2009 - 08:48 AM
Andrea
1 user(s) are reading this topic
0 members, 1 guests, 0 anonymous users