fish pond?

[gentle]

anyone with experience setting up a fish pond in the garden of a terrace house?

what would the estimated cost be?

any options other than keeping koi?

[David Moses Heng]

anyone with experience setting up a fish pond in the garden of a terrace house?

what would the estimated cost be?

any options other than keeping koi?

what's your budget? pond sunken or raised?
you may want to explore keeping goldfish or arrows?

[Blaze88]

Wont the arrows jump out and bake under the sun ? then you got yourself an expensive sun toasted fish...

Gold fish are nice in ponds but i still think Koi's are best since they look nice from the top. Arrowanas would look quite boring from the top.

[eviltrain]

some koi and stingray will look nice

[David Moses Heng]

Wont the arrows jump out and bake under the sun ? then you got yourself an expensive sun toasted fish...

Gold fish are nice in ponds but i still think Koi's are best since they look nice from the top. Arrowanas would look quite boring from the top.

hi!! it all depends on how deep the pond is. I believe that the fish won't jump else startled otherwise the aros breeder will have tonnes of sun baked aros for sale.

other cool fish to consider for a pond would be red tail cat, the gar family and maybe even if you are adventurous enough, the arapameia(?). having said that, the last suggested fish would need approval from ava. so it is really your call.

[Kim Yong]

i have a mini pond on my planter box. Its raised concept, not sunken. Trying to post pics over the weekend as requested by blue whale.

my mini pond is 60X60X18 cm. there are vasious size to choose from.
Its those fibreglass container, and surrounding by granite slabs. (DIY concept)
this size cost about 200+ if i remember right (fibre glass container + all the required granite slabs)

then u add accessories as deem fit.

Must have:
1. internal UV (to prevent green water) as the pond will be exposed to sun
(cost around $50). make sure u buy the type that does not have external adapter. all build in. else u have to find ways to weather proof the adaptor.
2. External filter. I using Eden501. works great for this size, any bigger u might need to look for something with higher flowrate, or 2X Eden 501. Eden also cost around $50
3. plants for additional shade and abosrbing nutrients, unless the ponds are in shaded area.

What to expect
GSA is my main problem in outdoor pond as lighting is beyond my control. so far no other algae. however, they can be controlled with shades, either from plant or external like walls

Fishes
goldfish - get bigeye fantail (da yan hu die wei). is will look nice top down. do note they shit alot. I keep fantail in my mini pond
small size koi - also look great.
no experience with other fishes

scaping
my experience is try not to have any waterfall type of design. my original design was with waterfall type, and BBA/GSA simply grow so strongly over those waterfall walls that i have to scrape them every week. now i remove the walls. sprout is ok.

water change
daily if u use goldfish. i simply scope the water and water my land potted plants, then top up new water. no wastage of water for me

not sure what else u need to know.

[gentle]

i am thinking maybe a simple sunken pond...
how do i go about designing and constructing it? complete with filtration, drainage etc

of course, the cost of construction and maintenance would be a major consideration

[eviltrain]

that is where our army trained skills comes in, digging self scrap.

1. you can dig a area and depth just nice to put your fiber glass tank in ( depends on the shape of your tank rectangle / some funny pond shape ). fill up the gaps so that it will flush with the height of the pond 9 will look more natural. for me i will trust fiber tank more than concrete because there's a concrete pond near circle line leak and the owner has to top up the water everyday.

2. maybe a hole by the side of the fiber glass tank ( varies on what things you wants to put ) to put all the electrical items like external filter/ UV for green water/external pump for watering plants inside ( of course weather proof it )

3. hide all your electical / water piping underground for more better appearence and easier maintaince.

4. plants like water lily ( potted if possible ) and some other floating plants will help in maintaining the water quality. It will be difficult to trim submerge plants. stack some drift wood together to soften the pots visually

5. guppies/malayan shrimps to be in the food chain or cleaning crew. any other bigger size fish will be your choice.

haha. this is what i will do if i stay in landed property or semi terence. good luck. if you need more ideas , welcome to ask me

[Kim Yong]

even if submerged, the pond should be slightly above ground level, not flush. Reason is if rain, mud or other substance will get washed into the pond. it may cause serious casualty to your live stocks. This is what i read when i researching on outdoor ponds.

then u have to consider if kids will accidentally fall inside sunken ponds. safety measures need to be considered, as the might be slippery after a rain or when doing water change. Note that maintenance u would have to kneel down or maybe flat on your tummy if u have to remove any "thrash" at the pond bed.

there are pros and cons to a sunken pond. do consider and research properly before digging. its gonna be hell lot of work too

[eviltrain]

my idea will be actually something like this.
( taken form www.rainshadowgardensblog.com )

[David Moses Heng]

i am thinking maybe a simple sunken pond...
how do i go about designing and constructing it? complete with filtration, drainage etc

of course, the cost of construction and maintenance would be a major consideration

what is your budget?

[gentle]

what is your budget?

hopefully less than $2k all in - anything more i'll have to reconsider the idea

i prefer it rectangular - something like:

http://www.koi.com.sg/DSC01030.JPG-i.JPG

or

http://www.koi.com.sg/newPond-website/DSC05221.JPG

more pictures can be found on this page
http://www.koi.com.sg/recently%20com...%20project.htm

[gentle]

even if submerged, the pond should be slightly above ground level, not flush. Reason is if rain, mud or other substance will get washed into the pond. it may cause serious casualty to your live stocks. This is what i read when i researching on outdoor ponds.

then u have to consider if kids will accidentally fall inside sunken ponds. safety measures need to be considered, as the might be slippery after a rain or when doing water change. Note that maintenance u would have to kneel down or maybe flat on your tummy if u have to remove any "thrash" at the pond bed.

there are pros and cons to a sunken pond. do consider and research properly before digging. its gonna be hell lot of work too

yes, safety is a main concern, the recommended depth for koi ponds is at least 1m

[hwchoy]

I have a 4ft × 1ft × 8in fiber glass trough, surrounded by granite as you said. I fill it with 4 inches of substrate (3" soil and 1" gravel) then just fill it with water. plant whatever plants you want depending on light level. I have waterlilies, cryptocoryne, Echinodorus and some papyrus. put appropriate amount of small fish and cheap shrimp (remember your water is 4" deep only).

no need filter, no need CO2, no need anything. if you feel like it you can siphon the fish poop, else they just naturally form part of the ecosystem with the plants. very few of my fishes die. most of the guppies fall prey to enterprising kahleng birds who come for a quick bath and breakfast. faster fishes like six-banded barbs are still there after more than four years!

plants grow like nobody business especially during the 6 months where there is direct morning sun, during which the waterlilies will even bloom.

[Blue Whale]

>"< If you are considering having kois, take note that kois do grow in size. 1m depth might not be sufficient.



However, if you are not considering kois, then it does not have to be a sinked in pond.



These pictures were taken from pasir ris Drive 12 fish farm. Aqua Fauna Centre and Mainland Tropical Fish farm. There are warehouses at the latter so you could go in to see first what is the ideal depth that you want. There are simple large koi ponds outside so you could ask for advice. There are bins like the one eviltrain posted in the warehouses. Certainly I don't think that you will be just constructing one pond. You may need some ornaments which are found there too.

[David Moses Heng]

hopefully less than $2k all in - anything more i'll have to reconsider the idea

where's your location?

I am free most morning.


mobile me or pm me. I am wired 24/7 thanks to iPhone

[johannes]

Neat and cute pond you have in your gallery bro Kim Yong!

[Kim Yong]

thanks, still touching up and trying to improve. 3 months of work and rework. Its relaxing to hear the water sprout sound in the evening siting by the mini pond, after a tiring day from work.