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  1. #1

    “I want a water feature.” ...I know just the thing! :)

    So decided to fill a space where a hot tub was with a koi pond. 15 tonnes of concrete and soil have been removed. Now time to hit up a cousin to do the concreting and block work.

    3.2m x 2.2m x 1.5m

    Bottom drain, pipe work, surface skimmer, return pump and nexus 220 purchased. So a few more bits to get.

    Just a hole in the ground at the moment but It’s good to document things and get advise from you guys and girls.


    Last edited by gavinr77; 30-07-2018 at 07:20 AM. Reason: Photo added

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  3. #2
    Extreme Koi Member Rank = Rokusai Chipmonk's Avatar
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    Seems like a good start, you’ve got the worst part done, now your on the fun part.


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  4. #3
    Very slow progress due to the building work being done by a family member when he had time and also a family bereavement but getting there. A few things im not 100% happy with or certain about. We havent rendered the base its just solid concrete as smooth as we could get it, and the skimmer is a bit high but hoping i can fix that with when the coping stone go on.

    Still need to decide on how to house the filter, I want a shed but someone else doesnt want something that tall there... The shed would be 7x5, cheaper and far easier than custom building something of the same footing but not as high.

    pond2.jpgpond3.jpg

  5. #4
    Senior Member Rank = Yonsai Liam77's Avatar
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    Your skimmer looks fine to me mate. But I do have another concern. You seem to have used building blocks upright and no support. What could happen is your wall might just push out under the volume of water. Someone else may confirm it but you really wanted your blocks laid flat so they are wider and have more cement in there which makes it a lot stronger. I feel bad saying this but we have all watched someone on here recently lose a whole wall on a finished pond just due to water pressure and a weakly built wall.

  6. #5
    Cheers Liam. The block work should be okay, I followed advice from a local koi pond builder and also put a small 3-4 inch collar of concrete outside of the bottom course of blocks. Fingers crossed though as it is a bit deeper than expected.
    Last edited by gavinr77; 18-09-2018 at 06:34 PM.

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  8. #6
    Any other opinion welcome on the block work, ive got my fingers crossed but if its worth doing something now ill seriously consider it

  9. #7
    Been away with work and finally got some time, and the weather to aquakote the pond, but its got half inch of rain water and leaves in it grr

    Ive managed to get the water out so hoping the base will dry a bit today.

    How dry and clean does the base have to be for me to paint it? any tips?

  10. #8
    Extreme Koi Member Rank = Adult Champion bowsaw's Avatar
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    what does the container say?

    id have thought it would need to be completely dry and free of any debris or dust if you want a good finish
    the slow pond build thread

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  12. #9
    Senior Member Rank = Nanasai Handy Kenny's Avatar
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    gavinr77,

    The two pack pond paint I used said it could be applied to damp surfaces which makes sense if you think of a two pack paint as a chemical process and not a water evaporation (drying) process. You could actually thin the two pack paint with water to allow spraying anyway. I didn't apply it to a damp surface though as I concluded that if you want "paint" to adhere to the surface of anything the further it can penetrate into the surface before drying (curing) the better and dampness has already filled the spaces that would be better filled by the paint.

    Before I painted my pond I went over the render with a blow lamp to remove any sticking out fibres, brushed and pressure washed the whole thing, let it dry, blasted on a thinnish first coat with a spray gun then hand painted subsequent coats all under a tarpaulin with a little heater keeping the damp out. Had no problems with paint flaking/peeling since and it has been through two winters. It is all in the preparation.

    Paint in haste repent at leisure.

    Kenny

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  14. #10
    Senior Member Rank = Nanasai Gray's Avatar
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    “I want a water feature.” ...I know just the thing! 😊

    Your blockwork went up quicker than mine so in my book that’s good going!

    Re your filter house; I had the same “I don’t want a shed behind it” comment directed to me as well so I built a few walls and made up a two-part wooden lid for my filter house. Works for me as I can raise the main part and works for my wife as she doesn’t have a shed to look at.



    I’m going to guess you’re gravity feeding the filter so with the above style of filter house you can still get the height you need to ensure the top water level of your pond is exactly in line with the top water level in your 220 and is around 2/3 or more up the side of your skimmer too so you get the gravity draw needed.

    Looking at your 220 location at the mo you’ve got the space to raise it up as you’ll need to.

    Hope some of this might help.

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  16. #11
    Cheers for the advice on the paint Kenny, I've painted it now but its a bit rough to the touch and some of the fibres are sticking out so I'm going to sand it down a bit and add another coat of Aqua-Kote. A costly mistake, I did use a heat gun and sanded a few areas before painting but it wasn't enough. I think a blow lamp would have been better.

    @Gray. Yeah your filter house looks ideal. I think I'm going to go one row of blocks then a cladded wooden frame and with some insulation. Not sure how the lid/roof will work yet

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  18. #12
    Senior Member Rank = Nanasai Handy Kenny's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by gavinr77 View Post
    Cheers for the advice on the paint Kenny, I've painted it now but its a bit rough to the touch and some of the fibres are sticking out so I'm going to sand it down a bit and add another coat of Aqua-Kote. A costly mistake, I did use a heat gun and sanded a few areas before painting but it wasn't enough. I think a blow lamp would have been better.

    @Gray. Yeah your filter house looks ideal. I think I'm going to go one row of blocks then a cladded wooden frame and with some insulation. Not sure how the lid/roof will work yet
    Gavin,

    I did mine with a blow lamp, rubbed the render down with a wire brush at the same time (gently) just to lift any fibres on the surface. Pressure washed it afterwards. It is all in the preparation. Painting is a doddle in comparison. If the paint is thin you will always have rough stuff. My paint (Antel Pond Paint) could be applied quite thickly without running, so on some of the rougher areas that is just what I did. That helped smooth it over.

    In the longer term the algae on the inside of the pond has stuck to the paint anyway although it is pretty smooth, even my Karcher K7 (pretty powerful) doesn't take it off! The lovely deep terracota red paint is now black. If I ever want to repaint it I think I will have to remove all of the old paint with algae attached.

    Funnily enough what does remove the algae are planted anoxic pond baskets sitting on the floor of the pond (at the shallow bits). Moving them around reveals perfectly clean patches of paint. Not got a clue why!

    Kenny

  19. #13
    So a year after the initial dig started I'm nearly there with the build just cosmetic stuff to finish off. A mix of winter and a manic workload slowed everything down to a stop. Then some issues with leaks from the main pond, and some bad (or lack of) planning with plumbing the small filter house. Big thanks to anyone I've spoken to about issues and Malcolm at Koi Water Garden for help and advice.

    Got just over 12000 liters of water, a few fish in there already (its been running 6 weeks now. pH is still a bit unstable (high), i think this is from having not put the coping stones on and heavy rain water running off the bare concrete blocks. Gone through a pea soup stage, and now got a bit of blanket weed growing on the walls but im hoping itll go once parameters stabilise.

    I'll try to keep it updated more regular now.

    pond2.jpg
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Last edited by gavinr77; 11-07-2019 at 04:27 PM.

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  21. #14
    Looks brill mate


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  23. #15
    Senior Member Rank = Jussai Tom Koi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by gavinr77 View Post
    So a year after the initial dig started I'm nearly there with the build just cosmetic stuff to finish off. A mix of winter and a manic workload slowed everything down to a stop. Then some issues with leaks from the main pond, and some bad (or lack of) planning with plumbing the small filter house. Big thanks to anyone I've spoken to about issues and Malcolm at Koi Water Garden for help and advice.

    Got just over 12000 liters of water, a few fish in there already (its been running 6 weeks now. pH is still a bit unstable (high), i think this is from having not put the coping stones on and heavy rain water running off the bare concrete blocks. Gone through a pea soup stage, and now got a bit of blanket weed growing on the walls but im hoping itll go once parameters stabilise.

    I'll try to keep it updated more regular now.

    pond2.jpg
    Looks very good Gav, what size is the Window.

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  25. #16
    1800mm wide. It’s an Atlantica gardens SS frame.

    Pretty happy. The blanket were on the walls is annoying me already mind

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  27. #17
    Senior Member Rank = Jussai Tom Koi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by gavinr77 View Post
    1800mm wide. It’s an Atlantica gardens SS frame.

    Pretty happy. The blanket were on the walls is annoying me already mind
    How high is the window 1800 wide X ?? Gav and what is that finish you have on the walls. I like that, smart as.....

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  29. #18
    Senior Member Rank = Supreme Champion freddyboy's Avatar
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    Looks good mate. Great job.

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  30. #19
    Window is 18000x600mm high. Im pleased I decided to put it in, I was unsure to begin with mainly due to the cost but it looks good.

    As you can see the coping stones still need to be set in place, just finished sealing the slate so it will have a "wet" look so they will be put on later.

    The cladding (rustic cooper cladding from eazyclad) will be sealed the same, and the patio once ive managed to put the slabs back.It will look different once that is done.

    The filter house is 8x5 custom built, looking back I think a full height shed would have been better so I might extend it so I can walk in it in the winter when its peeing down. Not sure how id ever add a drum with my dodgy pipework layout and lack of space

    Filtration wise, ive got a nexus 220 fed by a single bottom drain, 2 mid level returns but only using one at the moment. Skimmer filtered by an eazypod (behind the filter house as it was an after thought) which is T'd off to return to a top-mid level return or the waterfall.


    IMG-0622.jpgIMG-0620.jpgIMG-0621.jpg
    Last edited by gavinr77; 12-07-2019 at 10:25 AM.

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  32. #20
    Senior Member Rank = Supreme Champion RS2OOO's Avatar
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    Looks superb mate well done.

    Spend £15 on a pair of gas struts off eBay for the filter pit lid.... Makes life so much easier.

    And 4 of these as well:

    https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/8mm-PIVOT...53.m1438.l2649

    Bottom of the struts go on the back wall about 4" down from the top and 4" in from the sides, top of the struts straight onto the filter pit lid at the height you want. That makes for a smooth opening/closing action, but you'll need to add a crossbeam on the lid to mount them to.
    Last edited by RS2OOO; 12-07-2019 at 02:50 PM.

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