8 Things to Consider before Building a Homemade Pond
If you have gotten some land ‘off-the-grid’, then you’ve probably thought about building a pond. Many people simply install electric pumps or figure they’ll depend on natural water catchments in the vicinity, and then stop there. However, it’s important to have a backyard pond pumps on-hand, as backup in case your other systems fail.
The following are important factor to consider before and when building the pond:
1. Water Table Fluctuations
If you’ve lived in a metropolitan region all your life, then you probably don’t know that water tables fluctuate significantly at different times of the year. Getting a pump is therefore no substitute for digging a well/borehole that’s deep enough to guarantee you all-year-long water supply.
Before getting the pump, learn as much as you can about the routine water-table variations by visiting local geo-survey offices or going online to get your locality’s geo-survey data. Also, talk to neighbors who have lived around for at least a year or more. Once you know how deep the well should be, you’ll be able to get the right pump to push water to the surface even when the well is at its lowest.
2. The Landscape
If you live in a hilly area and decide to put up your home on the hill, with the well in the valley where the water table is closer, consider that the pump will have to work much harder to transport water up the hill to your homestead, even with a wind- or solar-powered manual pump. You may be better off getting a ram pump rather than the conventional pumps that have handles, which will give better strength.
3. Water Usage
Consider your entire household and farm’s daily usage of water when choosing your pump capacity – this is obvious. However, most people living close to natural catchment areas provide for their daily usage in excess of what they can collect from the pond or stream close by.
4. Quality and Quantity of water
Pollutants, drought and other factors, however, can affect the quality and quantity of water in natural catchments, leaving you with less water than you need. Therefore, consider your full water requirements (as though the well were your only source.) and then buy a pump that can give that daily, with an additional margin, say 20% more.
5. Safety
Consider the safety of those that live around the pond. Bigger ponds may be risky for children, and it is important to have a plan of fencing around it and keep children and pets safe.
6. Purpose of the Pond
Figure out what you want the pond for. Do you want to use it for swimming, keep fish or to put some plants? Once you decide what it is for you will be able to know what size and where to put up your pond.
7. Shape and Design
This will help you get the estimated cost of your pond construction. Simple shapes and designs are less expensive. Waterfalls require more space and may cost you more.
8. Climate
Colder regions require deeper ponds especially if you plan on keeping fish, so that they can hide from the freezing temperatures. You can also add vegetation on the water if the pond is too exposed to harsh weather.
Having a pond full of fresh, clean and sparkling water at the backyard of your home is appealing and fun. You will love to spend quality time around it and enjoy the view. Take your time and build a good pond and also invest in a good pump to have the best pond.
