Pond design

[ZEBRA]

Hi I'm building a new pond soon and would like your opinion the size is 36'x14' with 3 - 4" bottom drains. 7' deep and made of 8"cement blocks filled with concrete and reinforced with re bar. I'm posting a drawing I did of the new Koi pond and any improvements you can think of would be greatly appreciated. Also some pictures of the location, and of our old pond and our mutts. My last pond as I understand now was a water-garden this one will have no plants or mung hiding rocks
Some questions I have are, and there will be more.

1] Should the block on the dirt side be sealed & waterproofed?

2] The distance of pipe from bottom drains, is there a rule the shorter the better because were I would like to put the filtration is far away and the least amount of bends as possible?

3] Is it better to have the drains angle up to the filter or run them on a smaller slope like 5 degrees then straight up?

[Meg]

I have not heard of someone sealing the outside of the blocks

I think with your distance you are worried about I would try to keep a small slope going to the filters or at least keep the pipe fairly level so the water is not fighting at all to get to the filters.
bottom drains sweep a 6-8 foot area I believe, that might help you decide how many.
don't forget a skimmer. (never mind! I see it now)

hopefully one of our engineer minded folks will chime in

welcome to Bito, that is the start of a very nice KOI POND

[ZEBRA]

Meg
Thanks for your input I'm hopping some of the engineer minded members will chime in too because I started to dig the pond today. I'm going to change the location of the filters its going to be at the end of the pond it will mean shorter and straighter runs. Sure would like to know the best way to run bottom drains? should run level or down and then straight up my last pond didn't have bottom drains.
again thanks.

[MCA]

I recommend a depth of 8', width no greater than 10-12' because it becomes far too difficult to net fish in a wider pond, and a length in a multiple of 10-12 feet (to match width) with one BD centered in each segment. Naturally each BD gravity feeds its own filters via 4" pipe. I would return the water via 2" TPRs. As for filters on each BD, hard to go wrong with Nexus/EAzy combos.....but there are many other options.

I would two put in two skimmers, one on each corner of one of the short walls. Each feeds a bakki shower with winter bypass. The shower water enters the pond on the short wall opposite the short wall with the skimmers. This helps create a good sweeping flow across the surfaces. Flow rate on each skimmer would be 5000-8000gph.

Either do a 45 or a radius curve on the intersections between all walls and walls and floor. Some will say you MUST slope bottom to BDs. I have not found that to be true if you run air domes. A nice flat concrete floor (with plenty of rebar) is a wonderful thing.

[Moneypit]

Meg
Thanks for your input I'm hopping some of the engineer minded members will chime in too because I started to dig the pond today. I'm going to change the location of the filters its going to be at the end of the pond it will mean shorter and straighter runs. Sure would like to know the best way to run bottom drains? should run level or down and then straight up my last pond didn't have bottom drains.
again thanks.

I would run a slight rise from the drains to the filters, this way any air bubbles will go with the flow up to the filters

[Dkoinut]

I agree with Moneypit. But I'm not certain about the 4 inch lines from bottom drains. I think 3 inch pipe will give more velocity and keep lines cleaner.

[ZEBRA]

I recommend a depth of 8', width no greater than 10-12' because it becomes far too difficult to net fish in a wider pond, and a length in a multiple of 10-12 feet (to match width) with one BD centered in each segment. Naturally each BD gravity feeds its own filters via 4" pipe. I would return the water via 2" TPRs. As for filters on each BD, hard to go wrong with Nexus/EAzy combos.....but there are many other options.

I would two put in two skimmers, one on each corner of one of the short walls. Each feeds a bakki shower with winter bypass. The shower water enters the pond on the short wall opposite the short wall with the skimmers. This helps create a good sweeping flow across the surfaces. Flow rate on each skimmer would be 5000-8000gph.

Either do a 45 or a radius curve on the intersections between all walls and walls and floor. Some will say you MUST slope bottom to BDs. I have not found that to be true if you run air domes. A nice flat concrete floor (with plenty of rebar) is a wonderful thing.

Thanks for the information pond is 2/3 dug and I think its going to change size again seeing it dug 36'x 14' its big ya too wide downsizing to 12' width . two skimmers good idea. 4'' or some say 3'' bottom drains will have more velocity have to run this by my plumber friend for his opinion.

[MCA]

With the same gravity pushing down on water ....which offers more flow (gph) 3" or 4" pipe? Yep, 3" offers more resistance...and thus less flow (gph) compare to 4". In a koi pond always do 4" or larger...never smaller,... pipes from the BDs. And don't forget the 1" pipe to supply air to the domes.

[Moneypit]

Thanks for the information pond is 2/3 dug and I think its going to change size again seeing it dug 36'x 14' its big ya too wide downsizing to 12' width . two skimmers good idea. 4'' or some say 3'' bottom drains will have more velocity have to run this by my plumber friend for his opinion.

Go 4" for the bottom drains, with a pond this size you will want as much flow as possible, I run about 3800gph through a 4" and have about 1.5" of draw down in my settling chamber and 2.5" in my moving bed filter What kind of filteration are you using?

[ZEBRA]

[QUOTE=Moneypit;143427]Go 4" for the bottom drains, with a pond this size you will want as much flow as possible, I run about 3800gph through a 4" and have about 1.5" of draw down in my settling chamber and 2.5" in my moving bed filter What kind of filteration are you using?[/QUOTE]

3 filter plants with settling chambers moving bed with brushes, air and mats 9 ' long each and bakki shower nothing in stone yet .