# Leaky pond



## benjohnson06 (Nov 25, 2021)

Bought a property last summer with a pond on it. Or so we thought. By end of summer pond was dry.
Fall rain and then snow kept water levels normal again. Seems to be holding water now.
Anyone know of someone who can take a look at this. We want to keep the pond but need an expert to tell us if it’s even possible before we look at keeping it and stocking fish


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

You'll need to find someone who knows how to properly build a pond come in and tear out/rebuild the dam. If it drained completely once, it will again. If you can add a location someone might be able to suggest a place to start looking.


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## benjohnson06 (Nov 25, 2021)

M.Magis said:


> You'll need to find someone who knows how to properly build a pond come in and tear out/rebuild the dam. If it drained completely once, it will again. If you can add a location someone might be able to suggest a place to start looking.


looking around Newark OH


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## DHower08 (Nov 20, 2015)

They make a stop leak for ponds that is suppose to work extremely well. May be worth looking into if it's a very slow leak. The amount of rain we have been getting can keep a pond with even a decent sized leak full.


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## fishless (Sep 18, 2014)

DHower08 said:


> They make a stop leak for ponds that is suppose to work extremely well. May be worth looking into if it's a very slow leak. The amount of rain we have been getting can keep a pond with even a decent sized leak full.


I had a very small pond cleaned out and repacked with clay .The guy did it with a track hoe .He hit a very large stone at 5 ft deep and couldn't go any deeper .When it was all said and done the pond still leaked at a place where the spring dumped in from the hillside ( he couldn't get to that small section ) so it still leaked .It stays full in spring then gradually gets low thru the summer so its now just a frog pond with some Koi in it .It wasn't cheap and it has been 20 yrs ago or so .


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## Shortdrift (Apr 5, 2004)

"You'll need to find someone who knows how to properly build a pond come in and tear out/rebuild the dam". 

There are many who know how to dig the hole but that is the extent of their expertise. I watched several "pond holes" dug along Southbound 71, all of which dries up in the summer.


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## Ol' Whiskers (Aug 11, 2004)

Going through this now to some extent. Last summer pulled two hundred tons of cattails from a pond that had been neglected for 25 years, and pond had never got to more than five feet deep. Fixed a leak at the waterline by excavation 9' wide by 9' deep and compacting clay in total depth. This was done along two hundred feet of bank out of six hundred. 

Filled pond over winter to max of ten feet. Had a slow leak in February of about one-half inch per day. Found that a driveway culvert into the pond had two feet of gravel base that leaked back into the driveway base. Fixed that the weekend. Filling pond back to ten feet at next hard rain, hoping for success. Suspect part of the bank we did not excavate is mostly topsoil and very permeable, which may be another contributor to slow leak. Will see.

Good luck finding a good pond guy. Anybody can excavate a big hole, not many can determine if the soil conditions support holding water for a prolonged period if time. Get references from pond owners in your area.


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## Morrowtucky Mike (May 2, 2018)

Could just be your overflow pipe if you have one. If they didn’t dig a core trench around it and pour it with concrete, water could be seeping around the pipe. Have seen it hundreds of times.


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## JerryA (Aug 16, 2004)

If it's not one of the simple things above I'm guessing the pond wasn't built right. If it went dry, stop-leak is not going to fix it. Likely built in shelf rock - the water goes out the sides, along the shelf rock, around the dam. With the pond full this time of year, look on the backside and sides of the dam and you should see where the water is getting out.


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## MikeC (Jun 26, 2005)

Your county extension agent may be able to help.


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## basslovers (Apr 26, 2016)

benjohnson06 said:


> Bought a property last summer with a pond on it. Or so we thought. By end of summer pond was dry.
> Fall rain and then snow kept water levels normal again. Seems to be holding water now.
> Anyone know of someone who can take a look at this. We want to keep the pond but need an expert to tell us if it’s even possible before we look at keeping it and stocking fish


Pound 1 PVC pipe at water's edge full pool. This marks water line.

Pound another PVC pipe in the water somewhere where you can mark it and read it over a period of weeks, ideally a few feet from shore and say at least 3 feet of water. Mark the water level on this pipe. Every day or every X number of days go and record the water level on this pipe. You want to record how much water you're losing and how fast, and this is best measured over a period of weeks. 

Is this a runoff or spring fed pond? What is average depth of pond? What is surface area of pond? And what is surrounding pond - trees, hills, etc - looking for sources of shade, roots sucking water, etc.


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## Doboy (Oct 13, 2008)

*Well,,,,, We / I really need some pictures of your pond!* Totally guess work right now. (& HOW LARGE is it?)
Is it a run-off feed? Bottom land? Creek fed?
I took a part in most of those (borrow pit) 'PONDS' all along Rt 11. Dug a big hole, & it filled itself in.
I've dug quite a few huge back yard ponds, & hundreds of basements,,,, & that's around Cortland. = Swamps & sand.
Most of the pond problems come from elevation, or over flow pipes.
I like over flow spillways,,, with a high water run-around trench.

I've dug some large deep ponds & hit sand. Tossed in a bunch of clay & tracked it in. Done deal.



One of my best friends, fishing hunting & camping, was a certified pond technician,,, with permits to build & sell components,,,, & to handle all of the chemicals needed.

Here's what he likes to build;

Elevated Filtration system with double aeration falls,, leading into #1 pond.
shallow 20' long run-off leading into second pond. 










Then Another 4' drop Aeration falls. 
Suction pump & screening filter in the bottom of this one. It pumps everything back up to the filtration tower.
He's now thinking about adding 4 solar Pannels to help cut pumping costs.
Everything is rubber lined.


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## benjohnson06 (Nov 25, 2021)

Hi all,

We have been quite busy trying to diagnose. Here are some basics:

1 acre runoff fed pond, constructed in the late 60s. According to Google Earth, held water up until 2010. Then the trees grew and it’s been neglected ever since. Entirety of the dam is surrounded with maple trees, bushes, etc.

it dried up except for about 6 inches of water in the middle until the rain last night. 

Muck throughout the bottom. Max depth right now is 6-7 ft at deepest part of the basin. Talked to a pond guy who thinks it’s a main basin leak and repair estimates close to $35k +.


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## Muddy (May 7, 2017)

It looks like your pond is in the later stages of eutrophication. You would be better off spending money on starting over with a new pond somewhere else on the property. That old pond still has some wildlife value, but it isn’t going to be much of a fishing pond. All of the trees on the damn have turned it into Swiss cheese.


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