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How do I fix a leaking pond? | (Read 2129 times) |
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muddy4x4man
Posts: 2
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November 04, 2006, 03:56:20 PM |
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I bought some property with a dry pond. We
had a good rain and it filled up but two days later it was dry again. I had heard about using pigs to seal
the pond. Has anyone tried this and if so did it work? Any thoughts on this matter would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
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paul wheaton
Administrator
Posts: 1471
western WA
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November 04, 2006, 04:24:57 PM |
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There's something about the shape of a pig's hoof that makes such a great pond seal. Plus, with a little damp once in a while, pigs will really pack the clay!
Lots of farmers don't want to put pigs on pasture because the water will then run off of the pasture instead of getting soaked in.
Sepp Holzer (permaculture god) talks about pigs creating a seal, but he doesn't use them to seal his many ponds. He uses a track hoe to jiggle the dirt and press it down.
I know that I had a lots of sandy soil with some clay. The water didn't puddle much - until I put in pigs. Then there were some small puddles that would hold water for weeks of sunshine!
I do know that I've read that this is something that farmers used to do, but I haven't heard of any specific success stories.
How big is the pond?
I think it would be good to throw a bunch of food on the ground around the pond in different places for the pigs over a period of six months or so.
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muddy4x4man
Posts: 2
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November 06, 2006, 03:47:27 PM |
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The pond has a circumfrence of 40-50 foot its about 10 feet deep at center and the ground soil is lots of rock and red clay dirt. The pond Im guessing was dug 5- 10 years ago as there is one tree growing in the middle of it about 2 inches in outer diameter and a bunch of grass and small shrubs. Im guessing it may have never held water for more than a day or two.
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paul wheaton
Administrator
Posts: 1471
western WA
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November 06, 2006, 07:59:11 PM |
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The tree is a problem. Water will dig a path out along the roots.
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dirtworks
Posts: 71
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November 11, 2006, 04:31:59 PM |
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I've always found it really hard to get a sqeeling, wiggling pig into a small hole and harder still to make one stay there once inserted.
Pond liners as simple as plastic sheeting or more expensive rubber liners work better. A good layer of clay might work too.
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cavenan
Posts: 14
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December 13, 2006, 05:39:28 AM |
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Ha ha ha! I was thinking along the same lines as dirtworks!
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permaculture.dave
Posts: 133
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June 10, 2007, 11:25:05 PM |
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Whenever possible I would recommend avoiding pond liners for two reasons. 1. Pond liners all eventually leak and must be drained, diagnosed, and repaired. 2. Someday pond liners won't be available (neither will the repair goop) so we might want to get used to clay-lined ponds.
I like the pig idea too. The theory here relates not just to the pig's nifty hooves, but also the fact that those pigs will be crapping as well. This can become sort of an anaerobic soup called 'gley' that is then compressed by the pig's hooves. That is how pigs were used successfully (I believe in Scotland originally) to make ponds. Check out someone else with gley experience at http://resources.alibaba.com/topic/41782/How_to_create_a_pond_with_gley.htm.
An alternative would be to get a few yards of clay brought in and mush it around with some heavy equipment to smooth it out in a layer (maybe a bulldozer/compactor combo). You could even combo this with the pig method and see what happens.
Another option that may be a bit pricier, but seemingly effective is offered by a company called Seepage Control (http://www.seepagecontrol.com/). They have a soy-based liner product that can be applied while the pond is empty or after it is full. Check out their site for more details.
If all that fails, I'd say go for the liner. From the sound of it you're probably looking at around $1600 worth of EPDM. Having water in copious quantities is, in my opinion, a really, really good thing.
Anyway, that's my two cents. We put in a liner pond last year and will probably do it again this year (all we have to work with is glacial till and bedrock). I say the more the merrier!
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paul wheaton
Administrator
Posts: 1471
western WA
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June 11, 2007, 08:16:00 AM |
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I've seen this method spelled as "glie" - maybe that will help the googlers.
I heard that it was a popular russian technique. Usually filling a pond bowl with cow manure or hay. Sometimes several feet deep, then channeling in such a large volume of water that the organic matter must stay submerged (I would guess this would be through fall, winter and spring).
I once saw a home where the septic drain field was buried five feet deep (instead of the recommended 18 inches). The owner also had a drain field drain into a gully (illegal). I suspect that what happened is a glie layer formed and the septic system backed up. So the owner added the illegal drain.
The (legal) depth of 18 inches facilitates aerobic breakdown.
.... as for squealing, wiggling pigs ... pigs respect a single wire of electric fence .... a lot ...
.... as for the pig manure .... mmmmmmmaybe. When pigs are given enough space, they usually keep all of their manure in one spot.
Dave,
Any chance of a glie project at bullock brothers farm?
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