avboiler11
Master
I put in a one acre pond 15 years ago.
How deep is your one-acre pond?
I put in a one acre pond 15 years ago.
A word of caution here . If it's not a pond that around daily to keep an eye on , I would avoid doing this . I had a neighbor who thought it was a good idea to put an old charcoal grill grate over his overflow .Screen the overflow with 1" screen of some sort to prevent the fish from washing down stream. Smaller screen will plug too easily.
May be a dumb question, but I don’t know the answer....do you have to have permission from the county in order to put a pond on your property?
As far I know , no you don't . It might vary by counties though . It's always good to check with neighbors that are close or maybe affected in some way .
With that being said , I believe there might be some restrictions as far as the height of the dam and the amount of water it backs up . At some point the army Corp of engineers can get involved . I'm not sure where that limit is , I think roughly 5 acres and or 25' dam height . But that's just a guess though
In Indiana, dams are regulated by the Department of Natural Resources. There are permitting and construction requirements.
https://www.in.gov/dnr/water/2458.htm
One thing that I would definitely recommend is to add an aerator to your pond. I purchased some property with a 3/4 acre pond and it was so full of weeds, there was literally just a small opening in the center of the pond. I added an aerator and after the first year, hardly have any issues with most weeds. I will occasionally get a bloom, but a quick treatment and it goes away fairly quickly. I can tell the water is much clearer, cleaner, and fish seem much more healthier too now. I've also added some grass carp to keep some the vegetation at bay. The last couple of years, I've also noticed the bottom muck has been clearing up too.
I've met with Doug Bergman a couple times and he's dug test holes on my property that show suitable soil, so mid-summer I think they're gonna get to it...roughly 1/3 to 1/2 acre in surface area.
I've called the Clark County Zoning & Planning Office, as well as the Soil & Water Conservation District, and neither told me of any required permits. Have a voicemail into the Clark Co Engineer as a final check but otherwise I think I'm good to go since there aren't any WOTUS concerns...?
I know we have never meet but I am jealous of you right now. My wife decided that we need to put on pond on hold for a couple of years. I am very excited to see the stages and the learning curves you share with us. I will be paying very close attention to this.
Thanks for the post's AV. This is something I'd love to do someday.
Problem is, where I want it is a 20 foot deep, 100 yard wide gully full of trees. I'm betting removing all those roots would get expensive quick.
Picture was taken early this afternoon by my wife; if the rain holds off they should be finished by the end of this week.
Not 100% clear on surface area yet, likely 2/3 acre, max depth about 11'. Bringing in some pea gravel tomorrow for some fish habitat and a kayak launch-type area, get some structure in the pond (artificial or most likely, built from some of the removed trees), then buy and install a small aerator before the pond fills, then seed/straw the yard and around the pond, then build a dock, and finally figure out exactly when, what, where from and how to stock it with fish - likely starting next spring if it fills sufficiently.
Jones Fish has some comprehensive stocking packages, but the prices are $$$...considering Andry's, Cassidy, or Clear Creek Fish Farms, too.
As somebody said upthread, it ain't an inexpensive process...but once everything gets done...