Pond erosion problem

I'd replace with overflow pipe.

I'd agree with the hay bales to slow the water moving through. Also, you can use piles of rip-rap as a check-dam as well but straw is cheaper. Once you get the dirt back where you want it i'd line it with a geotextile fabric (can be purchased at most landscape suppliers) then place stone over the fabric; this will hold everything in place. If you want grass on the slope I would pin down some grass mats you see landscaping companies use. Depending on the implements you have it should be feasable to get your dirt moved around with the equipment you have now.

As long as you know what you're doing with that tractor don't waste the time or money on renting a dozer. Unless you can borrow one

Good stuff. The pipe recommendations..are you saying to lay the pipe in the existing rut and back-fill around it? Seems that erosion would occur around it. Busting the dam to replace an over-flow pipe is out of the question. The pond is not included in my Wildland Grasses program, unchecked erosion would impact it as the grassland is directly below the dam. I've repaired this once but I didn't seed it and i have several excuses as to why I didn't complete it. I'll post my progress or the dam failure which ever occurs first. My son caught this gem this year. Ya now I but the pond is three maybe four years old... We're does the time go.

Agree with featherduster. But if you need to do it on your own and within a certain budget Throbak's ideas are good. Put in materials that will slow down the flow of water will help. It won't be a one and done task as you will have to be on top of it and catch the next erosion point when it happens.

Good luck

Tandem160:

I apologize for not chiming in earlier. I didn't see the thread.

I agree with a lot of what was said. Generally an overflow pipe, sized correctly for the watershed (taking into account the 50 and 100 year flood events) is what's recommended, and then an emergency earthen spillway for handling any larger water events that the overflow pipe can't handle. As you found out, that's why an earthen spillway isn't recommended for a primiary excess water handling feature.

But, that's water over the dam (so to speak), so we'll have to work with what you have.

You can use the tractor to do the work, but it'll be a PITA. To correctly pack earth to keep it water tight, it has to have clay content, sufficient moisture, and packed in 6" lifts with a sheepsfoot roller or a multi tired pan scraper that is loaded. You want as many PSI of pressure on the soil as possible, and you want to "knit" the layers together. Tracks on earth moving equipment are designed to lessen the psi of the equipment footprint, just the opposite of what's needed for proper soil compaction unless the soil is like pottery clay. Then it really doesnt matter what is used, it'll hold water.

But, if that's out of the budget, load the tractor up as heavy as you can, put 6" of dirt down, get it moist (make a ball of dirt, throw it against a vertical smooth surface. If it sticks, you're good to go) and run over it to pack it down. Continue that process until everything is filled in.

To keep it from eroding again, you have to 1) slow down the water speed running over the soil and 2) get a good plant community established with a great root system.

The rip-rap with geotextile fabric under it is a great suggestion too, and if you're on a budget, it's the route that I'd take if it was my pond. But, I'd add a siphon overflow too. The geo fabric should be tucked under the soil at the edges. If you can't get it long enough to cover the whole area in one piece, think of shingles on a roof. That's the way it has to be laid down. Make sure you start the fabric and rip-rap under the existing water level of the pond, and continue it all the way down the hill. The fabric has to be wider than the water coming out of the pond. If the water can get under the fabric, you'll have the same problem all over again.

Another route you can take is to use a self starting siphon pipe to drain out the excess water, and still use the earthen spillway for emergency use. You'd be suprised how much water a 6" or 6" siphon pipe will move, and you can set it up so it removes water from the bottom of the pond, which is poor quality water if you aren't running a bottom diffuser aeration system. You can make a self-starting siphon system that won't freeze and break during the winter, and it won't take cutting the dam. I would bury it for aestetic reasons tho....

Congrats on having a feeder! That a busted solar panel that I see hanging there? What feed are you using?

What species and amounts of fish are in the pond?

60 to 1 is the problem, that takes more than a easy fix

I emailed the Davies/Martin county NRSC office to set up a meet. Hopefully, he'll give me some input also. I get the concept of geotextiles but, haven't had time to get hands on some. Is this something that bib box stores have or are we looking at a speciality thing? "Esshup" who do you represent? I try to shop local or family owner when possible. Again thanks for the advice!

I went to College at UWSP for Wildlife Biology with a minor in Soils and Forestry. Upon getting out, the job market was either in State or Fed Government, the pay was terrible, and the job market was VERY tight. I ended up going into Manufacturing instead. I stayed up to date in the fish and wildlife stuff, but not to pay the bills.

Fast forward to 2009 and I was part of the big workforce downsizing. After helping my parents get their new house ready for them to move to, and getting their old house rerady for market, wiht the job market very poor here in North Central Indiana, I decided to get back into what I really liked doing. So with a lot of focus on "backyard" ponds of 1/4 acre and larger, and the job market here in Northern Indiana still tight I decided to start a business with the main focus of helping people with their ponds, but also dabbling in wildlife habitat management. I'm finally putting my schooling to use now.

It's a small company, myself and another person who basically takes care of computer and office stuff. The website is there, but that's about it for now. We're in the process of getting an on-line store up and running, and a much stronger web presence. The website should be finished by the beginning of March. This has been my sole income for 2 years, and while I'm not getting rich, I am able to pay the bills.

Woody, if the next part is verbotten for the site, go ahead and delete it.

www.hoosierpondpros.com We're based in Grovertown, IN. We are a dealer for www.texashunter.com/
www.vertexwaterfeatures.com/ and couple of different companies that sell plastic fish structure/cover for ponds. We also sell herbacides for ponds (Helena Chemical, Cygnet Enterprises), offer consulting services, do fish population studies, some fish stocking, etc., etc. While I haven't been doing this as a full time job for a long time, I have friends that have been in the pond management business for a long time, scattered over different parts of the USA. Bob Lusk of Texoma Hatchery, Greg Grimes of Aquatic Environmental Services, Nate Herman of Herman Brothers Pond Management, Mike Otto of Otto's Dirt Service, etc.. If I'm stumped with something, I have in excess of 100 years of pond management experience to pull from. There's a tremendous amount of information on the Pond Boss forum, I go by the same "handle" there. If there's anything that you need, and we can help, we'd be happy to.