me new bigger pond

[AJStrees]

34 minutes ago, Paul in the woods said:

I think you still need a licence to trap crayfish. Worth reading up on the rules especially trap design to prevent other animals drowning.

Permission to trap crayfish, eels, elvers, salmon and sea trout - GOV.UK

WWW.GOV.UK

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Get permission or a licence to trap crayfish, eels, elvers, salmon, sea trout, lamprey and smelt: how to apply and...

 

Yes your right. I had a look into this a while ago and put in an application for trapping. 

 

[spandit]

On 07/03/2020 at 22:10, AJStrees said:

You've actually got frogs. That's good news. Sounds like its making a difference to the biodiversity. Great project. 

Thanks. Been a struggle with the council getting it approved but now mainly leaving it to bed in and attract nature for itself

[AJStrees]

4 hours ago, spandit said:

Thanks. Been a struggle with the council getting it approved but now mainly leaving it to bed in and attract nature for itself

Good job. Do you deal with the Wealden District Council or Mid Sussex? 

 

What sort of planning did you need to get? 

 

Had two Greylags on our pond this morning, a nice change. 

[spandit]

17 hours ago, AJStrees said:

Good job. Do you deal with the Wealden District Council or Mid Sussex? 

 

What sort of planning did you need to get? 

 

Had two Greylags on our pond this morning, a nice change. 

WDC - it was a retrospective application. Took about 2 years and a lot of reports. Waste of time and money frankly.

[difflock]

Still a work in progress, and with fingers crossed for the better few days weather forecast(since yesterday was a most depressing steadily wet day here) I will get it better finished with the wee Kioti and linkbox cum land leveller(since I have reluctantly concluded that I will never be a good enough digger man to please myself)

I am not intending to sow out before this Aug/Sept at the earliest as it will need to settle, since I buried umpteen Couch grass "scraws", plus there are varying depths of loamy peat fill.

I found, pure happenstance, and externally fixed one leak, hiding behind where the glass house was previously located, they may be more, though no other signs of external wetness(but seeps/leaks could well be getting away through pre-existing land drains, plus some inevitable seepage, but as long as the water level remains reasonably high, no odds, I may simply never need to worry about an outfall .

The brown trout are well happy and it is a pure pleasure to see them rising for nymphs.

So a couple of images.

Edited March 26, 2020 by difflock

[AJStrees]

On 10/03/2020 at 12:16, spandit said:

WDC - it was a retrospective application. Took about 2 years and a lot of reports. Waste of time and money frankly.

I can understand that. Yep seems like lots of paperwork to be able to put in a pond that is only going to benefit the council by improving the environment and biodiversity. I wonder if you would get more help if you had asked for a Countryside Stewardship Grant. 

[AJStrees]

4 hours ago, difflock said:

Still a work in progress, and with fingers crossed for the better few days weather forecast(since yesterday was a most depressing steadily wet day here) I will get it better finished with the wee Kioti and linkbox cum land leveller(since I have reluctantly concluded that I will never be a good enough digger man to please myself)

I am not intending to sow out before this Aug/Sept at the earliest as it will need to settle, since I buried umpteen Couch grass "scraws", plus there are varying depths of loamy peat fill.

I found, pure happenstance, and externally fixed one leak, hiding behind where the glass house was previously located, they may be more, though no other signs of external wetness(but seeps/leaks could well be getting away through pre-existing land drains, plus some inevitable seepage, but as long as the water level remains reasonably high, no odds, I may simply never need to worry about an outfall .

The brown trout are well happy and it is a pure pleasure to see them rising for nymphs.

So a couple of images.

Nice pond there. Is it a clay base or rubber sheet to hold the water in? Or a natural pond?

[difflock]

17 minutes ago, AJStrees said:

Nice pond there. Is it a clay base or rubber sheet to hold the water in? Or a natural pond?

An entirely constructed pond, filled with runoff water from various roofs.

With a Clay base, it should be "near-enough absolutely watertight", but the contractor was not entirely  diligent in identifying and setting aside the limited amount of less-than-suitable material, and being a very experienced local guy, he really should have known his stuff.

He also buried peat that should have been removed, and included in the peat was an undisturbed clay pipe land drain, which issued copious water when I broke into it.

Fingers crossed it should now be OK.

Edited March 26, 2020 by difflock

[MattyF]

Is the water dropping much in the finally the lack of rain we have had ?
Are the trout Triploids?

[AJStrees]

4 minutes ago, difflock said:

An entirely constructed pond, filled with runoff water from various roofs.

With a Clay base, it should be "near-enough absolutely watertight", but the contractor was not entirely  diligent in identifying and setting aside the limited amount of less-than-suitable material, and being a very experienced local guy, he should have known his stuff.

He also buried peat that should have been removed, and included in the peat was an undisturbed clay pipe landdrain, which issued copious water when I broke into it.

Fingers crossed it should be OK.

Clay ponds are good if done well. Not that I have ever built one. I look after one and the dam needs some good repair and with the recent continuous rain some of the dam washed away so had to do  clay repair to stop the water running out. 

 

I take it you had a contractor in to put in a clay base and make it water tight? It will I am sure become a good place for an improved wildlife population which is always a commendable thing to do for the environment.