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Rigid plastic sandbox/kiddie pool, ~37" across, 6" deep. Any ideas on how I could make this into a small pond? Is substrate necessary? Filtration? I was just thinking of a couple feeder goldfish and maybe floating anacharis....any other suggestions?

edit: I also have Rubbermaid totes available to use; would one of those be better than the pool?

Thanks

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There is water at the bottom of the ocean

Theresa,
The rubbermaid totes won't work for a pond, I tried them for a hospital tank and it worked for the short term but the weight of the water ends up bowing the sides out more then I like to see in anythign I'm keeping fish in.

The kiddie pool might work, but again I'd be afraid of long term. I still have the stock tank I used as a pond in my living room. I had a small ammount of gravel in the bottom, and used an AC 500 and a reverse flow powerhead. Did have plans to further develop it but...well you know how life can be sometimes
Everything was working fine when I left for OZ you could have it if you want. I think I could maybe get my parents to drop it off for you if you might be interested?


I had the rescued goldfish (feeders) in it and they were just so I love them in ponds rather then tanks. I did try doing some plants but it was set up in a fairly darkend corner of the living room and didnt get much light, was going to put a shop light over the tank but never got around to it.

PM me if you think you might be interested,

^_^

last summer, i used a small water play table (this one to be exact- http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4837277) to raise a couple of tadpoles. I didnt use any substrate or filtration, but if your thinking about heavily stocking this thing, then i would consider using a filter. i wouldnt recommend putting feeder goldfish in it, though. Rosy reds or mosquito fish would be a much better choice. Just be sure though that you put this thing in the shade, or at least the majority of it in the shade.

I have used a rubber maid tote for over a year now, it has bowed quite severly, but is still holding strong. I did give some thought to the kiddy pool idea once, but it appears to be too shallow. I am afraid of a fish wanting to make a jump for it. I am still thinking of a way to get a prefabed pond to work that wont require a butt load of stones to support it.
It really all boils down to personal preferance. It can work, you just have to make it work.
At any rate, good luck on what you choose.

"There is also a Clown Pleco in this tank some where. I am telling you, HE IS IN HERE."

I just had a thought.
I'd often considered the prefab ponds too, but went with the sturdier stock tank. Depth is important for goldfish, they grow quite quickly when they have the room and are properly cared for, additionally they quite like acting like corys and are known jumpers.

So sniper mentioned using lots of rocks with a preformed pond, but what if you used concrete. If you mix up a some, and plaster it over the outside of the preformed you'd strenghten it right? After a layer or two it could be shaped to look like stones. Granted I don't actually know anything about working with concrete other than if they do the sidewalk outside of your house it's very hard to resist putting the dual hearts that adam had in his avatar into the wet concrete .

^_^

I dont think concrete would work. It is great at handling pressure and compression, but when it comes to stress, (bendind) it is extremely week. If you plan to paste a layer or two onto the sides, you are going to have a lot of cracked cement laying around the pond. Now if you plan to build a massive concrete box around the pond, you will have far better luck, but I you are going to do all that, it would be far easier to place the pond in the ground.

One of the local fish stores has a pond mad of landscaping timbers with the sheet liner inside. it is about 4'X4'X3'. You may want to try this idea.



"There is also a Clown Pleco in this tank some where. I am telling you, HE IS IN HERE."

It really all depends on if it is a permanent pond, and what/where youre going to put it. I know that in some hardware stores, or even in some nursuries, they sell a 100-300 gallon semi-deep pond outlines. What you can do is dig a hole in the ground that is in form with the pond, then put hte outline in. Fill it with water and LARGE and HEAVY stones. This will prevent it from pushing itself up. I would not suggest putting it in permanently if you live in a stormy climate. If you are expecting a lot of rain, only drain it a little bit. As for plants, use the Anacharis for the floating, and some lilies/water lettuce. I have experimented a little with ponds, but already have a pool, so no room for a pond. I gotta be thankful though for the help my dad gave me. He is the one with a need for a pond. He needs to make a 300 gallon pond to house a koi in. Just be sure to have some water movement(waterfall, fountain, sprinkler, etc.).

If you are going to have it inside, which i dont reccomend cos of the mosquitos and other critters, you should/could use the rubbermaid totes for the pond, but add cinder blocks or bricks to the outside to help support it. Then you can use the filter to cleanse the dirty water. Be careful of the totes that use the little handles surrounding the sides, as these may crack and slice a deep cut into your finger. What lighting are you going to use? It probably isnt going to be enough for the plants. You can even make one of those Bi-Aquariums with a small tube connecting them. Just cut a hole slightly smaller than the tube size(At least 5-6" in radius or 10-12" in diameter) and stick it in. Use the silicone or epoxy to seal the bridge between the tube and the tub. Then cut off remaining jutting out pieces. Try to put silicone ont the edges of the plastic, or whatever, because this can be kinda sharp, just enough to give you a LARGE papercut(think about a fish scraping one of its fins or eyes or whatever against that).

You can use about anything that is deep and large enough to support LARGE rocks(outside) or to support fish of that MEGA size. These ideas can wow a guest at barely any cost. Just have fun and remember that in stormy climates, it is imperative to drain a little bit of the water. If you drain too much, the pond will start to rise. Drain too little, the fish can jump and can water will be overflowing. Post more on how you want it to be done, and i might be able to suggest a few ideas. Good luck and have fun-Goby

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"which i dont reccomend cos of the mosquitos and other critters"

!
I never had a problem with mosquitos inside and had my pond running for years. Only time there was an issue was if they came in the door. Fish are pretty active mosquito eaters, and will make a quick meal of any larve they find. Probably a likely reason people started keeping them as pets in the first place! That and the fact that ponds are just .

^_^

True....But here in Florida, its not only gator and orange country.....If you come here, many people do in the summer, you will find a KATRILLION mosquitoes here. Even with mosquito fish eaters, a ton of mosquito larvae can appear with just one female mosquito....And it will be humid if it evaporates, and it will ruin funiture-If you dont have a dehumidifier...Hope this clears stuff up!

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Also, humidity will ruin your hair. (For all those self-concious peeps) A way to remove it is to also use cooler temperatures to reduce the vapors in the air. Warning:You will get condensation on smooth, hard objects. Might ruin woodwork or might wet papers(when the condensed water drips). Just keep this in mind!



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I have not met a person who has regreted placing a pond indoors because of humidity and they all live in FL. Their biggest gripe is that the fish more willing to make a jump for it indoors. Nothing like waking up with a nice koi decorating your living room floor.
I think that it would be not much different that having a tank other than it is lower to the ground and open. Tanks dont seem to mess with the humidity in the air. The koi will look 100 times better viewed from the top.

"There is also a Clown Pleco in this tank some where. I am telling you, HE IS IN HERE."

Someone must have a massive house if they're able to fit a one thousand gallon pond in their living room for koi...

Humidity is an issue, but I'm not a big believer in uncovered tanks anyway. Especially if one has active cats that enjoy playing in ponds . I bought a sheet of acrylic from home depot and it just slid over the top of the tank. Kept dust and dirt from adding itself to my filter, kept the cat out (for the most part) and reduced evaporation. Also kept the shishies in their place .

^_^

Just a suggestion.........In florida, we want to conserve electricity(FPL, our electric company, has had an increase in the bill of the electric costs! ), so we sometimes have not as much aircon in the house. It is then that it becomes stuffy and damp. The water will evaporate and ruin stuff. And yes, some people are more worried about their koi than the important papers and other stuff. And yes, the problem of the jumping fish is more important. But keeping a pond inside is not really my thing, and koi are definately NOT my thing. They are beautiful, but they get too big. I just like a nice, sturdy tank instead. Im not saying that i dont like ponds, but i just have a different poinion than everyone else.

PS-If youve ever had a problem with raccoons or other wildlife, I dont advise you to put out an outdoor pond, even if you THINK they are gone(chances are, they aren't).

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Tanks(even ponds) won't evaporate to that point. The more moisture in the air the less it will evaporate so it reaches equilibrium. It requires lots of other factors to reach a high enough humidity to cause any damage to objects in the house or to affect the humans living inside. There are plenty of people with 100s of gallons of water inside and they don't have issues with high humidity unless you cram all those tanks in 1 tiny room with no air movement and put huge lights over them. Unless you seal your house up with no fans running the humidity is higher in the house when it's raining outside than even if you put a gigantic pond in there. Not usually an issue. Generally mosquitos aren't either. It could potentially happen but most filtered ponds are stocked heavily enough and with enough surface movement to keep away mosquitos. Mosquitos don't reproduce well when there's surface movement. They like completely still water. I didn't even have mosquito problems with outdoor containers. Only in the stock tank for the horses because it has no fish and no circulation at all.

Sham, I think youre right, but youre missing a condition that i forgot to list too! If the pond is in the sun, thw water may evaporate faster and if there is no aircon.....you know what will happen. Also, algae will grow if left in the sun....

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The largest indoor pond that I have seen in a home is around 900g. But remember that it is also 2 feet deep.

The surrounding air can only hold so much water...ie 100% himidity. The air cannot hold more than that. Air usually will fluctuate about 20%. Either way, the amount of evaporatoin inside a house should be minimal. That is unless there is an AC vent of a fan blowing acrossed the surface of the pond.

"There is also a Clown Pleco in this tank some where. I am telling you, HE IS IN HERE."

Let's get back to the kiddie pool for a moment. Is this for indoor or outdoor use? At 6" deep is is too shallow to safely keep fish outside. It would make a nice marginal or bog garden. As for inside, I can see it in a corner with a waterfall draining into it. Or maybe with a mushroom head sprayer in the middle. The pool itself is made to stand on its own, however, I would use something like Pavestone wall blocks to support the edge. This will look nice and keep it from spilling if someone leans on the edge.
I cannot recommend using a plastic tote unless it is designed to hold water. Babel mentioned that they will bow and that is very true. Now if you want to put it outside, in the ground, a tote would make a nice micro pond. Make sure it has some shade to cut down on evaporation. Above ground, use a muck bucket or a half whiskey barrel. I've a couple of these tyed into my pond and they look very nice. There are also plastic versions that are even more practicle.
Whether you stock the pond or not, add a pump and filter to keep the water clean and give the sound of flowing water. Gravel on the bottom is nice in a shallow pond, but reduces the effectiveness of the filter by trapping debris.