Cmu Pond

parkers5150

hello guys, lookin for some ejumucation! i'm a GC that specializes in wood structures, but i have thrown enough block to consider myself legit in the world of masonry. right now i have a rather large hole in my yard that sooner or later is going to become a koi pond. ive done more than a few of these using the EDPM liner method, but the more i look at that hole , the more i want to build itn out of cmu's. i live in san diego so weather/temp is not an issue. furthermore the ground is all DG. I'm thinkin eight inch slab with a slight slope to a center drain, wet set the first course and add some conc. at the floor/wall junction to get a coved bottom. steel 16" o.c. vertically and 8' o.c. horiz. there's a guy out in internet land claiming he uses thinset mixed in w/the mortar for structural integrity and water proofing properties????? i would finish w/a thuroughseal and a commercial grade spray on liner. the pond will be 4 feet deep F.F. i would appreciate any helpful suggestions and or advice thanks Parker

concretemasonry

It sounds like you are a "GC" from SD/southern California that has just "thrown in" some block to think he has enough masonry knowledge to be a "legit" contractor but needs to go on a forum to do a DIY job.

Just call your local block supplier in Lemon Grove (I think they were or are called RCP) to get the name of some real mason contractors instead of being a "legit" contractor yourself. In your part of the world, real GC's hire masonry contractors or at least illegal aliens that know how to do it.

I just finished 4 weeks of grading 8th grade writing from Louisiana where you would barely get a "D" based on your ability to say what you think you mean, neglecting the spelling and capitalization errors. If you were in a place like Oklahoma, you would get an "F" by comparison.

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Dick

Engineer, designer and consultant recently active domestically and internationally on construction and design in about 35 countries.

Tscarborough

Segmental masonry is not a good answer for water retention structures unless you plan on using a rubberized liner.

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It ain't Rocket Science unless you are building rockets.

parkers5150

to the fat guy with the fish!!!! aren't you the class clown. if you were to PYHOOYA and take the time to read my so horribly misspelled post, then you might deciepher that i was only trying to introduce myself so that goons like yourself wouldn't take it upon themselves to waste everybodys time flammin' away. I don't need nor do i want to hire anyone for this project because it is just that,"my project". so in closing my "super mason" friend rather than puff my chest up and do the chicken dance with you, i will ask that you keep your "super mason" comments to yourself until i send you some pics of the completed project. then i will listen to you squak all you want. Deal???

parkers5150

once more to the fat guy w/ the fish. i must apologize for firing off a reply so rapidly without reading your post completely. i just went back and saw your name at the bottom

parkers5150

and for clarification if anyone else needs it, the word "ejumacation" was a little pun, you know a joke no????

Tscarborough

I would rather be a fat guy with a fish than a skinny guy with a leaky pond.

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It ain't Rocket Science unless you are building rockets.

parkers5150

more words of wisdom

thom

Vertical walls on a pond are less than ideal. One of the cool things about ponds is the wildlife that come to drink. Vertical walls endanger them. A rocky shore line allows the wildlife to step in a little to drink without falling in.

parkers5150

thanks thom. i agree with you about the "fall in" factor but, since this is going to be a koi pond i want to keep the sides vertical in order to keep the predatory birds such as cranes from being able to wade in and have their way. as far as the other little creatures, my dogs along with my cat have pretty much taken care of that problem. again thanks for the input

Michael Olding

Just another thought Paker... I build a pond a little bigger than the one you are attempting in my back yard about 20 years ago though I only took it down about 30" or so and made 2 levels.

I simply dug the hole to the rough dimensions allowing for the new material, deformed 1/2" rebar but you could use 3/8" rebar with about a 8" spacing. Then 'formed' about 6" - 8" of concrete over the rebar like furrow cement. Applied a cement stucco to close off and smooth out the bottom and sides.

Still works great but have to stucco the surface every fews years because of the hard freezes we have here. Unfortunately I couldn't put in a main drain because my property sits on rock and it would have gotten too involved for a weekend project. So the pool is full of water all winter.

My fish live in the pool year round. No freeze outs yet.
Good luck with your ponds and yes the wildlife will love it... I even have ducks flying in for their morning bath lol!

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Masonry repair expert - structural, restorations, tuck pointing, rebuilding, staining etc.

painter213

What is the liner that you are intending on spraying on yourself? I may save you some trouble.

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Benny Abbott
Abbott Consulting and Coating Inspections
E-Mail: babbott@abbottcoatinginspections.com
Phone: (205-717-0292)