That turned out very well....I've got an empty stock tank in the barn..... hmmmm, now to get someone to dig the hole!

Where do you buy a stock tank?

Is there a farm supply in your area, Kelli? Or a place for supplies for horses? That's where we get ours.

There is a feed store in my area. They might have them there. (We already have a pond but this is good to keep in mind.)

Looks very nice like it has always been there, you did a great job with the rocks.

with Betty! It really does look nice and very much like it just belongs there.

That is why I got the rocks. I wanted to go for a natural look. I was very pleased with the results.

Yes, Farm Supply Stores carry Stock tanks and they come in many sizes.

Looks great, Rita!

Thanks, Rita. It does look so natural. How do you clean it? Do you use mosquito rings?

I do use dunks or I would get larvae. Even with the fish in there I seem to need them. Cleaning it is a major pain. Pump out most of the water and scoop all the crud from the bottom that has built up. Then when I put water back and make the filter take care of getting it the last stages to clean. A pond is work but it is so nice that it is worth it.

Oh if I turn the pump up to fountain, then I don't need dunks as the water moves.

You need a filtration system. It would greatly cut down on your workload. You can get them external to the pond. A good thing you got a poly pond. I don't think that even galvanized would last too long in the ground (hence the acronym "LUST" leaking underground storage tank). What do you do in the winter? You guys get cold enough for the pond to freeze. So where do your fish go?

Fish stay in the pond. Last winter it totally froze over but they were fine. I don't buy any fancy fish. In fact I get feeder goldfish and they grow out to whatever they turn out to be. I have 6 fish in there now from over the winter.

Thanks for your help, Rita. I'm way past even thinking of pumps and filtration systems.

What a beautiful water feature. I grew up on the North Shore and we had a small garden pond with fish that lived for years. During the winter my dad kept a log floating to absorb the expansion of the ice and it always worked. In those "olden" days they didn't have poly ponds, Dad built ours out of concrete and large rocks he picked up on the beach.

That sounds lovely!

Definitely a good choice in the plastic stock tank. Ponds can get complex and expensive fast. I've installed some smaller units over the years and I like a simple plan with a frugal advantage. Obviously if the pond is going to be the focal point of your garden it's going to cost a lot of time and money in maintenance. Last time I actually considered a pond a country neighbor in a newer build had a huge plastic preform free for the hauling. It was larger than my fullsize truck, lol. The price couldn't be beat and if it had had wheels it would be mine.

By "feeder goldfish" do you mean pet shop purchases or a specific "other"? Bait shops here sell nice, large goldfish primarily for catfishermen by the approximate pound. There are prettier koi at a higher price but for a pond on a budget money spent on plantings would be a higher priority for me. As for the bait store goldies, they're pretty hardy. A good friend and his wife started adding them to their pond after losses to neighborhood cats, birds, and raccoons. I always laugh when he tells his Blue Heron story.

Yes, I mean those tiny Goldfish sold at the Pet Shops specifically used as "feeder Fish" for those people needing live. I don't know what they feed them too. But they grow like crazy once in the pond and I don't need to get upset if I have losses.

Very nice Rita! I soooo want to try this when we move to our retirement/forever home next year ... love the natural look and the slate like rock edging.

You've achieved a nice, natural look. Have you had any problems with raccoons or herons fishing in it?

MaryE said:You've achieved a nice, natural look. Have you had any problems with raccoons or herons fishing in it?

No Herons but racoons do try to fish. Because the sides are so steep and with all the rocks around the pond the fish are safe. They come around but can't get anything.