Swimming Pool As Fish Pond

I've been trying to experiment with hooking a few pools together, each for a different purpose contributing to the whole. I've been running into some problems from factors completely unrelated to the experiment, but were it not for those I'm pretty sure this will work.

If you have a pool/pond postively choked with Anacharis, the water will be crystal clear and you'll have microfauna galore for fry to eat. Of course, this doesn't give the fish any room for swimming and you can't see them. By creative use of the little hose hookups on the sides of the pools, you can link pools together. Cram one pool full of anacharis and put only a few floaters for shade in the other, and viola! Clear, circulated water and happy fish without mechanical filtration.

Ah, I see. Is your non-filtered pond relatively clear? I imagine it must be a little tea-stained, though.

It is like the black lagoon. Black liner doesn't help either. I can't see a damned thing in it, except for the plants!

So, how many years should I expect from this setup?

When we lived in Bakersfield a few ago I had a dual pond set up for Koi. The smaller pond had a waterfall and was heavily planted with water lilies and no fish. It was my biological filter and aerator. Gallon wise probably around 300. The larger pond close to 1200 gallons was long and deep. It also had a waterfall, one or two lilies and of course Koi. Water went from the small pond to the waterfall in the larger pond. The large pond overflowed into the smaller. Both ponds were aerated. The larger koi pond was crystal clear. Every year I would thoroughly clean out the smaller pond of debris and sediment. That would keep the larger pond clear.

I didn't put a lot of labor into either and both looked pretty good. During winter months the ponds would go dormant for some time. There was no filtration and the flow rate was about 20 gpm.

It is like the black lagoon. Black liner doesn't help either. I can't see a damned thing in it, except for the plants!

So, how many years should I expect from this setup?

Wellll.... heck.... what would you want to look at other than aquatic plants?????

Wellll.... heck.... what would you want to look at other than aquatic plants?????

Hey, I bought a liner last year which is destined for 2 shallow plant ponds. I guess I'll throw some fish in there too to keep 'em fertilized or something. I was thinking about tropical plants - swords, aponogetons - stuff like that. I am thinking maybe I can "tent" them with clear polyethylene during the winter.

Hey, I bought a liner last year which is destined for 2 shallow plant ponds. I guess I'll throw some fish in there too to keep 'em fertilized or something. I was thinking about tropical plants - swords, aponogetons - stuff like that. I am thinking maybe I can "tent" them with clear polyethylene during the winter.

Might work, depending on how cold it gets where you are. Even if it is above freezing, I would think they would suffer in any real amount of cold.

I'm trying to think of what might work - people make cold frames for some garden vegetatables in the winter out of panes of glass and straw bales. Usually for more cold-tolerant species, though, like lettuce. But maybe something like that with a heater thrown in? Hmmm... could be expensive.

I'm a low-tech kind of guy...

I don't have a filter in my 100 gallon pond, just hyacinth and lilies. I'm going to add some elodea soon, and maybe even some hornwort and other random pond plants I find while I'm fishing. It's crystal clear. I have 7 warmouths, a crappie, and two redbreast sunfish in there right now.

I'm a low-tech kind of guy...

I dunno then. How cold does it get where you are? What ever you decide, I wouldn't buy a whole bunch the first time, as I'm suspicious that they'd fail unless it's really warm where you are. I'm pretty certain I could not have kept those species outdoors when I lived in Athens, GA.

I dunno then. How cold does it get where you are? What ever you decide, I wouldn't buy a whole bunch the first time, as I'm suspicious that they'd fail unless it's really warm where you are. I'm pretty certain I could not have kept those species outdoors when I lived in Athens, GA.

I went to school there, so I can make a pretty good comparison bewteen Pelahatchie and Athens. It is warmer here during the winter, but I doubt it's enough to keep tropicals alive if you know they wouldn't make it in Athens.

Hey Irate the pool sounds like a good buy i have one in back thats about 2250 gal. capacity.I dug it into the ground and placed a tarp under the liner to protect it from roots.I have had it for about 5 years and it is still standing well although the pump is not. i I had to rig a filtering system for about 50$.If you do decide to buy it Spray the liner with a pressure nozzle from your hose to remove residual vinyl and algacide as said before.>Is it a framed pool or a vinyl sidewall setup?

It is framed, not one of those inflatable deals that slope inward at the top.

Here ya go...

http://www.walmart.c...duct_id=4634030

On clearance now for $175 - how can you lose?

I was at the store today and they had a round swimming pool that was about 4400 gallons in capacity for $299. Does anybody have any experience with long-term use of these pools as fish ponds? As in, are the liners toxic, and how long do they last??

swimming pools are what I use for my breeding ponds and I didn't have any problems, just don't put in the chlorine pellets

I suggest to coat them with pool paint to have a lasting effect. Use this Pool paint I got online, maybe it'll work for you too.

http://www.thehardwa...om/?sku=6501258

I suggest to coat them with pool paint to have a lasting effect. Use this Pool paint I got online, maybe it'll work for you too.

http://www.thehardwa...om/?sku=6501258

I could be wrong but isn't that more for cement and block?

Edited by wvairman, 07 July 2009 - 07:37 AM.

Chlorine is safe for humans, well safe enough when used properly.

Chlorine will damage any aquatic organism that uses gills to breathe. When we put water in the storm drains it must be below .05 ppm chlorine.

Although I have no experience in this matter, I think a swimming pool is not the way to go. Easy and cheap usually does not equal the best.

Chlorine will damage any aquatic organism that uses gills to breathe. When we put water in the storm drains it must be below .05 ppm chlorine.

Although I have no experience in this matter, I think a swimming pool is not the way to go. Easy and cheap usually does not equal the best.

Sombunya, read the post in context. There was sarcasm there.

Is there a reason why we are dragging up a thread from 2007? ParkerBlue's post seems a little spamish to me...

Sombunya, read the post in context. There was sarcasm there.

Is there a reason why we are dragging up a thread from 2007? ParkerBlue's post seems a little spamish to me...

He's a "noob" like me