Building a pond

[HoldenOn]

Hey all,
We went from a big tank, to a big pond. The only issue that troubles me is that I have very bi-polar water. It can reach 105°F here, and get down to 40°F. This isn't suitable for either goldfish or cichlids. How can I fix this?

 

[Colin_T]

Shade cloth over the pond in summer and bubblewrap on the water surface in winter.

 

[AbbeysDad]

AND....deeper is better with some rock caves.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

How big is your pond? My goldfish do just fine under the ice in the winter, but my pond is rather large. When it comes to resisting temperature changes, bigger is better.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Also, goldfish are extremely adaptable to water temperatures, as long as the water's clean. No need to insulate at night--they'll do fine at 40F, though they won't eat much. I've kept them in unheated tanks that got of to 85F during the day with no problems, though they might not live quite as long. (I'm not sure if that's true, but I read it on the internet so it must be, right?) Your tank will moderate the temperatures quite a bit, so they might be fine.

 

[HoldenOn]

It's not built yet, but it'll be pretty big. Like really big. In the 500 gallon range I think.

 

[HoldenOn]

Also, goldfish are extremely adaptable to water temperatures, as long as the water's clean. No need to insulate at night--they'll do fine at 40F, though they won't eat much. I've kept them in unheated tanks that got of to 85F during the day with no problems, though they might not live quite as long. (I'm not sure if that's true, but I read it on the internet so it must be, right?) Your tank will moderate the temperatures quite a bit, so they might be fine.

Also it may or may not be a cichlid pond. Depending on what the mothership says.

 

[Colin_T]

It's not built yet, but it'll be pretty big. Like really big. In the 500 gallon range I think.

I hate to burst your bubble but 500 gallons isn't that big when it comes to a pond. 5000 gallons is big, 500 gallons is just a big fish tank

 

[HoldenOn]

I hate to burst your bubble but 500 gallons isn't that big when it comes to a pond. 5000 gallons is big, 500 gallons is just a big fish tank

You right. I forgot a 0

 

[HoldenOn]

We have like this 20 foot long and 10 foot wide dirt thing surrounded by rocks at the back of our yard. We wanted a swimming pool, but it didn't work layout wise, so we opted for a pond.

 

[Fishmanic]

You right. I forgot a 0

ehhh..what's a few thousand gallons difference!
Now you can swim with the fishes. How deep will the ponds be?

 

[HoldenOn]

ehhh..what's a few thousand gallons difference!
Now you can swim with the fishes. How deep will the ponds be?

I'm not sure, haven't quite figured out the exact dimensions, 3 feet?

 

[WhistlingBadger]

500 (or 5,000) gallons of water, buried the ground, will give you a lot of thermal stability. My guess is that goldies would do fine in it year-round. Just feed sparingly and stop feeding them when the water temp goes under about 55F.

I have no idea about cichlids in a pond, though. You're on your own there. ha ha ha

 

[HoldenOn]

500 (or 5,000) gallons of water, buried the ground, will give you a lot of thermal stability. My guess is that goldies would do fine in it year-round. Just feed sparingly and stop feeding them when the water temp goes under about 55F.

I have no idea about cichlids in a pond, though. You're on your own there. ha ha ha

Imagine how cool it would be! A huge African cichlid community? Radical.

 

[Colin_T]

I turned a 20000 litre swimming pool into a rainbowfish pond for 6 months. Made a fortune from all the babies I sold