Go to the FDM Canada SiteHow to Dig a Pond – Part 3
All right. I’m on the other side of the corner pond. So, you can see how I cut the bank down with the D7 last night so that Francisco can get down in the pond, continue to expand the pond, make it deeper. And what is a pond in these parts? A borrowing pit. That’s right. We needed more dirt, so we just open it up until we have enough dirt to do what we need to do and that’s just the way it goes.
Now, my buddy, he dug this pond about 15 years ago. Look at that. It’s beautiful. And they literally backed off-road trucks down in here. We’re running pumps and this ended up being a three-acre pond when they were done. They needed dirt and they hauled a lot of dirt out of here. So we’re doing a little addition. Pretty sure. My friend is retired from the pond. He’s great at it. Boy, he’s built a lot of four, even five-acre ponds closer to a manmade lake.
Digging a pond is just a lot of repetition. It’s just a lot of strategic working your way out of the pond. That’s key. You have to be smart because for example, on that far bank, the way it’s left is the way it’s left. There is no going back. You know, the water’s coming up. I’m not going to pump, I’m at my age, I’m just too wise. We’re going to do this right. We’re working our way out. It could fill up with water and that’s what we’re doing.
I just wanted to make a point. This lot was prepped, trees were removed and that took a week and my goal was to get this pond done in a week. And in order to do that we had to work 12-hour shifts. So we have day shift, night shift, yours truly. And the good news is there really isn’t that long of a haul route. So we’re able to push all this dirt where it needs to go for a driveway around the pond. And once we break the dam, which we look forward to that, that’ll be coming up here in the next couple of part five or six. When we break the dam and flood this new addition, then we’re going to dredge around the existing pond and build up a nice driveway around that. So this is a borrowing pit and we need the dirt. So why not blow out the pond and turn it into a super pond?
The dozers are key. You got to get a nice dozer and you know that backhoe right there, I love it. It had enough power to where I never wished it had more. I never had any issues. And Francisco loves it too. It’s a really nice machine. And that John Deere D7, it just amazing, amazing equipment.
DIYers you can rent this. It’s easy to do. You can run it from a heavy equipment rental. They deliver it right to your property. And if you take some vacation time, it’s a great experience. It’s an experience of a lifetime. I remember my first dig, my first pond. If you do it the way I’m telling you, and you’re working your way out, you’ll be fine. Just make sure you’ve got a dozer with that backhoe because as he’s digging that dirt, you’re going to want to take care of it right away.
Until the next video.
