Question About Building A Garden Pond.

[richb2004]

This is strange one, but maybe someone can help.

My wife has been in Thailand directing the build of our house. She has done an excellent job on everything. Except one thing. She has had two seperate ponds built in the garden. The problem for me comes in that she has had the inside of the ponds tiled. Tiled with light blue tiles. I have never seen a tiled pond before and told her so. It didn't go down well. She told me that Thailand is not England, which I surely agreed with. I didn't push the issue to much as she has done such a good job with everything else, but its starting to niggle me. We had another 'disscusion' about it today. She informs me that people in Thailand often tile their ponds. I havn't seen any, and can't imagine fish swimming around in a tiled pond.

Am I right or am I wrong? Do Thai people have tiled ponds, and can fish live in a tiled pond?

I realise its a strange topic and that I may not get any reply's, but if this forum dosn't know probably no one will.

[royar2002]

I think your ponds will look best if they looks like a natural ponds with plants, stones etc. Not like a micro swimmingpool.

[Sel]

One of our ponds has tiles but its not inground but above ground. Looks similar to the typical open water tank in the bathroom.

Easy to clean (easy to get dirty), but makes the water look dirty quickly. Quite common here.

Fish survive just fine.

[NedKelly]

There were some people that built a seeeement pond......check the website

www.jedclampet.com

[BKK_banger]

It is common in Thailand to tile ponds and just about anything else made out of concrete.

The reason is that the concrete work is <deleted> with rough board formwork and concrete that without chemical retarders will set in 30 minutes making trowelling and floating extremely difficult. The standard of finish is universally crap and unfinished concrete is an eyesore in Thailand.

Add to that the enthusiasism to use it and you begin to see why tiles are so popular.

Almost all concrete in Thailand is finished in some way, plaster, render, tiles etc.

Having tiles in a water retaining structure may not improve its watertightness unless the tiles are properly bedded and, more importantly, grouted with expansion joints at appropiate intervals.

You may also find the fish do not like the lighter tiling as they prefer shade during the day. Try introducing plenty of plants to the pond.

And of course the lighter colour will show the dirt.

If your wife has done such a good job with building works get down on the ground and grovel, you worm. Such ladies are hard to find!!!

[bkkmadness]

A tiled pond is fine, though not the best way to keep pond fish. As said before fish like a bit of shade, so it's nice to have a surface less refelctive on the bottom or sides of the pond for a start, but plenty of plants will help this and depending on the fish it will be no problem, a lot of the fish that will end up going in there will be used to strong light anyway just because of the area they are from. If you put catfish or anything like that in there it would be a good idea to put some kind of terracotta tube at the bottom for it to hide in during the day.

The only thing you do need to watch out for is the sealant used between the tiles and be sure that it is non-toxic to the fish, even the concrete ponds in the uk that would otherwise lose water with concrete being porous need a coating of non-toxic paint.

Obviously make sure it's been done properly as well, it may not leak at first but if it gradually wears away and starts leaking when you have a settled pond full of fish and plants then it's going to be a headache to sort out.

I think, overall your've got no problems here despite it being a dodgy looking finish for a pond IMHO, and always better to see a on her face than a right? .

Anyone else with fish hassles PM me I worked in the trade for years and am a self certified fish geek and always happy to help if I can.

[IamMaiC]

How about ripping it all out and then see what your wife thinks? Don't u trust her judgement? What's the big deal anyway it's tiled man i think the world's gonna end soon

[bina]

just cement means u have to put water in and soak a few times and drain and repeat until all the poisons have washed out from the cement; turkish and other 'oriental' ponds are always tiled but dark; then you get fish with light coloured backs (koi are bred for top viewing, side viewing, etc); put in water plants; wait for the leaks (all ponds eventually leak); oh, and i only learned now that bamboo doesnt like to be IN the water but just in wet area nearby (our zoo' gardener killed off all our bamboo until my thai worker explained that point); yoiur wife is (of course) right, thailand is not england.

[Ajarn]

I have a small fish pond fed by a waterfall. When they were building it, they asked me about tile, bit I opted for just concrete...But, it does seem to be normal for Thais to tile these pools. They tell me it looks more 'riaproy' than plain concrete. Anyway, the tiled ones I've seen all have fish swimming around, seemingly satisfied with the tile, which quickly gets a coating of crud, anyway. Personally, I still prefer the plain concrete because my first impression of most tiled pools is that it's 'dirty'...My attention goes right to the strong visual of dirt on tile, rather than the fish, and the beauty of the pond

[sbk]

Go the the bookstore and look at some of the water gardening books. Formal pools are often tiled and can be made to look very beautiful. If you wanted a naturalistic look then tiling would look out of place. As it is already done, I suggest you try to make the look more formal, put in a nice fountain or some statuary (not the little boy peeing into the water, ugh ) and it can look really nice. And I agree, make sure that there is nothing toxic for the fish, you can let it soak for a week or so and then drain it to be sure. Also, make sure there is some shade or you may find your fish a little well done

[Mai Krap]

if you want to seal concrete what is the best sealer available in Thailand. I see these big round concrete tiles stacked up with fish inside, does anyone know what they seal the seams with?

[ProThaiExpat]

Having had Koi, both in a natural pond, cement covered with algae and tile on the 24th floor of a highrise, I offer the following:

Many want lighted ponds so the fish can be admired, especially at night. If the pond is dirty, all the light will do is illuminate the dirt. Keeping the pond clean involves water chemistry and filters. Tile is ideal for keeping a pond clean, acting as a backdrop for decorative fish and it will keep your wife happy.

My algae infested pond, was a natural one, where the small leak, about two gallons a day, allowed for fresh water infusion at the same rate and was beneficial, although with no filter, algae was a constant problem. Likewise, without water chemistry, the pond did smell a bit. The koi did well there anyway. If you keep in mind that Japanes koi keepers actually keep them in rice paddies and they thrive, anything that holds water seems to work, just a question of what you want to accomplish, visibility of your fish, water chemistry objectives, circulation and water falls etc.

The care of fish, the building of ponds for them and the water chemistry involved is often a lifetime leaning experience. The web is filled with sites on the do's and don'ts as well as fish suppliers, equipement suppliers, pond design information, etc.

If you think of your wife's pond as just a shell, you can take it from there to "spruce it up" anyway you want to make it satisfy both of your tastes.

[Ajarn]

Having had Koi, both in a natural pond, cement covered with algae and tile on the 24th floor of a highrise, I offer the following:

Many want lighted ponds so the fish can be admired, especially at night.  If the pond is dirty, all the light will do is illuminate the dirt.  Keeping the pond clean involves water chemistry and filters.  Tile is ideal for keeping a pond clean, acting as a backdrop for decorative fish and it will keep your wife happy.

My algae infested pond, was a natural one, where the small leak, about two gallons a day, allowed for fresh water infusion at the same rate and was beneficial, although with no filter, algae was a constant problem.  Likewise, without water chemistry, the pond did smell a bit.  The koi did well there anyway.  If you keep in mind that Japanes koi keepers actually keep them in rice paddies and they thrive, anything that holds water seems to work, just a question of what you want to accomplish, visibility of your fish, water chemistry objectives, circulation and water falls etc.

My 3 meter-tall rock waterfall acts as a natural water filter to the pond. The water is always clear. Never had any problems with algae except on the waterfall rocks.

[ProThaiExpat]

Ajarn: Concur with your last, my waterfall rocks often looked like it had a green beard. However, the weather was over 110 F in the summer there. Water was clear, but the sludge on the bottom was unsightly to me.

Is yours lighted? Mine wasn't, so when I went highrise, I opted for sea foam green tile, and actually had the bathtub plumber install the lining. so I wouldn't be raining down on 23 downstairs neighbors.

Thats when I got into the water chemistry, filters and lights. My waterfall on that one was a sheet type but since it was located under a staircase, the sound bounced off the ceiling and water causing a too loud sound for me. Just left the waterfall off and had the water re-circulate through the filter. Water was clear, really showed off the Koi and I was delighted with the result.

When I sold, the first thing the new owners said was "get rid of the fish". The huge garden pond maintained by the building in Hawaii were happy recipients of my "donation". Se la vie.

[Ajarn]

No, mine isn't lit...My idea was to make it as natural-looking as possible, using all river rock and dark cement. Took a couple of months to find and fix the leaks, but we still lose a few gallons everyday to the slight splashing of the water going down over the rocks. I was extremely lucky to chance on an artist who was able to make my vision a reality...It's multitiered, multichanneled, with all sorts of small plants and vines in and around the waterfall

I love the algae, and if I didn't allready have it, I would have looked for some

Can you adjust your flow? If my little sumersible pump is running full, the waterfall is more like Niagra Falls. The waterfall is just next to my bedroom, and if I can hear it too easily when I wake up, I must RACE to the bathroom 'cuz, man, it makes me have to piss when I hear that water falling

Anyway, the pump has only one speed, but if you connect another short piece of pipe off the main outflow pipe, and put a simple valve on it, you can use that to adjust the flow quite easily. I use the outflow from this pipe to help circulate the pond water a bit. If you have it out of the water a bit, it can also help with aerating the water- it's really important for fish to have enough oxygen in the water, and as the water heats, it expels more oxygen from the water.

Here is a sorta-clear shot of the blue pipe sticking out off the main, wth the arrow pointed at the red valve on top, and just at the waterline.

I opted for sea foam green tile

Is that also known as 'piss green' or 'institutional green' ?

[richb2004]

Thanks for the advice everybody.

I guess that at the end of the day I am not happy eith it, but since its already done I will have to make the best of it. I can't see me ever being happy with it at the moment, but I will do my best.

Anyway I will be over in a few weeks to see the finished product, as well as the finished house.

I will let you all know my verdict.

Thanks.

[ProThaiExpat]

Ajarn: So far you haven't been a "chain puller" so will fall for it.

Blue Green is a recognized color combining blue and green, perhaps close to the color of shallow sea water. There is much too much blue in the color to be even close to to widely "hated" instiutional green or pea green.

[Ajarn]

Ajarn:  So far you haven't been a "chain puller" so will fall for it.

Blue Green is a recognized color combining blue and green, perhaps close to the color of shallow sea water.  There is much too much blue in the color to be even close to to widely "hated" instiutional green or pea green.

PTE, your first instinct was correct...I was pulling your chain, a bit

But, thanks for the clarification. It's a color (the institutional one) I see in many Thai homes, but never in the institutions here

'If you have good intentions, always trust your intuition', is another of my little 'learned from experience- finally! ' mottos..

[ProThaiExpat]

Ajarn for the confidence builder.

For anyone who might be reading this thread and contemplating a pond or pool, keep in mind that "naturasl pools" are a vastly different endeavor than a pond designed to show off Koi to their best.

There are many natural pond owners that have Koi and the Koi a best visible when feeding, often from their owners hands. They are at the top of the pond when this happens. Shallow ponds display them well, as they can't go deep to hide. The danger is fish preditors who enjoy shallow ponds that make the fish easily accessable.

Indoor ponds can be shallow and are really tanks that show off the Koi. There really isn't any effort to make them "natural", although I have seen them so designed. My last effort really was an effort to create a "picture" wherein the Koi were the focus.

Their ultimate home was a very large but shallow meadering stream/pond with huge filters and pumps in an outside common area garden with staff to fish out the leaves every day. A remarkably beautiful setting for which the building is named, Liliuokilani Gardens in Waikiki, visit it if you have a chance, quite remarkable and say hi to my Koi, if you go.

[Harry Palmer]

uhmmm... a tiled pond does have a dual purpose as a swimming pool... so i would recommend sky blue tiles...

perhaps a blue tiled pond with a gently cascading water feature to form the centrepiece of the garden... & at one end a diving board, discretely disguised as a coconut tree... a pair of Tuscan-red semi-circular trellises could be used as a shade against the scorching midday-sun...

the brits love their garden gnomes so one or two of these litle german chaps (don't mention the war) peeking out of the undergrowth will certainly be the talk of the neighbourhood...

have fun now