Maintaining a CLEAN pond with a Poposoap Pond Waterfall

During this time of year, with not a whole lot of rain, the pond starts getting a little bit of algae. Aly, however you would like to say it, what are we going to do to try to fight that because we don't have any type of movement in this pond, there's no, until we have rainfall, there's really no way for this water to move around, so it just gets to be stagnant, right? Because it's a stock pond, it's intended for livestock. Are we using it for that? No, did I build it? No, so let's go check out and see what we're going to do, all right.

Wood Ash Application

So I've actually seen some conflicting things on algae growth in ponds and how to deter it naturally and stuff. Uh, one thing I am actually going to try because I have it available is wood ash, and it does not take a lot, so I have a little small container. I have a whole bunch of wood ash right now bunch, and I mean, obviously, there's going to be bigger stuff in there, too.

That's fine, so I'm going to fill up this whole container about like that, so I don't know how many gallons this pond is. I'm quite certain that there's a calculator out there that can tell me, you know, length times width times depth is going to give me the volume of how much water is in this, but the problem with that is I don't know how deep it is. I don't have the equipment to be able to tell how deep it is, and I'm not walking out there because I know there's leeches in this thing, so ain't going to happen. So for right now, let's go ahead and get this wood ash separated or thrown out, strown out, I guess, throughout the pond, and then we're going to go and build something. Guess if you're ever dumping ash, i.e., any type of ash, check the wind first, so it's not blowing back into your face. I think a major majority of that just came right back up on the land, so let me go get a little more and toss it from the other side. Okay, there we go, so that's ash put all the way around the pond for the most part, just you know, a little bit here, a little bit there, a little bit on my face into my beard, but hey, I guess I won't have any algae growing on me either, so we'll see what happens now. I have seen, like I said, I'm just trying this out, I'm only putting a little bit uh, from things I've read, it's like 1 tablespoon per thousand gallons of water, so that's really not a whole lot, right? So like I said, I already know this is going to be gallons and gallons and thousands and thousands of the gallons. Here we are a few days later.

Pond Update and Sponsor Introduction

So, as you can see, we do still have a little bit of the floaties going through, but so far, it looks like a lot of the wood ash really helped. Uh, plus we did have just a little bit of rain uh day before yesterday, so I know that's really going to, you know, to bring stuff down, but there's still a lot of activity in the pond, a lot of fish so, and unfortunately a lot of turtles still cuz we have that over there, but we want to be able to keep this clean. Uh, we do want to help with the fish, so with that, we're actually going to get in today's video sponsor. Let's go check it out quick, and then we'll get to building our project for the pond. Okay, so we'd like to thank Popa soap Popa Papa Popa sorry uh, words are hard sometimes but we actually we reached out, and we have received something for the pond, so I'm actually going to be doing an unboxing and open this up, so I've already opened it just so I can see what it was, but we have in here.

Unboxing the Waterfall Kit

A waterfall kit, yeah, so this is this can be solar or plugged in directly and with this going through uh, we're actually trying to decide kind of where we want to be able to put this which I think we're going to put it over here on this side of the pond uh, here kind of close to the corner, but we do need to come up a little bit because right now our pond is actually at a low level and we're going to be kind of doing something so if you want to look at the the picture in here something like this so we're going to raise it up up some rocks the rocks are going to have another little uh flow going down, okay but we have some of the different things in here so and this does come with glue, right? Cuz there are some steps in here that you have to glue this, so it does come with the glue basically everything that you need and we're actually going to try something too uh to actually power this without having to run so we don't have the solar kit, but we don't want to be bringing power over to the pond not yet uh for a permanent uh type thing that that's something that will come much later, but we do have something that we want to try to power this unit and we'll get to that later. Okay, it's just something that we already had so, but there's the other glue, all right, so this comes with the hose, it has a little mesh bag that this is like a little filter that goes onto the pump that's in the water that way you're not picking up any contaminants off the bottom, all right, and then there's the the power cord to the pump, you have some little bag of fittings, uh things like that for the hose, all right, little pump unit and then the last thing that's actually in here is this is the part that's going to be above water and this is the actual waterfall uh the portion that will start sending the water down the rocks that we need to do, okay so it has basically your your box that's going to get put into to the the rock area. Okay, and then it has the little cover, all right, so like I know it goes together and and all this stuff is is going to get you know, glued and all those things, but anyway it's basically goes like that you have a nice little waterfall, so this box will fill up with water and then it goes over the edge creating your waterfall, all right, but before I can do anything with this, we need to go get a whole bunch of rocks and start bringing them over to the pond, so I guess I need to go fire up lilac, so anyway let's get the building a waterfall, okay.

Selecting the Waterfall Location

So if we look at right here at this corner of the pond basically as you follow this back up you'll kind of see that's where it goes to our covert right there so water naturally comes down here which we do want to kind of uh dig this we're going to have another water feature at some point that allows the water to go from that Culver all the way down here to the pond that will be made with concrete but and like I've said right now the pond is fairly low. I do know that it comes up. I mean all the way up to here at at some point but then over here. Okay, you kind of follow basically like where you see the moss coming around those are kind of your high points, right? Well, I have seen cuz we have a tree that's over here or tree that used to be over here, right here, so I know that the water has been, you know, during a a really high season it's been up to this tree, so I think if we come plus there's a nice little flat spot up here to the top, I would like to be able to put a rock and then from here kind of go down, right? I'm I'm fine with the the tree being, you know, covered up or I can even come and and try to chop that a little more with a the saw which I'll clean up make sure there's no rocks and stuff around it, but I want to make sure that my hose is long enough to reach, so cuz right now this is about as low as the pond gets. It doesn't get any lower that I've really noticed. It might get a little bit, but if I was to put the pump out a good 2 ft, it's definitely going to be, you know, in water plus we're not going to run this 24/7. This will just be, you know, we'll run it a little bit here a little bit there type thing, okay, but let's see if our hose is going to reach. So now it's just time to go fire up liil mac and let's start Gathering some rocks.

Gathering Rocks

So, I don't think we have enough rocks for this project. Nah, I think we have plenty, but the ones that I really want to get are some of the nice big ones to include that guy, so I'm going to see what I can do to try to get these out and obviously try to do it safely because there're still spiders and snakes out it's not cold enough for them to go away yet so uh fingers crossed we don't come across any of those things.

Preparing the Area

Okay, I'm going to get started with that BS, but like I said, I do want to kind of clean up the dirt area around the stump, and then I'm going to get my chainsaw to see if I can't just cut a little flat surface just to make it more of like a reference point of something that we could probably set a rock on top of and then uh go from there which I'm probably going to have to flatten out dirt and stuff like that anyway but man that was a big old Rock Lil MAAC only has a 440 lb weight limit of lifting, and I guarantee you that is every bit of that, especially with all those other rocks in there including the ones that rolled into the pond think that'll do donkey that'll do man this chainsaw is dull I need Sharp come that's we wobbly okay flowing down that's good.

Assembling the Waterfall Unit

Okay, with the base rock down, I actually want to go ahead and assemble this unit uh just cuz I I want to have it sitting in place um cuz we're not going to be gluing anything we're we're just going to be dry stacking Stone and I would like to kind of have the set in place that way we can kind of Stack around it if that makes sense okay so this you you want to be able to glue this and in it says so any on the sides for okay looks like that's down all the way now it's down all the way I got some squeezed out that's fine okay now this does come with these fittings already attached to the hose now it does have other parts if you're going to be running a different hose this is the the bulkhead connector I can go this goes to the inside cuz it looks like it actually has the spots where you'd be able to glue in a PVC and I don't exactly know which direction I need this to go yet probably going to be straight down cuz this side faces the pond and it also comes with feet that you can attach so if you have like a little Koi pond or or whatever you know something that it can suction to the bottom do that okay and then this also has it looks like a flow rate right you have a minus and a plus so you can actually turn this to change if you want a little bit more water a little bit less of water it just really depends so I'm going to leave it at the factory setting which was right in the middle and I'll just kind of see what that does and then since we're putting ours into a stock pond which has leaves and fish and all that other stuff I'm also going to put the net around this uh just to kind of help with debris and keeping stuff out of the pump bigger Rock right here just to kind of hold it in place too big I just want to sit without moving and then I do want to start piling up some rocks around the side too cuz I I would like to have rocks on kind of both sides something that can help conceal the the pipe go and I'm also going to get some electrical tape and just tape up the the wire around the hose um before kind of putting it down towards the water for do this I still like it face in the other direction maybe another rock underneath it none of this is planned out folks none of this is planned out I like that get another to sit right here.

Teamwork and More Rocks

All right, so we're at I'm still at the point of gathering rocks but look who decided to join me yeah you all done with school work with the little one I am cool cool so you're just in time to help me gather more rocks yes I am what do you think about it I'm excited just the beginning so you like it so far yep let's p on some more rocks so they can make it beautiful beautiful so yeah she went ahead and gathered some of well this one I'd already gathered it was just rolled into the water she took it out of the water for me oh you're welcome thank you baby yeah you're welcome and uh I grabbed one from up there so yeah I mean just looking around right like we got rocks there rocks here rocks here rocks there right we don't Arkansas we don't always have to go back back to the big rock pile I mean cuz we even got some big ones here we have a few rocks over here which actually there's a nice one over here I want to go grab so do you want to take them and I'll go get the hand truck yeah definitely I have the hand truck here okay yeah so is that I think that one you should put like as a step down like right in front of that big one yeah that that's be so the the first big one I set is a it's called a face rock yeah that the water goes over the face of that rock and for the second face I think this one's nice I I think it's beautiful look at that so that's a nice folder I think this would be a nice face we'll have this be the top or I even look at the other side it's beautiful see what it looks like CH just got to be careful for snakes or anything like that even spiders cuz it's I mean well it's kind of wonky shaped but hey it can work yeah that's the beauty of it yeah we'll see we'll see what I think it can work it can work if you face it the other way with this side up that side down this facing that way then it does create like a little oh they have this sticking out so that no no no no no like like this dude boom this here goes against that this is on the top that goes yeah so this would be the face so the water's going that one yeah see now you know what I'm thinking yeah but got to bring that Dolly to help cuz that thing's a Monster yeah yeah I'm not trying to break my back no no no no any more that's already broken oh yeah we need to go see a Cairo so yeah we're going to probably be digging some from there some from that pile got them everywhere yeah we we'll probably only need one more big rock maybe yeah we'll we'll see how this one looks once we get it in place but you know me I like to go all out hey put some more yeah Never Satisfied whatever again we are on a hill yes we are she chose the the most difficult side of the pond oh oh well well it's not like we can go all the way over there see that one's a little more gradual but the problem is that electricity is all the way over there and it's having all the way over here this is the closest side to electricity so it's not the that I had to choose it's more of a it was convenient right here yeah oh hey hey hey hey you know what you can do actually yeah no no no belly you don't even have to do that yeah like that right there's perfect you just slide it in there I think that would work because you know how the hill is shaped like put this corner over here into here I still like to put this up against the the back cuz this is the biggest face um I just do we want this one on the top or do we want I like I think if you do it the other way it'll looks square cuz I did forget about how this is leveled see how that that probably won't work H and not even that would work either yeah so Jeff flip it on its belly well we can always put other rocks underneath it to to bring it up like that no no no no flip it let's see flip it around like I asked let's see how that works I just want to see every angle of it no no I mean not it the top goes to the bottom here you want me to do it oh oh that was my belly did y'all hear that I eat bread it's yeah oh yeah gladus you're going to well you should probably be not in cowboy boots no you you should not that's correct me down here in the mud this is slippery I knew that was going to happen that's okay it'll be on camera if you fall in the pond um not no way I should have just put on my water boots you got this baby I got this okay fine I got this this is our Bounty let's see if any one of these Works especially that big one yeah the big one the big one I want to see what this looks like so let me see I think the big one oh wow that one that one will work perfect right there got to take that away what this looks like a fudge rolled in there into the water it went gugug dang it it was a good one too well I think it broke in half maybe or maybe there's two in there I don't know yeah there's two oh wow but it's kind of it's weird you like flip it funny yeah cuz we want it to slope can you flip it the other way Willow why didn't you help me carry any of these rocks huh she's like uh-uh she's like I didn't start this you did oh so close come up just a little more just a hair I think it's in the same place okay I guess a little Barnacles sloping that way that way is fine okay so I me other then letting water run over it it's going to be kind of hard to tell yeah no Max which I mean it is ready to go if we do want turn it on just to kind of see don't as as we're going I wouldn't show them yet until it's said and done y'all don't get the peek okay I guess okay okay go okay so well I'm going to actually I'm going to see what glad thanks too but I think with having this cuz this rock it's kind of hard to tell on camera but it does kind of slope back so trying to find something that like perfectly seals to it um to be able to stop that water from going behind because as you see you see there's like a gap but there is space underneath it so we do have another big Flat Rock right there that would fit underneath but I think if we move all these and put that big flat one here we can go underneath this rock and then just use this whole Rock here at just one big uh drop water drop coming down so uh let me see what she thinks about that and then we'll get stuff moved.

Plan B: Building from the Bottom Up

All right, so we're going on to our second Plan B here we're just going to work from the bottom up instead so that the water can flow better um and it wasn't working trying to build from the top yes I already know that it would have been better to do bottom up oh there he goes there he goes he's just upset because I I'd already been out here for like 3 hours doing this and she's like tear it all apart I'm like no I don't want to do that I know but he was doing it Ron we were having so many problems with it so I mean I'm sorry that your wifey decided that this it was a better idea to do it smarter not harder yeah yeah yeah so and I cannot even fix this I think this rock right here is probably going to be too tall um um we'll see we'll see cuz it's already taller than the bottom of that rock um let's look let's we will look and all right we will double check let's go ahead and bring that one the big one over here we put here cuz like I said if we need to move this forward yes um we could probably do that okay you're you're asking me like I'm the Hulk being able to move this big ass freaking Rock mind you come on you got it yeah yeah which the there we go okay so it would be which side would you want facing the the other way so this is going to hug that I believe oh we need that big rock sitting on top of this rock M that's fine let's see what we got okay o oh oh wait wait wait all right okay you got to um bring it up bring this up all righty okay all right bring it down okay so with that there this we will find a rock to put there because this is going to TI up some so we need to put what rock that one that one would probably be good so put that one under there yes probably go right there it's fine let's see if that works all right go ahead and measure that see that works it be right perfect so it's all going down so amazing let's see if okay I don't know if I can break it all it how far how far um well first before you do that we need to add rocks down here so we can put that one there cuz if need be we can okay if that's so you want that one on top of this one or do you want it need to be on top of it all right guys so we got to move this big old Boulder yeah all right let's see which I need to get this one to leave a little more flat yeah so I mean it will be flat I I believe it will it'll be okay or even at that um what about this one move that out use this one it's just it's too big because of the stop let me see turn it the other way oh okay okay okay you want to grab one side and I'll try to grab the other no I'm just walking it okay okay okay all righty then so got get to be flat yep walk it all the way over there I mean it's up on the Rock fine we just got to get stuff in the back okay oh yes this one this one can definitely go back there Pull It in up up up up no cuz that' be too tall no no no I'm sliding it in there so it won't be too tall go she's Louise this does need to go like that that way yeah about right there try to find a rock the sorry yeah don't got the rock I'm coming should I take it out and put a different kind yeah I don't I don't like that one all right that's something different I put something right here I'm coming coming okay com okay there put it on this side that one right there but I need to move this Jesus Christ oh boy you got to take out some of those smaller rocks that's it see I can't do anything I have to lift just lift this so I can move it what do you think I've been doing oh God damn cuz this is already down down as far just going to go yes so we need to be propping up over here which we are I'm coming that I am look good done okay so what are you doing babe you want me to reinforce this so it doesn't tip over yep uh you know it's just having a nice fuzzy warm feeling until I hit another rock come on blacksmith use that blacksmith arm perfect.

The Moment of Truth: Testing the Waterfall

Beautiful look at you in your bed say so battery died in the GoPro yep but here we are so I'm going to show you this from afar so you think we're ready babe to turn it on yeah I think we're about ready all right we we shall see this is just the beginning just a little little demo we're actually going to add more rocks to it on the sides but I am eager to find out how how well this works how about you yeah so let me go get the power source woo okay beautiful all right so the hubby is going to go ahead and turn this on for us see how this Co there we go let's see hubby's going to turn this on and see how it goes let's see you ready babe ready here we go got to figure out how to make this oh it's working okay okay all right this is letting us know what we need to do okay so we need to fix that one Rock right there I believe do we the all right so Anon is going to move it back and he is able to also adjust the flow rate of this product waterfall okay it seems a lot better now I think what we're going to do is we're going to try to put a rock into that second step help it work.