A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Hello, I have a question about streams for ponds

My smart husband and my grandson dug another small pond this weekend in our back yard. My hubby had a clay pipe that he cut in half and is going to use it for the stream to connect the two ponds together. It looks fine, he is going to calk the two ends of the pipe together to connect them so it will not leak in the middle and put pebbles in the bottom and line the top with rocks on each side at the top. It will look ok once he does this, the problem now. On the end of the clay pipe that empties into the other pond, how would you suggest that he attaches it to the pond liner so that it does not leak underneath the pipe? Will calk hold the liner to the clay pipe or do they make a product that will do this and not do harm to the fish. When we fill the bottom pond to have the water come up to the connecting stream, it leaks out the bottom of the pipe, does this make any sense? Pictures below,notice where the leaves are? That is where we are loosing water.




Any idea is welcomed, thank you.

We plan on doing it so the fish can swim back and forth if they want to.

Hi Annell! That is the neatest thing! I know just what you mean about the water leaking under the pipe. I redid my small waterfall and used rocks and this giant piece of glass and a liner, instead of a plastic waterfall, and the water kept leaking under the big rock that the water spilled off of into the pond. I fussed with that thing for weeks, losing half the water each week, and finally gave up and put my plastic waterfall back on. I'll be anxious to see what response you get!

I would suggest a long peice of liner running the full length of the pipe. And just let it kinda skirt into the pond. Then I would get the tape you can buy to seal 2 liners together and mask it where it joins. Am I makeing any sense here.

Yes you are but if we were going to use liner then we would not have used the clay pipe. We were using the clay pipe because we alredy had it and would not have to go buy an liner. We are cheap.lol
Thank you anyway for your suggestion.

Can you pull the existing liner up on top of the pipe and seal it some how from underneith? Maybe some kind of water proof epoxy on the bottom where the liner and pipe meet? If I did that I would sand the pipe on the cut side where the liner would set, so it wouldn't be sharp. I cant imagine it is too sharp to begin with but you can never be too careful with a pond liner. Sorry I had not thought about not wanting to purchase more liner.

Instead of buying more liner, use a heavy duty trash bag, or landscape plastic. Or extend the pipe out past the edge and let the water fall into the pond.

Buzylady has the right idea I think. Have the pipe hang over (slightly) above the pond if possible. Then use an old camping tarp or even a heavy, extra duty garbage bag beneath it- seal it to the bottom of the pipe so it creates what would look like a slide (for the water) leading into the pond.

So depending on how much water will be traveling down the pipe*-when the water runs off the pipe and travels underneath the pipe in the opposite direction, it comes to the "slide" you've made then would run down it and into the pond.


*Law of Fluidity. Less water pressure will cause the water to run down the surface (pipe), around, and underneath it in the opposite direction it orginally came if nothing is to block it's path. More water pressure: gravity will overcome and will draw the water downward once it has run off the surface (in this case, downward into your pond).