Natural swimming ponds

Myths are what happens when we make an observation that may be true in one instance, but quickly leads to trouble and frustration when we attempt to employ the observation elsewhere. It doesn't help that there are forces out there that perpetuate myths because there is a profit to be made. It is not our purpose to point fingers, only to shed light on some of these misconceptions in order to help our clients attain the finest aquatic habitat possible. We believe that most myths are actually perpetuated by well meaning, yet uninformed advisors such as neighbors, "experts" from internet forums, and fishing pals. This brings us back to the axiom that free advice is worth every cent you paid for it.

Probably the most damaging misconception we hear of is the idea of using bottom-feeding scavengers to keep a pond clear and clean. These would be fish such as carp, bullhead, some catfishes, and grass carp in a few cases. In most every instance these fish will be a major problem for your pond. While they will slightly reduce the organic load in pond sediments, the price is huge. These fish root in the sediments, which releases suspended sediment and nutrients that will cloud/muddy the water, promote algae growth, release toxins that naturally get sealed into the sediments, and reduce oxygen levels during critical times of the year. If you need to reduce the depth of the organic layer (muck) in the bottom of your pond, there are much easier ways to accomplish this without introducing undesireable fish or spending a small fortune on chemicals, or commercial bacteria that already exist in your pond! You may need to look into a design that pulls nutrients from your pond, or have aeration built in. Aeration itself can cause problems if it disturbs bottom sediments. Well designed ponds will not need the added expense of aeration.

We see statements over and over by "internet experts" who claim earthen bottom ponds are trouble. To the contrary, we have developed proprietary techniques that produce earthen bottom ponds that are more clear than expensive synthetic lined ponds, while requiring much less maintenance. Even our clear water swimming ponds are earthen ponds. To be more accurate, these people might say they don't know how to build a clear pond without a liner; we do it daily. As is our philosophy, we work with the natural environment to achieve our goals; this includes the natural clay used in most of our designs.

Maybe the least intuitive of the major myths is the hatchery versus natural environment way of managing habitat. While it is true your fish were most likely bred in a hatchery, this is where the similarity ends with respect to the way you manage your pond or lake. Some people, who claim to be Biologists, manage ponds and lakes just as if they were a hatchery. They usually end up spending too much money and fight the natural environment every step of the way. Methods that work in a controlled environment like a fish hatchery don't translate very well to a much more complex wild type of habitat. In our experience, we use some of the principles learned from hatchery examples, but we modified them for use in the wild. To be fair, you can't expect a person who has worked their whole life in a hatchery to be able to plan and design a wild habitat for you. However, they will be able to design a very nice fish hatchery if this is what you want.

If you are talking with Biologists who want to inject things like bacteria into your lake, it is our opinion that they do not understand the complete picture of how an aquatic habitat functions. We have come in behind people who use these methods, to redesign the habitat to function properly. Consequently our clients saved money and ended up with a better habitat.

What about these hatchery bred "super trout" like the Donaldson trout? During the mid 1900s Dr. Lauren Donaldson developed a rainbow trout specifically for the food fish industry who raise their fish entirely on fish farms and hatcheries. The result was the Donaldson trout, or more accurately, the Donaldson strain of rainbow trout. These fish have performed wonderfully in fish farms around the world. Again, these are farms and not wild habitats. There are differences in these environments which any qualified Biologist will easily recognize.

If you hear someone calling themselves a Fishery Biologist extolling the qualities of a Donaldson trout for wild habitat situations, we suggest you ask them why Donaldson trout are suppose to be such wonderful fish for wild evironments. In the wild, Donaldson trout rarely compete with fish that have been selected for wild habitats for as long as trout have been on the planet. We tend to question the qualifications of Biologists who promote fish in habitats where a wild type fish is better suited. Of course it may just be that they sell Donaldson trout from their hatchery. This poses the question: are they Biologists, or are they a fish hatchery posing as Biologists? On the other hand, if you are simply looking for a quick fix to get larger fish into a poorly designed pond or lake, an inexpensive hatchery fish will fill this need. Just don't expect a greeat deal of performance, longevity or quality from them, unless your lake has become a hatchery via supplemental feeding.

A quality lake produces plenty of forage for fish. You should never have to repeatedly stock your lake with any sort of forage fish etc. Of course if the trout hatchery supplying your lake sells forage fish, they will probably suggest you plant your lake with forage fish.

There are a few myths that are so ingrained that they approach legend status. One of the best examples of this is the "Kamloops" trout. The history of this discussion could span several pages. For now, we will condense the story. Kamloops is actually a small city in the interior of British Columbia. There are numerous small lakes in the area that were barren of fish before the mid 1800s. Early pioneers stocked trout into these lakes and ponds from surrounding waters. The first generations of these fish grew to Herculean proportions. Eighteen to twenty pound fish were reported from legendary lakes such as Paul Lake. Now that's a huge rainbow trout for any size pond! After the standing stock of prey species was trimmed down by the first fish, the size of the "Kamloops" trout dwindled to the size of the rest of their rainbow trout cousins. The analogy here is like the first starving man to the banquet hall. There is an abundance of food, but the stove can only cook so much.

There actually are a couple stocks of rainbow trout in the interior of British Columbia that deserve the status of the Kamloops name, however these fish are rare. The Gerrard stock of rainbow trout which reside in Kootenay Lake are probably the most well known of these fish. They evolved in deep lakes of glacial origin with cold, clear water and kokanee as their prey species. These fish can grow to huge sizes: over 30 pounds in places such as such as Kootenay Lake in B.C. and Lake Pend Oreille,Idaho. Does this sound like your pond??? If this isn't exactly an accurate description of your pond, then Gerrards are not the stock of trout for you.

"But the guy at the hatchery told me my fish are Kamloops!" If that's what brand he wants to call them then they are. The Kamloops name may be the most abused name in trout history. Even if these fish were of a stock like the Gerrard stock, they have been in hatcheries for so many generations that they have lost their potential for top performance in a wild environment like your pond. If the "Kamloops" in your local hatchery are spawning at two and three years of age, then they are the same fish as most all hatchery stocks of trout. There are a few stocks of trout from hatcheries that will perform better for your local waters. Where you are located will dictate which of these stocks is best for your situation. Be careful about being sold on the latest super trout developed in a hatchery. These fish were actually developed FOR the hatchery. If they do well in a hatchery, chances are they won't do as well in the wild. There is an entirely different set of traits that allow fish to perform in the wild instead of a hatchery.

Now before you go beating down the door of your local trout hatchery, think for a moment. The hatchery owner probably bought these fish eggs from someone else. He doesn't have a high tech genetics lab to figure out the exact origins of the stock of trout he is selling. His customers probably pleaded with him to stock Kamloops trout in the first place. The suppliers are just giving the public what they asked for.

"But I have heard of huge steelhead coming from Kamloops trout". "Huge" is a relative term. There are some very large steelhead that inhabit rivers in Northern British Columbia. Are your Kamloops coming from these genetic stocks? In a word, no! A client came to us recently and told us there were some very large Kamloops steelhead somewhere on the east coast. He said these fish got up to eight pounds. We pointed out that if those fish would have been winter steelhead stocks then they would be over twelve pounds in size. Rainbow trout of the interior of British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest are of the redband group ( Oncorhynchus mykiss gairdneri ). They are summer run steelhead. Winter run steelhead are coastal rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss irideus ) that spend an additional six months at sea, which allows them to attain larger sizes. An eight pound steelhead is a nice fish in most peoples' experience, so you can see how the myths perpetuate.

So how do you get the best trout for your pond? You have to know the history of these fish and ask your local hatchery the correct questions.

My non-native animals and plants won't escape my pond - or will they? Many people believe the natural environment is safe from the non-native plants and fish they stock in their ponds, as long as there is no direct connection between the waters. This is a very dangerous thought which is currently damaging our wild habitats, native plants and animals. Entire lakes have been ruined by thoughtless introductions of plants such as water hyacinth and parrots feather.

The companion misconception is the idea that warmer climate plants will never invade cooler areas because they die in winter. We are personally seeing vegetation such as parrots feather invading areas that were previously thought to be too cold for this plant. Plants adjust and evolve faster than we are prepared for. The result is a huge problem where there wasn't one a few years ago. There is a wide variety of native plants and fish that will thrive in your habitat. Please be careful when talking to someone selling fish and plants. They may have no idea if the plant is native or an invader.

Many people do not believe their fish can escape if there is no direct aquatic connection to natural waters. It is amazing how fish can fly in the egg form when tucked into the feathers of a duck. There are also times when herons or osprey catch your fish and lose them in flight. There are numerous examples where undesirable fish become established in a river, then within several years these fish appear in most of the ponds within a couple miles of that river. It is difficult to imagine these dispersal mechanisms, but they exist. Please avoid contributing to this problem.

• (Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum) invaded from Europe over a hundred years ago. While it isn't the most dangerous plant on the continent, it has displaced native vegetation. If you are interested in this plant from an aesthetic perspective, the irony is there are much more attractive native plants that fit this niche.

• (Iris pseudacorus) is in a similar situation as watercress. Again there are more attractive native Iris which can be found at a qualified nursery.

• (Mentha aquatica) is an invader that again probably hasn't done much damage. There are numerous native mints that are better choices.

Miscellaneous Myths

This is a minor point for most people, but it can be significant for those who want trophy size fish: Fins on hatchery fish are mostly worn down by other fish nipping on them. The walls of concrete raceways are not damaging most of the hatchery fish you are buying. For some reason this concrete raceway idea is widespread. If you come across someone trying to blame the walls of the pond or raceway, you might ask about this. Chances are they haven't closely observed what is actually happening to their fish.

When fish are crowded, they stress and become aggressive. The response is to nip at each other's fins. The construction of their habitat is not a significant factor, crowding stress is. Fish with enough fins nipped away will eventually die. This can be used to an advantage when purchasing fish from a hatchery. Select the fish with the best fins. These will be the stronger fish. If the fish get a healthy start to life in the hatchery, they will live longer and grow larger in your pond. They will also look much better in your lake, providing the water is clear enough to see them.

We are blessed with a diverse environment here in a state which gains much of its reputation for unending rain. These diverse environments have sharpened our abilities as Biologists. Oregon actually has habitat types that are similar to most areas of the country. We work in coastal areas that never seem to see the sun, hot dry inland valleys which are brown most of the year, alpine settings with prodigious snow packs, and high desert environments that challenge all aquatic life forms. We use ideas from all of these diverse habitat types to create your habitat. We also use techniques we learned by designing projects in places like Maine, Georgia, Texas, Indiana, Montana, California and many other states and Canada. Chances are that we have already been in your area.

If we only had experience in one type of local or regional habitat, our expertise would suffer. This is probably the reason we get the call when other people say "it can't be done". We get excited not when we land some large project, but when we get a very difficult project. This gives us the opportunity to learn and grow, to develop new techniques which no one else has ever employed.

While we thoroughly enjoy working in places like the Rocky Mountain States of Montana, Colorado and Wyoming, we find these are some of the very easiest places to design habitat. Our goal in the Rocky Mountain states is to produce stronger and larger fish in a highly aesthetic and cost effective habitat, while using less water. Due to drought conditions we have recently been restoring poorly designed habitats in the Rockies to get more habitat on the reduced water supplies. If we only worked in these less challenging areas, our abilities would suffer. What really catches our attention are the difficult projects in places like Georgia and the Midwest where people don't believe it is possible to develop trophy size trout in smaller ponds without feeding the fish. If we are successful in these areas, think of what we can offer in places like Colorado and Montana!

Are we the best Biologists for aquatic habitat design and restoration? We don't know if there is one real "best". What we do know is we often get the call to come in and fix habitat that was designed by people who claim to be "the leader" in this field. We are not sure if this makes us the best, but it is pretty reassuring to our capabilities.

There is a wealth of publications to help you build a pond to safely hold water. While these publications are a good place to begin, they cover only a very small portion of the factors that go into producing the quality habitats we are known for. If you are satisfied with investing your money to build a lake of the same quality and value of other lakes in your vicinity, then you do not need our help. If you are motivated to get the best emotional and financial return for your investment, we can help.

There are many businesses that will design and build a pond for you. Thousands of people claim to be "professionals". Our definition of a professional is much more rigorous than most. Simply taking money to build a pond does not make one a professional, no matter how many years of experience is claimed. Advanced knowledge of aquatic ecology, chemistry, physics and construction methods is required to become a true professional at Spring Creek.

Thousands of terrestrial landscape designers and landscape contractors advertise to design ponds and streams. Most do not realize an aquatic habitat requires a three dimensional design instead of the more two dimensional terrestrial landscape. In a lake, the water becomes the soil. This opens a Pandora's box of complexity that does not have to be considered on dry land. We focus on these complexities to deliver the Spring Creek quality.

If you need to evaluate the qualifications of a habitat designer, look at the number of technical crutches they use. If they have to rely upon filters, skimmers, sterilizers, additives and chemicals, they are attempting to compensate for lack of scientific knowledge. You have to pay the direct price for these crutches as well as the significant maintenance expense associated with them. Chances are there is a huge warehouse of plumbing parts that support their "natural" methods. Obviously we see these crutches as less than desirable. Naturally functioning habitats need none of these crutches.

Our true professionalism may be the main reason that much of our work comes from referrals by Landscape Architects and other landscape design professionals. We have been brought into projects by some of the finest Landscape Architecture firms in the nation. Why would they ask for our help? Because they know the quality of our work and how exceptional aquatic and terrestrial landscapes compliment each other. They know our designs make their terrestrial designs look better, as theirs do for our aquatic designs. A glass clear lake simply looks better reflecting against a naturally flowing landscape instead of the usual unattractive pile of rocks, or worse yet, mounds of barkdust one sees along the shorelines of many projects.

Well designed man-made ponds should last for centuries. The reality for poorly designed ponds can be less than ten years due to factors such as siltation and excessive residual nutrients. We expect our lakes and ponds to be going strong for generations to come. We design them to become a lasting legacy to be handed down for many generations.

Synthetic lake and pond liner life expectancies run a couple decades. We do not agree with the idea of a pond needing to be rebuilt after just a couple decades. Regardless of the life expectancy of a synthetic liner, many of these ponds are experiencing siltation and choking with weeds long before the liner wears out. It isn't unusual for one of these poorly designed ponds to choke out with weeds in as little as five years. We know because we get the call to fix them. In most cases we rip them out and restore them for the long term. To be fair, poorly designed earthen ponds can expect similar life expectancy, even if the clay seal will function for centuries.

For lower construction budgets we could design and build lakes and ponds that would stay clear for just a few years before deteriorating, but we don't. We do not see that as providing valuable service to our clients. It is our hope that people will not allow themselves to be taken in by firms who lack the ability to design for the long term and ultimate value.

We've evaluated numerous existing lakes on property our clients were considering purchasing. It is easy for us to see if the project was well designed or if it was built "on-the-cheap" just to last long enough to take advantage of the unsuspecting buyer. There are innumerable people who have been taken in by poorly designed lakes and ponds in housing developments. These waters eventually become serious burdens for the home owners associations. If you are considering purchasing property in a waterfront development, we strongly urge you to ask who designed the man-made lakes, ponds and streams. Then research the pond / lake designers to see if they have a reputation for long lived water bodies that maintain the elements you value in waterfront property. We have heard too many nightmares from home owners associations who inherited liabilities instead of the wonderful lake they had hoped would improve their property investment. Beware of the developer who simply pushes up a dam in a low area, then attempts to verbally embelish an aquatic eyesore.

To put all of this in perspective, we don't believe most people would buy a home if they only expected it to stand for twenty years. Lakes and ponds should also withstand the test of time. A long life expectancy results in significant property value appreciation. A short life expectancy actually depreciates.
 
 

What does all of this cost?

Our services are a very sound investment instead of a cost, especially considering the money you save by taking advantage of our experience and efficient construction methods. Our fees are similar to what a Landscape Architect would charge. If we don't believe we can give you a better habitat value, we will tell you. For instance, if you want a muddy pond to water livestock, you don't need our help. If your dream is an aesthetically beautiful and natural aquatic habitat with low maintenance, we can get you to your goal. Compared to the actual cost of constructing a pond, our fees become a small portion of your habitat investment. We help you save money on the larger end of the scale: the excavation and maintenance of your aquatic habitat.

Spring Creek works for you not only as resource professionals, but as your professional advocate to get the most out of your investment in planning, design, construction, and management of your pond, lake or stream.

Read our Technical FAQ page for pond construction costs, leaks and other challenges.
 

We just dug our pond. Can you make it perfect now?

Creating a high quality lake or pond begins with design. Yes we can improve your pond, but you can expect to have to drain the pond and make major modifications to what you have installed. Much of our business comes from redesigning and rebuilding new ponds that were not efficiently designed. If you are thinking of building a new stream, pond or lake, talk to us before you break ground.
 
 

Can Spring Creek help me find land for my pond or lake?

Absolutely. We help people evaluate property for their stream, pond or lake. Once they locate the best land, they often realize construction savings in excess of 80%. This has translated into conservative savings of well over $20,000 per acre of water for some people. If you are in the market for land, you are very aware that land with water already on it is much more valuable than dry land. If you identify the right piece of land where you can develop a high quality lake or pond, you have made a very sound financial as well as emotional investment. Professionally designed aquatic habitats bring a higher value to the property. Visit our property page to see a few of the quality lake or pond properties we have identified.
 
 

Can I have trophy trout habitat without buying land in a far off place like the Rockies?

Absolutely. A considerable portion of our business comes from people who want to enjoy the benefits of the famous fishing destinations without the expense and inconvenience of travel, or the purchase of high value recreation property. They want a trophy fishing experience right out their backdoor so they can enjoy these environments on a daily basis. One of the cornerstones of our proprietary techniques is to make it possible for more people to enjoy these habitats at home or even at their offices. Bringing a bit of "vacation" into our daily lives makes perfect sense to us - maybe that's why we work as Biologists in the first place.
 
 

What if I own waterfront property on a larger lake?

We use the same principles and slightly different techniques to improve the habitat on your portion of the lake, river or stream. It is possible to attract the best fish in the lake to within casting distance of your portion of the shoreline. In many unproductive lakes there are still a few large fish; we can design habitat that will encourage these fish to spend more time near your shoreline to improve your enjoyment of the property. These techniques also improve the habitat of the lake or river as a whole.
 
 

What is the financial value of a pond or lake?

This is a pretty wide open question. On a qualitative scale, the highest value habitats have several features in common:

1) they have clear water
2) they do not choke with weeds
3) they require very little to maintain
4) they are biologically and chemically clean enough for swimming
5) trophy size fish live in them.
6) they are very aesthetically pleasing
7) they look completely natural
 

The value of these attributes varies across the country. We estimate that a nearly perfect pond with these qualities is probably going to bring at least several times more value to the property than the average pond. Conservatively estimating, the value of the pond will be on the order of three or more times the value of a typical pond. The more exotic and aesthetic, the higher the value. A trophy trout pond in the south where most people do not believe it is even possible, is going to bring a great deal of value to the land. Likewise a project in urban Los Angeles will return great value. Even in the middle of prime fish habitat, a well designed project is going to be worth significantly more than the usual lake or pond. We have estimated our value from the usual areas for ponds and not the unlikely locations such as Los Angeles where values are orders of magnitude higher.

Ultimately the value of a pond, lake or stream will be dictated by its owner. You simply have to ask yourself what it is worth to step out your back door on a daily basis and have an excellent chance of hooking into a six pound trout in a pristine aquatic habitat. Most people never get that opportunity. That is the real value!
 
 

Does Spring Creek work with habitats other than trout lakes, ponds and streams?

Yes, we have worked with many types of ponds lakes and streams such as warm water fish ponds, bass lakes, garden ponds, swimming ponds, duck ponds, golf course water features, and ornamental fish ponds. Most of the stream work we perform is with trout streams, but we also design landscape streams for housing complexes, offices and homes. Our experience spans the spectrum from trout lakes in Canada to an indoor/outdoor pond on a Caribbean island. This breadth of experience provides us with a wealth of insight to solve challenges in your aquatic habitat.

We emphasize our experience with trout since this is our origin and trout habitat is more complicated to design and build than other aquatic habitats.

The Swimming Pond / Natural Swimming Pools

A simple dividing wall separating swimming area and  Biological Filtration in the ‘regeneration zone’ is what truly makes a swimming pond.

These backyard swimming holes are built to naturally and effectively keep water crystal clear. If designed well, water quality can be so good that they will easily pass even the toughest municipal “drinking” water standards.

Now that’s clean water!

In Germany there are some 16 public Natural Swimming Pools that consistently prove to be safe and fun places to be.

The overall system works the same as any other water feature, as cover throughout Pond-Doctor-Dave.com. They also incorporate most of the basic infrastructure of a regular chlorine pool. Skimmer basket etc., all combined to make for the ultimate in natural and personal luxury.

Costs can run close to what it takes to build a cement basin pool or it could be a lot less. Depending on the home owners ability to DIY and what types of “extras” one would like. It comes down to personal tolerance to decide whether to add UV Sterilizers , Backyard Waterfall, or pond pump for that matter.

Indeed the first Swimming Ponds were built extremely passive, meaning they didn't use skimmers, plumbing, or pumps. They simply allowed the natural Bio filtered System to do all the work. It’s really quite simple to create a system good for swimming if you don’t mind it going ‘green’ quite often.

People have become accustomed to what they think of as a ‘swimming pool’. Your basic "kill everything but ourselves" approach. Now we are aware that may not be the best way to do things. Especially considering that Chlorine Hazards have recently been placed on the EPA Watch List. Chlorine Poisoning, Chlorine Allergy, Chlorine Irritations, and other Chlorine Dangers are questioning Chlorine Safety (excuse the strange wording, search engines are quirky things). Not to mention chlorine is a known carcinogen when combined with organic compounds within the pool.

Natural Chlorine Free Swimming Pools are a real alternative.

Imagine, your own private water feature and backyard waterfall, no wait, it’s a Swimming Pond.

Dive in the water’s fine!