Re: NANFA-- Outdoor pond using water from sump pump

Jeremy Tiemann (jtiemann_at_inhs.uiuc.edu)
Fri, 7 Mar 2003 07:04:50 -0600

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Similar situation... I put an offer on a house that has the black
plastic extensions on the gutters (do not know technical name... you
know what I am talking about) and the yard slopes down away from the
house. Right now, the extensions are sitting on top of the yard. If
I get the house, I would like to bury the extension "thingies" and
set up an small, aquatic landscape (a pond, vegetation, etc) where
the extensions pour out from the yard. I could be suffering from
cabin fever and this vision might not be possible, but if I can do
this, I would like to put a few fish in the pond. This raises a few
questions: 1) would rain runoff from the roof be bad in this
situation if I used hardy fish; and 2) how can I keep the fish in the
pond if I a rush of water comes in (I guess I could move the
extensions)? I was thinking of setting the pond back in the ground a
bit to provide a cave-like situation to allow a refuge from aerial
and terrestrial predators (in addition to a supersoaker sitting in
the window). Like I said, I could be suffering from cabin fever and
dreaming up something that is not even possible. I sometimes think
of an idea and run with it until it is out of reality.

>if the flooding is so bad that his sumps going all the time, a pond would just
>make a big open space of water to overflow his back yard. im no professional,
>but that seems what would happen.
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Sajjad Lateef
>Sent: Thursday, March 06, 2003 6:54 PM
>To: nanfa_at_aquaria.net
>Subject: NANFA-- Outdoor pond using water from sump pump
>
>Hi all,
>
>A friend at work has a peculiar problem. He lives in an
>area with lots of ground water. His sump pump runs every
>10 minutes or so. During the winter, the water from the
>sump pump does two things - it puddles in the middle of
>lawn forming a patch of ice killing the grass or the
>pipes freeze leading to a danger of sump pump failure.
>His community does not allow dumping of the sump pump
>water into the sewer system.
>
>So, he would like to build a outdoor pond of some kind
>which will accept the water from the sump pump and
>provide some kind of retention system.
>
>The main concerns are if the sump pump water is bad for
>the fish and what is to be done if the pond overflows
>from the accumulated water. His lawn is watered by the
>sump discharge without harm, so it shouldn't be that bad
>quality water.
>
>Any comments on ideas to utilize the sump pump discharge?

-- 
Jeremy Tiemann
Illinois Natural History Survey
Center for Biodiversity
607 E. Peabody Dr.
Champaign, IL 61820
Phone: (217) 244-4594
Fax: (217) 333-4949
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