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 | gerard
Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 36 kentucky 
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2000-03-23 14089
Looking for advice on what equipment to use to enlarge my pond. Currently about 35ft round, 5ft deep. I can drain most of it by breaking a berm and want to enlarge it to maybe 100 x 50 x 8-10ft deep. I was debating trying it with my tractor but don't think I will. Would I be better with a small dozer or an excavator and which would be cheaper? (I like the dozer for the nice job it will do on the slopes and banks) Any input appreciated.
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| RickB.
Join Date: Posts: 1
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2000-03-23 14095
Use your checkbook to do this job. Hire a well-reputed local excavating contractor to do the work. If my calculations are near correct, you are talking about moving roughly 1600 cubic yards of material. Ask around, there are good people out there who will dig you a gem of a pond. Quality and price vary greatly and more isn't always better. ....
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| JJT
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 93 Upstate NY, USA
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2000-03-23 14104
2 years ago I had a 90 x 120 x 12 pond put in. It cost $3000 and was done in 3 days, (2 operators). D4 dozer, 20 ton excavator and a 2.5 yard JD loader. No way in hell could this have been done with a compact. We hit shale at 6 feet and several layers of silt stone between 6 and 12 feet. Impervious granite at 12 - 14 feet that would have required dynamite to get it any deeper. I did the final landscaping with a box scraper and york rake. Last year we added 150 rainbow trout and a fountain. This year I'm putting in a water fall and a dock for the paddle boat. ....
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| droz
Join Date: Posts: 1
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2000-03-25 14137
I just had two ponds put in. I would have loved to do it with my Bobcat or tractor but it would have taken me 6 months if I ever would have gotten out of the mud. I had a guy with a swamp dozer (big tracks, bulldozer) do them in two days for $1800. but since I am enrolled in the CRP, the government reimbursed me for 1/2 of the cost. ....
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| gerard
Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 36 kentucky
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2000-03-25 14146
Droz,
How big were your ponds and how deep did you go? I'm leaning towords hiring a dozer ( I assume one with a 6 way blade is necessary for the banking?) ....
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| droz
Join Date: Posts: 1
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2000-03-25 14158
Well, since I am in the CRP, they want wetlands restored and don't want any deep ponds since they aren't as good for the wildlife. So, they actually call them scrapes and they have a maximum depth of 4-5 feet and are about 150'x50' each. I am grading the areas around them now but even that is difficult since it is so slick and one gets easily stuck. They are still filling in so I don't know how big they will get yet. ....
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| John Talbert
Join Date: Posts: 1
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2000-03-25 14167
I got a bid from my future next door neighbor (he's an excavating contractor) for a 1/2 acre, 6-8 foot pond. Would include digging pond, emergency overflow, standing pipe overflow, spreading dirt around my 15 acres, and replacing topsoil to the banks. He said $5000 for the job. All his equipment is kept right next door. Is this within reason or am I getting scammed? ....
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| droz
Join Date: Posts: 1
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2000-03-26 14173
I would say it is a little high, mainly because he has no transportation costs. As I said, I paid $1800 for at least 1/2 acre but probably 1/2 the depth and they had to travel a long ways with a huge trailer to move the equipment. I would certainly get a few more bids, at least for peace of mind. I don't begrudge them their money since the equipment costs so much but don't overpay. ....
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| Jim Montaney
Join Date: Posts: 1
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2000-03-26 14201
Re: Pond construction costs, Your 5K estimate sounds pretty reasonable to me, if they can deliver what you want in a timely manner. This is not a job for a guy with a backhoe or small dozer. It will be done most reasonably with a mid to large excavator and dumptrucks unless all soil is being used adjacent to the pond (i.e. one end or side) Then a large wheel loader or large dozer may be practical. The recomendation to aquire other bids is very good advise. Its often the only way know for sure that a quote is competitive. Pay close attention to grades and slopes as its being built as its costly to rework later. Good luck, Jim ....
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