What started as one gifted duck to the homeowners’ daughter turned into a proper flock before long. Yet, all their ducks had to swim around and submerge in was a rubber liner on the ground. It was effectively more of a tub than a pond. Because it wasn’t designed for birds, it was hard to keep clean and didn’t have the depth or space the ducks needed. So, the homeowners came to us hoping to build a pond that’s made with their beloved, messy ducks in mind.
01
Assessing the Pond
A rubber liner with some water splashed over in lieu of a traditional duck pond turns into a dirty water slide before you know it. Naturally, the homeowners were tired of cleaning it day after day, and the ducks weren’t able to swim around like they wanted. No one, human or animal, was really happy with the situation, and it was clear that the feathered family members needed an upgrade.
02
This build started with more of a boots-on-the-ground collaboration than many of our other projects. The homeowner brought in his own excavator, and we spent a weekend helping guide the excavation into the right shape and depth we needed.
03
Ducks might love their ponds, but they’re not that great at keeping them clean. On top of putting in the right filtration for a pond with this level of debris and flock size, we needed a layout that could accommodate the homeowners’ draining and refilling the pond themselves throughout the year. This translated into laying the rock around the pond but leaving the bottom liner rock-free.
04
The last step was adding the 1,500 gallons of water and getting the 6,000 BioFalls filtration system going. Once we’d filled the pond, we added a duck-safe selection of plants.
The rubber tub was never going to be a permanent solution for the homeowners’ favorite flock, and the pond that took its place is a fan-favorite with their feathered friends. The unsuitable area kept the birds from properly grooming and made them irritable, but the larger pond has calmed them down.
The deliberately oversized 6,000 BioFalls filtration system can handle the added debris that ducks introduce into the ecosystem.
The homeowners needed a pond they could drain and refill themselves, and pivoting to a less common technique (keeping the bottom rock-free) gives them the chance to do so.
The pond also protects the family’s flock’s feet with its sloped entry point. Thanks to its gentle grade, no ducks have to jump onto and off of a hard edge.
We installed a hardy plant package, including cattails and grasses, to withstand the flock’s wandering beaks.
~1,000-1,500 gallons
6,000 BioFalls system
3,000 gph solids handling pump
Pennsylvania mountain stone
Cattails and grasses
Here are the answers to the most common questions people ask a pond contractor:
A typical duck pond starts around $20,000 to $30,000 due to the increased filter demand and necessary building provisions. However, this project came in lower due to the homeowner’s excavation team and the liner-less pond bottom they requested.
Yes. Since ducks are messier than fish, the filtration system has to be sized up, and the plants have to be tough enough to survive curious ducks’ wandering beaks. A lot of companies turn down duck pond projects because it takes more work to get them right.
As much or as little as you and your ducks are comfortable with. We intentionally left this pond with a rockless bottom, so the family could drain and refill it themselves in an afternoon. However, you can also have your pond professionally serviced.
Not every pond needs fish to thrive. For example, a duck pond runs on the same basic principles as a koi pond, but requires some accommodations (such as a larger filtration system) to account for the different species.
