Large Pond Renovation In A Bethesda Office Park (Bog Install)
Renovating A Pond To Perfection In Maryland
The pond outside of this BF Saul office park in downtown Bethesda is 50ft x 25ft of murky green water, debris, and aquatic plants that aren’t growing too well anymore. It’s supposed to be a nice area for people to enjoy taking a break near or eating lunch by. Now, though, people aren’t going near it.
The property manager isn’t following normal protocol to fix it this time. Instead of getting 3 bids and choosing the least expensive option she is using her once per year bypass to call on Premier Ponds.
They have great reviews and Steve (founder and co-owner) is confident he and his team can turn the problem pond around.
Let’s take a look at Premier Ponds’ plan for turning this pond into a piece of paradise amidst a concrete jungle.
You can use our pond renovation services for your pond >>
The Pond Renovation & Wetland Installation Plan
The first part is to solve the filtration problem (it can lead to some weird smells). Murky green water can happen in many ways, but poor filtration is usually the main cause and it’s no different here:
Our goal is to turn this pond into a low-maintenance paradise, so we’re going to install an upflow bog with an intake bay. This is the fancy term for a natural filter using plants, dirt, and gravel that also pushes debris into a corner for easy cleaning. The dirty water will flow up through the bog and the plants and then come out clean and clear via waterfall.
Not only will this pond be easy to clean but it will stay clear, look amazing, and run smoothly for a long time (with regular maintenance).
Let’s see the plan in action with a day-by-day breakdown.
Day-By-Day Breakdown
Day 1
The cost to build a koi pond is anywhere from a couple of hundred dollars to tens of thousands. You can DIY a cheap koi pond that’s basically a hole in the ground for maybe $500. A natural-looking, quality koi pond can go from $9,000 to $100,000 plus.
We start basically ripping out the original pond so we can start over.
The in-pond bog is going to go along the back wall. It currently looks like someone just threw a bunch of dirt in the pond and planted some aquatic plants to try and make it look nice. It kind of works, but not for our purposes. We want to make it better.
So we start shoveling the dirt, sludge, and muck right on out.
Day 2
5. Truckloads. Of. Sludge.
The start of day 2 brings us this. Thankfully, we are pretty close to finishing the cleaning part so we can get to the rebuilding.
Finally, the sludge is gone and we can start building the infrastructure. This means using Aquascape’s AquaBlox Water Matrix blocks (see photo below). They help us use less gravel, hold more water, and lower maintenance for our client.
At the same time, part of our team is rocking out the pond (insert guitar solo). What we really mean is they are stacking rocks in front of where the bog will be to hide the liner, keep the water in, and provide a natural-looking border.
Day 3
We are still building the bog, but no we’re done with the Aquablox. Now comes putting on the gravel, rocks, dirt, and plants.
Throughout this process, we are also taking care of the other parts of the pond. This means cleaning the rocks and gravel, checking on the waterfall, and ensuring all other parts are in good working condition.
Day 4
Now for the finishing touches.
The plants are planted, the water is clear, and the circulation system is working without a hitch. This problem pond renovation is a complete success and the client is very happy.
A Pond Renovation Well Done
ou can see a 25ft x 30ft back yard pond we built from scratch >>