NEARLY DONE

Notice how clear the pond is now that the remediation work is finished. It is very enjoyable now! In the pond are a few koi and a lot more goldfish. There is one black sucker fish and it is usually found on the bottom of the pond or hanging from the pond walls. It is about 16" long. The next largest fish is a Butterfly Koi. Both of these fish were gifts from Layne Camarena and DJ Milligan (grandson). Dragonflies visit the pond daily and often lay their eggs in the water. Dashers and Damselflies are visitors, too. Birds bathe in the creek. Squirrels enjoy a drink of water as well as our domestic cats!

• Remedaition Work Finished - Pond, Creek & Waterfall:
Work Done by Craig McBride, owner of All Aquatics in Grass Valley, CA

To protect our house from rot, 2 - 2' x 4' sheets of 10-guage steel have replaced the 2 - 2' x 4' sheets of plywood which were behind the waterfall.

The the tank assembly for the waterfall spillway was propped up on an inverted 5-gallon plant container, which was then hidden behind and beneath dirt and rocks. Needless to say, the waterfall tank and spillway was removed and rebuilt properly.

The liner for the waterfall and creek was replaced and/or seamed to stop water leakages. Along the creeks edge water was wicking up and over the low elevated liner. The banks of the stream had to be re-engineered to a higher elevation.

The upper edge of the pond (north side) was removed to install a drain which diverts lawn runoff away from the pond.

The returning water from the pump to the waterfall was transported through a 2" flexible plastic pipe which laid directly onto the pond's edge, then covered with the pond's liner. This would have frozen in the winter and could have been easily damaged by foot traffic or gardening equipment. It was buried below the newly created drain.

The liner on the bottom of the pond has now been covered in gray/white rocks, and all of the black liner on the pond walls are now covered with large river rocks.

Since the skimmer/pump housing was cantilevered, and not plumb or level, it was removed. Not surprsingly, beneath the pump's filtration tank were 2" x 4" planks of wood used as support shims. They had failed to properly support and align the tank, pump and skimmer. The wooden planks were removed since it was buried in dirt and would have eventually rotted anyway. A proper and more stable area was prepared to hold the skimmer/pump housing.

In essence, short of digging the hole for the pond, the entire creek, waterfall and pond, were re-built.

• Remedaition Finished - Metal Fence:
Work Done by Adam Rowe, Owner of Custom Landscapes, Rough & Ready, CA

Five fence fixed-panels were left uninstalled. They should be finished by the first week in August. A number of installed panels were not level and they have been corrected by adding extentions onto the top of posts then repositioning the panels.

• Remedaition Finished - Rock borders:

Each evening I have moved rocks and created a border along the west fence line, and between the hedge-row and the lawn. I'm quite pleased with its appearance and intend to add more rock edging around the entire lawn area.

• Remedaition Work Pending - Arbor:

Still to be addressed is the removal of the arbor. The entire structure is not level, square or plumb. The support timbers are set directly into concrete. The concrete is not mixed properly and is powdery underneath. It might last 5 years before the wood rots and the slab fails.

• Remedaition Work Pending - East Side Flower Bed (not pictured):

The area was damaged by vehicle traffic going in, and out, of the back garden. The slate will be removed as it is dangerously installed (uneven and pitched incorrectly). Compacted decomposed granite will be the walking surface, and the railroad ties will be repositioned to provide consistently measured down-steps. The decomposed granite will go all the way to the double garden-gate and then into the rose garden where slate and decomposed granite will provide a flat seating area.

• Creation of - West Side Garden Gate Path (not pictured):

Railroad ties will create steps going up to the west side garden gate. More 'sod' will be added to the existing lawn to make the layout more appealing.

BEFORE REMEDIATION WORK:

The septic and murkiness of the pond was constant due to the exposed soil being allowed to wash down into the pond. The creek liner allowed the flowing water to leak through layered seams which were not glued together. The waterfall's backing was plywood with dirt piled against it which guaranteed rot would occur. Click image to see larger version.