# topsoil/sand mix in a pond



## c2g (Aug 27, 2013)

Sorry, not an aquarium setup, but hoping someone can help me out. 

I just finished installing the liner and stone for my wildlife pond (no fish, no filters/pumps) - about 14' x 10' with a 8" planting shelf and varying depths down to about 30". I filled it with water and, rushing to get the job done in a weekend, took a chance and filled the planting shelf with a 2:1 play sand to topsoil mix. The topsoil was Nature's Pride Topsoil - the cheap stuff at Lowe's - not potting soil. 

Of course, the following day I found out this was a mistake. This evening, I scooped about 70% of the mix out by hand. The rest is stuck between the rocks or settled in the deep end (can't tell because the water's so murky). 

I have a ton of clay left over from the excavation and I can always get more sand. Is there a way to remedy my situation without draining the pond, washing the stone down, and making sure I get every last bit of topsoil out of there before I fill it again? 

If it matters, I was planning on planting a mix of blue flag, golden club, great blue lobelia, pickerelweed, and scouring rush. Thanks.


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## AaronT (Apr 26, 2004)

Any chance you can take a picture? 

Play sand is too fine to use in ponds or aquariums. It will get caught up in filter pump impellers and wreak havoc. 

Your best bet is probably to try to cap it with some sort of aquatic gravel. FYI, the stuff they sell at pond stores is the same as the soil amendments Turface ProLeague and Soilmaster Select and the latter are much cheaper.


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## c2g (Aug 27, 2013)

AaronT said:


> Any chance you can take a picture?
> 
> Play sand is too fine to use in ponds or aquariums. It will get caught up in filter pump impellers and wreak havoc.
> 
> Your best bet is probably to try to cap it with some sort of aquatic gravel. FYI, the stuff they sell at pond stores is the same as the soil amendments Turface ProLeague and Soilmaster Select and the latter are much cheaper.


Here's a pic. No pump/filters in the pond though.









pond pic


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## AaronT (Apr 26, 2004)

Yeah, I think you need to drain that. Then cap the soil/sand mixture with some inert gravel of some sort. They fill it up again slowly. It will likely still be cloudy, but not nearly that bad and will eventually clear up once the filter is running.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Before you drain it, you could also try a flocculant. A well-stocked pond store should have a fish and plant safe product. A flocculant will cause the fine particles to clump together, and hopefully settle out. It may take a week to work. Seachem's Clarity for aquarium use is a flocculant, but is too expensive for pond use.

Nice project!


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

If there is no filter and no pumps I would think the water will clear up simply by settling.


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## AoxomoxoA (Aug 3, 2013)

I don't know, but it looks _really_ nice!


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

There is a type of soil that is so fine it will stay suspended just by Brownian motion. It is called colloidal clay. 

My garden soil has just enough colloidal clay that I cannot use it in the aquariums.

Maybe a flocculant would help, but it would be a lot faster to drain it, then clean out the remaining soil by hand.


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