Easter Chicks

We were up bright and early Friday morning and couldn't wait to get started on the mammoth task of shifting so much soil (and who knows what else?). We'd been discussing the levels required for the pond and also for the base of the filter house. Due to the height of the vortex the depth required in the filter house was only 25cm short of the depth required for the actual pond, therefore we decided to amend our plans (yep, we're changing our minds again) and excavate the area for the filter house to the same depth as the pond. This would then allow us to concrete the whole area in one go!

Hand to eye coordination was a little off to begin with as the bucket of the digger danced with all sorts of crazy moves like a drunk Dad on a dance floor, but we soon had it back under control within a few minutes. It was then all steam ahead as bucket after bucket of soil, gravel, hardcore, clay, and lots of other "stuff" made it's way from earth to bucket, to MDTT and finally to the skip. Progress however did seem slow as the MDTT isn't the fastest piece of kit. In fact it's considerably slow and we did consider just using the wheel barrow. However we soon changed our minds when we realised that the wheel barrow could only manage two buckets of soil, where as the MDTT could easily manage 8-10. It was therefore doing the job of around 4 or 5 wheel barrows in one go, it was considerably less physical than having to barrow the soil around, plus tipping the soil into the skip was easy, you just had to push the levers in the correct order!

We were making good progress until disaster struck at around 11.30(ish) when the digger threw one of its treads. No it wasn't my driving! After a considerable amount of time contemplating and trying to work things out we spent the next umpteen minutes trying different ways to fix the problem. After the trial and error stage came the grunting & other various noises (anyone on the other side of the fence would have thought we'd dug up some cave men). This was soon followed by a whole host of new descriptive noises (commonly know as swearing) before we finally gave in ... exhausted and aching. Of course we'd tried the hire company first for their assistance, but this was Easter weekend and so no one was available.

Rather than sit and do nothing for the whole weekend we decided to excavate as much soil as possible from the diggers now fixed position. Some hours later we'd managed to excavate a beautiful arc in the soil which wasn't really practical with regards to digging out the pond area but it at least we hadn't wasted any time. Day 1 of digging over and we'd accomplished quite a bit, however there was still a considerable amount to do, made even more of a challenge with a limping micro digger and a driver who was walking as if he'd been in the saddle all day. How do Cowboys do it!

**Important Update**

We blogged not long back that we'd discovered a Song Thrush nesting in a small trees in the midst of all the happenings. Well we can go one better than that now .... there's now three chicks! Mum and Dad are backwards and forwards to and from the nest even with all the plant machinery running. We're not experts but the chicks and parents seem to all be doing well. HAPPY EASTER!!

Song Thrush Chicks

Test Drive (and Dig)

All the essentials for a successful weekends excavating landed with us on Friday. The large skip turned up at around 08.00 with the rest of the equipment being delivered mid afternoon. The micro digger fit through the gateways with no problems, as did the mini dumper truck thingy (MDTT). With another crash course in the plant machinery's operation we were duly left to our devices. Tea was soon demolished (let's hope that's the only thing) and so it was time to get to grips with the digger and finally get to grips with this new pond build.

I soon got to grips with the coordination involved for maneuvering and operating the micro digger whilst Wifey soon tamed the MDTT. After a few hours playing we'd soon dug a substantial hole in the garden where the new filter house was to be sited. We were very pleased with the progress we'd made until a quick check of the depth with our measuring stick revealed that we'd only managed to excavate about half the required depth. "Bloody vortex" was the polite statement at this point. On a positive note, we'd managed to find our way around the controls and had begun the job at hand with no major incidents. Time to switch the machinery off for the evening and rest in readiness for the following days gruelling schedule.

Test Drive & Dig

Pipework, Fittings & Cider

Following the problems we encountered last weekend with the wrong size digger being delivered we rescheduled the machinery and skip for this weekend just gone. However this all changed when we received a call from some good friends in Belgium who were wanting to come and visit. Digger (and now mini dumper truck thingy - correct terminology to follow once we find out what it is) & skip rearranged once again quickly followed by the fridge being stocked with cider!

In fact the visit from our friends did us the world of good as the pond build was taking up the majority of our time and brain powers (what do you mean it doesn't take much)! After a very pleasant weekend with good friends, good food, good weather and of course ... good cider, we soon found that our batteries had recharged and by the time our Flemish friends had departed and begun their journey back home, we were actually chomping at the bit.

It wasn't long before the mitre saw was out, lengths of pipe were here there and everywhere along with a whole variety of valves, connectors, fittings, etc, all waiting to be dry fit first before then being glued. And the result after a few hours work .....

Quarantine Filtration System

The Eazy Pod is fed via a 3" solvent weld pipe from a 3" Kockney Koi bottom drain. The water is then pumped through 1.5" solvent weld pipe by a Superfish 5000 pond pump up to a 1kw Electro pond heater before returning into the quarantine tank. The Eazy Pod is cleaned using a Yamitsu 50L air pump with air being supplied to the tank via a Superfish Air Box 4 to four round air stones.

Quarantine Tank

The tank etc was filled via a water or flow meter and we must admit we were surprised with the result. According to the meter we'd only used 330 gallons, which is quite less than the 500 we first calculated. This resulted in a mental note to one's self .... "must remember to double/triple check calculations in future". Once full, the pond & filter system was duly treated to some Kusuri Potassium Permanganate.

We're very please with our new quarantine system however we still need to apply some finishing touches. We're going to be adding a uPVC sill around the top and either cladding in uPVC or painting the external faces. The jury's still out on that one for the moment.

Houston we have a .......

Yes you've guessed it ..... a problem!

Despite waking up on Saturday morning to find that the sore throat and sniffle i'd had for a couple of days had turned into a full blown cold, which in turn turned me into a bear with an extremely sorehead, i remained quite up beat at the prospect of finally getting started with the excavation of the new pond. The skip arrived on Friday and was duly placed on the drive, albeit in slightly the wrong place making it difficult for us to access the flap at the front of the skip. Although Wifey had been advised that a couple of "burly" men should be able to move it .... yeh right!

The crisp morning air was just beginning to make its way through to the sinuses when truck delivering the digger pulled up. When they said "first thing in the morning" they weren't exaggerating. The driver made operation of the digger look like child's play but we still took him up on his offer of giving us a crash course (minus the crash we hoped). After absorbing as many levers, sticks & switches as we could at warp speed, Wifey enquired if the driver would kindly maneuver the digger round the back for us instead of us spending the morning negotiating the first garden gate, then the afternoon the second gate. His driving skills with the digger were magnificent, however he was no magician as it soon became obvious that unless he could conjure up a miracle there was no way the digger was going through the gateway. After a quick phone call to the office and confirmation to them of the gate widths, it transpires that they had actually sent the wrong digger to us. Instead of a micro digger which would have whizzed through the gateways, they had actually sent a mini digger which was too big.

The mini digger was duly maneuvered back on to the truck and whisked away leaving yours truly feeling now fully deflated due to cold symptoms and without the prospect of getting the new pond excavation started.

This feeling didn't last long as we soon turned our attention to the quarantine system. Plans were drawn up quickly, measurements checked, double checked and checked again just to be on the safe side, quickly followed by concrete blocks being positioned, a 3" Kockney Koi bottom drain being fitted along with 3" solvent weld pipework connected with an Evolution Aqua Eazy Connector. As the rodent on the TV states .... "Simples"!

We soon had a framework up surrounding the tank to enable us to box the insulation in and also to make it more aesthetically pleasing. One roll of insulation and approximately 50 wood boards later and things were looking up again. We couldn't complete plumbing in the gravity fed Nexus Eazy Pod coupled with a Superfish 5000 pond pump and Electro pond heater as we were a couple of connections short. However this will be soon rectified following a visit to A19 Koi & Pond Supplies. Thanks to Paul for all his help, understanding and advice so far ... as i'm sure they'll be more to come!

Surprise At Ground Zero

Our luck with the weather has yet again held out for us with another cracking week being enjoyed and allowing us to progress even further with clearing the old pond site in an attempt to reach ground zero.

Although we were all up very early, by the time we'd enjoyed croissants and coffee (there seems to be a routine developing here i think - not that were complaining) we'd allowed sufficient time for the rest of the neighbourhood to get up and about before we started clanking around with spades and wheel barrows. After a deep breath, the first of umpteen shovel fulls of gravel made its way to the wheel barrow which duly made its way to either AREA 51 if containing a substantial amount of soil or a separate pile if more or less pure gravel. We did try counting the number of barrow fulls we moved, but we'd soon lost count and so carried on taking deep breaths, filling and moving until we'd shifted the majority of gravel from the area. Based on the amount of gravel we had delivered in the first place, we estimated we moved somewhere in the region of 4-5 tonnes during the day. We also managed to remove the 3 inch posts from the area, well apart from one which succumbed to my stomach and broke off at the base.

We'd finally reached Ground Zero!

Following a few measurements .... then a few more .... followed by some re-measuring .... then some more ..... we finally marked out the site in paint ready to commence digging next weekend.

Ground Zero

Looking back, the past few weeks have been a blur and even we're surprised at just how much we've achieved. It's been very, very hard work and many a time we've simply had to grit our teeth, bite down and get on with it. It's been a hive of activity and extremely hectic at times, so imagine our surprise when we discovered this :-

She's nesting in the Korean Fir which is currently situated near Ground Zero and right by the dog pen, not to mention the radio blasting out Planet Rock!

We hope that everything works out for her and of course we'll be keeping a close eye on things in the coming days/weeks whilst also keeping our fingers crossed that our fortune with the weather continues for a few weeks more. The mini digger and skip arrive this coming weekend so who knows what news we'll be bringing in our next blog entry.

What A Result!

The weather was very kind again to us yesterday and it was a glorious morning when we ventured outside into the garden to work further magic demolishing the old pond. We made sure to have a breakfast that would sustain us through the brute force and ignorance (we're good at that) that would be required to relocate the remaining sleepers and that soil & rubble from the border at the back of the old pond. Who'd have thought that a good helping of all butter croissants and proper coffee would keep you going until Batman time! You know Batman time ..... dinner dinner dinner dinner BATMAN!

Anyway, progress was exhausting and energy sapping to say the least but by dinner we'd made good progress in clearing the pond border of soil & rubble which was duly wheeled round to AREA 51. In fact we'd managed to excavate two thirds of the border - which equated to umpteen barrow fulls (lost count at around twenty or so).

Back to it after a spot of lunch ... well i did have cucumber in my sandwich! The problem was that after stopping for half an hour or so resulted in the last third of the border appear quarry like in size. What's more, someone had added lead to the heads of all the spades, shovels and garden forks while we'd been having something to eat. This really called for some mind over matter and i don't mean the "if you don't mind it doesn't matter" carry on either.

With gritted teeth (yep soil gets everywhere) and a great determination in our hearts (plus the aches and pains in our muscles and joints) we dug deep (sorry for another pun) and got on with the job in hand. We soon ripped through the remaining mass of soil, compost, bricks and bits of concrete until we were finally wheeling the last of it round for dumping in AREA 51. It was at his juncture that we realised that the area was looking pretty full. In fact we'd under estimated how much earth etc the back borders on the pond actually held and were faced with the realisation that perhaps the soil from excavating the new pond won't all fit in. "Good job i didn't cancel the skip" was the solution from Wifey.

We spent the last hour or two (time flies when you're having fun) fighting and wrestling with the remaining sleepers and stacking them out of the way. By 5.00pm all that we were left with was the old pond liner and some bits of wood which we'll soon move in the day or two.

An exhausting & painful weekend, but very happy with the result!

Steady Progress

It was 08.00am and the garden was already calling out to us. It was a fairly fresh morning yesterday but once we'd started titivating we soon warmed to a working temperature. So after an hours titivating about and some more in depth planning over a cup of coffee we started to level the ground in the back corner where our first sleeper was going to be laid which we could then take our levels from in forming the new raised patio in AREA 51. With the ground duly skimmed level and a good helping of sand laid to bed the sleeper on, it was finally time to move one of the mammoth lumps of oak.

We decided it might be easier on the arms and back etc to load a sleeper on to the wheel barrow and barrow them around to AREA 51. Although this approach to moving the sleepers from one part of the garden to the other was fairly precarious to say the least, it was certainly much easier and less strenuous than trying to actually carry them around.

Progress in taking down the old pond was actually quite slow as most of our time was being spent building the retaining walls for the raised patio area and ensuring they were bedded down correctly and of course level. The oak sleepers were beasts of wood to lift, move and maneuver so it really was essential that the ground was prepared properly so that the sleepers would fit absolutely first time so that we wouldn't have to move them again. Fortunately we managed to get this right with all but one, so we were pretty pleased that the thought and effort we put into planning paid off. So where does this leave us ....

Old Pond - Part Demolished

The above picture was taken yesterday when we'd finished for the day. There's just one row of sleepers that we need to remove from the front and right hand side of the pond before we start dismantling and clearing the earth out of the border to the left and back of the pond, as well as the retaining sleepers. And as for the raised patio area at AREA 51 ....

AREA 51 - Raised Patio Build

We've left a gap for now so it's easier to get the barrow in for tipping the rubble and soil. We also need to cut some sleepers so they fill this gap correctly which is not an easy feat to achieve, even with a chainsaw! I'm positive though with some perseverance will get it done. In the meantime, there's more barrowing to be done.