a long pile of gravel stretches along a blue house

The shrunken pile of gravel by the back gate

there is some icky water in the bottom of the poolpond

the rhubarb has sprouted and is already a foot or two across

back and muscles say i am done for now but I made a good dent in the gravel. Managed to get all the gravel off the black fabric so that can be stored away. Just a two or three cart loads left but I don't want any nasty back surprises!

Maybe I can look […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

A pile of gravel sits between a large mound of clay and fence. On the left, there is a green wire garden cart partially full with gravel. Black fabric and white tarp is underneath the gravel sticking out from various places around the edges.

The new pile of three and 4 inch rocks is between a long pile of wood covered in a blue tarp overlaid with a aluminum canoe and the wire mesh Cedar fence. The pile is about 6 feet long and 2 feet high with blue tarp underneath and sticking out from the edges.

The new pile of gravel is going beside the house which is cited and bright blue party plank. It is on top of a large black tarp against the side of the house just down from the heat pump unit. There is a path between the house and the fence of grass. There's a long ladder in some shorter ladders on the ground, leaning against the fence.

4 inch rock moved to new spot. And new gravel spot ready,#poolpond #backyard #home #gardening #BackyardProject #pandemicpond

A green cart is full of gravel and large 1 inch rocks. There is a pile of rocks centred on a black tarp on the ground. Just beyond that is a pile of gravel still waiting to be moved.

two loads in the cart. One load left on the ground of the 1 inch rocks then it's into the gravel

don't be fooled by what you can see. The black fabric is actually concealing, almost half of the pile of gravel lol
#poolpond #backyard #home #gardening #BackyardProject #pandemicpond

A green cart sits in a bear spot of Clay surrounded by rocks and a fence

A large mound of dirt rises above the yard, surrounded by a wire and cedar fence

it's time to move the last of this rock out of this back part of the yard to somewhere else so that the mountain of dirt can be flattened and spread out and ready for planting and other things.

The clay is already hardening up!

#poolpond #backyard #home #gardening #BackyardProject #pandemicpond

arbutus tree standing about 9 feet tall beside a wire cedar post fence

A small bud on a branch

Last photos! The arbutus is doing great!!

I am a little worries that the damage it suffered from rutting deer yeaterday will lead to disease. 🤞

But the hazelnut tree is budding!
#poolPond #Gardening #Spring #PortAlberni #Home #Pond #PandemicPond

a small plum tree grows with the pond in the background

A wide photo of the now empty spot with a puddle of muddy water where the blue tarp was with the large rocks now orderly along the edge of the pond

The pump bay has been emptied of water.

rocks moved!
Managed to move the last of the larger rock off the blue tarp and spread it around the top of the pond. A tiny hope of mine is that this could be enough to stabilize the liner so that when I empty it of its (quickly algae-ifying) rain water […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

a small rhubarb clump grows in a garden box

a daffodil blooms at the base of a tree surrounded by black rubber liner

A few little buds start at the end of a small branch.

Things are growing in the backyard despite the continues #poolPond chaos.

Rhubarb is sprouting fast. A daffodil held on near the hazelnut tree even with all the disturbances.

And the young plum tree is budding!

#Gardening #Spring #PortAlberni #Home #Pond #PandemicPond

wide view of the pawn shows it almost full with black liner and large larger, white rocks around the edges.

I am back to moving rocks for the pool pond lol.

I should have dealt with pond Mountain dirt pile this time last year. That was a mistake on my part. Now I need to move this rock to another part of the yard so that we can get a small bobcat excavator […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

about it at the end of an apple tree has a tiny leaf. In the background blurred is a gray stairway up to a blue sided house against the backdrop, blue sky and Greenbush.

clover covers the ground in front of a charging electric vehicle blow up blue sided house

The bud at the end of a apple tree has not quite opened. In the background is a city street and some houses and blue sky.

leaves of a hydrangea bush open against the backdrop of a pond

spring is happening! The blushing apple is opening. The northern spy is not quite there. The clover driveway is full. The lilac bush is busting out. All the hydrangeas are leafing. It's all good!
#Gardening #Spring #PortAlberni #Home #Pond #PandemicPond

Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca

And this my friends is why our #pandemicpond and #poolpond will never, ever, be connected to the house water system! Directly or with a ‘sensor' system, never. Ever.

If the pond looks a little low... you top it up from a rain barrel, or a tap... or you let it go low and wait for rain.

$6000 […]

i'll look over top of the top pond shows vegetation on the end nearest the stream and some leaves floating in the main body of the pond with dying Lilly pads, goldfish, deep near the rocks

working down the stream, it is lined with moss and grass.

The bottom pond has captured a lot of leaves. The water is dark but clear.

the #pandemicpond is nice in the fall. Always full. Full of all stages of plants. Still attracts birds for a bath. The fish are happy.

Ill need to get my trusty strainer and retrievve the leaves and things before too many sink to the bottom.
#pondlife #gardening #fall #autumn

A brilliant pink lily blooms amongst green lily pads in a small pond

the pond lillies don't mind the heat!!

#bloomscrolling #pandemicpond

a long view of the big pond shows the clay and fabric on the bottom starting to dry. There are still a couple of puddles.

A view of the pebbles in the top of the big filter.

And a quick update on the big project.

The main pond is drying out! I'll let it dry today and then put the liner over tomorrow morning and start working on the plumbing asap so I can get the pebble in there to weigh it all down!

Note little dig marks […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

A murky green clouds pond which has big and small lilly pads, mostly purple.

Another view from above shows the pond water overtop some of the edge stones

A current photo shows the water level under all of stones. The lilies are bright green and there is a pink lilly about to bloom in the middle.

The green bog barrels embedded in a hedge.

A #pandemicpond post.

The bog-barrels that I added last summer have done an absolutely incredible job at keeping the water crystal clear and almost completely algae free this summer.

Only the much warmer stream between the ponds has more algae than I […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

A small silver utility trailer is full of granite river rocks of various sizes.

The kind man in the giant front loader at the gravel pit "gently dribbled" 820kg/1800lbs of river rock into the trailer. EV mileage not great. 😂

Was hoping for more rocks on the larger size, but it will all be useful for the #poolpond and #pandemicpond […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

A small purple hosta bloom rises from a plant in the edge of a pond. There are Lilly pads floating on the water.

A hydrangea blooms purple flowers above the pond.

Hosta blooming in the pond surrounded by hydrangeas.
#bloomscrolling #pondlife #pandemicpond

A large black (1.5") pipe curls up and onto the top of a tall white PVC stack that juts out from the top of a green rain barrel whose top is cut out and is filled with water and plants.

A wide shot of the backyard reveals two large holes covered in black rubber liner. There are various tools and things strewn about the yard. A small hazelnut tree is very leafy between the two holes.

Also took another step for the #pandemicpond filter barrel

The pipe from the pump just entered the 2" PVC "hole" as I wasn't sure how it would all work.

Now that things good, I attached the pipe permanently ($12 for the three pieces of the adapter). Ill cut it […]

[Original post on socialbc.ca]

A white lilly with a yellow interiornblooms at the edge of a small pond.

A bright pink lilly blooms in another small pond near a waterfall from a blue tub.

More pond lillies today!
#bloomscrolling #pond #pandemicpond #frontyard #home #portalberni

A screencapture from a webcam shows the holes filled with clear water.

It's easier to visualize what it's going to look like when it's full of water, so here is a picture from earlier this spring after the winter rains had filled the rubber-lined holes!

#PondLife #PoolPond #Backyard #DIY #PortAlberni #Home #pandemicpond […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

A screenshot from Amazon shows the Jebao DCP-20000 Submersible water pump for $351 each. (Bought two).

A screenshot shows Sealproof flexible PVC Pipe 2 inch diameter house. The pipe is coiled and shiny black finish. $283

A capture from the backyard webcam shows the three holes covered with black rubber liner. There is a medium sized and very leafy tree in the middle of them.

#PondLife #PoolPond #Backyard #DIY #PortAlberni #Home
$CAD1100 is a lot to spend on one project… but I guess in the grand scheme of making a pond/pool that will completely transform our backyard, it's not crazy. This about equals the amount spent ($1200 […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

A single white lily with yellow interior floats near the middle of a small round pond amongst many green lily pads. The pond is surrounded by flat grey granite stones.

I zoomed in shot of the same Lyle shows. It's many pointed petals.

🚨 First Pond Lilly of the Season!
#bloomscrolling #pondlife #pandemicpond

A picture from last year shows the top pond with flat stones ringing it. It is in the sunshine and the water is cloudy green. The bottom is not visible in the deep. There is a fish swimming in the shallows. A large hosta is growing just out of the picture, but spreading its leaves over the pond. There are lots of Lilly pads, big and small pink, purple and green.

View of the pond this morning shows the host is gone. It got eaten by a deer. But the water is clear and the lily pads are still there. There is a large waterfall spilling out of a blue tub. There's a light is dappled with shade from the tree as though shines through.

A view of the bottom portion of the stream and bottom pond shows the moss in the stream growing amongst small granite holders along the edge is cedar wood chips before getting into larger bushes around the pond. The bottom pond is quite full of Lilly hats and has two large leafy plants on one side.

Looking at the full length of the stream from the top in the foreground, you can see the stream coming in to some rocks surrounded by large plants on one side and a small Marygold growing out of the rocks on the other.

It is so nice how the #pandemicpond is maturing now. This is its 5th summer! Can't believe it. The bog filter has made a massive difference for the water clarity and keeping down the algae. The first pic below is from this time last year and you can see […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

The waterfall curls into the pond in a wide stream.

A view of the two ponds from the bottom, up the stream to the top pond.

A full view of the ponds and stream from the top.

Goal for the May Long Weekend has been achieved.

🙌 😆

#pandemicpond #diy #home #plumbing #ueerruuugghh

ok. I got impatient. The foam will be fine. 😝

💧 WE HAVE A PROPER WATERFALL 💧

Will accumulate rocks over the summer to place around. It's always a gradual process :)
#pandemicpond #diy #home #plumbing #ueerruuugghh

The double two-inch white pipes jut out from the barrels over the edge of the pond. There is a black hose, from the pump, snaking around the back into the water.

After reworking, the two white pipes from the barrels are now into a T connection amongst the cedar chips and lilac leaves

A black waterfall open on the top to reveal the plastic table top jutting from the top of the Canadian tire blue water jug. It is sitting on the grass. A white pipes jut is jutting out

A closeup of the top of the waterfall shows all the black foam hardening around the edgr connecting the two pieces

Progress! Frankensteined a new waterfall using the old one and liberal use of foam. Will wait for the foam to cure fully (8hrs) before hooking it up.

Reorganized the plumbing for the bog filter barrel into a T.

one nice advantage to the bog filter […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

A screenshot of the foam sealant at the home hardware site.

Will continue this little side project when I grab some expanding foam to seal the openings in the water jug and use it to make sure the water goes where I want it to go in the waterfall. All kind of happens at once because the can is not reusable.

The […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]

two small goldfish swim near a Lily pad in Clearwater with rocks underneath. Another goldfish is a little further behind near the edge of the pond, picking up the stuff on the black liner.

the transplanted goldfish from the bottom pond seems to have fit in well with the remaining two originals (there were 4 each to start).

There are now three and six in top and bottom respectively #pandemicpond #diy #home #plumbing #ueerruuugghh

A T of 2 inch PVC pipe with elbow connections on each end lie on a wooden table with the green PVC pipe, ratchet cutters lying beside them

Assembly is out on the lawn with the new bucket container with white pipe jutting out of it towards the Tea connection. They are sitting beside the upper pond. You can see the two BBC pipes that are currently emptying into the top of the pond under some rocks and flat pieces.

I nearly translucent red bodied spider stands on a lilly pad. The lily pad is purple. There are a number of other pads, just below it and round is clear water. You can see it into the water is green and there are rocks and pebbles underneath.

T piece fashioned to combie the flow from the two bog filter barrels. The PVC pipe cutter is SO handy. Precise and quick.

And noticed a resident of the pond who seems to have found him/herself in a difficult spot. 🕷️

#pandemicpond #diy #home #plumbing #ueerruuugghh

A similar picture, but with the pipe now jutting out of the blue container

the good news is, it seems alot easier to convince everything into the hole when the sides of the container are thin. So this only took a couple minutes of prying/cajolling #pandemicpond #diy #home #plumbing #ueerruuugghh

looking down at my feet, which are in dirty rubber boots lies pieces of the project. A blue water jug with a hole in the lawn side in the middle with a rubber Gromit inserted. There is a bowl of soapy water with a bottle of dawn beside . and the whole saw with a red hole it. On the other side of the Blue is piece of white PVC 2 inch pipe.

the least fun part of diy pond work is making the pipe fit in the rubber hole... 🕳️

this will be the reservoir for a new waterfall on the original #pandemicpond. I need something that could handle the flow and bring the water up to a nice height. So a […]

[Original post on mstdn.chrisalemany.ca]