#Thegreatpoolpondconversion - 210124
We have three kinds of baby fish. About 30 in all that we can see near the surface.
Definitely some Shubunkins. Easy to spot with their orange color.
Two others we can’t ID yet. Two different shades of a dark-ish single color.
Some are maybe an inch or a bit more. And some very tiny ones, so likely more than one batch / time frame.
Some of the tadpoles are starting to show tiny frog feet - more or less on schedule.
We added 3-400 gallons of water (about 2”). First time since maybe August. Clearly the liner works.
At one point, the new waterfall pump stopped. We got sad and mad (again), because it was so recently replaced.
Pulled it up, hit it with a stick. Nothing.
Ordered 2 more pumps - different types this time.
Then the next day it’s back on working just fine and it’s been ever since.
We may have hit a bad batch of bilge pumps. We may be asking them to do too much.
When the time comes, we’re going to try smaller output pond/aquarium pumps. Also solar / 12 volts. They are continuous duty and would be more appropriate except they don’t pump a lot of volume. But, since the electric draw is less, we can maybe use 2-3 at the same time to equal the flow of one big one. Clear plastic tubing is easy to hide than 1” corrugated pipe. (So much for check valves, but we’ll see).
Saturday was the last 20 miler on the training schedule before the race.
After an actual 21 miles, breakfast and a nap, we managed to cut, rip and bang this frame together.
Mostly from rafter scrap wood. Remember the rafters and the tarp? So long ago.
We’re going to cover it with screening for the butterfly weed bed.
While the plants on the right side get devoured by the caterpillars, the left side can rest, recover. And re-leaf?
When they’re strong again - say 2 months - we pick it up and move it to cover the chewed up plants on the right.
It was real nice to come out on the deck to see and hear the waterfall and the filter going.
For the last few weeks, every time we look out - the solar, the pumps, the flow, the fish, the plants, the balance -it’s all working. And it’s nice. And stable. And some sort of validation. Even though we’re not done, with the heavy lifting finished, it’s starting to feel like ‘we did it’ on a regular basis. We get to enjoy bits of time just…watching and listening. Like working over at the barn we could still hear the splashing…
Sunday a little weed whacking, some landscape fabric and we laid down 40-45 bags of rock chips that we bought with the big rock order last year in March. No powerwashing!
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