We made a backyard pond! It’s been a great project for our little nature-loving family, especially during the shelter-in-place period. It’s an affordable and fun way to add some interest to your yard, and to attract more wildlife. But how do you get started? Check out my review and project build here, including a video tour!

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Why Have a Backyard Pond?

There were a lot of reasons that we wanted to play around with building a backyard pond. Some of them are:

  • We wanted a unique way to spruce up our new home
  • We love the sound of running water when we’re outside
  • We were excited to learn about pond fish and plants
  • We wanted to see how a pond could attract more wildlife
  • Ponds aren’t expensive to start (this build cost us around $250 total)
  • Ponds can be low maintenance

Before You Build the Pond

I do want to give you a few things to think about before you go spending money and digging up part of your yard! Here are a few questions to ask (and then answer) before you move on to buying and building your backyard pond.

Where do you want your backyard pond to be? Remember that it will block a path and take up space. I would suggest not putting it right next to the house in case of a leak or accident.

  • Not too close to the house/structure
  • Balance of sunlight and shade – more sun is good for plants but will make algae grow more quickly
  • Safe from little children, pet dogs, etc.
  • Can you see it from the windows if you want to?
  • Can you see it when you’re outside?
  • Is there a sprinkler head or other structural thing where you would have the pond?

A few other things to think about:

  • Will you want pond fish? Do some reading on what you’d want to get. I recommend koi as they’re vegetarian and not slimy or messy like other fish. I’d also get a small plecostamus which is an algae eater, as they’ll be a great clean up crew.
  • Do you want pond plants? There are tons of options here and you may need to build up part of your pond so that the plants can be as deep in the water as they’re supposed to be.
  • I would also suggest that you look at ponds in your area (contact your local nursery or pet store) and see what designs, plants, and animals they recommend for your climate.

What to Buy to Build the Backyard Pond

First we suggest that you get your pond shell leveled, dug in the ground (if applicable) and set up. We have this “kidney bean” shape from Lowe’s which has two levels so it looks like it has a shallower seat on one side. We ended up only burying the deep end of the pond, so that the shallow end sits on the ground. You can completely submerge these ponds by digging a bigger hole, or keep them totally above ground as long as they’re level, and that shallow seat has support underneath (aka build it up underneath with bricks or pavers).

We actually didn’t dig the pond into the ground for a few weeks; instead, we dragged it around in the yard when it was empty to see where we’d want it to live. These things can be moved of course but it would be a huge pain!

Then, as you can see in our build video, we dug the deep end into the ground and filled the pond with water to make sure that it was stable.

Next, we put some river rock into the bottom and added some flagstone to that narrow seat to build up a spot for the pond plants, as well as create a little overhang which made a cave for our fish to hide.

Remember to thoroughly spray any rocks, bricks, or stones with the hose. Bacteria in the porous rocks can kill everything in your pond. We also recommend that after you add the rocks, you fill the pond and leave it for a few days before adding anything living.

Once we felt confident that we liked the placement of the stones, we set up the solar fountain so that the solar panel can get some sun and charge up the fountain. The solar fountain is cute and works really well, and also has next to no set up.

You can leave the solar fountain on constantly, and it will run as long as it has energy from the solar panel. But remember that it only moves the water around – it does not have a filter built in so it won’t clean anything out of the water.

Before we added fish, we made sure that we had a dechlorinator, or water conditioner. This gets rid of chlorine and other harsh chemicals in your tap water which can be dangerous to pond fish. You’ll need to measure this out and add it any time your pond water is changed.

By the way, how often should I do a water change in my pond? We honestly don’t have to do one more than twice a month (and you only change out a max of 20% of the water, to not shock your fish). Don’t forget to add the dechlorinator whenever you do a water change too!

 We use a small pool net to keep bugs and leaves out of the top of the water, and spray out the pond filter sponges once a week. 

How to Build a Homemade Filter for Your Pond

So you have your pond set up and you’re ready to go. But one thing we haven’t talked about yet is how to clean your water.

First, let’s clarify: A solar fountain is something that will circulate the water. Basically it moves the water around and helps oxygenate it. This is important, but it doesn’t actually clean junk out of the water. So if you want to have that ability (which I highly recommend), you need a pond filter too.

The problem is that filters for small ponds can be really big, and really expensive. So my husband figured out a way to build a small pond filter that hooks onto the solar fountain, and costs about $10 to make!

For the homemade filter, you’ll need:

  • A small plastic container (sandwich size is fine) with a fitting lid
  • Some rocks or pebbles to fill the bottom of the plastic container and weigh it down
  • An Exacto knife to cut through plastic
  • Filter sponges like these (we used two of the softer ones and one of the more firm sponge kind)
  • Plastic tubing
  • The solar fountain

To make the homemade filter, here’s what to do:

  • Unplug your solar fountain so that it’s not powered, and so the floating fountain and its small pump are separated.
  • Line the bottom of the plastic container with large rocks to weigh it down.
  • Cut large holes throughout the lid so that it still locks onto the container, but water can be sucked in. And cut a hole for the plastic tubing to go through.
  • Connect the plastic tubing to the solar fountain.
  • Cut the plastic tubing so that it reaches from the solar fountain (when floating) to the bottom of your pond, where the plastic container will be.
  • Fit the other end of the plastic tubing to the solar fountain pump (you may have to boil water to soften the end of the tubing and force it on). Now you should have the floating fountain head, connected to plastic tubing, and at the other end of the tubing you have the black pump piece that sucks up water.
  • Put the pump into the plastic container on top of the rocks.
  • Fold or cut the softer filter sponge material and lay a few layers all around the black pump in the plastic container. (Remember that these pieces are reusable but need to be washed with clean water once a week or so.)
  • Cut a hole in the green/black sponge for the plastic tubing to go through, and cut the sponge so that it fits in the plastic container. Ideally you want it to go all the way across.
  • Feed the plastic tubing (unhooking it briefly) through the thicker firmer sponge, and through the lid. Then finish assembling the pieces.
  • You know the pump is working when you plug all the pieces back in to the solar fountain and panel, and the pump (which is now nestled into the plastic container) is sucking water, forcing the water to go through the sponges, pushing it up and out the tubing, and turning on the fountain!

So from top to bottom, this is what should be layered in your filter:

  • Plastic container lid
  • Dense sponge
  • Soft sponge
  • Pump part with tubing attached 
  • Rocks

Viola! Wasn’t that easy (and dare I say, fun)? I hope that you and your family are able to build a backyard pond together, and that it becomes a place of peace and enjoyment for you all. We love ours and can’t wait to learn more so we can share more tips with you!

Now check out our backyard pond build video!

Solar fountain

Pond filter sponges

Basic plastic tubing

Dechlorinator/water conditioner

Pool net