Ponds in their suburban areas today are equipped by many summer residents. In most cases, such artificial reservoirs play a purely decorative role in the garden, planted with beautiful marsh vegetation and populated with spectacular fish. But sometimes, in suburban areas, their owners dig out a special type of ponds - swimming ponds. The technology for arranging such reservoirs, of course, has some of its own characteristics.
Main steps
The swimming pond on the site can have different sizes, shapes and depths. If desired, in the garden you can equip both a very small reservoir of this type, designed for one person, and a large one, with the convenience of swimming in which many people can swim at the same time. In any case, the creation of such a pond on the site will include the following steps:
- design;
- digging a pit;
- pouring concrete;
- bioplateau arrangement;
- decorating a pond and filling it with water.
Pond project: where to place
Firstit is the turn of the summer resident who decides to equip such a reservoir, it is worth deciding where exactly it will be located on the site. First of all, the pond, of course, should fit harmoniously into the surrounding landscape as harmoniously as possible. Such artificial reservoirs look very beautiful, for example, next to alpine slides, fountains and spectacularly decorated gazebos.
The depth of swimming ponds in the country usually have not too much - up to 1.5 m. However, it is still worth considering the level of groundwater occurrence when arranging such a pond. If soil moisture begins to penetrate into the pit of such a hydraulic structure, the water in it will most likely be too cold for bathing.
For the same reason, such a hydraulic structure, of course, should be located in a well-lit area. It is also not worth equipping a bathing pond under the trees, because in this case it will subsequently become clogged with fallen leaves in autumn.
Of course, you should not have such a reservoir in the immediate vicinity of the foundation of the house or any outbuildings. In the event of a breakthrough in the waterproofing, the pond may cause the destruction of the foundations of the structure.
When choosing a place for arranging a pond, among other things, one should take into account the features of the site relief. Very often, such reservoirs are located in natural depressions in the garden. But to choose such a place for arranging this type of floating hydraulic structure, of course, is only worth it if the groundwater on the site is not too high.
How to make a swimming pond with your own hands: choose a shape
Usually, pools for swimming in suburban areas are divided into two zones: decorative and equipped for swimming itself. The choice of the shape of such a pond and its size depends solely on the preferences of the summer resident. A round or square pond on the site will be the easiest to equip. But it is better to give such a hydraulic structure some somewhat intricate original form. In this case, the reservoir in the garden will look much more natural. A photo of an organically shaped swimming pond, for example, can be seen below.
Cleaning methods
When choosing the location of the reservoir and its configuration, the owner of a suburban area should pay attention to one more very important point. Ponds, including swimming ponds, are usually decorated with beautiful vegetation in summer cottages. Therefore, it is impossible to use any reagents to clean them. At the same time, the requirements for the composition of water in ponds of this type are increased. After all, in the future, people will bathe in the hydraulic structures of this variety.
The summer residents usually solve the problem of cleaning swimming ponds by arranging a bioplateau. This is the name of a special zone of shallow water (or a separate small reservoir located nearby), in which beneficial microorganisms and various plants start special regeneration processes.
It is believed that for effective water purification it is necessary to create a bioplateau, the area of which will be equal to at least 15% of the size of the pond itself.
What materialsrequired
To arrange a swimming pond in a suburban area, you will need to prepare:
- moisture resistant cement;
- sand and gravel;
- stones for decoration;
- water proofer.
Formwork for pouring various kinds of concrete structures, the owners of suburban areas are usually made from boards. Such a form for arranging a pond, of course, is only suitable if it has a rectangular or square configuration. For the manufacture of formwork when pouring ponds of complex structure, for example, tin can be used. From such material, you can bend the form for pouring absolutely any configuration.
From the tools for arranging the pond you will need:
- shovels and bayonet shovels, rakes;
- garden cart;
- hacksaw and sledgehammer;
- pegs and string.
In addition, the owner of a suburban area who decides to fill in such an artificial reservoir will need to prepare a tape measure and a level.
Diy swimming pond: digging a pit
As soon as the place for arranging the pond is determined, you can start excavation. Before digging a pit using pegs and a cord, marking is made on the selected area.
Manually experts advise digging a hole under a pond only when its area is notexceeds 10 m2, and the depth is 1 m.
Dig a pit under a pond in any case, you should start from the deepest design point. In the process of excavation of the earth, it is gradually necessary to move towards the shores. Since the bottom of the reservoir will subsequently be concreted, the hole should be dug at a depth of about 30 cm more than planned.
Pouring concrete mix
Decorative ponds in suburban areas are usually waterproofed with PVC film. But for the construction of a swimming pond, this method of laying the bottom and walls, of course, will not work. Indeed, in the process of bathing, the film will soon be torn.
The bottom and walls of such a pond are finished with concrete. The film can only be laid in the decorative zone - where spectacular marsh plants will be planted. In the bathing area after digging the pit:
- pour sand on the bottom;
- poured footing 3 cm;
- waterproof it with a film;
- mount the bottom reinforcement with the frame output to the walls;
- put the formwork and pour the bottom of the pond;
- mount the formwork for the walls in such a way that the reinforcement subsequently turns out to be in the thickness of the concrete;
- pouring the walls of the pond with cement mortar.
In the decorative zone of such a pond, the walls and bottom can be laid with geotextiles with an overlap on the edges. Such material should be covered with PVC film on top
How to equip a swimming pond
After the walls of the concreted pit gain sufficient strength, when arranging a swimming pond with their own hands, they need to be decorated with rounded stones, planting them on the mortar. At the same time, of course, it is better to lay the entrance zone to the reservoir and its bottom with pre-washed river sand. Instead of the natural material of this variety, artificial material can also be used to lay the bottom. When using such sand, the water in the pond in the future will always be guaranteed to be clean, without turbidity.
Of course, stones should also be placed in the decorative area of the swimming pond. Here you can place both small flat stones and large boulders. Of the marsh plants, reeds, horsetail, and calamus are well suited for decorating this zone of such a pond.
How to make a bioplato
This cleansing part of the pond is usually arranged at the place where water flows into it. It is a bioplateau, usually a small swamp with a depth of no more than 50 cm. For its arrangement:
- digging a pit;
- the bottom of the pit is covered with geotextiles and film;
- gravel is poured onto the film with a layer of 20 cm.
Further from the swamp, a pipe is being laid into the main pond. If desired, the spout can be arranged in the form of a stream. At the final stage, the swamp is planted with ornamental plants. A photo of a swimming pond in a country house with a bioplato is presented below on the page. Such swamps, as you can see, can actually look quite attractive.
How to equip a treatment area
The water supply to the bioplato is organized from the main pond using a pump. Equipment of this type should be chosen not too powerful. Water should circulate from the bioplato to the pond and back rather slowly. Otherwise, natural cleaning processes will not be launched in the swamp.
Experienced gardeners recommend the following types of ornamental plants to be planted in the swimming pond bioplato:
- broad-leaved cattail;
- marsh calla;
- black sedge;
- air.
The calla will be a good decoration for the swamp. Cattail and calamus, among other things, are distinguished by bactericidal properties. Black sedge is a peat-forming plant and can also improve water quality.
Plant representatives of the flora in the bioplateau should be directly in the pebbles. Plants are usually located at a distance of 30-50 cm from each other. Of course, for greater effect, beautiful stones can also be laid out over the swamp area, and, for example, water lilies and lilies can be planted directly into the water.
