Mike build a 4' wide stone spillway with two layers of road construction fabric and large rocks a foot below the pond lip at that low point. Berm up the road on each side of the spillway and build a 8' wide bridge out of three 6"x6" beams with 2"x 2" deckboards. Pin the beams at least 4' into the berm on each side.
'So glad that the pond is your next project. It is a little piece of Heaven! ..I would try evacuating your stand pipe, first, and meshing the top. If that doesn't work, your final plans should work like a charm. 'Good idea about the sediment trap. I can bring my 5 wt. flyrod, and count your bluegills, and bass early one morning! ..I'm thinking that little Ty is going to need a mini-pier with safety rails to learn how to fish off of.
Mike, we built a pond at our last ranch and controlled the overflow problems with a 12” pipe by the top for normal rain overflow, and a 6 ft wide cement spillway about 6” below the dam top at one side, we then place large rock rip rap below the pipe and spillway. Even with huge rain, we never had a problem again.
Good video Mike, that little tractor does a lot more than a person would think. Good luck with your pond project along with the new building project too. Thanks for sharing with us, we know you’ll do the best job possible on whatever you work on. Fred,
Just a suggestion, if you're going to dig in one spillway 15" pipe, put another one in the trench, maybe 10" higher alongside it so if the flood waters overtake the capacity of the first pipe or if it gets clogged by a branch, the second higher pipe can still prevent the dam from overflowing...the cost of a second pipe is minimal considering the time you will be putting into the project.
Watching your videos are addictive! They are educational and entertaining. My wife would not let me buy all the equipment you own. We use a Mahindra EMax 22 with a bucket to handle our needs to manage our 40 acres in Missouri. It's a great tractor, but seeing your Kubotas. I am looking to upgrade to a Massey Ferguson 30 hp with a backhoe accessory.
Dig out the up stream side of where your going to set up to dig out the water edge and then you can backup your road to clean out the las of the up stream end of the pond without always being in the water and moving mud. If you back the dump trailer down your road you can put your spoil right in and take it to the down stream face of the dam.
Mike, i have put in serval ponds, and I don't put any drain pipe I can not see through. also use a pipe that is smooth inside so things don't hang up on pipe. I usually put in two drains one where I want the water level to be, and one for over flow with a lot of water.
What you need for your side by side is a construction rack like you see on trucks that goes over bed and cab. Then you can carry ladders lumber pipe etc on top with different hangers and side racks.
Standpipes have worked well on our four ponds, BUT, we built cages around the openings. Also with sleeves can vary water depth depending on conditions.
Mike, what you need to do on the top side of the pond when you dig it out is make a retention basin. When you go to dig it out, lay a couple pieces of 4" schedule 40 pvc down and then put the dirt you dig out over it and create a dam. this way when it rains hard it will fill up behind it and only let the two 4" pipes worth of water out at a time. We did it on our pond and it helps to keep the gully washers from washing mud into the pond and silting it in. An overflow pipe at the dam would be good too.
Hey Mike ,how about a rip-rap spillway ? That little Kabota has some pretty good power, pulling with the box blade and digging with the loader at the same time! Ya little squirt has some Ba..s ! Great video as usual !
Hey, I bought one of the yellow Simple Straps after seeing the first video. Work well. I've used it bringing home lumber, tying the boards either together or together and to the truck. I like it, used it yesterday again.
That's what I like about Mike's work.Always neat and tidy.I was going to ask if there were any fish in the pond.Then out comes the rod.I like those pond videos.
Hello Morgan's , Mike I would of filled the holes with rock & bigger rocks less likely to wash out as bad next time. Then covered with dirt. If you have Rock avalible. We used a concrete H beam for the over flow for our pond, spill way. Lots of ways to do it. Stay safe.
Nice fill and grade of that road in front of the pond. That little tractor does a great job for its size. Rick Harper has a good suggestion - give Chris of Letsdig18 a shout-out and see if he can give a helpful hint to ya. A pro can help better than some backyard engineers. Anyway, nice job on the road. Have a safe and productive day.
When you read or machine maybe you can move so big boulders and use that as a spillway instead of having a poor concrete if you find a couple of really nice site folders might be album put the men instead just a thought anyway glad to see the old pond again. Say hello to hunter in the rest of the family from northeast PA have A-day.
If you are going into the pond with an excavator then I would keep 3 or 4 lengths of tree close by incase you need to use them as a bog mat if the ground turns soft ! Good luck with that 👍
Your pipe supplier should have an inlet structure made for the 15" CPE pipe you use. You can fabricate a trash rack out of rebar to catch debris before it goes into the pipe. Maybe add a second, overflow inlet, at a higher elevation than the first, in case the first one does get clogged. Leave the spillway as a last resort, fail safe.
Code Zero I don’t think Mike’s going to get a Volvo 250 or even a 160.. but either of those will do the trick otherwise he’s going to be all weekend pulling stumps..
I would recommend installing a silt fence along the bottom edge of that driveway in case you get a heavy rain before you get an excavator in there. Just a suggestion Keep up with the great videos definitely like to watch them when I can.
Im no pond expert so i cant help ya there but i can say that little kabota and you did a fine job fixing the trail. Looks good. Stay well, stay safe and yall HAVE A DAY 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
The man and his machine. My kind of project and so fun to watch you work. I think you have an awesome plan. I was thinking about the same as you as I was watching. I think I'd also add a big catch basin with a grate over it to catch the excess and run the pipe under your trail so you can be one and done. I think it would eliminate all the erosion on your trail. Say hi to The Huntman!
Mike why not raise the level of the pond and make a watering hole for the deer in the shade with a second overflow pipe that feeds the watering hole and on the side you just fixed the trail put a gate valve for controlling the amount of over flow in light and heavy rains on 2 runs of 18 inch pipe
Great Video. When you rent the excavator to remove the sediment area, just build the access so that the BX can get down there. As you transfer material behind you stock pile it so that your wife can be scooping and transporting it to where you need it with the BX. I know the smaller BX front end bucket wont keep up with an excavator but I think it would still be faster than moving the dirt multiple times. Ive had my BX23S a couple of years now and its a great little machine.
To me the question is how to divert the next flash flood? So you split off the run off. Can you build a dry water fall? Any rocks. Also Melissa Weed em and Reap you tube has a living pond they swim in. That’s an idea!
Nice work Mike, maybe think about leaving some trees in the pond for fish habitat, they need somewhere to hide from Avian and other predators you may have there.
Slow and steady wins the race with the little BX23S. It can do a lot a work if you work within the limits of the machine. Time to go tree fishing with the skidding winch on MX5400.
I used to use it quite a bit before I had a front end loader but haven’t used it since I got the loader. I built a green at a golf course one time with nothing but a box blade.
I have a pond on my property. I have a rock spillway for overflow and have a 12” pipe for flood overflow. The rock spillway serves as maintaining the normal pond level. Normal excess water sheets over the rock down the spillway, where I also drive across to get to field road. The pipe helps the spillway handle more water during flood conditions. My pipe level is set about 6” above rock spillway.
Hi Mike, I've been following you for over a year now and I think your material is fabulous. I never have enough time to keep up with it and I don't know how you can produce so much content all the time. Great work! Watching your latest here on the pond I think I may have something to contribute to your repair plans. We have a similar property in nearby southern Ontario. We have just over 61 acres and have a stream plus a few off-line ponds we have developed, with more planned. Using a decent sized drain pipe is a good idea for controlling the general, day-to-day level of your pond. Having a 90 degree bend on the inlet as another writer mentioned is a good idea so that you can easily rotate it to determine exactly what level your pond will be at. The pipe should be big enough to handle spring rain, melt etc. and 90% of the weather events. However, a drain pipe will not help you in a major storm event. In the past couple of years we have had at least 3 one-in-a-hundred-year weather events, and you probably had them too. It did wreak some havoc with our ponds as I am sure it did for you. If the flooding gets over the top of the dam it will remove the dam in no time flat. You can never let this happen. You must have a spillway ready for when the regular drain plumbing is overwhelmed. There are lots of places to get recommendations for spillway construction and location that you can look up, of course. The key points, as I understand them are as follows: 1.The spillway should flow over undisturbed earth - not the new earth that makes your dam berm. This usually means at the end of the dam where it meets existing firm soil. 2. The spillway has to be the lowest point on the dam. typically your dam free board will be 1 foot or more higher than the spillway. Some experts say a yard or more higher. The top of the spillway will also be some height above your planned general water level as set by the drain pipe. I know we want the pond to look full, but you know what I mean. 3. The spillway will be hardened with stone or rip-rap to prevent erosion. This hardened layer must carry from below the water line in the pond side, and then over and down the down hill slope of the dam all the way to undisturbed earth. 4. The spillway will be wide enough to handle those one-in-a-hundred-year weather events. I would bet that that is very close to the size of the plastic spillway that you have improvised. Just scale that up a bit and your golden. Sorry if this is a bit of a long comment. I just don't want you to lose your pond after all that work. Once built, the spillway is entirely maintenance free. It will even work if you drain pipe plugs again, and never gets cleaned out, though spillways are supposed to be for emergencies only. I have a couple of ditch plug ponds where I did not add stone, but made sure my berm was higher than the undisturbed spillway area at the end, and the whole thing is well planted with vegetation to hold the soil together. In your case it does not look like that will work.
As already mentioned, Chris at letsdig18 is a pond wizard. I would guess he has over a dozen pond videos. He will also give you some insight on how to efficiently move your dredged out material Have a day!👍
Morning Morgan's. Missed you all yesterday. We got some much needed rain finally last night! Probably about an inch. Nice work there Mike. That was a huge washout. Tell the family hello and be safe. Have a day and we'll see you down the road.
Nice road building work... You obviously have built road before. I spend 36 years with one of the Highways Departments here in Canada. Although I was involved with planning and location of highways, I'm familiar with the construction, maintenance, and repair of roadways. You are also - good work. Michael from Canada
Good idea on digging a sediment trap. Beautiful setting for a pond! A simple limestone, rip rap spillway seems to be the solution that’s big enough to handle your maximum storm runoff. Keep up the great work. Jason from Indiana.
I was going say put in a concert spilway but the pipe sounds great to butt put a rebar in front of the pipe to catch the big stuff to help keep it clean. Bob Have A Day !!!
Your spillway pipe need to be deep enough so you can turn a 90 up to the desired water level and a screen install on top!! It will handle a lot more water that way to prevent the water from breaching the dam!! Keep up the great work!!⤴️
At the end of your drain culvert put gabion basket/baskets to reduce and diffuse possible water overflow runoff. It will keep the possible erosion down. Best wishes
Just a thought for a spillway like everyone else said contact Chris, and ask a few questions about it. Also you should get some larger rock and keep your plastic liner in place and make a rock spillway. Just a thought.
Mike, thanks for your videos! As always, very well put together and very informative. I am a new property owner w/little property experience and I have an acre pond and your videos are very helpful!!! Keep up the good work! ~w.g.
Track in, seed, and straw the earthworks you just did to help it re-grass and avoid erosion. Spillway needs to be properly formed well out past the dam, landscape fabric and riprap (meshed down). The pipe idea will work well, make sure it has a cage on the dam-side opening. Leave the trees in the water if you want good fish/wildlife habitat.
I mentioned it before but I do it again... the plastic on the pond works great but my idea was to place conveyor belt there and run it to the other side of the road then you won't get no more washouts and the belt will last for decades.
As you're digging out the sediment put the spoils in the bucket of the big tractor and have Missy move it to the dump site. Then it will be out of the way. Been waiting for this repair.
Every time I see you work a front loader and box blade it just reminds me I need to invest in a box blade. Used a scraper blade for years and it is good for our lane for the occasional heavy snow we might get once a year in western Pa, but you have shown over and over..for grading and leveling, box blade is the implement for the job. will be fun to watch your excavator work on the pond. good plan.
I also have used a 7' scrapper blade to maintain my driveway for 17+ years...never new the awesomeness of a box blade or land plane until MM! That's next on my list of purchases.
Hi Mike, I don’t know if you know about the weak spot on the BX. The hydraulic cooling fan is exposed with the mower deck off. It doesn’t take much for a little stick to get in there and destroy the fan. There is a cure, it is Under Armor . If you would like any information about it I would be happy to get it to you.
My w cents on the pond : plastic pipe will work if buried under normal conditions. If you get frost it will get moved as frost cones out unless its deep enough below frost line but will also cause pond to b lower. If you dont get much frost then shallower bury will work but if when u get hard rain amd snow melt together and kr the pipe gets partially plugged water will rise and go over the dam. In my opinion ( from experience ) use the spillway you already have. Use rubber roofing .50/.65 lapped up on sides and at least 5' down into pond then down over back of pond dam. Line with RIP rap. Dig ditch to continue spillway amd line with RIP rap. Few 6x6 and wood from sawmill and make a sturdy bridge over it. Rubber roofing will b close to same price as stick of culvert. This will b a much better permanent drain for pond in my opinion in and experience with my own pond. Little more work but definitely better
Always give you the thumbs up . Tell Melissa when we get back from our trip to Michigan I have an Item I bought just for you guys and will send it then .I think you'll get a kick out of it,its cute .stay safe Morgans
Love the grading work. We’re going to have to hire something in to get access down the last 100ft to the meadow. Wish Simple Strap had a uk distributer. The shipping doubles the price.
That extra dirt at the head of the pond should go great to fill in the hole. Don't forget to compact it. Then add the to thicken the dam so it has some strength !!! As everybody says. Watch a few Letsdig18 and you'll get the idea how to do it right...
This is a very nice video. The pond reminds me of the one my grandfather dug on his farm in West Virginia. It was spring fed and supported swarms o0f bluegills. He used them for Channel Cat bait on the North branch of the Potomac. Mining had killed the fishing locally. He used to stock it with channel ctats, by local fished them out without permission. He had no overflow problem. Crawfish , were trouble. They dug holes through its banks, just enough for steady leaks. It was no swimming pool, but s kids we didn't mind it. Being Melissa free, I can only give it a B+. That sunshine would look much better bouncing off her smile. Or bring out all the beauty of her lovely mane. You know it really doesn't fly away as she complains when it is loose. Nature just tries to give her a proper halo to go with that angelic, vibrant spirit. Wild and natural or neatly braided, it is lovely. I understand she prefers it well tamed, but loose and free has its charms. Now I am off to see who did the Melissa Morgan interview on " Off the Leash". That one is overdue. God ?Bless and Protect you all.
I know others have said it, but check out Chris at Letsdig18. regardless, get yourself 2 anti seep collars to put on the pipe or pour concrete for the collar. I like the way Chris does them with the manhole culvert outlet and the metal rack on top, 12 inch or 18 inch double wall pipe coming out of that tied into a single wall to flex (instead of a fitting) down the slope and back into double wall where you might drive over it before it goes into the other creek. The bell ends on the pipe go uphill, if they leak the water will go the easier path downhill inside the pipe instead of running under it inside the ditch (good place for second anti seep collar is just below or around this joint). Just a guess. You may have to siphon the pond down some more to do all that. How much deeper is the pond now? Do you think the soil is stable enough for you to run the machine on without turning into soup or will you need some mats? I have seen a few people just take some logs and sit on them when mats were not available to them.
pipe idea sounds good for general water flow, but you'll probably still need that spillway for the floods. It's probably worth reinforcing it a bit and extending the plastic further down? I've seen some decent spillways created with logs and sleepers to provide the banking sides and top...you've got the raw materials there probably not too difficult to build something decent from stuff you drag out of the pond. Will be interested to see what you come up with.
You can benefit from the sediment coming into the pond by laying multiple logs across the upper end of the pond, similar principle construction crews using that black plastic wire enforced water/sediment wall. Log will let water thru but holds sediment back.
Also about the pond overflow. I would use at least a 24 inch pipe out of there. It will handle a lot more water for not a lot of money difference. It’s when you get one of those gulley washers that will overrun the damn that tears everything up. If I were going to the work and equipment was there I would go bigger pipe. Just my opinion. Good luck..
Good morning from MidMo. Nice morning here - actually put jeans on to sit on the screened porch to watch the video to birds in the background. If you have a 24” pipe already that close, I think your 15” overflow would be a pretty good solution. The spillway still needs some armor on it and its downhill side for bad rains, but a properly screened drop pipe would be good. Somebody mentioned prefab concrete slabs - not a terrible idea for the spillway crest. Maybe a really heavy geotextile for the spot where your plastic is and 4-6” rock below it? Something smaller on your road but bigger below that maybe. The material they use for pond liners in sandy areas should work and should last a long time. 100-200 sqft of that where your plastic is might not be too expensive. By the way, in looking at your early (first couple dozen) videos, you’ve really evolved. Your production level is very good, you’ve added a lot more cameras, and you’ve gotten much more comfortable talking to the camera. I like the conversational descriptions. Keep up the good work!
Sounds like a good plan. I would also try to improve the area water will overflow if your pipe spillway gets plugged. You need a fail safe emergency spillway.
Where you've got the plastic , I'd get some big Rock's BIG like 8-10" Rock's or larger the 15" pipe makes sense to me . I'd still build that spillway up with Rock
You should rent a little dump truck and bring it down in there and take a lot of that material that filled the pond in and haul it up for your new building
Seems like the over flow is a big problem. If you use a pipe cross the end of the dam. Weld u channels around 3 sides so you can put boards in to control water level. It is done with water spill ways and should work great with 2x6 or 2x8. Of course you could use 3x depending on the channels used.
Could you use the dump trailer, so you don't need to move the dirt twice? I think you would want it on the back of the MX5400 tractor. Your going to cut a road down to the pond correct, so I would think that would work. Do you think you would want to make the pond deeper?
Letsdig18 is a good place to start that guy does a ton of ponds knows what hes doing hes got a bunch of videos on youtube you could watch and get some ideas
I think the pipe will work! Great job of touching up the trail in such a short time!!👍👊
Mike build a 4' wide stone spillway with two layers of road construction fabric and large rocks a foot below the pond lip at that low point. Berm up the road on each side of the spillway and build a 8' wide bridge out of three 6"x6" beams with 2"x 2" deckboards. Pin the beams at least 4' into the berm on each side.
This fishing is the first relaxing thing I’ve seen Mike do!
Jason J,
I need to teach him how to catch them!
'So glad that the pond is your next project. It is a little piece of Heaven! ..I would try evacuating your stand pipe, first, and meshing the top. If that doesn't work, your final plans should work like a charm. 'Good idea about the sediment trap. I can bring my 5 wt. flyrod, and count your bluegills, and bass early one morning! ..I'm thinking that little Ty is going to need a mini-pier with safety rails to learn how to fish off of.
Mike, we built a pond at our last ranch and controlled the overflow problems with a 12” pipe by the top for normal rain overflow, and a 6 ft wide cement spillway about 6” below the dam top at one side, we then place large rock rip rap below the pipe and spillway. Even with huge rain, we never had a problem again.
Good video Mike, that little tractor does a lot more than a person would think. Good luck with your pond project along with the new building project too. Thanks for sharing with us, we know you’ll do the best job possible on whatever you work on. Fred,
How you been Fred?
Outdoors With The Morgans Got our hands full right now but we will get through Lord Willing, heat and health.
Here in southwest oklahoma, the temp is 104. The a/c in my house quit working yesterday and all repair men are busy. Enjoy the 90 degree weather.
Just a suggestion, if you're going to dig in one spillway 15" pipe, put another one in the trench, maybe 10" higher alongside it so if the flood waters overtake the capacity of the first pipe or if it gets clogged by a branch, the second higher pipe can still prevent the dam from overflowing...the cost of a second pipe is minimal considering the time you will be putting into the project.
Sorry about the issues with the pond....but man... I love these types of videos.
Watching your videos are addictive! They are educational and entertaining. My wife would not let me buy all the equipment you own. We use a Mahindra EMax 22 with a bucket to handle our needs to manage our 40 acres in Missouri. It's a great tractor, but seeing your Kubotas. I am looking to upgrade to a Massey Ferguson 30 hp with a backhoe accessory.
Dig out the up stream side of where your going to set up to dig out the water edge and then you can backup your road to clean out the las of the up stream end of the pond without always being in the water and moving mud. If you back the dump trailer down your road you can put your spoil right in and take it to the down stream face of the dam.
Mike, i have put in serval ponds, and I don't put any drain pipe I can not see through. also use a pipe that is smooth inside so things don't hang up on pipe. I usually put in two drains one where I want the water level to be, and one for over flow with a lot of water.
What you need for your side by side is a construction rack like you see on trucks that goes over bed and cab. Then you can carry ladders lumber pipe etc on top with different hangers and side racks.
Nice work Mike! You make it look easy!! Have a day!
Standpipes have worked well on our four ponds, BUT, we built cages around the openings. Also with sleeves can vary water depth depending on conditions.
watch out for ticks!!...good job Mike! thanks 4 video. be kind.
Mike, what you need to do on the top side of the pond when you dig it out is make a retention basin. When you go to dig it out, lay a couple pieces of 4" schedule 40 pvc down and then put the dirt you dig out over it and create a dam. this way when it rains hard it will fill up behind it and only let the two 4" pipes worth of water out at a time. We did it on our pond and it helps to keep the gully washers from washing mud into the pond and silting it in. An overflow pipe at the dam would be good too.
That was a great job with the BX...very impresive. They should use it as a vomersial.
Thanks for showing the simple strap. I bought one after you showed it the last time and it is working well. A lot better than bungee cords.
You make it all look easy Mike. Good job!
Hey Mike ,how about a rip-rap spillway ? That little Kabota has some pretty good power, pulling with the box blade and digging with the loader at the same time! Ya little squirt has some Ba..s ! Great video as usual !
Chris all the way from let’s dig. What a video that would make. That guy knows his stuff no question about it,Absolutely a no brainer.
Hey, I bought one of the yellow Simple Straps after seeing the first video. Work well. I've used it bringing home lumber, tying the boards either together or together and to the truck. I like it, used it yesterday again.
Nothing beats a concrete spillway.
Standpipe will always be an issue in one form or another.
That's what I like about Mike's work.Always neat and tidy.I was going to ask if there were any fish in the pond.Then out comes the rod.I like those pond videos.
Hello Morgan's , Mike I would of filled the holes with rock & bigger rocks less likely to wash out as bad next time. Then covered with dirt. If you have Rock avalible. We used a concrete H beam for the over flow for our pond, spill way. Lots of ways to do it. Stay safe.
It won't wash out after I get pond fixed
Nice fill and grade of that road in front of the pond. That little tractor does a great job for its size. Rick Harper has a good suggestion - give Chris of Letsdig18 a shout-out and see if he can give a helpful hint to ya. A pro can help better than some backyard engineers. Anyway, nice job on the road. Have a safe and productive day.
Fixing to rain here in louisville. I learned the hard way to put a dozen bags of concrete around your pipe to keep water from flowing around it...
Nice pond. A little slice of Heaven in western PA.
When you read or machine maybe you can move so big boulders and use that as a spillway instead of having a poor concrete if you find a couple of really nice site folders might be album put the men instead just a thought anyway glad to see the old pond again. Say hello to hunter in the rest of the family from northeast PA have A-day.
A box blade and a bucket, what a combo! And you really show how versatile the relatively small bx23 is!!
If you are going into the pond with an excavator then I would keep 3 or 4 lengths of tree close by incase you need to use them as a bog mat if the ground turns soft !
Good luck with that 👍
Thanks for taking us fishing. I haven't been fishing since I was a teenager.
Mike I love watching you, your experience makes it look easy to plane the road.
Sounds like a good plan. LOVE digging in the dirt. The little tractor did a fine job movin' it, too. Good luck.
Your pipe supplier should have an inlet structure made for the 15" CPE pipe you use. You can fabricate a trash rack out of rebar to catch debris before it goes into the pipe. Maybe add a second, overflow inlet, at a higher elevation than the first, in case the first one does get clogged. Leave the spillway as a last resort, fail safe.
Chris on the RUclips "letsdig18" is the pond specialist, give him a shout!!!
He also needs a proper built spillway when the stand pipe can't handle the rain.
I would have suggested the same person as a go to person to ask..
And he does a lot of stumps too.
Code Zero I don’t think Mike’s going to get a Volvo 250 or even a 160.. but either of those will do the trick otherwise he’s going to be all weekend pulling stumps..
I would recommend installing a silt fence along the bottom edge of that driveway in case you get a heavy rain before you get an excavator in there. Just a suggestion
Keep up with the great videos definitely like to watch them when I can.
Our pond was down over a foot from the lack of rain in June. That all changed yesterday, we got 4 1/2” of rain. Now it’s flowing out the overflow.
Those lay downs r a good thing in a pond
Im no pond expert so i cant help ya there but i can say that little kabota and you did a fine job fixing the trail. Looks good. Stay well, stay safe and yall HAVE A DAY 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
The man and his machine. My kind of project and so fun to watch you work. I think you have an awesome plan. I was thinking about the same as you as I was watching. I think I'd also add a big catch basin with a grate over it to catch the excess and run the pipe under your trail so you can be one and done. I think it would eliminate all the erosion on your trail. Say hi to The Huntman!
Mike why not raise the level of the pond and make a watering hole for the deer in the shade with a second overflow pipe that feeds the watering hole and on the side you just fixed the trail put a gate valve for controlling the amount of over flow in light and heavy rains on 2 runs of 18 inch pipe
Great Video. When you rent the excavator to remove the sediment area, just build the access so that the BX can get down there. As you transfer material behind you stock pile it so that your wife can be scooping and transporting it to where you need it with the BX. I know the smaller BX front end bucket wont keep up with an excavator but I think it would still be faster than moving the dirt multiple times. Ive had my BX23S a couple of years now and its a great little machine.
i second this opinion
To me the question is how to divert the next flash flood? So you split off the run off. Can you build a dry water fall? Any rocks. Also Melissa Weed em and Reap you tube has a living pond they swim in. That’s an idea!
Nice work Mike, maybe think about leaving some trees in the pond for fish habitat, they need somewhere to hide from Avian and other predators you may have there.
Slow and steady wins the race with the little BX23S. It can do a lot a work if you work within the limits of the machine. Time to go tree fishing with the skidding winch on MX5400.
Someone may have already suggested this, but you might consider using concrete cloth or concrete canvas for your spillway.
The box blade is one of the best tools to have with a smaller tractor, I remember bein quite amazed the first time I used one. Thanks for sharing
I used to use it quite a bit before I had a front end loader but haven’t used it since I got the loader. I built a green at a golf course one time with nothing but a box blade.
I have a pond on my property. I have a rock spillway for overflow and have a 12” pipe for flood overflow. The rock spillway serves as maintaining the normal pond level. Normal excess water sheets over the rock down the spillway, where I also drive across to get to field road. The pipe helps the spillway handle more water during flood conditions. My pipe level is set about 6” above rock spillway.
Hi Mike, you always say you're not an expert, but you're very determined & have plans & alternative. 🇺🇸
Hi Mike,
I've been following you for over a year now and I think your material is fabulous. I never have enough time to keep up with it and I don't know how you can produce so much content all the time. Great work!
Watching your latest here on the pond I think I may have something to contribute to your repair plans. We have a similar property in nearby southern Ontario. We have just over 61 acres and have a stream plus a few off-line ponds we have developed, with more planned. Using a decent sized drain pipe is a good idea for controlling the general, day-to-day level of your pond. Having a 90 degree bend on the inlet as another writer mentioned is a good idea so that you can easily rotate it to determine exactly what level your pond will be at. The pipe should be big enough to handle spring rain, melt etc. and 90% of the weather events.
However, a drain pipe will not help you in a major storm event. In the past couple of years we have had at least 3 one-in-a-hundred-year weather events, and you probably had them too. It did wreak some havoc with our ponds as I am sure it did for you. If the flooding gets over the top of the dam it will remove the dam in no time flat. You can never let this happen. You must have a spillway ready for when the regular drain plumbing is overwhelmed.
There are lots of places to get recommendations for spillway construction and location that you can look up, of course. The key points, as I understand them are as follows:
1.The spillway should flow over undisturbed earth - not the new earth that makes your dam berm. This usually means at the end of the dam where it meets existing firm soil.
2. The spillway has to be the lowest point on the dam. typically your dam free board will be 1 foot or more higher than the spillway. Some experts say a yard or more higher. The top of the spillway will also be some height above your planned general water level as set by the drain pipe. I know we want the pond to look full, but you know what I mean.
3. The spillway will be hardened with stone or rip-rap to prevent erosion. This hardened layer must carry from below the water line in the pond side, and then over and down the down hill slope of the dam all the way to undisturbed earth.
4. The spillway will be wide enough to handle those one-in-a-hundred-year weather events. I would bet that that is very close to the size of the plastic spillway that you have improvised. Just scale that up a bit and your golden.
Sorry if this is a bit of a long comment. I just don't want you to lose your pond after all that work. Once built, the spillway is entirely maintenance free. It will even work if you drain pipe plugs again, and never gets cleaned out, though spillways are supposed to be for emergencies only. I have a couple of ditch plug ponds where I did not add stone, but made sure my berm was higher than the undisturbed spillway area at the end, and the whole thing is well planted with vegetation to hold the soil together. In your case it does not look like that will work.
As already mentioned, Chris at letsdig18 is a pond wizard. I would guess he has over a dozen pond videos. He will also give you some insight on how to efficiently move your dredged out material
Have a day!👍
I actually love the strap idea. Might need to order a few, will use them exactly as you did for my Stihl pole saw.
Always a pleasure watching you work dirt! Good idea on the pipe . Have a blessed day
Morning Morgan's. Missed you all yesterday. We got some much needed rain finally last night! Probably about an inch. Nice work there Mike. That was a huge washout. Tell the family hello and be safe. Have a day and we'll see you down the road.
Nice road building work... You obviously have built road before. I spend 36 years with one of the Highways Departments here in Canada. Although I was involved with planning and location of highways, I'm familiar with the construction, maintenance, and repair of roadways. You are also - good work.
Michael from Canada
Good idea on digging a sediment trap. Beautiful setting for a pond! A simple limestone, rip rap spillway seems to be the solution that’s big enough to handle your maximum storm runoff. Keep up the great work. Jason from Indiana.
I was going say put in a concert spilway but the pipe sounds great to butt put a rebar in front of the pipe to catch the big stuff to help keep it clean. Bob Have A Day !!!
That little tractor was surprising with how well it cleaned up that erosion. Nice job Mike. God Bless.
Your spillway pipe need to be deep enough so you can turn a 90 up to the desired water level and a screen install on top!! It will handle a lot more water that way to prevent the water from breaching the dam!! Keep up the great work!!⤴️
At the end of your drain culvert put gabion basket/baskets to reduce and diffuse possible water overflow runoff. It will keep the possible erosion down. Best wishes
Just a thought for a spillway like everyone else said contact Chris, and ask a few questions about it. Also you should get some larger rock and keep your plastic liner in place and make a rock spillway. Just a thought.
This all seems like the best opportunity for a Morgan and LetsDig18 Collaboration!
Hi when you are digging out the dirt from the pond maybe rent a conveyor belt so you don’t have to handle the dirt twice.
Mike, thanks for your videos! As always, very well put together and very informative. I am a new property owner w/little property experience and I have an acre pond and your videos are very helpful!!! Keep up the good work!
~w.g.
Track in, seed, and straw the earthworks you just did to help it re-grass and avoid erosion.
Spillway needs to be properly formed well out past the dam, landscape fabric and riprap (meshed down).
The pipe idea will work well, make sure it has a cage on the dam-side opening.
Leave the trees in the water if you want good fish/wildlife habitat.
That area by the pond seems so peaceful
I mentioned it before but I do it again... the plastic on the pond works great but my idea was to place conveyor belt there and run it to the other side of the road then you won't get no more washouts and the belt will last for decades.
As you're digging out the sediment put the spoils in the bucket of the big tractor and have Missy move it to the dump site. Then it will be out of the way. Been waiting for this repair.
Every time I see you work a front loader and box blade it just reminds me I need to invest in a box blade. Used a scraper blade for years and it is good for our lane for the occasional heavy snow we might get once a year in western Pa, but you have shown over and over..for grading and leveling, box blade is the implement for the job. will be fun to watch your excavator work on the pond. good plan.
I also have used a 7' scrapper blade to maintain my driveway for 17+ years...never new the awesomeness of a box blade or land plane until MM! That's next on my list of purchases.
Hi Mike, I don’t know if you know about the weak spot on the BX. The hydraulic cooling fan is exposed with the mower deck off. It doesn’t take much for a little stick to get in there and destroy the fan. There is a cure, it is Under Armor . If you would like any information about it I would be happy to get it to you.
Having been a former pond owner the best thing about my is the day we filled it in. John Mangas
Lol
My w cents on the pond : plastic pipe will work if buried under normal conditions. If you get frost it will get moved as frost cones out unless its deep enough below frost line but will also cause pond to b lower. If you dont get much frost then shallower bury will work but if when u get hard rain amd snow melt together and kr the pipe gets partially plugged water will rise and go over the dam. In my opinion ( from experience ) use the spillway you already have. Use rubber roofing .50/.65 lapped up on sides and at least 5' down into pond then down over back of pond dam. Line with RIP rap. Dig ditch to continue spillway amd line with RIP rap. Few 6x6 and wood from sawmill and make a sturdy bridge over it. Rubber roofing will b close to same price as stick of culvert. This will b a much better permanent drain for pond in my opinion in and experience with my own pond. Little more work but definitely better
Always give you the thumbs up . Tell Melissa when we get back from our trip to Michigan I have an Item I bought just for you guys and will send it then .I think you'll get a kick out of it,its cute .stay safe Morgans
Love the grading work. We’re going to have to hire something in to get access down the last 100ft to the meadow. Wish Simple Strap had a uk distributer. The shipping doubles the price.
Whatever you decide mate, we will be here watching either way...😂😂😂🍻🍻🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺
That extra dirt at the head of the pond should go great to fill in the hole. Don't forget to compact it. Then add the to thicken the dam so it has some strength !!! As everybody says. Watch a few Letsdig18 and you'll get the idea how to do it right...
This is a very nice video. The pond reminds me of the one my grandfather dug on his farm in West Virginia. It was spring fed and supported swarms o0f bluegills. He used them for Channel Cat bait on the North branch of the Potomac. Mining had killed the fishing locally. He used to stock it with channel ctats, by local fished them out without permission. He had no overflow problem. Crawfish , were trouble. They dug holes through its banks, just enough for steady leaks. It was no swimming pool, but s kids we didn't mind it.
Being Melissa free, I can only give it a B+. That sunshine would look much better bouncing off her smile. Or bring out all the beauty of her lovely mane. You know it really doesn't fly away as she complains when it is loose. Nature just tries to give her a proper halo to go with that angelic, vibrant spirit. Wild and natural or neatly braided, it is lovely. I understand she prefers it well tamed, but loose and free has its charms. Now I am off to see who did the Melissa Morgan interview on " Off the Leash". That one is overdue. God ?Bless and Protect you all.
Good morning all, Phil from Kansas City here. Had 1.5 inches of rain yesterday, 80’s today back in the mid 90’s tomorrow. Have a Day.
Phil Rogers good morning from Lee's Summit
the plastic lasted very well; and that was quite a gorge made by the water.
I know others have said it, but check out Chris at Letsdig18. regardless, get yourself 2 anti seep collars to put on the pipe or pour concrete for the collar. I like the way Chris does them with the manhole culvert outlet and the metal rack on top, 12 inch or 18 inch double wall pipe coming out of that tied into a single wall to flex (instead of a fitting) down the slope and back into double wall where you might drive over it before it goes into the other creek. The bell ends on the pipe go uphill, if they leak the water will go the easier path downhill inside the pipe instead of running under it inside the ditch (good place for second anti seep collar is just below or around this joint).
Just a guess. You may have to siphon the pond down some more to do all that. How much deeper is the pond now?
Do you think the soil is stable enough for you to run the machine on without turning into soup or will you need some mats? I have seen a few people just take some logs and sit on them when mats were not available to them.
pipe idea sounds good for general water flow, but you'll probably still need that spillway for the floods. It's probably worth reinforcing it a bit and extending the plastic further down? I've seen some decent spillways created with logs and sleepers to provide the banking sides and top...you've got the raw materials there probably not too difficult to build something decent from stuff you drag out of the pond.
Will be interested to see what you come up with.
Sorry Mike concrete spillway adjustable gates rip rap clear the trees stock with fish sandy beach! Hey look we have the pool done!
Lol
You can benefit from the sediment coming into the pond by laying multiple logs across the upper end of the pond, similar principle construction crews using that black plastic wire enforced water/sediment wall. Log will let water thru but holds sediment back.
Also about the pond overflow. I would use at least a 24 inch pipe out of there. It will handle a lot more water for not a lot of money difference. It’s when you get one of those gulley washers that will overrun the damn that tears everything up. If I were going to the work and equipment was there I would go bigger pipe. Just my opinion. Good luck..
Good morning from MidMo. Nice morning here - actually put jeans on to sit on the screened porch to watch the video to birds in the background. If you have a 24” pipe already that close, I think your 15” overflow would be a pretty good solution. The spillway still needs some armor on it and its downhill side for bad rains, but a properly screened drop pipe would be good. Somebody mentioned prefab concrete slabs - not a terrible idea for the spillway crest. Maybe a really heavy geotextile for the spot where your plastic is and 4-6” rock below it? Something smaller on your road but bigger below that maybe. The material they use for pond liners in sandy areas should work and should last a long time. 100-200 sqft of that where your plastic is might not be too expensive. By the way, in looking at your early (first couple dozen) videos, you’ve really evolved. Your production level is very good, you’ve added a lot more cameras, and you’ve gotten much more comfortable talking to the camera. I like the conversational descriptions. Keep up the good work!
I never thought the plastic sheet on the dam would withstand overflow from a downpour. Good idea Mike!
I'm thinking save that top soil for the garden, flower beds? Pond is necessary for flood control. Love your videos, God bless you and yours.
Love your music choices! Keep up the great videos! (Honestly wish they were longer since I often listen while I am working my property!
Sounds like a good plan. I would also try to improve the area water will overflow if your pipe spillway gets plugged. You need a fail safe emergency spillway.
Where you've got the plastic , I'd get some big Rock's BIG like 8-10" Rock's or larger the 15" pipe makes sense to me . I'd still build that spillway up with Rock
You should rent a little dump truck and bring it down in there and take a lot of that material that filled the pond in and haul it up for your new building
Great Job Mike
Fine job with the lil tractor. I think you have the plan. Sounds good. Have a great day.
If you are doing something with a pond i would message Chris from let's dig 18. He is a expert on this
Seems like the over flow is a big problem. If you use a pipe cross the end of the dam. Weld u channels around 3 sides so you can put boards in to control water level. It is done with water spill ways and should work great with 2x6 or 2x8. Of course you could use 3x depending on the channels used.
Great to watch earth moving construction like this.
Could you use the dump trailer, so you don't need to move the dirt twice? I think you would want it on the back of the MX5400 tractor. Your going to cut a road down to the pond correct, so I would think that would work. Do you think you would want to make the pond deeper?
Letsdig18 is a good place to start that guy does a ton of ponds knows what hes doing hes got a bunch of videos on youtube you could watch and get some ideas
Liked seeing you enjoy fishing...