1.

Scope
This leaflet deals with the construction of a pond shell in
concrete. Aspects of pond design and maintenance such as
watercirculationandfiltrationarenotincludedandthereader
isadvisedtogetspecialistinformationontheseatthedesign
stage.

2.Introduction
Themethoddescribedinthisleafletissuitableforpondswith
adiameterorlengthofuptoabout5metres.

The floor and sides of the pond are formed by a fairly thin
continuous concrete shell which is lightly reinforced. No
additionalwaterproofingmembraneisusedandtheconcrete
shell serves as the water container. The surrounding soil is
reliedontosupporttheshellwhenthepondisfullofwater.
Forthesystemtoworksuccessfullyitisimportantthat:

Thepondisconstructedinundisturbedsubsoilandnotin
filledsoil.
The concrete in the shell is thoroughly compacted to
ensurethatitisfreeofvoids.

Manypondsofthistypehaveinrecentyearsbeenconstructed
successfullybothbyprofessionallandscapersanddoityour
selfenthusiasts.

3.Makingprovisionforrainwaterrunoff
Rainwaterwhichfallsonthegardenorpavingsurroundingthe
pond must not be allowed to run into the pond. The area
immediatelyaroundthepondmustthereforebeslopedaway
fromthepondasshowninFigure1.

4.Edgedetail
Itisadvisabletocreateanearlyhorizontal(butslopingdown
awayfromthepond)rimaroundtheedgeofthepond.This
willservetostrengthentheshell.Therimcanbeleftexposed
but will probably look better if it is covered with bricks or
stoneslaidinmortar.SeeFigure1.

Building
afishpond

Figure1:Detailsofedgeofpond

5.Excavating
Excavateinundisturbedsubsoiltotherequiredsizeandshape
allowingforatotalshellthicknessof40to50mm.Thewater
depthshouldbeatleast450mmbut700mmispreferredfor
fish.Thetransitionbetweensideandbottomshouldbecurved
asshowninFigure1sharpcornersaredifficulttobuildand
areweakerthancurves.

6.Liningtheexcavation
Thisisdonetoensurethatthemeshstayscleanandconcrete
usedforthepondisnotcontaminatedbysoil.

Line the excavation with a coat of cement plaster about

15mmthickusing1partofcementto6partsofsand,both
materialsmeasuredinaloosestate.Useenoughwaterinthe
mixtoproduceaworkable,plasticconsistence

7.Spacerblocks

8.Mesh

Youwillneedatleast16blocksforeverysquaremetreofpond
shellincludingtherim.Makespacerblocksofmortarandplace
the head of a75 mm nail in the centre ofeachblock. Block
sizesshouldbe15mmthickby30mmby30mm.Blockdetails
areshowninFigure2.

Figure2:Detailsofspacerblock

Mortarforspacerblocksshouldconsistofamixtureof1part
of cement, 1 part of coarse sand and just enough water to
produceaplasticconsistence.Aftercastingtheblockscover
themwithplasticsheetingfor24hourstopreventdryingout.
Then cure them by keepingthem under water for at least a
week.Fixspacerblocksabout250mmapartinbothdirections
andbypushingthenailthroughtheplasterliningintothesoil
asshowninFigure3.

Figure3:Plasterliningandspacerblock

Placetwolayersofgalvanizedchickenmesh(25mmopenings)
againstthespacerblockssothatthemeshis15mmclearof
theplasterlining.Thetwistedwiresofthetwolayersshould,
asfaraspossible,beatrightanglestoeachotherasshownin
Figure4.Theedgesofthemeshshouldbeoverlappedbyat
least50mmandlapsstaggeredasfaraspossible.Endsofwires
mustbetwistedunderthemeshandnotbeallowedtostick
out.

Figure4:Orientationofmeshlayers

Fixthemeshinpositionwithhookspushedthroughtheplaster
asshowninFigure5.Thehookscanbemadeof4mmthick
wire.

Figure5:Fixingthemesh

Themeshmustbecontinuedintotherimattheedgeofthe
pond.

9.Mixingtheconcrete
AllcementsoldinSouthAfricamustmeettherequirementsof
SANS50197forCommoncementorSANS50413forMasonry
cementandtheNationalRegulatorforCompulsoryStandards
(NRCS)requirementsasdetailedinNRCSVC9085.Bagsshould
beclearlymarkedwiththestrengthgrade,notationindicating
compositionandaLetterofAuthority(LOA)numberissuedby
theNRCS.AnLOAisissuedforeachcementtypefromeach
source. To verify valid LOA numbers contact the NRCS on
0124285199orwww.nrcs.org.za.

NotethatMasonrycementscomplyingwithSANS50413are
notpermittedtobeusedinconcrete.

Concretefortheshellismixedintheproportions:

TypeCEMIorCEMII:
1bag(50kg)
Coarseconcretesand:
65(1xWheelbarrow)
Finepit(plaster)sand:
20
6mmstone:
65(1xWheelbarrow)

Plus enough water to give a plastic consistence similar to

plaster.

10.Notes:
Batchingofconcretematerialsmustbedoneaccurately.
Donotmixmorethanaonebagbatchatatime.
Mixingmaybedoneinaconcretemixerorbyhandona
concreteslaborsteelplate.
Leveloffthewheelbarrowsofsandandstonebyscraping
aplankacrosstherimofthewheelbarrow.

11.Placingandcuringtheconcrete
It is important to place the entire shell in one continuous
operationtoavoidcreatingjointswhichmaybecomelinesof
weakness.Makesurethereforethatsufficientmaterialsand
labourareavailable.

Beforestartingtoplacetheconcreteremoveanyforeign
objectsordebrissuchasleaves,twigs,soillumps,etc.from
theexcavation.

Concreteplacingshouldbedoneintheshadeifatallpossible.

Usingaplastererstrowelwiththecornersroundedoff,press
the concrete through the mesh, filling up to the mesh and
removingthewirehooksasplacingprogresses.

Apply immediately afterwards another 15 mm of concrete

overthemeshsothatthetotalconcretethicknessis30mm.
Itisveryimportanttopresstheconcretefirmlyintoposition
tocompactitthoroughly.

Wood float the concrete to give a fairly rough texture. If a

smoothtextureisrequired,useasteeltrowelbutonlyafter
theconcretehasstartedtostiffen.Donottrowelifalayerof
wateriscoveringthesurfaceoftheconcrete.Ifplacingisnot
doneintheshade,keepthesurfaceoftheconcretemoistby
sprayinglightlybutfrequentlywithwaterusingagardeners
mistsprayer.Useonlyenoughwatertomaintainasheenon
thesurface.

Coverassoonaspossiblewithplasticsheetingtoensurethat
theconcretecuresinamoiststate.Theplasticsheetingshould
preferablybelightcolouredwhiteorclearbecausedark
colourscancauseheattobuildupintheconcrete.Thepond
canbefilledslowlytwodaysafterplacingtheconcretebutthe
covershouldremaininpositionuntilfillingiscomplete.Parts
oftheconcreteshellabovethewaterlevelshouldbekeptwet
andcoveredfortwoweeks.

Iffillinghastobedelayed,keepthecoverovertheshellforat
least two weeks during which time the concrete should be
keptvisiblywet.

Changethewaterafterithasbeeninthepondforafortnight
before stocking with fish and plants. (Several water changes
arebetter.)

12.Quantitiesofmaterials
Aonebagbatchmixedtotheproportionsgivenaboveshould
besufficienttodoabout3m2ofshell.

13.Repairs
Drainthepondbeforeattemptingrepairs.Cracksintheshell
canberepairedasfollows:

(a) Cutoutabandofconcrete15mmdeepby150mmwide
along the crack so that the crack is in the centre of the
band.Donotcutthroughthemesh.

(b)Remove all loose material including dust from the area

whichhasbeencutoutifpossibleuseanindustrialvacuum
cleanertodothis.

(c) Fix a 140 mm wide strip of galvanised mesh (25 mm or

preferably 13 mm openings) to the existing mesh where
theconcretehasbeencutout.

(d)Primethebackandsidesofthegroovewithamixtureof
cementandwatermadetotheconsistenceofthincream.
Theprimingcoatmustbeappliedinaverythinlayer.Do
notprewettheconcretebeforepriming.

(e)Immediatelyafterwards,beforetheprimingcoatcandry
out,packafairlydrymixtureof1partcementand2parts
sandintothegroove.Thesandshouldbefairlycoarseand
whichhasbeenpassedthrougha2,36mmsieve.Compact
the patch using an orbital sander, fitted with a smooth
steelplateonthesurface,fillinganylowareasandscraping
offhighareas.

(f) Keepthepatchdampuntilthepondisfilled.

14.Additionalwaterproofing
For additional waterproofing, if needed, a two part polymer
modified cementitious waterproofing slurry or bituminous
emulsionmaybeappliedtothesurfaceoftheconcrete.

TheConcreteInstitute

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representatives and agents are not liable for any death, harm or
injury caused to any person or any loss, destruction or damage
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Publishedby:TheConcreteInstitute,Midrand,2016
TheConcreteInstitute