Scrub down the inside of the pond (x3) vacuuming out the water each
time.
This step will ensure that the drylok will adhere to the block and
floor.
Here we applied the drylok with a blue tint. The regular drylok will do just fine.
We had the blue tint added by the paint mixing person at home depot.
Make sure to pay extra attention to the corners and edges. We ended up using about 3 gallons of drylok and put on 3 coats. Heavy applications were applied on those corners and edges. Allow to dry between coats look for pinholes and exposed areas and concentrate some extra effort on them. The edges and corners were painted with a brush and the flats with a long nap roller.
We waited about 7 days to allow the drylok to fully cure and then some. But the pond is in direct sunlight and we do live in California, so dry times can vary. Once you've waited the adequate cure time, start filling your pond. Walk around the pond while it is filling and jump around. This is the fun err...testing for failures portion of the build.
Time to pose as a very sexy water feature. Can't stress enough the importance of this step, as without it the whole project hinges on certain doom!!!
Once the pond is filled to about 2 inches from the top. Add one lovely mermaid/assistant
Not forgetting the deranged gnome, and for the next week or two you will be testing (heeheehee) your new pond for leaks.
After about 2 weeks the pond will be turning green. like pea soup. At this time you should start adding your pump and filter to cycle the water for about 1 week before adding your fish. make sure to add some beneficial bacteria to your system while cycling. I used 5 gallons of water from my
previous pond. Test the water for the usual stress inducing culprits, and add your fish when safe. Since our pond is in direct sunlight we had to add an ultraviolet light to the filtration system to control the free floating algae and improve water clarity. If you have your pond shaded you won't have to deal with this and your pond will naturally clear up if your filter is sized properly. This pond is not maintenance free. It will require vacuuming the flat bottom depending on how much you decide to feed the fish. A beautiful green algae carpet will form on the sides and bottom of the pond. do not try to remove this as it is helping to filter the water. About the filtration system. I will upload how I built my system at a later time.
Joe
