Frequently Asked Questions

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Pond Sales & Installation

Also, we don’t want to be in your way any longer than we need to. We want you to enjoy your new pond right away just like you do! Do you really want a construction crew hanging around your home for weeks wondering what’s taking so long?

Most clients enjoy taking the day off to observe our crew at work and are amazed at the transformation as it happens before their eyes. You are most welcome to do that or we can simply have the pond built before you arrive home from your job that day. The choice is yours.

Pond Country is the only water feature company in the region with a beautiful outdoor gallery that showcases every pond package on display. You will find several custom features displayed such as a wading pond and full-sized natural swimming pond. You get to see exactly what you are getting. No one else offers that.

We recommend visiting the store or contacting us before your visit to schedule an appointment with our project coordinator. We will guide you through the outdoor gallery to allow you to see all of the different options available for your own koi pond and can answer all of your questions.

When visiting the store and selecting a pond package, we offer a FREE in-home design consultation which will be scheduled on the day of your visit.

Liner provides support and flexibility to a pond. Concrete is a very old-fashioned and an incorrect way to build ponds. They don’t give a natural look, but more importantly, they can crack over time and once cracked – there is no good, effective way to fix it. Concrete can leech lime into the water making unsafe and toxic conditions for fish.

Pond Country sells ponds for every budget. The term “affordability” could be considered a subjective term due to household income and personal perceived value. However, we do understand that deciding on a new pond installation or renovation is not a quick judgment and is considered a valued investment to your home. We can help guide you through this evaluating process with our knowledgable sales and support staff.

For those who would like to finance their investment into monthly payments, we offer special financing through Synchrony with options as low as 0%. Apply online today for pre-approval.

Essentially the best way to describe the cost breakdown of a pond construction is one-third parts/equipment, one-third stone/boulders, and one-third labor.

In addition to authentic mountain boulders, Pond Country believes in using only the best equipment on the market to build your pond. What’s going on inside your pond that you can’t see is just as important as what you can see. We don’t skimp and cut corners with questionable parts. We only use professional-grade, industry-leading Aquascape® Pro equipment that feature top-tier warranties. We say our ponds are low-maintenance and we mean it. You can trust us to do the job right.

No. You will simply make a deposit to get scheduled. Once details and the estimate proposal has been approved, you will be required to make a 50% deposit to get scheduled on the construction calendar. The remaining 50% of the project total is due after construction finishes.

For financing customers, if you are financing the entire cost of the project, no deposit is required and you will begin making payments after construction finishes (we notify Synchrony Bank that we have completed the project and they will start the monthly billing process).

We will need have to have access to the backyard, which can sometimes cause slight ruts and tracks in the yard. Pond Country uses the best construction equipment possible. Our machines are designed to do as minimal ground disturbance as possible.

Truly too many to list. Here are some key benefits:

No. You’ll hear of “cookie-cutter” ponds, but that’s not what Pond Country builds. Our innovative pond packages aren’t based around the look of the pond, only the sizing. We consider it simply an easier way for you to select your pond size and enhancements in an easy-to-understand format & pricing.

We don’t play the “fuzzy math” game that other competitors do. Everyone pays the same price for the same sized pond + enhancements. We have received many kudos from our customers for our pricing and estimating transparency versus their experience with other contractors and “mystery price methods”.

We include a nice, clean mulched perimeter around every pond we build. We can provide additional landscaping services such as landscape design, plant recommendations and installation around the area of your pond for an optional additional fee.

After Install | New Pond Ownership

Each water feature we build is different, but we offer a free service called an After Build Follow-up where the Service Manager comes out and educates you on your entire feature. This will be scheduled with you after your project is completed.

You will also be presented with a pond manual made specifically for your Pond Country-built pond. It can help answer any questions you may have in the beginning after your pond is built. Of course, our staff is always a phone call or email away too!

The first year the pond is trying to establish its ecosystem, so you can expect some string algae blooms, green water algae blooms, etc until the pond plants get established and natural beneficial bacteria creates a home.

Also, you might see a quick algae bloom in the transitional late-spring when weather might go from 70s to 90s in a matter of days. This hot weather spike will invite the bloom, but plants & typical treatment regimen will eventually get it clear again when the temperatures stabilize for summer.

We recommend only rinsing the skimmer filter twice a month in the on season (spring & summer) and once a month in the off season (fall & winter).

The amount of fish depends on the size of the pond and the amount of gallons.  Each pond is different. Typically we recommend goldfish or 1 – 2 koi for our Tranquility pond sized ponds. Harmony and Serenity series ponds can accommodate more and larger koi.

We use the Aquascape® formula of: Length(ft) x Width(ft) x Average Depth(ft) x 7.48= Gallon Amount

For an example, a standard Tranquility pond is 10′ (Length) x 7′ (Width)x 1.5′ (Depth) x 7.48 = for an approx. 500 – 750 gallon range.

No! – nothing to worry about! There is so much moving water, mosquitos are not able to breed or lay eggs in our ponds or water features!

Service & Repair

Leaks can be difficult to find when Pond Country did not build the pond because there is no consistency.  When we build our features, we know the three places that could leak.  If the feature was built by someone else, it was probably not built correctly and makes it a bit harder to find. We will do our best and discuss options with you.

Biological filtration is critical to processing the many types of nutrients found in a pond ecosystem, including fish waste, uneaten fish food, leaves, and runoff from lawns to name a few.

Marginal aquatic plants help keep the waste down in the pond for clean water by starving evasive plants like algae. Water lilies provide shade and protection for fish plus they just look beautiful in a pond! Our retail stores have the largest variety & selection of aquatic plants in the Carolinas, visit a store to browse our extensive offerings. Aquatic plants are sold starting in April through November each year.

Retail Store

We would need the height and length (from pump to exit) and what flow you would want to be able to properly figure out head pressure and flow rate.

We encourage the Do-It-Yourselfers to purchase our kits!  They come with everything you need, instructions, and you are able to call on our expertise for help if you get stuck when building your own.  Also, if you need stone, we know how much you would need and can provide that as well. Our kits come in many sizes, any sales associate at our retail locations can assist you in getting you what you want.

The #1 reason is in-person knowledge and advice. Unlike online retailers or big box stores, our staff are trained and highly knowledgable on water features and our entire treatment line, fish food, plants, pumps, and other pond equipment. We can point you in the right direction to what you need and assist with any questions. Our staff has been commended on their friendliness and willingness to help.

Proper filtration is a great start. After that, plants! plants! and more plants! Marginal aquatic plants and water lilies are our top recommendations as they are nature’s perfect built-in filtration system for algae & green water.  You could also use a UV light.

Visit a retail location and a sales associate will be happy to assist you. Our retail stores have the largest variety & selection of aquatic plants in the Carolinas, visit a store to browse our extensive offerings. Aquatic plants are sold starting in April through November each year.

Proper filtration is a great start. Marginal aquatic plants plus treatments like natural barley straw extract and S.A.B.  You could also install an Ion-Gen System which puts copper ions in the water and suffocates the string algae. Visit a retail location and a sales associate will be happy to assist you.

Marginal aquatic plants eat the excess waste in a pond keeping the water clean and clear.

Yes. We recommend using Aquascape® Maintain treatment on a regular basis. It only takes a few bottle pumps a month to add the treatment to your pond. Maintain contains beneficial bacteria that naturally eats away at the extra waste in a pond to keep it clear and healthy.

We highly recommend the Aquascape® Automatic Autodosing System that acts as an IV for your pond by automatically added the correct amount of treatment throughout the month. All you have to do is switch out the Autodosing Treatment Bag once empty. It’s super easy and convenient, no need to remember, it just does it for you!

We also have many treatments available that are used for specific conditions that work quickly and effectively such as algaecide (green water), RapidClear™ (clears dirty water), and an array of autodosing treatment bags for specific applications such as Aquascape® Clean & Clear.

Visit one of our retail store locations and a sales associate will be glad to help you with your needs.

It’s super easy and comfortable for the fish.

  1. After selecting your new pond pet, we carefully fill a heavy duty plastic bag with just enough water for the fish to swim, but not enough for them to get too active and end up accidentally hurting themselves.
  2. We then add oxygen to the bag via our in-store tank. This helps provide the fish with oxygen no matter the length of the journey.
  3. We tightly tie up the bag, double-check the fish and hand them over.
  4. After arriving home, simply place the bag (still sealed) at the edge of your pond. This allows the new fish to acclimate to the temperature of their new home. You can leave it there for around 10 minutes (or less in hotter weather).
  5. Simply open the bag and gently let the fish swim from the bag into the pond. They’ll swim around examining and admiring their new home – your pond!

There are a few different options.  You can net the pond, you could get a scarecrow sprinkler, or you could make a barrier of thin fishing line around the pond to keep predators out with our Heron Stop kit.

You can’t.  Frogs are attracted to water features during the breeding seasons and to live in.  Frogs are amazing for water features by providing free big removal services and free snacks (frog eggs and tadpoles) for your fish.

No. We believe that preformed plastic tubs are inferior products to using EPDM liner for a pond installation. Preformed plastic tubs are rigid, provide no flexibility, and can warp and crack over a brief time.

Yes! We sell a highly premium EPDM liner that has a 20 year limited warranty. We sell it in both pre-cut dimensions and for larger scale DIY projects, we can cut off of a liner roll the dimensions you need. The liner we sell in our retail stores is the same professional-level liner we use in our pond installations.

Koi & Goldfish

The amount of fish depends on the size of the pond and the amount of gallons.  Each pond is different. Typically we recommend goldfish or 1 – 2 koi for our Tranquility pond sized ponds. Harmony and Serenity series ponds can accommodate more and larger koi.

Koi and goldfish get along swimmingly (sorry, cheap pun!).  They are all schooling breeds and love having friends to swim with.  They will not eat one another (no matter the size).

We do not recommend these breeds of fish in decorative koi ponds.  These breeds do great in larger dirt bottom ponds.

It’s super easy and comfortable for the fish.

  1. After selecting your new pond pet, we carefully fill a heavy duty plastic bag with just enough water for the fish to swim, but not enough for them to get too active and end up accidentally hurting themselves.
  2. We then add oxygen to the bag via our in-store tank. This helps provide the fish with oxygen no matter the length of the journey.
  3. We tightly tie up the bag, double-check the fish and hand them over.
  4. After arriving home, simply place the bag (still sealed) at the edge of your pond. This allows the new fish to acclimate to the temperature of their new home. You can leave it there for around 10 minutes (or less in hotter weather).
  5. Simply open the bag and gently let the fish swim from the bag into the pond. They’ll swim around examining and admiring their new home – your pond!

We always recommend keeping Pond Detoxifier (takes out metals, chlorine and chloramines out of city water) and Aquascape® Protect (helps their slime coats and reduces stress). If you believe your fish may be injured or suffering from an infliction (ick or fungus), we sell a variety of fish medicine at our retail locations that can help.

Blue Ridge Koi, North America’s largest koi farm, states that you are not able to tell which fish are male or female until they get about 12″ long.  Females are more submarine shaped (heavier) and males are more missile shaped (thinner).

Maybe. It’s possible your fish will breed, especially if they are happy in their environment! You cannot determine biological sex of a koi until it is 12″ long, so when you purchase fish, you won’t know if have males and females together. The likelihood is high though.

Foaming of a pond is usually related to fish spawning, part of the reproduction process of koi. Congratulations! You’ll soon be godparents to new fish babies.

Unfortunately koi do not control their growth. They are a part of the carp family and can grow to huge sizes.   We recommend not overcrowding or overfeeding the fish.

In the Southeast region of the United States, fish will go into a hibernation mode once temperatures start consistently hitting under 45 (F) degrees which would be around late November into December. They will stay in hibernation mode until temperatures are consistently over 50 (F) degrees.

Your fish, hibernation mode, will swim to the very bottom of the pond and limit their movement as to conserve energy.

The better the fish food, the more the fish absorbs and the less waste gets put in the pond.  Which means cleaner, clearer water.  Better food also helps to boost their immune systems and keep them healthier. Pond Country also sells a variety of color-enhancing fish food that will really bring out the vibrant colors in your fish’s pattern! All of the fish food at Pond Country has been thoroughly tested for quality and is the best you can buy. It’s the same food we feed our own fish!

Aquatic Plants

Marginal aquatic plants sit on the plant shelf edge around the pond.  They are the plants that do all the heavy lifting by eating the excess waste in a pond, helping to starve off the ugly plant, algae, and keeping the water clean and clear.

No. Water lilies are beautiful, but they do not put in as much work as the marginal aquatic plants.  Water lilies have three jobs:

  • Provide shade to cool the water temperatures down
  • Provide protection for fish from overhead predators
  • To look stunning in your pond with their gorgeous floral blooms

No. Hyacinths or water lettuce (aka floaters or floating plants) pull some nutrients, but they also provide shade, like water lilies, to cool the water temperatures down.  This, in turn, helps to control algae blooms.

Aquatic pond plants have nothing to stop them from growing and growing well.  hey have food, water, and sun. Thinning them out helps to keep them from taking over the pond and helps with your water feature’s aethestic look.

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