Garden ponds have become very popular the last ten years. A decent size pond is a homeowner do it yourself project that can be completed in a couple weekends.A good quality garden pond kit will cost between eight hundred and twenty two hundred dollars depending on the size pond you want to build. The kit will come complete with everything you need to build a pond including instructions. Once your pond is up and running you will find that your garden takes on a whole new dimension and will quickly become the focal point of your free time.

This is a subject that has been touched on occasionally on the forum but it really hasn't been given all that much play. There are different ways to develop currents in the pond that fish do enjoy as a kind of sideline to keeping the water healthy. There are so many different types and sizes of ponds it would be difficult to keep the list small.

The first thing I would consider is the method you will use to move water into the pond. Many of us have a waterfall. That creates a current of course but it is limited and dead spots can occur. The shape of the pond can make the complexity of the waterfall return much more interesting. An irregular shape is not only more interesting, it causes areas of more or less flow that can make the fish more active or give them a place to rest.

A waterfall in an irregular cove in the side of a pond causes more noise and a rapid exit of water through the opening into the cove. Two outlets from the cove give you two different rates and directions of flow. Breaking the waterfall into parts will also give you different currents. The angle of the waterfall to the pond changes the flow. The more you break up the flow of water the less strength the individual currents will have and vice-versa So the more you make the water change direction the more power you need in a pump unless you have a lot of gravity working for you.

Accessory pieces such as spitters and fountains can create light currents. A small UV in my pond makes a gentle water fall that my fish enjoy playing in and around. If you have a strong enough pump you can use a diverter to send a stream of water around the sides or across the pond. Rocks and other barriers can deflect the flow into more complex patterns. An extra small pump can be used for hard to get to areas.

It can all be figured out beforehand if you are good at that kind of engineering or you can experiment with it easily enough. I find it rather satisfying.

thank you for the info everyone!

I went ahead and added two 2" jets through the wall of the new pond section. As I was upgrading the existing filtration and would be adding another pump to return the water from a secondary filter system, I figured, why not have the water returned through the side of the pond for variety. I already have two water falls and a spitter but I'm one of those people who wants to make sure my pets have the best quality of life possible - plus, like Sleepless, I like experimenting and challenging myself with each new pond addition/expansion. So, in the end, the water from the newer, bigger, more complete filter will be returned to two points in my pond....one pipe will feed into the skimmer where it then will feed into a waterfall, the second will feed into a plant/bio filter tub with a 950 gph pump in it...it is that pump that will feed into the two 2" jet returns through the side of the pond wall. I have a ball valve on the line to control the flow back into the pond. I want to create some current for my fish to play in but don't want to blast them across the pond! LOL

I didn't know this had a name, Tangential Pond Return. Cool.

I realize it's too late for this project, but I use a waterfall catch basin to direct water along the bottom to push muck.

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And in use:
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Keeps the surface still too for better viewing.