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05-01-2012, 08:09 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Slave Lake
Posts: 216
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Starting a Trout pond.
Any idea's how deep the pond should be for Brookies and Rainbow's ? Thank you for your help.
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Bass Pro Shop #1
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05-01-2012, 08:12 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Calgary, Alberta
Posts: 117
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About 4ft deep?
How many acres/how big will it be over all?
We need details!
I love pond projects!
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from Bearspaw Dam downstream to Western Headworks Diversion (W.H.D.) Weir (including the Elbow River below Glenmore Reservoir).
CLOSED Apr. 1 to May 31 and Oct. 1 to Nov. 30
June 1 to Sept. 30 and Dec. 1 to Mar. 31 – Trout limit 1 under 35 cm; All Trout over 35 cm must be released; Mountain Whitefish limit 5 over 30 cm; Maggots are the only bait allowed and only in the river from Aug. 16 to Sept. 30.
So I don't forget my fishing jurisdiction.
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05-01-2012, 08:28 PM
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: Edmonton
Posts: 492
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crown royal 17
Any idea's how deep the pond should be for Brookies and Rainbow's ? Thank you for your help.
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Aerated? 12ft or deeper.
Non-aerated, 30ft and pray they over-winter.
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Visit my BLOG.
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05-01-2012, 08:49 PM
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Banned
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Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Alberta
Posts: 10,937
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Quote:
Originally Posted by spaghetti
About 4ft deep?
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Dude, it's for trout, not a kiddy pool. many lakes will develop 2 or more feet of ice over the winter.
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05-01-2012, 09:01 PM
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: St. Albert, Alberta
Posts: 166
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Doc
Aerated? 12ft or deeper.
Non-aerated, 30ft and pray they over-winter.
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x2!!! Hit it right on the head
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05-01-2012, 09:13 PM
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 452
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pond
Our pond is over 30' deep and I aerated it and they wintered great really lively now.
good luck
sst
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05-01-2012, 09:14 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Calgary, Alberta
Posts: 117
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Quote:
Originally Posted by silverdoctor
Dude, it's for trout, not a kiddy pool. many lakes will develop 2 or more feet of ice over the winter.
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Yeah, I completely forgot about winter kill/ice.
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from Bearspaw Dam downstream to Western Headworks Diversion (W.H.D.) Weir (including the Elbow River below Glenmore Reservoir).
CLOSED Apr. 1 to May 31 and Oct. 1 to Nov. 30
June 1 to Sept. 30 and Dec. 1 to Mar. 31 – Trout limit 1 under 35 cm; All Trout over 35 cm must be released; Mountain Whitefish limit 5 over 30 cm; Maggots are the only bait allowed and only in the river from Aug. 16 to Sept. 30.
So I don't forget my fishing jurisdiction.
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05-01-2012, 10:39 PM
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Gone Hunting
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: rooster heaven
Posts: 4,066
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Ive got roughly about a million gallons and 22 feet deep. Trout do great. Have brookies and rainbows. Brookies arent very big yet, and this years 100 went in last weekend at 9 to 11 inch. Rainbows are a different story. Getting some beauties grown thats for sure. I dont aerate in the winter aside from short durations here and there. I rely mainly on proper aeration in spring and summer, late fall she runs non stop right into beginning stages of freeze up. Shut er down once freeze happens. Young family and pets, cant afford to have thin ice. When periodically running in winter (after good ice established) I drill a hole near each dispersion plate. Allows the air to escape once its hit the surface. There is no need in having aerator run all winter creating thin ice issues, if monitored and managed. Sounds like your building? If able to, design some shoreline stucture with a couple inside/outside bends and maybe a small shoreline rocked island. You wont regret it. A standard dugout is great if thats what you have to work with, but digging one is cheap if setting up a home place. Do it right, you wont regret it.
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MULEY MULISHA
It's just Alberta boys... Take what you can while you can,, if ya cant beat em join em. 
Keep a strain on er
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05-01-2012, 10:53 PM
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Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 358
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mm i wonder if my parent would mind if i took a back hoe in the front lawn :l naaaaaaaaa
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05-02-2012, 08:57 AM
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Gone Hunting
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: Rocky Mountain House
Posts: 5,219
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Somewhere I have a book about "building a trout pond". I'll try and find it and post info on the book here.
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Robin,
Archery Sept. 1 - Oct. 31 Muzzleloader and Crossbow Oct. 1 - Oct. 31 Rifle Nov. 25 - Nov. 30
...And HIS kingdom shall have no end...
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05-02-2012, 09:06 AM
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Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Calgary
Posts: 41
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Count: 1 expensive whitefish, 1 largemouth bass, 1 sunfish. 3 walleye, 2 brown trout, almost a few turtles.
 Notice he never catches any either.
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05-02-2012, 09:21 AM
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Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Rocky View County AB.
Posts: 3,561
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Where can you buy the trout for your pond?
Buddy want some and I have no idea where he should go.
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05-02-2012, 09:33 AM
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Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Canmore
Posts: 514
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Ours is about a 25 feet deep dugout..we have a wind mill and they seem to make it real good....havnt added any in 2-3 years and are still catching fish....post pics if u have any
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05-02-2012, 09:37 AM
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Gone Fishing
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Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 1,802
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I was led to believe that 22ft is the depth to be able to keep fish over winter. Without an aeration device you will suffer losses. There is a hatchery at New Sarepta but you will need a licence to keep fish, before they will sell you any.
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05-02-2012, 07:11 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Slave Lake
Posts: 216
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Thanks people you helped me a lot. My pond is 50' x 100' I have a excavator ready just need a little help on depth. Again thank you. Also I have fished a few stocked ponds over the years and had a great time at all of them. 
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Bass Pro Shop #1
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05-02-2012, 07:19 PM
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Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: calgary
Posts: 42
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Jealous as he'll right now! Hate the burbs!
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05-20-2014, 10:53 AM
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Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by packhuntr
Ive got roughly about a million gallons and 22 feet deep. Trout do great. Have brookies and rainbows. Brookies arent very big yet, and this years 100 went in last weekend at 9 to 11 inch. Rainbows are a different story. Getting some beauties grown thats for sure. I dont aerate in the winter aside from short durations here and there. I rely mainly on proper aeration in spring and summer, late fall she runs non stop right into beginning stages of freeze up. Shut er down once freeze happens. Young family and pets, cant afford to have thin ice. When periodically running in winter (after good ice established) I drill a hole near each dispersion plate. Allows the air to escape once its hit the surface. There is no need in having aerator run all winter creating thin ice issues, if monitored and managed. Sounds like your building? If able to, design some shoreline stucture with a couple inside/outside bends and maybe a small shoreline rocked island. You wont regret it. A standard dugout is great if thats what you have to work with, but digging one is cheap if setting up a home place. Do it right, you wont regret it.
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By proper aeration you mean a windmill or something? You just let that run all spring and summer and shut it off during the winter?
I'm asking because I'm building one right now. It's kind of an added bonus. I'm building my house now and the driveway needs a ton of fill so I'm getting my driveway built up and my pond dug at the same time. I'm telling the guys to go about 20' deep minimum. Does this sound correct?
Also, for now, do I just go to UFA or something and buy some water line and that aerator box thinggy to toss in the bottom of the pond?
Obviously the pond is not my top priority this year but I just want to make things easier for myself down the road.
Thanks for your help.
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05-20-2014, 11:03 AM
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Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 3,517
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starting a trout pond
I have everything at my disposal to build a pond, and would love one!! Only problem is how do I fill it? No water source within 3/4 of a mile from here.
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05-20-2014, 11:17 AM
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Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 4,672
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Quote:
Originally Posted by trigger7mm
I have everything at my disposal to build a pond, and would love one!! Only problem is how do I fill it? No water source within 3/4 of a mile from here.
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A big pump and a long hose.
Seriously.
Lots of municipalities have irrigation pumps and line they rent out. Check into that.
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Upset a Lefty, Fly a Drone!
"I find it interesting that some folk will pay to use a range, use a golf course, use a garage bay but think landowners should have to give permission for free. Do these same people think hookers should be treated like landowners?" pitw
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05-20-2014, 11:40 AM
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 452
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Our pond the fourth year...2013
Strangely enough, last summer we lost all our trout in a bout a 2 week period they floated up dead. We talked to everyone we could about the reason and were informed that even though the pond is over 30 ft. deep and has a High output windmill. There wasn't enough oxygen being input and a biologist told me I would require at least 4 windmills to provided enough aeration to sustain quality.
He also told me that if I was to use a 4 inch pump spraying water for 48-60 hours a month it would saturate the water with oxygen and enable the one windmill to keep up.
The fish we lost were between 6 and 8 lbs. and it was a sad sight to see them coming up daily made me sick.
I'm going to set up a pump system this summer and see if it will maintain what's required and then try again.
We have no electricity at the pond site so electrical aeration which would be easiest is not a choice for us.
So if you maintain fish for 2 or 3 years and they die off the following year it might be your problem the same as we discovered. Build up of Nitrates and thus a lack of Oxygen..... even if you have over a million gallons......
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05-20-2014, 11:43 AM
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Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 317
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Quote:
Originally Posted by singleshotom
Strangely enough, last summer we lost all our trout in a bout a 2 week period they floated up dead. We talked to everyone we could about the reason and were informed that even though the pond is over 30 ft. deep and has a High output windmill. There wasn't enough oxygen being input and a biologist told me I would require at least 4 windmills to provided enough aeration to sustain quality.
He also told me that if I was to use a 4 inch pump spraying water for 48-60 hours a month it would saturate the water with oxygen and enable the one windmill to keep up.
The fish we lost were between 6 and 8 lbs. and it was a sad sight to see them coming up daily made me sick.
I'm going to set up a pump system this summer and see if it will maintain what's required and then try again.
We have no electricity at the pond site so electrical aeration which would be easiest is not a choice for us.
So if you maintain fish for 2 or 3 years and they die off the following year it might be your problem the same as we discovered. Build up of Nitrates and thus a lack of Oxygen..... even if you have over a million gallons......
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My buddy has same issue with no power, he actually setup a solar panel power station and runs it off that... not sure if thats an option for you...
good luck guys
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05-20-2014, 05:35 PM
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: West of Edmonton
Posts: 619
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I have a trout pond that's about 14' deep. It was pre-existing at the acreage that I bought a year ago. But had no fish in it.
First thing I did was buy an electric aerator and ran it for a couple weeks before I did any stocking. (this 2 weeks allowed me to get the paperwork done for the Recreational Fish Culture license).
I did 2 stocking last summer. Twenty 5-6" Bows in late June and then another twenty 8-9" bows in August. I fed them 5mm pellets religiously the entire summer. I should also mention that I dye my water blue (I buy the stuff from UFA) and I treat the pond with Pond Pro Clarifying bacteria packets to keep the water clear and as algae free as possible.
I found that in July and August I was only running my aerator at night so that the water wouldn't warm up too much. Also to combat this I ran a small floating fountain during the day so that the top layer of water would still get oxyygen on the hot days.
This seemed to work well for my pond. I managed to catch a handful of 16" trout over the winter. They grew like crazy in a matter of 6months.
In the winter I moved my aerator to a spot in the pond about 5' deep and ran it 24/7. And as luck would have it I only had one floating trout this spring and they are hitting the feed hard again already.
I would highly recommend speaking with Max at Smoky Trout Farms in Sylvan Lake. Hes awesome to deal with and knows his stuff.
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05-20-2014, 06:01 PM
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Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 712
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our pond is 20-25 ft deep, never had any fish die off yet, knock on wood.
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05-20-2014, 07:48 PM
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 54
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As per all the above Alberta Agriculture does a good job with their AQUACULTURE programs. County of Strathcona used to do courses on the topic and call them to find out if any in 2014.
To do it right takes some research and 18 to 20 feet deep is generally
the recommendation. Don't go in and do it BLINDLY as you will be
disappointed and is often NOT CHEAP to do it right. Largely depends on where the pond is located and soil type, whether is lined with CLAY or plastic or whatever else your "dirt" offers or nutrient loading plus a whole bunch of other stuff.
Dr. Peter Aku at the ACA knows this topic well too. He and his collegues run the aeration programs for all those aerated lakes/ponds in the fishing regs.
Quite helpful if you can get ahold of him.
Lorne Louden at his trout farm neat Miquelon Lake is a good resource
as well and sells the fish and the equipment. Usually sold out by late
April or early May most years we've called him.
Water analysis becomes important for the 4 seasons to make sure
you have enough 02 and no other "poisons" in your pond.
Kind of like a freshwater AQUARIUM; just bigger and generally no need
for heat if the pond is deep enough they can overwinter with continuous
aeration.
Rainbows and brookies are pretty hardy; but die fast too if any traces
of BAD stuff or lack of oxygen exists.
Don't always trust Solar or Wind aeration; when the sun stops shining or the wind stops blowing and your pond is marginal for OXYGEN fish will die overnight if conditions are right on those HOT SUMMER days when water temp is high. Very expensive too if you need allot of POWER to run your aerator(s).
Powered aeration of adequate volume usually does the job unless you have
an incredible good pond located in good soil with lots of depth and acres.
I'm no expert ......... but this is what the experts often say. People have failed
miserably putting a trout pond into a location I know of that is 20 feet deep and 400 feet long and 200 feet wide and about 1 million gallons of water and needs about a $50 000 investment to get it right. And that's then pretty expensive trout !!!
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