Yay, probably building a koi stream/pond!

[Alspond]

There are lots of companies on the web that sell pond equipment and liners.
Liners can be cut and bonded ( I have not done this myself). You will need to do this for the stream.

I have found Webbs water gardens to be quite helpful In recommending appropriate equipment.

I attached a basic plumbing diagram for my pond.
You can split the feed coming from the pump send half to the filter send half somewhere else.
You may need to do something like that to get water moving in the streams.

the pipes run around the outside of the pond and an external pump should be above the water level

 

[jlk]

Sharpchick brought up a good point! You will need outdoor, grounded electrical service. No extension cords!!! In order to install it, you will need permits and L&I if you are doing it yourself. If you hire an electrical contractor for this, they will handle permits and L&I.

 

[hawkshog]

I have just dug my own pond this year and it's about, if I did the math right, 2000 gallons. I have also placed it near a tree and I have had to install a skimmer with a pump to help combat leaves from sinking in the pond.

They actually sell waterfall filters that you hook up a pump to and it helps with the filtering and movement of water.

A good friend of mine on the other side of town has a pond as well, slightly bigger than mine and had koi and he leaves them out all winter in northern Illinois. As long as you keep water moving and a hole for gas exchange in the winter you shouldn't have a problem.

As far as digging and liners, they make splicing kits for doing streams like your talking. I would get some short of under layment for it so nothing that had a slight edge on it will cut the liner.

 

[ReyvinWolf]

Listen to everyone!!! Lol. Ponds are hard work to set up but so enjoyable. I got mine in this year, apx 1100 gallons. I ha a bio filter falls, skimmer, and a bog pond. I have 7 koi, 2 shubunkins, and about 20 trapdoor snails. Plus all the plants. I also put mine next to a 6 yr is red bud tree. I sunk my pump into my skimmer and all water returns trhough a uv filter and into the bio falls. From the falls to trickles to the bog pond and also comes down a very short stream bed. The bog pond also flows back into the main pond. Plus I added an aerator/ mini filter to move water up from the bottom and keep different currents flowing on top to erase "dead" spots on top of the water surface. Mine is about 2.5 to 3 feet deep so I will add a heater in winter to keep the water from freezing through. If you build a shelf along a side, make it t least 18" deep. And create a few "hideouts" for the fish to hide from predators. Herons, coons, pet dogs.........

Here's a few pics of mine

 

[Sharpchick]

Good build, ReyvinWolf.

OP, if you want water lilies or lotuses, it's best to have some calm water in the pond somewhere. They don't take well to fast currents. Also my water lettuce didn't start growing offshoots until I kept it out from under the outflow pipe from the bog filter into the pond. I also noticed that my smaller floaters, like the salvinia and frogbit would float under the outflow pipe and get forced down into the deeper water, where they would get trapped under the edge of the concrete block I use to raise the lily and lotus to the proper (initial) growing depth.

So I figured if using airline to contain floaters in an aquarium would work, maybe it would in my pond also.



My water lettuce is now producing offsets and my other floaters have the chance to get bigger now that they are getting some sunshine.

This probably works better in a container pond than in ponds dug into the ground.

 

[ReyvinWolf]

Airlines!!! I never thought of that!!! I have fake floater Lillie's on a thin wire corralling some of my plants!