The Benefits of Adding a Stream to Your Pond

Sight, Sound, Clarity, and Fish Health!

When Cool Ponds installs a pond, the waterfall never drops directly into the main body of water. There is always a stream or creek that connects the waterfall to the pond. Here's why...

What's a "filterfall"? Check out our blog article.

By the way, the above image shows what we mean by a "stream." Just so we're all on the same page!

Sight -- It Just Looks Good

Believe it or not, aesthetics is one of the least important reasons on this list, but it's by far the most exciting reason.  There's just something about a meandering creek that adds to the naturalization and ambiance of a water feature.

It is in the creek that we most often get to be creative and make the pond unique. The creek is where you can add turns and twits, make deep pockets, or shallow rocks for birds to bathe.

Sound -- Much More or Less Sound

A stream is a great way to either lower or raise the sound level of your waterfall. If the waterfall is large, it may make so much noise that it's hard to sit close to it and have a conversation. Placing a long creek on the pond will move the waterfall farther away from the seating area -- therefore decreasing the sound volume of the waterfall.

More common, however, is that more sound is desired from the waterfall. If built properly, by adding a creek you can actually get multiple drops along the way to gain more sound from the moving water.

Clarity -- Multiple Types of Filtration

Ah, this is big and very important!

As water rushes through the gravel in your creek, it traps the fine debris that may be small enough to pass through normal filtration and make the water appear cloudy. Cleaning the creek is a much easier task than cleaning the whole pond and it can be cleaned multiple times during the year without harming the ecosystem of the water feature.

Plus, creeks or streams are excellent places to add marginal aquatic plants. They will thrive and grow on the nutrients picked up in the shallow water of the creek, which will then starve algae!

Fish Health -- Maintaining Water Temperature

The most common danger for fish in ponds is rapidly changing water temperatures. This occurs most often when we have very warm days and very cool nights in spring and fall. Fish can adapt well to a very wide range of water temperatures -- but when the temperature changes quickly, it often times will make them weak and possibly sick. Any way we can slow down that temperature change helps.

If a waterfall drops directly into the pond, the heavy force of the fall sends the water all the way to the bottom where the water is more stable and warm. That water off the fall that's been cooled by the chilly air then mixes with the water at the bottom that has been warmed by the sunny day causing the whole pond to cool quickly.

With the waterfall falling right into the pond, cold water is mixing all the way to the pond bottom -- this can be stressful or even dangerous for your fish!

When the water flows through a creek, it can enter the pond rolling gently onto the surface, never mixing with the warm water at the bottom. The cooler water stays at the top near the colder air not bothering the fish in the deeper warmer water.

With the stream gently rolling into this pond, cold water stays at the surface of the pond. The warmer water at the bottom of the pond stays untouched. Your fish are safe and cozy!

If you don't have a creek on your pond, maybe you should consider adding one. Look at all these great benefits it will provide! Not sure where to start? Visit Cool Ponds, and we'll get you set up with the supplies you need and the knowledge to make it happen.