Q about galvanized metal pond?

"Sue Solomon" wrote in message
news:qH5se.88307$yV4.68870@okepread03...
Hi All
I'm about to install a new pond in my front yard. Due to several
factors
(limited space, invasive tree roots nearby, neighbor's dogs cavorting in
my
existing plastic pond), I've decided to sink an 8' round, 2' deep
galvanized
steel stock tank about 12" into the ground for my pond. I plan to put a 2"
base of sand under the tank to level it. I will then cover the protruding
sides with stackable concrete blocks and cement a top ring of pavers in
place to finish it. I was going to paint the inside black, but if the tank
has to be sandblasted first, forget it. The tank will hold approximately
600
gallons; I'm planning to add goldfish, filter, fountain and a couple of
small water lilies to it. I plan to drill several holes in the tank side
for
fountain and filter feeds before burying it, and will eventually install a
small biological filter next to it. We live in Southern California, so I
don't have to worry about the ground freezing.

Can anyone give me some suggestions on how I should clean and condition
the
new galvanized metal? Anything else I need to do? I got the idea from my
Midwestern upbringing - both my father and grandfather kept goldfish in
their cattle stock tanks to control mosquito larvae, and they eventually
got
pretty big. I always loved watching the goldfish swimming so peacefully.

Thanks in advance for your help --
Sue in SoCal
===============================
I had friends who had a setup like that for their goats (galvanize watering
tank) but the bottom rotted out and it started to leak. They had to remove
the goldfish and replace the tank after a few years. You may want to put a
pond liner in the tank to increase it's lifespan.
--
McKoi.... the frugal ponder...
EVERYONE: "Please check people's headers for forgeries
before flushing." NAMES ARE BEING FORGED.
Do not feed the trolls.
~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o

Metal does not ROT.........Wood rots, cloth rots, metal does not
rot......If a metal tank is used it will last a lot longer if the tank
is not in direct contact with the ground.....Odds are you will never
find a tank that rusted through from the inside out, if its been
filled with water continuously.....Rust starts from scratches etc on
the outside and works its way in.........Keeping a glavanized tank out
of direct contact with the ground would be hard to do unless its
coated with a bitumastic coating, then if it able to be inset into thr
ground and backfilled without scratching the coating it should last a
long long time.......I have stock tanks well over 20+ years of age
which have had gold fish in them even when used for watering stock
years ago, and are still rust free........but they have never been
placed directly on the ground, and they have always beek kept filled
with water or stored in the barn empty.

On Wed, 15 Jun 2005 22:06:15 -0500, "xxxxxxxxxxxi"
wrote:


===I had friends who had a setup like that for their goats (galvanize watering
===tank) but the bottom rotted out and it started to leak. They had to remove
===the goldfish and replace the tank after a few years. You may want to put a
===pond liner in the tank to increase it's lifespan.


==============================================
Put some color in your cheeks...garden naked!
"The original frugal ponder"
~~~~ }((((o ~~~~~~ }{{{{o ~~~~~~~ }(((((o