The cost of your fish pond will depend on a number of factors, from size to the types of fish you choose to stock it with. However, there are several different ways you can save money when building your fish pond if you are prepared in the early planning stages of your new project. Here are a few ideas to bear in mind.
Start Small
Some first-time pond owners choose to build smaller ponds to save on costs and then expand later on. Ponds that are only half an acre in size can cost below a thousand dollars while still being large enough to stock fish for your fishing or aesthetic needs. With a smaller pond, you will only need to pay for materials like liners, aeration systems, and fish.
Larger ponds allow for more versatility in the long run, but they can cost several thousand dollars. More substantial ponds typically require industrial excavation equipment and the assistance of pond consulting firms. This makes large ponds an excellent long term goal to strive for in the future, but not a necessity for most first-time pond owners.
Outsource Only When Needed
When you first begin planning your fish pond, you should start dividing up tasks. What are you willing to do yourself, and which tasks will you want to outsource to others?
For instance, adult koi cost substantially more than purchasing them young and raising them yourself. However, you will need to give these growing koi extra care. While many pond owners feel comfortable raising baby koi, others do not want to risk raising baby koi and having them die before they reach adulthood, in which case you drive up costs by needing to purchase koi and raise them again.
Likewise, some pond owners prefer to save on costs by digging their own ponds. However, if you are working with a larger pond, this may be unfeasible. You do have options if you’d like to tackle this task without hiring out – you can dig yourself or with friends and family with shovels, or you can rent mechanical equipment to assist with digging.
