How to Build a Raised Fish Pond

Landscaping is a way to add outside rooms and pleasing facades for entertainment. When you add a water feature or a fish pond, it adds conversation pieces. Water is soothing and pleasant to sit and watch, and when you have fish to watch and feed, it's even better. Children love fish and want to help care for them. Creating an above-ground fish pond takes a trip to the garden center, and the pond can be constructed in one day. This is a temporary fish pond that can be moved if you move.

Things You'll Need

  • 125-gallon plastic formed pond with flat bottom
  • Pond pump and filter kit
  • 12-inch landscape rocks
  • Sand
  • Bag of river rock
  • Bag of colored round glass rocks
  • Water plants
  • Succulent plants
  • Blue gravel
  • Fish
  • Outdoor electric cord
  • Mulch
  • Outdoor electric outlet
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Choose a level, full-sun spot in your yard near a terrace or outside entertainment area to place the fish pond. Make sure the pond will be away from trees, as leaves can stop up the equipment. The pond will need to be near your outdoor electric outlet.

    • 2

      Set the pond form in the flat area chosen and place your large 12-inch-high landscaping rocks around the plastic pond to hide the plastic pond. Butt the rocks tight next to each other, leaving a 4-inch gap between the pond form and the landscape rocks. If you wish, place a second circle of rocks outside of the first circle of rocks to make a thick rock border. Again, butt the rocks tightly against each other, as they need to hold sand inside them.

    • 3

      Pour the 4-inch gap between the pond and rocks full of clean sand all the way around the pool to 2 inches below the pond lip.

    • 4

      Install the fish pond pump and filter kit per the kit instructions. This will aerate the water and give the fish oxygen. Plug in to an outdoor extension cord. Cover the cord with more rock or mulch as you run it to your outdoor electric plug to camouflage it.

    • 5

      Fill your pond with water and set two water lily plants in the pond. Put some small plants into the sand around the plastic pool. Succulents are best. And put smaller river rock all around those plants where you wish to add decor. When you get it up and running, add your fish. Keep the pond clean.