Filling your ponds

74. When you have finished digging your supply and return ditches and have built all of the sluices, you are ready to fill your ponds.

Note
Ponds are filled one by one. Items 75 and 77 will tell you, step by step, how to begin filling your ponds. The large drawing on pages 38 and 39 will also help you to understand the various steps.

75. To fill the first pond do the following

· make sure that the outlet of the first pond you are going to fill is closed

Fill the first pond

Fill the first pond

· put the wooden boards in the sluice at the corner of the inlet ditch to the first pond

Put the wooden boards in the sluice

· take out the wooden boards of the inlet sluice to the first pond and put in the screen

Take boards out

· put the screen in the sluice at the top of the supply ditch and take out the wooden boards one at a time until water begins to flow down the ditch and into the first pond.

Take boards out

76. If you are going to fill another pond you should prepare it now, while the first pond is being filled.

77. To prepare the next pond, do the following

· make sure the outlet of the next pond you want to fill is closed
· put the board in the sluice at the corner of the inlet ditch
· take the boards out of the inlet sluice and put in the screen.

78. Watch your first pond carefully. When it is full of water put back the boards in the inlet sluice and take out the boards in the sluice at the comer of the inlet ditch (see Item 75 in this booklet).

79. The water will now flow further down the supply ditch and begin to fill the next pond.

80. Continue to do this until all of the ponds are full.

81. When your ponds are full of water, put a few of the wooden boards back in the sluice at the top of your supply ditch. However, make sure that some water is always running Into each of your ponds so that they will always be full.