Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

What is the easiest way to convert my garden pond into a sand pit for my
small child to play in rather than drown in?

I was thinking of just puncturing the membrane wait for the water to
dissapear fill with soil or something cheap and drainable up till 10"
deep, boards and then sand ?

//J

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

Jan Larsen wrote:
What is the easiest way to convert my garden pond into a sand pit for my
small child to play in rather than drown in?

I was thinking of just puncturing the membrane wait for the water to
dissapear fill with soil or something cheap and drainable up till 10"
deep, boards and then sand ?

Can't you make up a frame & mesh to go over the pond?
get the little-un in the swimming pool and teach him/her to swim.

Ours is just turning 5 in a few weeks and can now swim nearly a whole
length. besides which, even if he fell in the pond he'd be able to stand up.

I was thinking of doing the same thing to our pond when we first moved
in but I am very glad I didn't as a pond is so much more educational and
interesting for a growing child than a bl'dy great big sh1t pit for
every cat in the neighbourhood.

Only my opinion of course, and the fact that I spent many hours as a kid
looking into the pond in our garden safely protected from harm by
chicken wire and big sticks.

:¬)


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Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

""Pet @ www.gymratz.co.uk ;¬)"" wrote in message
k...
Jan Larsen wrote:
What is the easiest way to convert my garden pond into a sand pit for my
small child to play in rather than drown in?

I was thinking of just puncturing the membrane wait for the water to
dissapear fill with soil or something cheap and drainable up till 10"
deep, boards and then sand ?

Can't you make up a frame & mesh to go over the pond?
get the little-un in the swimming pool and teach him/her to swim.

Ours is just turning 5 in a few weeks and can now swim nearly a whole
length. besides which, even if he fell in the pond he'd be able to stand
up.

I was thinking of doing the same thing to our pond when we first moved in
but I am very glad I didn't as a pond is so much more educational and
interesting for a growing child than a bl'dy great big sh1t pit for every
cat in the neighbourhood.

Only my opinion of course, and the fact that I spent many hours as a kid
looking into the pond in our garden safely protected from harm by chicken
wire and big sticks.

I echo that too.
We have two ponds in the garden and our children (now 18 and 19) grew up
with them from birth, so to speak. Yes they can be dangerous but then so is
the average kitchen, stairs etc. We spent time with our children and taught
them about the pleasures of a pond, the wildlife and of course the dangers.
Ironically we now have to cover the pond because of a not so friendly Heron.
A child can drown in inches of water as you know; what people do not want is
for that child to drown through ignorance of the dangers of water.

A sand pit is an ideal thing to have though and I am glad we installed one
on the opposite side of the garden.

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

Gio wrote:

A sand pit is an ideal thing to have though and I am glad we installed one
on the opposite side of the garden.

We had a sandpit for our kids when they were young but eventually gave
up on it because every single bloody time we forgot to put the lid on
when it was unattended (or if the kids lugged it off without us knowing)
every cat in the neigbourhood made a bee-line for it. Of course, they
kindly buried their offerings neatly below the surface, so they wouldn't
be found until the kids started digging.

Didn't really like the kids playing in what was no more than a giant
litter tray... :-( Don't know what the solution is unless you have a
guaranteed cat-free garden - if the OP doesn't, then it's maybe a factor
to consider before taking the plunge.

David

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

Lobster wrote:
Didn't really like the kids playing in what was no more than a giant
litter tray... :-( Don't know what the solution is unless you have a
guaranteed cat-free garden - if the OP doesn't, then it's maybe a factor
to consider before taking the plunge.

David




Thanks to everyone for their responses

I have considered the cat problem and also the benefit of having the
pond in future, my argument for getting rid of it is that we invest very
little if any time in maintaining the pond, it's just sort of there,
having said that there is not necessarily anything wrong with that I
guess, so I think what will happen is that I will frame it off with
chicken wire and timber and perhaps eventually make a sandpit elsewhere,
with regards to the cats, does that "scent off" gel that they sell in
garden centres and pet supply stores actually work for instance?

//J

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

On Apr 23, 10:20 am, Jan Larsen wrote:
Lobster wrote:
Didn't really like the kids playing in what was no more than a giant
litter tray... :-( Don't know what the solution is unless you have a
guaranteed cat-free garden - if the OP doesn't, then it's maybe a factor
to consider before taking the plunge.

David

Thanks to everyone for their responses

I have considered the cat problem and also the benefit of having the
pond in future, my argument for getting rid of it is that we invest very
little if any time in maintaining the pond, it's just sort of there,
having said that there is not necessarily anything wrong with that I
guess, so I think what will happen is that I will frame it off with
chicken wire and timber and perhaps eventually make a sandpit elsewhere,
with regards to the cats, does that "scent off" gel that they sell in
garden centres and pet supply stores actually work for instance?

//J

Sand pits are great for children. I would think that a converted
pond would be ideal. they will need to be able to have water in the
sand pit so I woul dmake several large holes in the membrane.

Robert

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

On 23 Apr 2007 03:59:23 -0700, Robert Laws
wrote:



Sand pits are great for children. I would think that a converted
pond would be ideal. they will need to be able to have water in the
sand pit so I woul dmake several large holes in the membrane.

Robert


Would you not be plagued with returning frogs?
I'd keep the pond and make it safe and have a lidded sandpit
elsewhere.
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Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

On Sun, 22 Apr 2007 10:59:50 GMT, Lobster
wrote:

Gio wrote:

A sand pit is an ideal thing to have though and I am glad we installed one
on the opposite side of the garden.

We had a sandpit for our kids when they were young but eventually gave
up on it because every single bloody time we forgot to put the lid on
when it was unattended (or if the kids lugged it off without us knowing)
every cat in the neigbourhood made a bee-line for it. Of course, they
kindly buried their offerings neatly below the surface, so they wouldn't
be found until the kids started digging.

Didn't really like the kids playing in what was no more than a giant
litter tray... :-( Don't know what the solution is unless you have a
guaranteed cat-free garden - if the OP doesn't, then it's maybe a factor
to consider before taking the plunge.

David

A friend had a problem with cats and foxes in his garden (not at the
same time) - he managed to get a "water gun" which swept over an area
when a PIR detected movement.
I don't know from where he bought it.

(I found a Heath Robinson version at http://www.g4nsj.co.uk/cat.shtml
and the super "bear" version at :
http://www.bearsmart.com/bearsBackyard/Deterrents.html)

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

In message , mike
writes
On Sun, 22 Apr 2007 10:59:50 GMT, Lobster
wrote:

Gio wrote:

A sand pit is an ideal thing to have though and I am glad we installed one
on the opposite side of the garden.

We had a sandpit for our kids when they were young but eventually gave
up on it because every single bloody time we forgot to put the lid on
when it was unattended (or if the kids lugged it off without us knowing)
every cat in the neigbourhood made a bee-line for it. Of course, they
kindly buried their offerings neatly below the surface, so they wouldn't
be found until the kids started digging.

Didn't really like the kids playing in what was no more than a giant
litter tray... :-( Don't know what the solution is unless you have a
guaranteed cat-free garden - if the OP doesn't, then it's maybe a factor
to consider before taking the plunge.

David

A friend had a problem with cats and foxes in his garden (not at the
same time) - he managed to get a "water gun" which swept over an area
when a PIR detected movement.

A lot of people recommend lion dung (from your local zoo)

scares the ****s out of them (literally so to speak) so I've heard

--
geoff

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

A friend had a problem with cats and foxes in his garden (not at the
same time) - he managed to get a "water gun" which swept over an area
when a PIR detected movement.

A lot of people recommend lion dung (from your local zoo)

scares the ****s out of them (literally so to speak) so I've heard

--
geoff

Is that the cats or the children :-)

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

In message , Gio writes


A friend had a problem with cats and foxes in his garden (not at the
same time) - he managed to get a "water gun" which swept over an area
when a PIR detected movement.

A lot of people recommend lion dung (from your local zoo)

scares the ****s out of them (literally so to speak) so I've heard

--
geoff

Is that the cats or the children :-)


The cats

For the kids you need to get some disposable nappies from medway
handyman


--
geoff

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

Mogga wrote:

Would you not be plagued with returning frogs?
I'd keep the pond and make it safe and have a lidded sandpit
elsewhere.

Frogs are fantastic.

Our pond (when I was a kid) was "un cared for" and far more interesting
for the wild-life it attracted.
And frogs eat slugs and other garden un-friendly creatures.

Every small pond is a living breathing nature reserve.

:¬)

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

On 2007-04-24 20:59:12 +0100, "Pete @ www.GymRatZ.co.uk"
said:

Mogga wrote:

Would you not be plagued with returning frogs?
I'd keep the pond and make it safe and have a lidded sandpit
elsewhere.

Frogs are fantastic.

Yes they are. We have a very unusual quite green one called Trevor
(like green in a pistachio) who has been around for 4 years. He is
brought indoors daily by one of the cats, runs around and hops outside
- no screams or anything.




Our pond (when I was a kid) was "un cared for" and far more interesting
for the wild-life it attracted.
And frogs eat slugs and other garden un-friendly creatures.

Every small pond is a living breathing nature reserve.

:¬)

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

On 2007-04-26 09:04:10 +0100, Huge said:

On 2007-04-24, Pete @ www.GymRatZ.co.uk
wrote:
Mogga wrote:

Would you not be plagued with returning frogs?
I'd keep the pond and make it safe and have a lidded sandpit
elsewhere.

Frogs are fantastic.

Our pond (when I was a kid) was "un cared for" and far more interesting
for the wild-life it attracted.
And frogs eat slugs and other garden un-friendly creatures.

Every small pond is a living breathing nature reserve.

:¬)

We've been (unsuccessfully) trying to establish frogs in our pond for years.

The newts eat the spawn/tadpoles.

Easily fixed. Breed some in an aquarium and release them in the autumn.

Converting a small garden pond into sand pit
 

On 2007-04-26 10:34:41 +0100, Huge said:

On 2007-04-26, Andy Hall wrote:
On 2007-04-26 09:04:10 +0100, Huge said:

On 2007-04-24, Pete @ www.GymRatZ.co.uk
wrote:
Mogga wrote:

Would you not be plagued with returning frogs?
I'd keep the pond and make it safe and have a lidded sandpit
elsewhere.

Frogs are fantastic.

Our pond (when I was a kid) was "un cared for" and far more interesting
for the wild-life it attracted.
And frogs eat slugs and other garden un-friendly creatures.

Every small pond is a living breathing nature reserve.

:¬)

We've been (unsuccessfully) trying to establish frogs in our pond for years.

The newts eat the spawn/tadpoles.

Easily fixed. Breed some in an aquarium and release them in the autumn.

I tried floating a plastic box in the pond, with some very fine mesh over it to
allow water circulation, with the spawn in. Two interesting things happened;

- You could watch the newts patrolling round the box, waiting for dinner
to be served.

- The tadpoles vanished.

Newts are certainly tenacious. It's surprising that they have become
so scarce in many areas.