I want koi!

[NickFish]

But hey, who doesn't?

The question is.....can I afford to have koi?

I imagine it would be pretty easy to dig the pond and stuff, maybe bring some friends over and we can have a koi digging party. But I also imagine that ponds aren't the cheapest things in the world.

Before I start buying things and making a commitment, I need to know.

How much would a 2000 or so gallon koi pond cost at start up and then to maintain.

Any ideas?

[Fishguy2727]

I suggest checking out the natural ponds and natural pool ponds. They go with a different approach than slapping on a bunch of expensive equipment. They use natural filtration like plants and lower stocking levels and you end up with much less maintenance, a healthier system, and a nicer looking setup. Just google them and see what comes up. If you can't find anything let me know and I will see if I can find what I found before.

[Halelorf]

I dug a small ~400 gallon pond in my backyard early this summer by myself. It took me a good day and a half to dig the hole. I used a EPDM rubber liner that was something like $80 and it took 30 minutes to place and cut to size. My goldfish were poisoned that were in my pond so I can't tell you how easy it will be to maintain long term. If you have friends to dig the project shouldn't cost very much. You'll have to sketch out the dimensions of the pond and get a sized liner to fit.

::Simple list of what would be needed::

EPDM Liner - Your most expensive purchase. Probably have to have it shipped to your house frieght. couple hundred $

Flat lining rocks - Use to hold the liner in place around the top edge of the pond hole. Cost depends on the rock and where you get it from. I would suggest a landscape supply store.

Plants - Depending on where you get them from they can be super expensive or fairly cheap. I like to load up ponds with plants because the fish like them, it looks good, and it helps with green water.

Fountain Pump Filter (optional) - You don't really need a filter fountain but I like them. You can usually get a combo that has the filter pan, the pump, and a fountain head for fairly cheap. shouldn't be more than a two hundred or so.

[smaug]

For a 2000gal pond you are looking at a sizable but not daunting price.Things you do need for a pond that size is
Skimmer.-300-400bucks
liner and underlayment just about 2 bucks a sq ft for both,the pond I want will take 350 sq ft [1500gals]
pump-150 bucks
bio filter/waterfall 300-400 bucks
Maintenance after its up and running is minimal,if you can devote about an hour a week to netting ,pruning,minor water testing and filter cleaning,taking care of a pond is a breeze.For best results get a properly sized uv light [unlike aquariums they are indespensible for a pond},battling green water is a constant headache without one.A good one will set you back 200 bucks.Pond fish are far hardier then tropicals and will take conditions that would wipe out a whole tank of inside fish.

[OscarFan]

I estimate it to cost about 600-1000 depending on how fancy you want to get.