Am thinking of digging a permanent pond drain, would this work? PigletJohn?

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

I know PigletJohn is more of a DIY expert than duck ponds but am hoping he sees this and has an opinion. Or anyone else's opinion also welcome!

I'm planning on getting ducks and I read they poo nonstop, mainly in their pond. So the water needs changing a few times a week.

I'm thinking of getting a rigid type pond or even a plastic drinking trough and having it slightly raised off the ground on concrete blocks and then bank up around it. Going to drill a hole in the bottom and fit a plug hole type thing. Then the plan is to connect the outer side of the plug hole to some sort of waste pipe. Garden is on a slope so I can have some fall in the pipe. And I can pull the plug and drain the pond.

Dh will go crazy mainly if he can see a long length of pipe running along the garden so I was thinking of digging a trench and burying it. Was also thinking of drilling some small holes along the length so the water is dispersed along the length. But it wouldn't actually be draining Into anything, so kind of a french drain I guess?

My main worry is would it get all chocked up with soil and stop draining? If I surrounded the pipe with gravel would that work better?

[HereIAm20]

Can't help with pond but I get the impression that PigletJohn is a she not a he but I stand to be corrected 😂

[Mudmagnetoftheworld]

It will get clogged up.
Ducks like to dabble in mud and in doing so transfer said mud into their pond.
I use a wide hose pipe and siphon it out. There's always a thick layer of mud/poo at the bottom of the pond.

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

I originally assumed PigletJohn was a she....I think because it's mainly women here. But I'm 99.9% sure I saw a thread where he confirmed he was a bloke.

Ive been busy watching YouTube duck pond videos and think my plan will work. Going to use a shower drain in the pond and then a ball valve type thing on the pipe so I don't have to pull a plug.

Dh is away in a couple of weeks for a lads holiday and he's said I can't have ducks so am planning on having it all set up by the time he gets home!

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

Oh, oh a real life duck owner!

mudmagnet how does the siphoning work? Do you have to suck? I have no electricity in the garden.

How often do you change the water? How big is your pond and how many ducks?

What sort of ducks do you have? I can't decide, am thinking of Pekins or maybe Runners.

[Mudmagnetoftheworld]

Sorry for delayed response...

I have 5 runners and no I don't suck the hose!!
I stick a hose in the siphoning hose on full blast, then lower it into the pond and it starts to drain. It does clog as the water level gets lower so I usually have to repeat until most of the water drained.

I then empty the sludge from the bottom into a bucket for the compost heap and refill.
It's a hard child's paddling pool.

Ducks are messy, but great at foraging for slugs and snails if let loose in the garden.

[Mudmagnetoftheworld]

Our set up isn't ideal. I'm thinking of getting an old fashioned tin bath, as I've seen them with quite wide outlet pipe holes in the side that I could attach a wide hose to for draining.

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

I never realised until now that filling the hose with water will start a siphon, that will work and be a lot easier than digging a drain.
Thanks.

It's runners I'm thinking of getting.

[Mudmagnetoftheworld]

Runners are great, good layers, not too noisy and they're flightless, so no wing clipping to worry about.

They need more space than chickens but are much less fussy about cold and wet etc.

PM me if you'd like more info.