I was thinking about what size tank I would get for my common/comets when I got my money and then I looked through a lowes sale paper from the mail. Then I saw this thing called a Rock Pool Pond and it was 260 gallons. That would be more than enough for them. I have a couple of questions though. I'm pretty sure this is a preformed pond so do I just have to dig a hole with a couple of people and stick it in there? It comes with all the decorations so thats nice. So how do I keep cats out of the pond? There are a lot of cats running around where I live. Is there a way to keep them out? What about in winter? Very cold nights here are in the 35's. How do I get power outside to run the filter? Will I have to dig underground lines? Some people in my family are electricians and plumbers so that should help. I also need to get a UV sterilizer right? Is it for keeping the water clear? Sorry for all the questions but I know nothing about ponds. Thanks in advance.

Your weather there is probably similar to ours. I set up my 30 gallon pond about a month ago and put a heater in it. Now the heater is only coming on at night. That is one possibility.

There are different ways to get electricity outside and running the underground lines is probably the safest and most visually appealing as you wont have cords running every which way (like mine!). It helps if you do have electricians. Make sure they put in at least 4 outlets as that will be enough for a filter, heater, light and whatever else you decide on. Make sure it is also a GFCI outlet, which is for use around water.

On my other outdoor pond, I had problems with herons attacking our fish so I put bird netting over it. You can also use metal chicken wire or metal cloth (similar to the chicken wire) and put that over the pond to keep cats out. It might not look great but your fish will be safe. You really dont want to wake up one morning only to find that some of your fish are gone!

As for the preform ponds, yes just dig a hole and make sure everything is level. A good idea is to line the bottom with sand and then smooth it out.

You can get a UV sterilizer, definitely. THey work very well!

Good luck and ask if you need anything else!

How do I hook up a uv sterilizer to a pond filter?

i have 8 outside cats . they never bother my fish . one cat was drinking from the pond a few days ago , slid off a rock & fell in , lol
luckily i was right there to help her , the rock fell in too but somehow did not hurt any fish .

LOL At my parents' house, all our cats were outdoors cats and in all the years only one ever caught fish, and I think it was only because the fish was sick already. Most of them are quick enough to get out of the way. But protecting from cats and birds (or raccoons or whatever) is still important.

All the UV sterilizers I've seen hook up to the filter in-line, meaning they attach to tubing that runs from the pond to the filter. You want to make sure you get the proper size pump for the UV sterilizer as water running through it too fast will not get sterilized.