Retention Pond Concern ( Possible )

[jhrc4]

We are considering buying a home here in the Villages.

Our question is: Are there or should we have any concerns regarding a purchase of a home that backs up to a Retention Pond? The views are beautiful, but are there any potential negatives we need to be aware of i.e. water , bugs, smells when we have a dry spell, critters etc. ?

We really would appreciate your replies.

[rosygail]

Check to be sure that you have no liability for accidents in the pond. In Indiana such ponds are attached to a buildable lot and sometimes homeowners end up owning a retention pond that they didn't know they were buying with their lot! I don't know if this happens in Florida or not, but I would check it out. Also your insurance cost may be higher.

[billethkid]

also note said retention ponds on any maps...they are usually footnoted to state there may not always be water in them.

There are retention ponds in TV that do not have water in them.

There is a lake in TV (Black Lake) that has/had no water in it for the 9 years we have lived here.

btk

[Bogie Shooter]

Our first home in TV was on a retention pond. We had water everytime there was heavy, heavy rain otherwise it was dry. You have no obligation beyound your lot line for maintainence of retention pond area. (disregard what happens in Indiana) The privacy of open space forever is very nice. Smells were never an issue. Go for it!

[mickey100]

When the water is low, depending on the time of year, and the location, there MAY be smells.

[swimdawg]

We are considering buying a home here in the Villages.

Our question is: Are there or should we have any concerns regarding a purchase of a home that backs up to a Retention Pond? The views are beautiful, but are there any potential negatives we need to be aware of i.e. water , bugs, smells when we have a dry spell, critters etc. ?

We really would appreciate your replies.

I live on a pond in St. James (Well, Bill-n-Brillo call it an ocean!). I have nothing but positive things to say about the location. The view overlooking the water is breathtaking....especially the sunsets. The birds flying around and swimming in the water are so pretty and entertaining. I have never noticed an odor or increase in bugs, etc. It's all been good. Go for it!

[Barefoot]

Our question is: Are there or should we have any concerns regarding a purchase of a home that backs up to a Retention Pond? The views are beautiful, but are there any potential negatives we need to be aware of i.e. water , bugs, smells when we have a dry spell, critters etc. ?

We back on two small retention ponds, about 100 feet from our house. During dry spells, the water level can be low. We have never had any smells at all from the ponds.

Positives:
Peace and serenity.
The frogs sing you to sleep at night.
The birds are amazing! We always have ducks and white birds, sometimes sand hill cranes, we've even had Pelicans fishing in formation.

Negatives:
For us, there is only one negative. Gators can travel from pond to pond. We chose to back on small ponds, hoping there wouldn't be gators. In three years, we've seen one small gator, and he was just passing through, gone the next day. We have two dogs and invisible fencing. If you have dogs, you will need to check the ponds, the lawns and the surroundings carefully, before you let your dogs out.

[DAWN MARIE]

Everyone on our street and the next who are surrounding our very large pond are complaining about the blind mosquitoes. Had no problem the first year. Loved it. Then we were infested and continue to be every year. Our house is pretty much covered from spring to fall. We have to constantly sweep down the house or have our bug company do so. My husband sprays the front door area when we expect company. They get into everything. After the humidity leaves we are fine and we have a little break. They stain the house and decking with their dead bodies plastered to everything. The Villages, from what we understand refuses to spray these ponds.

[Bogie Shooter]

Everyone on our street and the next who are surrounding our very large pond are complaining about the blind mosquitoes. Had no problem the first year. Loved it. Then we were infested and continue to be every year. Our house is pretty much covered from spring to fall. We have to constantly sweep down the house or have our bug company do so. My husband sprays the front door area when we expect company. They get into everything. After the humidity leaves we are fine and we have a little break. They stain the house and decking with their dead bodies plastered to everything. The Villages, from what we understand refuses to spray these ponds.

What is the basis for this understanding?

[Diva Kay]

You may see an aligator or rwo.....we have in the new Village of Hillsborough.

[TrudyM]

I wondered when we visited why the ponds that don't go dry don't have a little fountain in the middle that keeps the water moving and discourages the negatives that come with stagnate water. When we lived in Calif and here in Wa the developments with ponds have a water spout type fountain in the middle to help keep the water clear.

[DAWN MARIE]

[/B]QUOTE]

What is the basis for this understanding?

Some of the neighbors called when it first started and that's what they were told. I talked with various bug guys and they confirmed that. The power wash people as well know all about it as they have to clean these bugs off the houses. They must hate to come to our neighborhood.

[Barefoot]

Everyone on our street and the next who are surrounding our very large pond are complaining about the blind mosquitoes. Had no problem the first year. Loved it. Then we were infested and continue to be every year.

I've never seen a blind mosquito, do they bite?

[Happinow]

I don't live on a pond or near one but it seemed this summer that when we were on the golf cart paths passing a pond the smell could, at times, be horrible. Some say it wasn't the ponds but it was too coincidental that when near one it stunk. I bet the sunsets are beautiful and the wild life is fun to watch but if you can't go outdoors to enjoy it I might second guess living near a pond if I had other options.

[swimdawg]

I wondered when we visited why the ponds that don't go dry don't have a little fountain in the middle that keeps the water moving and discourages the negatives that come with stagnate water. When we lived in Calif and here in Wa the developments with ponds have a water spout type fountain in the middle to help keep the water clear.

I live on a retention pond (I mean ocean!) in Swimdawg North and we have two fountains in our pond to move the water. I did call TV and suggested a fountain for the pond at "Swimdawg South" and they were adamant that no fountains would ever be installed. Wow!

BTW, there is no odor coming from the pond....and I have never seen a "blind mosquito".....but those ducks do quack and the water fowl are so much fun to watch!

[jojo]

We live on a pond. Love it. We love watching the bird life - the pelicans this winter entertained us for hours. We have fun guessing the social life of the ducks. The water sparkles in the afternoon. Never had a smell in over 5 years. We had one alligator for about 6 months. There are times when the frogs are noisy - thankfully not lately. There are a few times when we have the very tiny insects - I call them gnats. Not sure what they are but usually they are here for less than two weeks a couple times a year. The Villages maintenance folks occasionally put a boat in - not sure what they are doing. We've not had problems with algae.

[senior citizen]

We are considering buying a home here in the Villages.

Our question is: Are there or should we have any concerns regarding a purchase of a home that backs up to a Retention Pond? The views are beautiful, but are there any potential negatives we need to be aware of i.e. water , bugs, smells when we have a dry spell, critters etc. ?

We really would appreciate your replies.

I've often wondered the same thing. Got this from a neighbor's child.



Pond Life Animal Printouts - EnchantedLearning.com (http://www.enchantedlearning.com/biomes/pond/pondlife.shtml)

Click on hyperlink and keep scrolling down for "possible" pond inhabitants.
Not necessarily yours.

[DAWN MARIE]

I've never seen a blind mosquito, do they bite?

No, they don't bite and they don't really bother us as we work around the house. They just infest the house. They're like little gnats or noseeums. I find them on the windowsill inside our enclosed lanai. All the doors and windows are plastered with them. They land on the house and die there so you have to constantly sweep their dead bodies off the house. The more humid the worse they are. They make a mess.

I don't understand how those who live on these ponds can say they don't have these while we do. I wonder why that is. We do have a large pond and are fairly close to the pond so not sure if that's why or not. The pond is beautiful especially in the winter when we don't have the nuisance of these bugs. We have no issue with smell either.

[Barefoot]

Jhrc4 ... I don't think you should be afraid of all ponds. It would be such a shame to miss out on the joys of backing on water. Perhaps when you find a home you like, talk to the neighbors and see what they report.

We have no smells at all from our two retention ponds, whether they have a lot of water or just a bit. And we absolutely love our view, as do our neighbors.

[sueandskip]

We are considering buying a home here in the Villages.

Our question is: Are there or should we have any concerns regarding a purchase of a home that backs up to a Retention Pond? The views are beautiful, but are there any potential negatives we need to be aware of i.e. water , bugs, smells when we have a dry spell, critters etc. ?

We really would appreciate your replies.

Around water is were most sink holes occur !

[senior citizen]

Everyone on our street and the next who are surrounding our very large pond are complaining about the blind mosquitoes. Had no problem the first year. Loved it. Then we were infested and continue to be every year. Our house is pretty much covered from spring to fall. We have to constantly sweep down the house or have our bug company do so. My husband sprays the front door area when we expect company. They get into everything. After the humidity leaves we are fine and we have a little break. They stain the house and decking with their dead bodies plastered to everything. The Villages, from what we understand refuses to spray these ponds.

There are indeed such a thing as blind mosquitos. I believe you.
Mosquitoes swarm Lake County homes | News 13 (http://mynews13.com/content/news/cfnews13/news/article.html/content/news/articles/cfn/2012/3/29/mosquitoes_swarm_lak.html)

[DAWN MARIE]

There are indeed such a thing as blind mosquitos. I believe you.
Mosquitoes swarm Lake County homes | News 13 (http://mynews13.com/content/news/cfnews13/news/article.html/content/news/articles/cfn/2012/3/29/mosquitoes_swarm_lak.html)

Yes, the article is spot on. Thanks for that. My back deck area looked similar to those pillars in the article after we had that big blast of wind last week or so. There were piles of the dead bodies just laying on the concrete and they do stain everything. Power washing is the only answer. But it doesn't last long and it's back to where it was. I love the pond but I'm seriously thinking it's not worth it right now.

[mulligan]

Above ground water has very little to do with sinkholes. They are a function of the geological structure underground, and the erosion of that structure by groundwater.

[senior citizen]

Yes, the article is spot on. Thanks for that. My back deck area looked similar to those pillars in the article after we had that big blast of wind last week or so. There were piles of the dead bodies just laying on the concrete and they do stain everything. Power washing is the only answer. But it doesn't last long and it's back to where it was. I love the pond but I'm seriously thinking it's not worth it right now.

At least they don't bite. But it does sound like they stain and surely look like a mess. We also looked online at a home which had a pond of some sort in the back............huge back space and the other homes were far off in the distance. Not a golf course lot, but plenty of space without paying the golf course prices..........however, I ALSO wondered about why people kept telling me not to buy "near water"........so, I did the research for you and for my own curiosity. It's a dilemma for sure. My hubby loves to power wash everything. I'll send him over.

[senior citizen]

p.s. I just read that they are attracted to light. If you can, keep the outdoor lights off.

When we first moved into our present home in Vermont, we had nothing but woods across the street. It was a cul de sac with only four homes on it. We looked across at trees, wildflowers and mountain views.........

We had an electric bug zapper from our other house (in the same neighborhood) which we kept by the pool out back........so we plugged it in on our front porch in this new home.

We were hearing the "zapping" of the dead electrocuted bugs constantly.........
We finally realized that we were drawing all of the bugs in the forest across the way; species we had never ever seen before............

Once we unplugged the bug zapper, no more bugs. Strange but true.

Where we are in Vermont does not have mosquitos but some parts have black flies in the springtime......we always have had hornets, wasps and bees. Always something.

[DDoug]

gators

[senior citizen]

gators

Meaning in the ponds?
Do they come out and sun themselves close to the house?

I was thinking more like poisonous snakes and rats.

You know, living in Vermont, we are not wimps....however....we have had our own rodent infestation which lasted for years......with hubby doing the have a heart trap routine daily........groundhogs/woodchucks are A LOT BIGGER than any Florida rat species. These were ornery critters who had an entire apartment complex burrowed under our patio shrubs on a hillside. They would come out and sun themselves right in view of my kitchen atrium doors. I worried when our first set of grandbabies would visit and want to crawl around on the grass.....

We finally had backhoes, bulldozer, cat's, etc. excavate and removed all the huge old shrubs and tree stumps, etc......destroying their habitat.....replaced the patio with a trex deck across back of house. Haven't seen any in several years now.

Between you and I, I think that by "feeding them inside the trap" we actually lured all the ones in the neighborhood down to our yard.....not just the ones who lived underground by our house..........they loved apples, tomatoes, peanut butter and when nothing else was available they also ate chocolate chip cookies........they were not fussy. My husband was aware that they could have rabies.......so he would use a long stick and had a string on the cage just in case he caught a skunk.......every night after work he had to make the trip to the "edge of town" to leave them off in a forested area...........in other words, "relocation"......oh, he also covered the trunk of the car with protective material and put a towel over the cage..........as they would GROWL at him.

Finally, after a few years of this, the siege was over.
I just don't want to go through it again........

We even had cousins in New Jersey who told us that a "farmer had told him" that these groundhogs always find their way back.......he thought all of ours were the same one. But I had taken pictures of all them, daily, and they were all different colors, ages, sizes.....and orneriness. It was a huge family and all the neighbor groundhogs/woodchucks as well.

[graciegirl]

Everywhere today are those little helicoptors; Dragonflys.

They don't hurt anything and are frequently found as symbols of pretty bugs.

They are flying everywhere, not just near ponds.

We are having a lot of rain the last couple of days, the dregs of the defunct Tropical Storm Karen.

Very apt name for a storm. I have at least ten friends named Karen. They are very much not defunct.

[mulligan]

? ?? Sorry G, misread post. Not enough coffee.

[senior citizen]

Everywhere today are those little helicoptors; Dragonflys.

They don't hurt anything and are frequently found as symbols of pretty bugs.

They are flying everywhere, not just near ponds.

We are having a lot of rain the last couple of days, the dregs of the defunct Tropical Storm Karen.

Very apt name for a storm. I have at least ten friends named Karen. They are very much not defunct.

People aren't normally afraid of dragonflies........but they are afraid of insects that bite and carry disease......luckily, those "midges" or "blind mosquitos" apparently do neither.......so that is GOOD.

Mosquitos are another story. We were at Disney once and all the high end resorts "on the premises" had their pools shut down due to what they now call TRIPLE "E" which is Eastern Equine Encephalitis..........and can be very dangerous and even fatal in the elderly.

That same trip, in September, Disney was covered in LOVE BUGS.....all over the paths.........everywhere.

Every place has something. New England coastal residents and visitors have to be concerned with WEST NILE VIRUS among other things.........and LYME DISEASE......from ticks.