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Margaritaville (I've Bought A Golf-Course!)

SteveO

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One lake is filled with a very soft and brittle rooted aquatic plant. I have not identified it yet. The other has no visible algae on top. Have not lowered the water enough to get a visual yet but will do so in the future.

My well guy told me not to put any filters before the pumps. His recommendation is to insure the area around the intake is clean. That water curtain may work. I do want to try the vacuum that they are making.

We have algae eating fish in the lakes now. They die pretty easily though.

I am looking at ways to keep the fertilizers out of the water. I also need to add aerators. Algae removal is a long slow process to do it right @marklov , @biophase , @jon.a
 
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Bouncing Soul

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I used to be big in to salt water reef tanks, and controlling macroalgae was always a concern.

You need to get the phosphates and other pollutants out of the water or controlled. There are multiple ways to do this, as a reef owner I had to use iron based materials as the copper based ones kill corals, but you can use them, and in fact they're good for helping keep your fish parasite free at the right concentration-

http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/plants/algae/lakes/ControlOptions.html

http://www.coppersulfatecrystals.com/algae2.html

Also, testing water for phosphates is pretty cheap and easy, get a kit if you choose to treat, no sense wasting material.
 
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SteveO

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Thanks guys. You better believe that I am looking into this. I already have copper sulfate. I need to see the inlets on one of the lakes before I take any action. The other is under control.

The water in both of these lakes are in constant motion. The wells are pumping constantly. We also have reclaimed water that is pumped in. Water is pumped from these lakes to a number of others and distributed to the irrigation.

There is a lot of plant debris that needs to be cleaned up as well.

I want to fully understand all of the dynamics before I start throwing chemicals at it.
 
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wilddog

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My well guy told me not to put any filters before the pumps. His recommendation is to insure the area around the intake is clean. That water curtain may work. I do want to try the vacuum that they are making.

Smart man, hold onto him. If you put a filter before the pump and it plugs, your pump would overspeed and require replacement/rebuild.

My experience is a Preventative Maintenance(PM) schedule is the key to success. Use a large board that schedules what day of the week/month a PM activity needs to be done. Placing the board in the employee area also holds everyone accountable since they can all see what PM items are due that week.

Very exciting to see you essentially create your own operations and operating procedures on the fly. Thank you for letting us watch this unfold!
 

MJ DeMarco

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Very exciting to see you essentially create your own operations and operating procedures on the fly.

Yup, and who would have thought there would be people on this forum who have expertise in lake algae? And could offer possible solutions? I would have never guessed.
 

biophase

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Steve,

Bales of straw can also control algae in ponds, but it sounds like you don't have algae but have more of a mechanical debris problem from years of neglect. What I was thinking was that you could move your water intake to the center of the pond. I'm guessing it sucks from near the bottom and one of the sides now? I guess you'd need to figure out where the water is the cleanest and attempt to put the inlet there.

Is the water clear, or is there muck floating around all the time because the water is moving so much?
 
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wilddog

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I think it's also important to note that algae are plants. So if you put anything into the water to kill the algae, it will inevitably end up on your grass. ;)
 

LeftBench

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Loving the updates and I admire all your hard work. Keep it up SteveO!
 

SteveO

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Steve,

Bales of straw can also control algae in ponds, but it sounds like you don't have algae but have more of a mechanical debris problem from years of neglect. What I was thinking was that you could move your water intake to the center of the pond. I'm guessing it sucks from near the bottom and one of the sides now? I guess you'd need to figure out where the water is the cleanest and attempt to put the inlet there.

Is the water clear, or is there muck floating around all the time because the water is moving so much?

The answer depends on which lake. One of them is clear. I actually dropped the level of one of them and began a cleanup process. I floated out into the lake with a probe and found the well inlet. It was in the area of the plant debris we recently cleared. I took six people and we removed the cattail infestation and another ton or so of the aquatic plants.

The good news is that our sprinklers on half the course are now running clean. I still have some work in determining how to minimize the growth but should have months to figure this out.

The other lake appears clean. The current assumption is that there is algae on the bottom of the lake that has built up around the inlet and is free-flowing into the well. It is a much larger lake and will be a challenge to assess. It is the next step in the progression though.

If my assumption is correct, I will clean around the inlet so that it is a few feet above the bottom. The solution that I am considering matches the solution that you are proposing. It was originally designed to draw from the center of the lake at the deepest level and above the bottom.
 
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SteveO

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I would like to let everyone know that my intention is not to be working like this. This is part of a business turnaround though. It is a high risk/reward proposition that takes a real effort to set up. There are fundamental issues that need to be addressed. The first step to understanding for me is to get in the middle. I really hoped that I would be able to coach the superintendent and point him in my direction. Once it became apparent that this would not happen, I had to step in to learn.
 

Eskil

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@SteveO - My wife and I were just talking about you the other day. She was asking me if I had heard anything on how you were doing :)
Thanks for sharing the detailed updates! Sounds like a lot of work but a lot of reward coming your way too..

Also;
We also have filled the golf shop with retail items for sale

Some of the members on here (I'm looking at you @Catalyst and @kamanuci ) have golf products - you guys should talk! :)
 

MJ DeMarco

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My new avatar!! Priceless!

screenshot-www thefastlaneforum com 2015-11-24 21-16-06.png
 

luniac

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MV5BMjA2NTY0MTIyNF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMTAwMjQ5._V1_SY317_CR2,0,214,317_AL_.jpg


did this guy show up yet?
 
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CPisHere

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What a fantastic thread!

SteveO, how did you get the capital to get started with apartments? And what made you venture outside your comfort zone to a, seemingly more risky, golf course?
 

SteveO

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What a fantastic thread!

SteveO, how did you get the capital to get started with apartments? And what made you venture outside your comfort zone to a, seemingly more risky, golf course?
Mostly borrowed against my house to get started with a fourplex.

The golf course did not feel risky to me. I bought plenty of apartments that were losing money and needed capital injections. This felt on par. :)
 
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SteveO

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What a fantastic thread!

SteveO, how did you get the capital to get started with apartments? And what made you venture outside your comfort zone to a, seemingly more risky, golf course?

Btw... I lost 10m one time and had nothing left. No credit, no money. But I found a way to bounce back. During that process, I figured out how to cast fear aside.
 

GrayCode

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Mostly borrowed against my house to get started with a fourplex.

The golf course did not feel risky to me. I bought plenty of apartments that were losing money and needed capital injections. This felt on par. :)
Pun...Or...No pun intended on the par comment after speaking of golf courses?;)
 
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SteveO

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Just to put that into some perspective, it was only like 3 years ago right? maybe 4?
The losing process started about 7 years ago. It felt like a rapid process but it took a few years. The bounceback started 5 years ago before the losing process was completed.
 
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phenom4hire

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Man making a comeback at that age (no offense) is impressive given how quickly you seemed to have turned it around. Ive always felt I would rather go into debt or bankrupt at an earlier age so that I would have ample time to recover in case of something disastrous happening. I can assume what caused you to lose so much so fast given the timeframe, but kudos to you for not only jumping back in with both feet but going full speed and still taking risks.

Your lack of fear really helps put the "fastlane" mindset into perspective.
 

jon.a

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Man making a comeback at that age (no offense) is impressive given how quickly you seemed to have turned it around. Ive always felt I would rather go into debt or bankrupt at an earlier age so that I would have ample time to recover in case of something disastrous happening. I can assume what caused you to lose so much so fast given the timeframe, but kudos to you for not only jumping back in with both feet but going full speed and still taking risks.

Your lack of fear really helps put the "fastlane" mindset into perspective.
He's a Marine.
 

phenom4hire

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I guess that explains some of it. I know plenty of soldiers/marines included who aren't that bright so I don't really know what that would have to do with it. Sounds like he just has a good outlook on life and a good head on his shoulders in general.
 
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jon.a

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I guess that explains some of it. I know plenty of soldiers/marines included who aren't that bright so I don't really know what that would have to do with it. Sounds like he just has a good outlook on life and a good head on his shoulders in general.
I understand why you don't understand.
 

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