Hello new member here from TN

[SandyL]

Hello, I have above ground pond pictured here, my original pond was build by me in 2001 made with rail road ties and it need to be replaced so I rebuilt it in 2014 using 4"x6" pressured tread lumber and installed a new liner which now has development a leak which has caused me a problem. I am letting it leak down enough to maybe find the leak. I had thought about forming it up and pour concrete but not sure how I would seal concrete. no money to hire this work out. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. new pond build in 2014. The corners require the liner to be folded multiple times and I really feel that may be where the leak is, a new liner would also have to be folded in order to form to fill in the corners. This is driving me crazy, not knowing how I need to proceed in making these repairs work long term

. Please help.

 

[SandyL]

another picture of my new pond built in 2014

 

[Mmathis]

Hello and welcome. What a cute pond. Do you have any fish?

 

[Lisak1]

Welcome @SandyL - I'm sorry that it's a leaky pond that brings you here! It's very pretty!

First question would be does it leak when the waterfall isn't running? If you turn it off and wait 24 hours does it leak the same amount? You could have a loose connection in your plumbing or water being misdirected.

Next question - can you find a spot that is damp anywhere that it shouldn't be? In your case that should be easy to spot.

You mentioned folds in the liner - they are a necessary evil, but they can also wick water up and out of the pond. Check all the folds to make sure you don't have water finding a fold and tracking it's way out of the pond. Also check to make sure you don't have plant roots re-directing water out of the pond.

Start there and see what you find!

 

[SandyL]

Bio filter and water fall are all in one and the tank is a stock tank, I disconnected the inlet going from the pump into the bio and water fall, no leaks from the take or the fall water, I have since taken down the bio and the water fall and the pond liner is still leaking. I and several people have walked around and around the pond and do not see or feel damp areas and no water is visible outside the pond. Never the less the water is going somewhere. the pond has leaked down by 1/2 in a week and half. I make note daily and she's still going down.

 

[SandyL]

Hello and welcome. What a cute pond. Do you have any fish?

Thank You. Yes I have 20 fish, Fan tails, shubunkins, and goldfish. No koi, did have several years ago but they had to find a new home, they got to big for my little pond.

 

[j.w]

@SandyL

 

[Mmathis]

@SandyL When you say it’s leaked down by “1/2 in a week,” do you mean 1/2 of the pond’s volume, or 1/2 inch? That’s a lot of water if you mean 1/2 of the pond’s volume! It sure seems like you would see evidence of that water going somewhere! Obviously, that’s too much water to lose due to evaporation. And when did you first notice the leak?

 

[addy1]

Welcome to our group!

Agree with Mmathis, 1/2 a inch is nothing, 1/2 the volume of the pond is bad.

 

[Lisak1]

leaked down by 1/2 in a week and half.

I'm with the others - hopefully you mean "1/2 inch in a week and a half". That could easily be evaporation. If you mean literally half the pond volume, then that's a different story.

 

[SandyL]

Welcome to our group!

Agree with Mmathis, 1/2 a inch is nothing, 1/2 the volume of the pond is bad.

it's gone down 1/2 the total volume. noticed it going down about 10 or 12 days ago. I make note of it daily and its going down 1/2 inch from afternoon to next morning.

 

[Mmathis]

@SandyL I’m still not clear. Are you refilling it, or letting it empty? If you leave it alone, the leaking will eventually stop wherever the leak is, which is a good way to find it.

How deep is your pond?

 

[SandyL]

@SandyL I’m still not clear. Are you refilling it, or letting it empty? If you leave it alone, the leaking will eventually stop wherever the leak is, which is a good way to find it.

How deep is your pond?

Yes I am letting / hoping it will stop at the leak. My fish are still in the pond at this point, as cool as it is here they should be fine. Not new to ponding as my first pond was build by me in I think it was 2001, same design but about 2 foot shorter in length.then this pond. My sister in-law can accommodate my 20 fish in her pond when the time comes. I have ordered a patch kit to have when it gets to low for my fish. My sister in-law just lives down the road from me. My above ground pond is probably 28 inches deep. Still debating on ordering a new liner.

 

[Mmathis]

Oh my, so your pond is currently at 14” deep (down from 28”) and still losing water! That doesn’t sound good at all. You might want to go ahead and consider moving your fish if that is an option for you. I wouldn’t wait until you walk out one day and find them cold and flopping around on the bottom of a dry pond. Math is not my “thing” (despite my name, LOL), but if you’re losing water at that rate, it won’t be too long before that happens. Then you could remove the liner and start over — since you’re already considering this, I would say new liner over patching old one.

And continue to search for some wet spots as that water has to be going somewhere, and knowing where the leak is would be good to know to prevent future problems.

What kind of liner do you have right now? Do you have padding or some kind of underlayment down under the liner?

 

[JamieB]

Welcome. I keep a couple of kiddie pools just in case, it works well as a quarantine tank, emergency holding tank.