What kind of liner?

[Lillyspad]

I currently have a small preformed pond with goldfish only.
I'm am thinking of making it a little bigger maybe double or less. Its one of the small kidney shaped ponds like Lowes sells. not sure of the size.
Anyway, since its a small pond and gold fish only and I'm on a tiny budget
would it be ok to use roofing rubber OR pvc liner.
I don't need it to last 20 yrs because I'll probably be redoing it every few years.
I will probably remove the preformed.
I'm thinking I may need an 8 x 10 liner if I go less than 2' deep and approx.
5-6 feet wide. The epdm liners are over my budget.
I also have greenhouse plastic that is suppose to be strong and durable for weather conditions. Wondering if I could possibly use that or would it not be fish safe.
Ideas would be welcome.

 

[sissy]

you can get 30 mil also but with the size you want you are going to need a bigger liner than 8x10 .I have a 10x10 and it cost 29 dollars when I bought it .Check out places like northern tool or ebay .Green house plastic is usually only 3 mil or 6 mil thick .I have seen them use it but they only get maybe 2 or 3 years out of it in heat .Lowes and other places sell liners and even Walmart sells them online .I have found smaller liners here everywhere .Even dr foster and smith have smaller liners .How much is your budget for one

 

[sissy]

If you want you can also buy real cheap billboard sign pond liners .You can get them for less than 30 dollars .Just google www.billboardtarps.com

 

[Lillyspad]

If you want you can also buy real cheap billboard sign pond liners .You can get them for less than 30 dollars .Just google www.billboardtarps.com

wow, thanks for that...
I would love to find something for less than 40 or 50 and have yet to find anything less than 80 for a 10 x 15 liner.

 

[Lillyspad]

you can get 30 mil also but with the size you want you are going to need a bigger liner than 8x10 .I have a 10x10 and it cost 29 dollars when I bought it .Check out places like northern tool or ebay .Green house plastic is usually only 3 mil or 6 mil thick .I have seen them use it but they only get maybe 2 or 3 years out of it in heat .Lowes and other places sell liners and even Walmart sells them online .I have found smaller liners here everywhere .Even dr foster and smith have smaller liners .How much is your budget for one

so what mil thickness do I need.. Is 13 mil good?

 

[sissy]

13 mil should be good for about 4 or 5 years as long as it is protected from the sun and rocks ..Those tarp liners are bigger than what you want but for 25 dollars they are not bad .I bought one to use to keep things dry that I had store here and 3 years exposed to the sun and it has not leaked yet .They are what all those signs on the side of the road are made of and they go through a beating ,If you have any roofing companies there contact them and ask if they have small pieces left from jobs they do .I just got a small one for 5 dollars for the pond at my other house .Wanted to put a liner under the filter tank there too

 

[morewater]

Get a proper liner. A 45mil EPDM will last for about 20 years.

There's nothing worse than having to tear a liner out of the ground. It's dirty, it's stinky.....and in the end you'll have to buy yourself a proper liner anyway.

Or, if you don't learn from your first mistake.....

"Those who don't learn from the past are doomed to repeat it." Do it right....or don't do it.

Just my opinion, but I'm sticking to it.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

would it be ok to use roofing rubber OR pvc liner.
I don't need it to last 20 yrs because I'll probably be redoing it every few years.
I'm thinking I may need an 8 x 10 liner if I go less than 2' deep and approx.
5-6 feet wide. The epdm liners are over my budget.

I used a 14x14 PVC liner in my pond. I got it for $30 last Spring at Menards. It was a heck of a deal and is still in great shape. I don't know the longevity of it (i expect it to be 10 or less) but for that price I couldn't pass it up. I can understand epdm for large ponds because that is something no one would want to redo, but for a small pond like mine or what you want, I see no problem with pvc.

Get a proper liner. A 45mil EPDM will last for about 20 years.

Easier said than done. Not everyone can afford the extra cost of an EPDM liner, and as @Lillyspad said, its not in the budget. A liner that lasts 5 or 10 years is also a liner that provides a pond for 5 or 10 years until a better liner can be purchased.

 

[sissy]

Thing is lily pad said they plan on changing it every couple of years so no harm done if they buy a cheaper liner now .Do what your budget allows and if you know you are going to change it out any way no harm done .Plus most times we are changing something in our ponds .