What kind of liner?

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What kind of liner did you use for your pond? I used an old pool liner and have known people that get specially made liners in different colors. I was lucky enough that the pool liner - which was speckled turquoise on one side (which would look silly in a pond!) was very deep blue on the other - almost black. That is the side that is up.
 
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I didn't think you could use a pond liner safely. I thought there were chemicals that would hurt the fish.

I had a neighbor that had a concrete pond. Do people still do that?
 
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Uh-oh. I never heard that about pool liners. What kind of chemicals? Its just a sheet of thick plastic really. Anyway... I've had it for 2 years and nothings happened yet.
 
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I was just told that you weren't suppose to use the pool liners - maybe I read it somewhere. Either way, if it worked for you then I wouldn't worry too much :).

I'm going to go for the heavy plastic on top of a bed of sand. It gives me the most flexibility, the most durability, and the least cost.
 
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Perhaps it has something to do with the pool chemicals leaching into the liner over the years? I'm actually using the dirt-side of the pool liner for the inside of the pool instead of the pool side of it.
 
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I think it had to do with pool liners being treated. But if it's working for you then I wouldn't even let if phase you.

Did you use something under it, other than sand?
 

DrDave

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I used this for my liner: Goodyear EPDM thickness: 45 mil.

It is like the material used in a large truck inner tube. It is thick enough that I don't worry about walking into the pond. it is heavy, and you will have wrinkles. I had to plan around them to keep these out of sight.
 
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A 45 mil liner is ideal. Anything thinner often costs more in repairs and frustration than the few cents you save. Depending on you soil you can get by with fine builder's sand but a true underlayment works much better in the long run. Old carpet is lumpy and newspaper breaks down too quickly and both can cause gas bubbles under the liner. You can use colored liner but black is preferred as colors tend to look bad after a season from algae and buildup. If you have color some people prefer a blue liner. I haven't heard about pool liners but roofing rubber can leach out toxins in the first year. I would not recommend it but IF you go with roofing rubber setup the pond several months before adding fish.
 
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From my past bad experiences, I would never use anything but a true Firestone 45 mil liner (or thicker). I have used the cheaper PVC liners sold at Lowe's and it was very frustrating when they leaked. they tear VERY easily. I went through two of these and finally learned a lesson that they are garbage. The last one I installed in the spring last year and a couple of branches made some serious holes in it during the early winter. That thing didn't even last a year! After getting the Firestone liner, I couldn't believe how much thicker and stretchable it was compared to the PVC. There was absolutely no comparison! I doubt they would have suffered the same damage as the PVC. I don't think they would have even been affected. I also used the official underlayment this time. I wasn't going to fool around this time. My pond is 1500 gallons with 28 fish. So, it's a big hassle to change the liner. I also have tons of rocks surrounding it with a bunch of large rocks for the waterfall.
 

addy1

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I like the ppl36 I bought from bend tarp and liner out of oregon. That stuff is tough! What I really like is it does not get as slippery as the epdm liner. I can walk in it without landing on my butt.
 

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