By: Stephen Drummonsy
Submitted: 2010-10-26 20:18:45 | Word Count: 760
Flexible Liners:
Using a Flexible liner is generally the most satisfactory way of making a pond which is large enough to accommodate numerous aquatic plants and various fish. You should not limited to your range of sizes and shapes of Rigid liners offered in the catalogues and at the garden centres. The transportation and handling is also a lot easier. Price shouldn't be a stumbling block because on an equal area basis, a top quality Flexible liner is no more expensive than a fibreglass Rigid liner.
The only drawback using a Flexible liner is that you can't achieve the perfectly smooth surface and angles that you might find in the pre-formed kind of liner. There'll also be a handful wrinkles, but this should not pose any serious problems.
Plan to start the work during the spring and during a fairly dry spell of weather if you happen to be lucky enough to get one. If the pond is to become permanent try to buy butyl sheeting if you can. It’s the most expensive, but it will easily outlast other types and any tears usually are easily repaired. Where money is an issue choose the best quality PVC liner.
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If you happen to be building a short lived pond for breeding fish or holding the stock when you’re cleaning out a permanent pond then a cheap polythene sheeting is perfectly satisfactory.
One problem which occasionally arises when buying a Flexible liner is that some suppliers use trade names without stating within the catalogue just which construction material has been used. Just remember to ask before buying and ensure you check the length of the guarantee.
Rigid Liners:
Using a Rigid liner is probably the simplest way of creating a small pond . It can be worth considering if you simply need a pond for rearing fish, a little wildlife pond or a mini-pond for some aquatic plants and a couple of Goldfish. It’s also a good way of lining a raised pond.
A lot of experts through the years have warned against the installation of a Rigid liner when you want a well balanced pond for a variety of aquatic plants and a number of other kinds of fish in water which is not going to be green with algae. Until quite recently they were generally correct as there is a good list of drawbacks. The cheaper liners had an unacceptably short life and were often tastelessly coloured. The depths were also generally less than the critical 18 inches and the same old shape was too small and too fussy.
Things have changed quite a bit these days. You will find tough black plastic ponds which includes a long-term guarantee as well as sizes well over 40 sq. ft surface area and depths of a lot more than 18 inches all available and straight forward geometrical shapes are offered alongside the convoluted ones. As well as that they have shelving for Marginals which is a superb improvement. There is even a variety of Rigid liners that have a planting area for Bog plants already built in to them.
When buying your liner ensure that the guarantee runs for a minimum 10 years and choose a dark colour if the construction material is plastic. Make sure the depth is deep enough and remember that a simple shape gives you more surface area for your money than a fussy one.
Concrete Pond:
The standard style of pond which is still regarded by some as being the best is concrete. Concrete continues to be used where a big square or oblong pond is being built, but this is a job for a professional. But it will be possible to make a simple round or oval pond if you've got some experience of working with concrete. Remember that if you do do this yourself you do need to finish the job in one day. When the concrete has dried, paint the surface with a proprietary sealant for instance silglaze before filling the pond with water and stocking it. Raw concrete is harmful for the fish.
Author Resource:-
I spend a great deal of my spare time in my garden but I must admit that most of it is spent either improving my pond or just sitting by it watching the world in water. A lot of my fascination with ponds was created with the help of a gardener london company. They gave me all the help and advice that I needed as and when I asked them for it.
