Archive for June 2007

Pond Liner Installation Guideline - Basic Tips

15/06/2007 by info.

POND PLANNING AND CONSTRUCTION DETAILS - Basic tips
The installation of any pond liner should be a fairly straightforward procedure provided these simple rules are followed:


 Planning:
This is the most important part of pond building and one that can save a lot of  time, effort and expense, so don’t rush it.
Decide where the pond is to be sited, ideally a level site that receives at least half-a-days sunlight and is not crossed by buried pipes or cables. Also check the availability of electricity and the cost of running pumps, lights etc.
The only limit to the size of the liner is how much you can afford. The use of a length of rope or garden hose laid out in the proposed shape of your pond should help you decide what is right for your site.
The depth of the pond should be a minimum of 18” and generally speaking the deeper, the better as this helps maintain a more stable temperature and avoids complete freezing in winter.
 

Excavation:

When digging the pond try to ensure a slope of 15 degrees (3” in for every 9” down) on all sides and incorporate shelves at different depths to accommodate the needs of various aquatic plants.
Make sure the top of the pond is level, that all sharp objects are removed and that there are no roots that may grow and penetrate the liner.  It is a good idea to line the pond with FLP pond liner underlay (available from your retailer) as an added precaution against damage to the liner.
 

Liner Installation: Now that the excavation is finished the liner can be draped evenly over the hole and allowed to settle into the contours of the pond, keeping an even overlap on all sides.
 The next step is to push the liner roughly into place and check that there is sufficient overlap on all sides at the top of the pond.
 

Now begin to fill the pond and as the weight of water pushes the liner into the pond, ease out any small wrinkles and neatly pleat any larger folds. When the pond is full, leave for at least 48 hours before finishing around the top edges (this is to ensure that the liner has not been damaged during installation). 

The pond may now be finished off in the manner chosen.  A few of the more popular methods of edging have been illustrated below, but if cement is used, any that will come into contact with the water must be neutralised with an appropriate sealant. (Ask your aquatic dealer for the information). Ensure that paving slabs overlay the pond by at least 2” to hide and protect the edge of the liner. 

General:Always keep the water level right up to the top. This will require topping up in the summer as evaporation can reduce levels by several inches in a very short time. 

A liner that is exposed to the elements will have a shorter life and be more prone to mechanical damage. Take care when cleaning the pond, or retrieving objects that have dropped into it, that you avoid puncturing the liner by the use of sharp implements (garden fork, rakes, sticks etc).
 

Finishing:

Here a firm edge has been made behind the liner at the top to give a firm, level edge for the paving slab. Make sure any gaps between the bricks are packed with sand. This method will hide the top of the liner, but make sure that the bricks used are suitable for the purpose. All mortar must be sealed. 

To achieve a gravel ‘beach’ type area, a small ridge should be made below the water level to stop the gravel from rolling to the bottom of the pond. This system is ideal for wildlife ponds giving easy entry and exit to the water, while protecting the liner from damage. Again a layer of FLP pond liner underlay between the gravel and liner is required. A rockery that goes right into the water can be achieved by this method.  There must be adequate protection under the rock to avoid damage to the liner, a layer of FLP protective underlay between rocks and liner is recommended

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Pond Liner Selection - Confused ?

15/06/2007 by info.

There are a multitude of pond lining materials currently available on the UK market which include Butyl Rubber, Firestone Pond Liner, PVC, Greenseal Rubber, EPDM,PVC,LDPE AND HDPE. Each offering it’s own unique composition and in some cases, restrictive or limited use dependent upon the type of application required.The correct choice of material and quality is therefore  extremely important from the outset,as the wrong product or inferior quality could prove to be only a short-term,uneconomical and costly solution should a problem arise.

These days,as with most manufactured products, a material is often “renamed or rebranded” by a distributor or retailer to either promote their own logo / brand or  protect the manufacturing source.   i.e Firestone Pond Liner is manufactured by Firestone Building Products USA,it is also marketed and distributed throughout the UK under the Aqualast and Aquacare Rubber brand names amongst others.

WARNING: To the layman, this can sometimes be a little confusing when seeking a suitable pond liner. Unfortunately there are certain retailers throughout the UK that deem in necessary to misrepresent or mislead the general public as to the actual type of material on offer, at the expense of the customer i.e

Aqualast Butyl Rubber  - No such material

Firestone Butyl Rubber - No such material

Firestone Aqualast Butyl - No such material

These are 2 completely different material compositions (butyl and EPDM) misrepresented. An EPDM (synthetic rubber) being sold a a Butyl.

Authentic Butyl Rubber is also known as  Swedish Butyl Rubber or Varnamo Trelleborg Butyl Rubber - the appearance of the material has a slightly “embossed” or “textured” surface. If you have recently purchased a Swedish Butyl Rubber material which is “smooth” in appearance - note this IS NOT Butyl Rubber !

Aqualast Rubber / Aquacare Rubber or Firestone Pond Liner - this product has a totally smooth surface appearance also the material composition is an EPDM (synthetic rubber NOT butyl). Firestone Rubber Pond Liner is a truely exceptional high quality material - but do not be misled that you are purchasing Butyl Rubber but are actually purchasing a (synthetic rubber) EPDM material. 

What clouds the selection process further, are products that are promoted using a similar sounding brand name to Butyl Rubber which IS NOT a Butyl Rubber but an EPDM - to the layman this could be confusing since the material name makes a reference to butyl in it’s name, which is clever marketing ploy - but at the end of the day is still not Swedish Butyl Rubber which the customer ends up thinking they have purchased.

There are new types of EPDM materials entering the UK market which look and feel exactly like Butyl Rubber   i.e has a slightly “embossed” or “textured” surface. As a general rule of thumb EPDM displays a more “elastic”characteristic than Swedish Butyl Rubber.When purchasing Butyl Rubber ensure that it is proper Swedish Butyl Rubber manufactured by Varnamo / Trelleborg Sweden.

There are also numerous brands of PVC liners offered, varying in both grade and quality. If possible, it is always best to examine the material prior to purchase as you could end up with a product no better than a dustbin liner or a very shiney material that is both cosmetically displeasing and not easy to work with.

Tips:   In order to safeguard against the possibility of being sold inferior quality or misrepresented materials we reccomend;

If not pressed for time - request product samples from a few retailers to compare both the quality and inspect any deviation between the appearance and characteristics of the material on offer.

If buying direct, request the retailer confirms the exact type of material purchased and if possible the name of the manufacturer.This should be recorded on your receipt.

Ponds are both time consuming and costly to construct and can prove to be very expensive if the initial material selected was inferior or not designed for the application intended.

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Pond Planning & Installation Guidelines

08/06/2007 by info.

POND PLANNING AND CONSTRUCTION DETAILS
 

The installation of your new FLP pond liner should be a straightforward procedure provided these simple rules are followed:
 

Planning:
 

This is the most important part of pond building and one that can save a lot of  time, effort and expense, so don’t rush it.
 

Decide where the pond is to be sited, ideally a level site that receives at least half-a-days sunlight and is not crossed by buried pipes or cables. Also check the availability of electricity and the cost of running pumps, lights etc.
 

The only limit to the size of the liner is how much you can afford. The use of a length of rope or garden hose laid out in the proposed shape of your pond should help you decide what is right for your site.
 

The depth of the pond should be a minimum of 18” and generally speaking the deeper, the better as this helps maintain a more stable temperature and avoids complete freezing in winter.
 

Excavation:
 

When digging the pond try to ensure a slope of 15 degrees (3” in for every 9” down) on all sides and incorporate shelves at different depths to accommodate the needs of various aquatic plants.
 

Make sure the top of the pond is level, that all sharp objects are removed and that there are no roots that may grow and penetrate the liner.  It is a good idea to line the pond with FLP pond liner underlay (available from your retailer) as an added precaution against damage to the liner.
 

Liner Installation:
 

Now that the excavation is finished the liner can be draped evenly over the hole and allowed to settle into the contours of the pond, keeping an even overlap on all sides.
 

The next step is to push the liner roughly into place and check that there is sufficient overlap on all sides at the top of the pond.
 

Now begin to fill the pond and as the weight of water pushes the liner into the pond, ease out any small wrinkles and neatly pleat any larger folds. When the pond is full, leave for at least 48 hours before finishing around the top edges (this is to ensure that the liner has not been damaged during installation).
 

The pond may now be finished off in the manner chosen.  A few of the more popular methods of edging have been illustrated below, but if cement is used, any that will come into contact with the water must be neutralised with an appropriate sealant. (Ask your aquatic dealer for the information).
 

Ensure that paving slabs overlay the pond by at least 2” to hide and protect the edge of the liner.
 

General:
 

Always keep the water level right up to the top. This will require topping up in the summer as evaporation can reduce levels by several inches in a very short time.
 

A liner that is exposed to the elements will have a shorter life and be more prone to mechanical damage.
 

Take care when cleaning the pond, or retrieving objects that have dropped into it, that you avoid puncturing the liner by the use of sharp implements (garden fork, rakes, sticks etc).
 

 

Finishing:
 

Here a firm edge has been made behind the liner at the top to give a firm, level edge for the paving slab. Make sure any gaps between the bricks are packed with sand.
 

This method will hide the top of the liner, but make sure that the bricks used are suitable for the purpose. All mortar must be sealed.
 

To achieve a gravel ‘beach’ type area, a small ridge should be made below the water level to stop the gravel from rolling to the bottom of the pond. This system is ideal for wildlife ponds giving easy entry and exit to the water, while protecting the liner from damage. Again a layer of FLP pond liner underlay between the gravel and liner is required.
 

A rockery that goes right into the water can be achieved by this method.  There must be adequate protection under the rock to avoid damage to the liner, a layer of FLP protective underlay between rocks and liner is recommended.

Posted in Pond Liners | Print | No Comments »

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