Expanding pond: pre-formed or liner?

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M

mtiller

wolf-pac
Jun 29, 2005
394
0
0
Georgia, United States
Hi,
After visiting this store (Atlanta Water Gardens) and seeing the beautiful ponds and fish on display, my mom was finally willing to allow me to install a bigger pond. (I was in the process of making a 1000g+ pond but when I went to FL on vacation she filled it with dirt for a garden :mad2: so I've been stuck with too many fish in a too small pre-formed pond) Would buying pond liner be a better choice or a pre-formed pond? What would the ideal size be for 8 fish? (I'm not able to create anything larger than 1200+g now I think.)

(I do realize that overstocking tanks/ponds/etc, is wrong, and I had done so while I was inexperienced. Right now I feel that I am able to fix this problem, and am dedicated to do so. Also as I stated, my mother has given me the green light. So please work with me, instead of against me on this. :help:)
 
DAVIDFBT

DAVIDFBT

Extinct? Since when?
Feb 3, 2008
3,584
0
0
30
Great Lakes, Illinois
Real Name
Definitely not David
assuming 6 goldfish and 2 koi, then I would say minimum of a 350 gallon pond, but 400 would be better. If you want them to breed, then go for 700.
 
R

Reddog80p

Permanently Dechlor'd
Nov 18, 2006
1,932
0
36
Liner all the way. Many options as far as size and shape, shelves and ledges. Koi will need more than 350 gallons of water. I have 2 my pond is 1500 gallons. You dont have to have a bottom drain.
 
Notophthalmus

Notophthalmus

I put the 'snork' in 'snorkeling'!
Mar 4, 2008
1,977
0
0
Tennessee
Yes, liner is much better for large ponds. There are a lot of different types of liner out there; the inexpensive kinds often break down after a couple of years. Be sure to do your research on the different materials available!

Installing a drain will make your project much much more difficult and expensive, with a minor improvement in convenience. I would skip it unless you have a special reason that you must have one. It is easy enough to drain a pond with a couple of garden hoses.
 
M

mtiller

wolf-pac
Jun 29, 2005
394
0
0
Georgia, United States
ah alright great because I honestly would have no idea what I'd be doing lol. Would you happen to know of any good pond liners to recommend? I've heard about some 45 mil EDPM or something of that nature, but am trying to stick with liner I can pick up locally. I might try and go back to the pond store I visited yesterday and see what brands/types they do carry. How many koi could I get in a pond that's say 13-15ft long x 9-10 ft wide and 3.5-4 feet deep?
 
Notophthalmus

Notophthalmus

I put the 'snork' in 'snorkeling'!
Mar 4, 2008
1,977
0
0
Tennessee
EPDM is probably the best liner you can get; polypropylene is also extremely durable but is supposed to be hard to work with. PVC is the next best; if you go with PVC liner get a thicker sheet (30 mil or greater). Avoid polyethylene; it breaks down in just a couple of years.

I'm not sure how many gallons each koi needs, but that's a 3000-4000 gallon pond, so you can certainly keep several.
 
M

mtiller

wolf-pac
Jun 29, 2005
394
0
0
Georgia, United States
alrite then i'll definitely keep that in mind. now I'm going to start the planning process. I've already done some initial marking (nothing too serious right now, schedule extremely busy this week), so I'll know where to start for when I do begin digging. With a pond that size though, I've been thinking renting a machine of some sort would help speed up the digging process because I can see it taking quite a while hand-digging a pond of those dimensions. any ideas?
 
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