Expanding pond: pre-formed or liner?

That pond would take a long time to dig by hand, especially if it's just you working on it. But if you rent a machine, by the time you learn how to operate the machine and get the pond dug, you'll probably have spent as much money as you would to just hire a landscaper to come dig the hole for you. If you have money to spend, a landscaper is the way to go. They may also install the liner for you, but that costs extra and is fairly easy to do yourself. Call around and get some quotes.

If you're strapped for cash, like me, you might be better off bribing your friends to come help you dig with promises of a grill out. Just be sure there are enough shovels to go around!
 
^lazy man. Get the shovel it's good for your heart.

Seriously though it depends on the soil. If it is very rocky or very heavy clay, go and rent the equipment. If it's sandy or more of a loam a shovel will do just fine. Last time I was traveling around GA I noticed that the soil was mostly quite sandy so I figure you should be fine with a shovel.

Some of you might ask what kind of weirdo travels around noticing soil types. I work in agricultural research. It's a hazard of the job. I'm even worse in grocery stores.
 
LOL. I've done a lot of digging in the rocky clay soils we have up here in middle Tennessee, and it's not a lot of fun; on at least one occasion I and and another man, both armed with pickaxes, took the better part of an hour to plant a single tree with a 3' X 3' rootball. It can be more like mining than digging. At least some of Georgia has similar soils; Georgia red clay is famous.

But if you're lucky enough to be in a sandy area, then yeah, you can scoop it out with little difficulty.

Whatever you do, do it soon. You don't want to be digging in the South in the summertime if you can help it, especially if this summer is much like last summer. 110 F and muggy is brutal when you're just standing still.
 
well the strange thing about my backyard is the top layer could be considered a bit sandy, loose, or soft but dig about a foot or more under and you hit the infamous georgia red clay. the previous 1000g would-be pond took nearly a month to build, i had already had the shape dug in the ground (more of a rectangle) so all i had to do then was increase the depth (sounds waaay easier than it really is-blisters galore). I can't wait to start :) plus a little exercise wouldnt hurt me :P
 
I went the route of having some friends over and bribed them with booze and food. We finished the dig at 13'x8' by 3'deep at about 5,000 gallons.

Now the fun and challenge of finding a 21'x26' liner to cover it.

Getting excited about it and I am working on rockwork, landscaping, etc. It's a lot of digging but worth the effort. Good exercise.

Rob
 
Id go get a pond book. They have tips and lots of pictures. After I dug mine I seen a few in a book and wish I would have them them before. You can also search online for forums dedicated to ponds only. Search "pond forum" or "watergarden forum". Good luck.
 
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