Guess who is out having fun? (It's ME!) Planning wildlife pond for backyard

[Lisak1]

Now you're talking my language - haha! Or put the price you THOUGHT it would be on the card and pay the rest in cash. Ah marriage... full of mystery!

 

[bagsmom]

We refer to it as The Veil of Mystery. Most often used in conversations about "earthy" topics like gas: "Oh my gosh, 20 years ago, you wouldn't have DREAMED of doing that in front of me! I want the Veil of Mystery back!"

 

[Ronfire]

When I worked with my liner I unfolded the liner on the flat lawn then refolded it to the center. Once you have it in the center of the pond unroll it to both ends then unfold from the center. Seamed to work well for my pond with strait sides. If you need to try and carry the liner put it on a piece of underlay, you can then grab a handfull of material to drag or carry with lots of help.

 

[Lisak1]

We had one big piece of liner, so our went in from one end and got unrolled to the other. We were lucky that it didn't require a whole lot of shifting once it was in place. We had five people doing the actual lifting and unrolling with me saying "WOW you guys are doing GREAT!" This was after I spent about 5 minutes explaining how you put a pie crust into a pie pan and they all stared at me with blank faces. Then I said "just do whatever you think will work!" Hence the great unrolling.

Whatever works is my motto!

 

[bagsmom]

Yes! Pie crust!!!!!
I've come up with a good idea. Right now I have two enormous pieces of plastic covering the pond excavation, so it doesn't dry out too much between work sessions. Once Georgia red clay dries, it's like concrete. When I'm totally done digging, I can put the plastic in exactly like I would my EPDM. I can tape the two pieces together. When I take it out, I can measure the piece of plastic. That will give me a template and an accurate measurement. I'm always one to overestimate, just in case. But in this situation, I don't want to pay for more product than I need. And I don't want it to be heavier than it needs to be. So we will see what size that turns out to be!

 

[Ronfire]

Do not cut the liner in shape untill it has been filled and settle in for a bit. Then leave extra and fold it in around the edge. Caefull of the folding you can leak water if a fold goes sideways and low, mine did.

 

[bagsmom]

Do not cut the liner in shape untill it has been filled and settle in for a bit. Then leave extra and fold it in around the edge. Caefull of the folding you can leak water if a fold goes sideways and low, mine did.

Oh yes, if anything, I'm paranoid about that. When I did the first pond out front, I left a lot of extra! I just folded it over and under and buried it.

 

[herzausstahl]

Oh yes, if anything, I'm paranoid about that. When I did the first pond out front, I left a lot of extra! I just folded it over and under and buried it.

What size liner do you think you need?

 

[herzausstahl]

Oh yes, if anything, I'm paranoid about that. When I did the first pond out front, I left a lot of extra! I just folded it over and under and buried it.

Wanna say I’ve had a 20’x25’ and moved it myself lol can’t picture a liner weighing 500lbs

 

[bagsmom]

Wanna say I’ve had a 20’x25’ and moved it myself lol can’t picture a liner weighing 500lbs

Keep in mind I've overestimated, but I'm thinking 35 x 50. Webb's has the weight listed.

 

[bagsmom]

That's if I go with one single liner. I was dumb in how I arranged my intake bay, bog, and main pond on a diagonal. (Bangs head against a wall repeatedly...) When I'm all done digging, I will measure again and see how it would work if I did the bog liner separate.

 

[herzausstahl]

Keep in mind I've overestimated, but I'm thinking 35 x 50. Webb's has the weight listed.

Now that weight at that size sounds right

 

[GBBUDD]

Wanna say I’ve had a 20’x25’ and moved it myself lol can’t picture a liner weighing 500lbs

my liner was 750 pounds if memory serves me it was 30'x35'

 

[j.w]

Reminds me of that show "My 600 pound life". I see what it takes to move a person that big!
You need firemen muscle's

 

[bagsmom]

Ok folks. Back to the drawing board... or the digging hole. After some serious household tension over money, I almost abandoned the pond idea again. But then I decided - no. I gave Mr. Money the opportunity for me to switch gears a while back and he insisted I go for it. I have, however, been trying to think about ways to make it all more do-able. Especially financially. The size of the liner (required by the orientation of the pond) was going to add so much cost and hassle. Having a ginormous liner meant extra cost up front, extra shipping, lift gate charge, rental of equipment to move, and possibly paying people to help. (Or cost of surgery to repair a hernia.) I stared out the window a long time and decided to move the intake bay from the lower left corner to the lower center. That will allow me to do it with two pieces of liner, which will be much easier to move. I still don't have exact measurements, but I am reasonably sure this will simplify things a bit and will at least save the cost of renting a piece of equipment. Rather than buying a giant, heavy liner 40 x 50 (for example) I'll be able to get a rolled piece that's 25 x 50 and a piece for the bog that's 15 x 20. (Again, I'm just guessing for the sake of explanation.).
This means going out and digging a new intake bay - but that's ok. At this point, with Fall around the corner, I will probably wait till the autumn leaves are are down and cleaned up before continuing work - so there's no hurry. Not to mention I still have to save a good bit of money!