New to the forum, had a pond for 10-15 years. Time to overhaul

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Hello, everyone. I'm new to this forum, but have had a tiny "garden pond" beside my home for years. It was professionally built (about 10' X 20'). I've been through various algae crisis, dead fish, predators, etc. But in GENERAL, we've been pleased with our pond. However, it's developed a leak, our plants have overtaken nearly the entire pond, and it's time to overhaul it. Moreover, we're interested in lengthening the pond anyway, and maybe adding some features.

First question: We're about to order a new liner and underlayment online. We've been using charts for calculating liner sizes, etc, and feel ready to order. One worry remains: Which liner to choose?

We THINK we want Firestone 45 mil EPDM material. But we see lower prices on "Carlisle" brand liner, also described as 45 mil. Is there any reason to stick with Firestone? Are we wise to stay with 45 mil? (We are too old for constant headaches and maintenance issues, and want to make this pond as easy to manage as possible).

Thanks in advance!
 
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Welcome to the GPF @Lump !

Yes to the 45 mil EPDM. And not sure on the importance of the brand name - I have no idea what type we have, as my husband was the general purchaser for our pond build, but someone here will surely know the answer!

Post some pictures of your pond - we love to see ponds!
 

addy1

water gardener / gold fish and shubunkins
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Welcome to our group! Start a construction thread and we will follow along as you work! And of course offer couch advice.
 
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Thanks, everyone! It's great to correspond with other people who have gone through the same joys and miseries as I have. Per the suggestion of Lisak1, I will add some photos of my pond in it's current "Before" state. First is a photo of my oldest grandson helping his Mammaw clean out leaves and debris. Photo is about 10 years old...
 

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Next is a photo from today. The plants have overgrown everything. That's the bad news. But the good news is that the huge amount of plants seems to be using all the nitrogen and/or other fertilizers in the pond. We haven't had to treat for string algae in a few years.
 

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After reading your advice, I ordered a new Firestone 45 mil EPDM liner on eBay, and an underlayment on Amazon. I plan to completely rebuild/replace this pond next week....hopefully.
 
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LOL. Well, yes, we DID have seven nice goldfish and a bluegill or two. But after two years being safely in this little pond, about 2 months ago some kind of predator ate all the goldfish but one. Body parts were scattered all over our deck. But the one remaining goldfish and at least one bluegill seem to be doing fine.
 
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Welcome to our group! Start a construction thread and we will follow along as you work! And of course offer couch advice.
Great idea. I will indeed start a separate thread, and show my step-by-step efforts. In fact, I should start right away, showing my ideas and discussing my plans. I will REALLY need everyone's advice and experience along the way!!
 

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