backyard ponds

Backyard Ponds > Plastic Garden Ponds

Tips For Using Molded Plastic
Garden Ponds Liners

Many homeowners are considering using plastic liners for their garden ponds. They may not be as durable as concrete and fiberglass ponds are. However, they would probably suffice especially if you're only planning on creating a smaller water garden. If that's you'd you'll want to keep reading to discover some valuable tips when building a water feature using plastic garden pond liners.

Choosing your location
The ideal place to set up your pond is where you can easily see and visit it. If you wish to put fish in your plastic garden ponds, be sure to pick out an area that is not too near the trees. Otherwise, fallen leaves will make pond maintenance a bit difficult and more time consuming than it needs to be.

Choosing your liner
Plastic pond liners may come in preformed or flexible designs. Preformed plastic liners are generally durable and they are made of high-density polyethylene. They come in a wide range of shapes and sizes giving consumers a variety of designs for plastic garden ponds. On the other hand, flexible liners made of plastic are very lightweight. They resemble rubber liners in terms of flexibility. Flexible plastic liners are ideal for building large ponds. They also work great especially if you have a unique pond shape design in mind.

Here's How to Have the Fish Pond or Water Garden You've Always Dreamed of!

Digging the hole
The size of the hole you need to dig must be suitable enough for your pond to fit in. The depth of the hole should be 3 inches deeper than the height of the pond liner. Before putting in the liner, be sure to smooth out the surface so it gets leveled evenly. Next, put on sand to cover the 3-inch extra space. Be sure to dampen the sand to provide stability.

Fitting the Liner
The last step would be to fit in the liner, cover the edges, and fill it with water. With the addition of showy plants and friendly fish, now you're ready to flaunt your beautiful garden pond.

Five Trouble-Shooting Tips:
How to Care For Garden Ponds

Here are five easily ignored (or for some they are little known) tips for caring for your water garden right -- whether it's in a plastic rigid liner or built on a PVC or EPDM platform.

#1 Plant Maintenance
First to maintain your plants, pond fish can help provided needed nutrients. If you have no fish you'll want to get yourself some slow release fertilizer tablets to keep your lilies, lotus and other plants healthy, growing and blooming. Plus get something like Mosquito Bits, which are good way to biologically keep mosquitoes in control.

#2 Divide and Prosper
Second remember to divide or thin out your plants periodically. Yes plants help maintain water quality and balance in the pond. Just don't let them get out of control or massive in comparison to the size of your garden.

#3 Offset Evaporation
Third evaporation happens. So you'll want to top of the tank so to speak. Especially during hot sultry summer months. And changing out some of the water every now and again is not a bad idea either.

#4 Sunny Solution
Fourth got plants that don't look their best? Depressed looking plants often are signaling a lack of sunlight. That's the first thing to consider. Unfortunately once sited, there may be little you can do with your present water gardening set up. Which points out the need to monitor your designated site for a week or more to make sure it gets the requisite 5 to 6 hours of sun blooming plants need. Easier to do that than fix the problem later, right?

#5 Easy Over-wintering
Fifth if winter is fast approaching Fall is the ideal time to dismantle your set up. This may be easier with rigid plastic garden ponds liners. But the idea is to keep your plants from freezing. Whether your garage is warm enough or you need to over-winter them in a tub in the basement, well only you can decide that.

Anyway there you go. Five more proven ideas that can help insure your success with backyard water gardening.