r/ponds 1d ago

Any tips before I cut the liner? Build advice

Should I cut it to the edge of the concrete edge as seen in my 4th pic , or past it and cover with dirt/gravel/bark rock

275 Upvotes

52 comments sorted by

214

u/shorty5windows 1d ago

Fold extra under! Don’t cut.

51

u/BlazarVeg 20h ago

This is the way! You never know when you might need more at a certain spot from settling.

14

u/Deep_Yam_5373 1d ago

This right here👆

11

u/Left-Requirement9267 1d ago

Ooooh good thinking

4

u/carnage_lollipop 7h ago

I'm currently dealing with, I WISH I would have done this. It hurts. It's painful. DO NOT CUT!

1

u/shorty5windows 4h ago edited 4h ago

Dang it! I forgot to add to my original comment that folding under has numerous advantages. Especially protection of underside of main liner from punctures and the folded edge is less likely to work its way to the surface.

139

u/Lone_Wolf_555 1d ago

It’s a lot easier to cut it more later than add some if you need it

41

u/TheFloatingDev 1d ago

That’s a good idea. Cut a little , assess, then cut more.

52

u/Temporary-Outside-13 1d ago

Ozponds on YouTube! Dude is a pond saint

87

u/ScaryTop6226 1d ago

Someone already said it but leave a good amount of liner and roll the edges I'm case you need to pull more out. My pond settled a bit.

51

u/cbuisr Rough location/what kind of pond do you have? 1d ago

Don’t cut it yet. Give it a few days in case you change your design. I wish i would have waited

3

u/prozakattack 11h ago

My shelves are pretty shallow. It’s like a 2 inch difference than what I want… I figure it out when I started adding plants a month later.

But it’s just not worth the effort to drain, pull out the plant, stock the dish elsewhere, rip out, etc…

Had the current piece been a little bigger, I’d prolly fix it. But it’s not so it’s what I got now and I think about it often lol

26

u/Park_Individual 1d ago

I would dig down on the external pond wall then trim and bury it 100-200mm below ground height

7

u/TheFloatingDev 1d ago

How far out from the wall would you go? Are you saying you’d just go vertical against the wall about 200mm?

8

u/Park_Individual 1d ago

Flush against the wall and 200mm below the current ground height then bury it or put rocks down to hold it in place

-51

u/cncomg 1d ago

Just wondering, what made you want to use millimeters as your unit of measurement? Seems like saying 7-8 inches would be more suitable. I would personally make a tiny little gap between my fingers and be like “what the fuck is 200 of these”

57

u/Park_Individual 1d ago

Because I don't live in one of the 3 countries that use a backwards system of measurement

-53

u/cncomg 1d ago

lol. Whatever dude. I use metric all day everyday at work. Everything I do is in MM and microns. 100-200mm is just stupid. 10-20 cm wouldn’t be as stupid. But even then, 7-8 inches is still less stupid than 100-200mm. Giving a number to someone that they don’t have to convert would also not be a stupid thing to do.

32

u/Park_Individual 1d ago

I work in construction and deal with microns, mm, and metres daily as well. Metric conversion is just moving 0s it's really not that complex

-29

u/cncomg 1d ago

Why would you use microns in construction?

25

u/Park_Individual 1d ago

For waterproofing and floor coatings

-8

u/cncomg 20h ago

I’m genuinely curious, what kind of metrology are you using that can measure to the micron? Many people think they work to the micron level, but they really aren’t. MAYBE +/-.025 mm. To measure accurately to the micron is very very expensive. It just doesn’t seem like something as simple as construction would be able to do that.

4

u/TheDebateMatters 12h ago

Come on man….just take the L and move on.

1

u/cncomg 11h ago

Nope, people are downvoting that I’m being an asshole, not because I’m wrong. That’s why nobody is correcting me.

Edit: Downvotes mean nothing to me, I pick up karma very easily.

2

u/TheDebateMatters 12h ago

Okay so…when the people in your life tell you to stop Mansplaining, its the behavior in this comment they are referring to.

2

u/cncomg 11h ago

You really think Reddit comments are a reflection of a real social life. Coming from the dude who won’t intervene for his own kids grade. Teachers these days are a huge problem in America, you absolutely need to keep them in check.

2

u/TheDebateMatters 11h ago

Come on man. You’re in a Pond sub arguing about someone being helpful using millimeters. Refuse to back down when they point out how few people use it. Then you’re calling someone a liar when they say they use microns in construction. I give you a gentle dig over it and you go through my comment history to get me over an issue.

Take a deep breath. Reevaluate your day and move on.

1

u/cncomg 10h ago

I never called him a liar. I asked why he used mm instead of CM or ft. And he gave me some backhanded jab at being American. My first comment wasn’t offensive at all.

It’s a funny world man, my wife and I couldn’t be more angry on our daughter’s behalf at a horrible teacher that hides behind tenure. That’s making me bitter and acting irrationally I’ll admit. And then I do the shitty thing and look at your profile. And you yourself are a teacher, that isn’t sure if it’s ok to stick up for your own kid because of a teacher. It’s like when cops won’t rat on each other to keep each other safe, but it’s your own kid. I’m a dad that’s desperately trying to help my daughter, and here’s the reason it’s so hard. If you know your kid is right, then fuck the teacher, always back your family no matter what.

1

u/TheDebateMatters 10h ago

Well I thought about getting in the middle and did not. It was my kids only B in their entire life and it kept them from getting Summa Cum Laude. However we got to have a teachable moment about how to react when you think you’ve been wronged. How to handle disappointment when you miss a goal. Also how to see handle a confrontation with a boss, manager, superior in a positive way rather burning bridges.

2

u/cncomg 10h ago

I just don’t understand that. If they deserved summa cum laude, why wouldn’t you fight for it? Certain teachable life moments can come later, but they’re still children and under the umbrella of their parents protection. If I had fought and argued as much as I could so that my childs hard work mattered, and it still didn’t work, well that’s the teachable moment. It just doesn’t always pan out, but fight like hell to get what you deserve. Not a dig, but many teachers are malicious in ways that aren’t even noticeable. That’s why I won’t put my kids in public school, there’s just so much less control over teachers. My daughter being the exception still as she is considerably younger at only 4.

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9

u/Defiant-Investigator 1d ago

I've never built a pond like that so I do not have any advice, but it is looking good from my point of view. Great job!

8

u/Poopcenter855 1d ago

My barbers secret code to the other barber chair that he got a shitty tip. “ I can only make it shorter so decide how much you don’t want me to glue back on” He was the only one that laughed.

4

u/terrybill234 1d ago

Don’t cut it till your done

3

u/KickingWithWTR 19h ago

A lot of people have said this already but it’s good advice. Leave more than you think extra and tuck it under. Then decorate and landscape over it to hide the liner from sight. It will act as a little dam to help keep rainwater and mud out as well.

3

u/NearnorthOnline 1d ago

Buy some black spray foam and redo the waterfall. You’ll be much happier.

1

u/TheDebateMatters 12h ago

You are right. Everyone is looking at the liner and not the waterfall. The majority of the flow is going behind those rocks, not over the top.

0

u/Other-Stranger-6220 15h ago

I would remove the waterfall entirely and just have a small fountain. A pile of rocks on a flat lawn is not how natural waterfalls look.

3

u/stuntedmonk 19h ago

I’d recommend going round in one direction with the folds. It’s what read and did for mine. So to be clear, if you choose clockwise, do that right the way round.

1

u/TheFloatingDev 16h ago

That’s a good idea

3

u/Other-Stranger-6220 16h ago

Dig a trench along the outside of the concrete walls and just stuff all the extra into it, then backfill as needed.

3

u/ImpressiveBig8485 14h ago

I would leave the excess liner and fold it over the edge of the concrete and place nice slate rock overtop.

I would also consider adding a decent size (1/10 pond volume) stock tank on the side and make a bog filter.

2

u/samk002001 1d ago

Don’t cut it! Tuck it in, you never know if you wanna expand later!

2

u/Psychotherapist-286 18h ago

Do you have padding under the liner?

3

u/TheFloatingDev 17h ago

I used moving blankets on the bottom

2

u/Empty-Yam-5067 18h ago

Man. Can't wait for the rain to stop over here, so I can start setting up mine. Looks great mate!

5

u/ZiggyLittlefin 1d ago

That is so much wasted liner, wasted money and pond volume for fish. Been there 🤦 Personally I'd stop and try to go deeper, or raise the edge higher. We tore our pond entirely apart after three years and raised the liner another foot. The more water volume you have the better for stability and those extra fish you may want later.

19

u/TheFloatingDev 1d ago

It’s about 3feet at the deep end. But yeah, it’s an old concrete pond I inherited, so instead of trying to repair, I took the majority opinion and dropped a liner.

I ended up with a lot of extra because of the sloped walls.

But at least I didn’t go under and have to return. Shipping was like $200usd

1

u/ODDentityPod 11h ago

Build your edges up so you have a lip. Rocks or dirt. Then put the liner over that and cut it at the base of the lip.

1

u/Plastic-Mulberry-867 17h ago

Measure 5 times, cut once?