building new pond

Just dug it all out and was wondering if i could use carpet as a underlay for the liner?

Also where is the cheapest place in kent or essex to buy pond liner as it seems so expensive?

 

Yes you can use carpet it's ideal.....or sand.

Have you looked online for a pond liner,it is so impotant so buy the best you can afford.

 

no any sites you can recommend?

 

you can use carpet for an underlay, but You should not really use it.

being carpet it will be alkward to fit, since its thick, and the worst thing is it will degrade and rot, giving no support what so ever.

lots of sites offering pond liners, depends what you you want.

I like bradshaws direct

 

thanks? what would you expect to pay for a liner of say 8m x 8m?

Whats the best size pond to have for koi?

 

are Polyex Pond Liners any good?

 

also do i want a dirty or clean water pump?

 

Sorry to say but if you want koi, you should already know which pump you want, which leads me to believe you have no idea about koi.

If you really want a koi pond please say so, they are the almost, if not, the worst fish for a first time pond owner.

Please do not take this personally, its just I am willing to advise, but i dont know what you do and don't know.

 

Thats why he's asking questions WG,

 

well in case he is:

Koi:
Koi are nice looking fish, how ever to have a koi pond is not like an ordainairy pond. Koi need "special ponds" with a bottom drain and large filters (and that is before you start)

Pond

a bottom drain should be installed in the centre base of the pool with the surrounding area sloping downwards towards said bottom drain.

The bottom drain itself should be mounted in concrete.

The bottom drain should be connected to a custom made filter system, round ones are best (its called a vortex chamber) the idea is the water comes in at the top and exits almost at the bottom. any solids sink to the bottom.

from here it should then go through various chambers of filter media (your choice) and then back to the main pool.

You put a suitably sized pump* in the last chamber, this pumps water back to the pond via a waterfall or a venturi nozzle, some do put cress in this and call it a veg filter, yes you can eat the cress, (great with egg)

Koi ponds are often made from breeze block and then rendered orbetter still fibreglassed, average depth is 6 feet so the koi have room to swim u and down (not just side to side)

Pumps

The pump must be capable of pumping the whole pond / filter volume once every 2 hours. (its also has to be running 24/7)

By putting the pump in the last chamber it sucks water through everything else drawing water / solids in through the bottom drain.

You also need a 2nd pump sending water through a UV,

you cant use the main pump as the water flow through the uv will probably be too fast to be of any use.

Filter

all filter sections and the main vortex chamber should have their own bottom drain leading to a sump which either has a soakaway or a sump pump so you can pump it to waste.

it is amazing the colour of the water when you pull the plug on the bottom drains.

Budget
If you are on a budget I would seriously consider building a normal pond, as they are much cheaper since they dont need all the filtration to be as big and can use small filter boxes

You dont also need to keep an eye on the oxgygen, amonia levels

Koi ponds look nice, but in all honest cost a never ending fortune. A reasonable koi pond with everything will cost around £4,000.00 +

Pond filter info click here

* pumps.
Your question implies you are looking at a sump pump, read This

Finaly

if you really want a koi pond sit down and think about it, long and hard, koi live a long time and need a lot of looking after.

Join a koi club first and as its summer most have pond visits where by you see others ponds. That way you can see what you will be letting your self in for.

most popular koi club i know is the B.K.K.S (google them)

most people start with an average pond then learn from this then progress to a koi pond, also once you have built your first pond you will probably want to build a bigger one.

Start off small and learn on your way up.

I did, that is why I dont want a koi pond.

 

I have been keeping Koi and a mix of other fish for years and years and I have never had a speicial pond pump or anything.
The first pond I had was pre formed 4 feet X 3 Feet X 18 inches deep.
I had koi in there for years , in fact they got so big we had to build a bigger pond for them.
Yes over the years ( may be 25 years ) I have lost a couple but so do most people.
I have a problem with ulcers on a few of my fish now.
But not the Koi they are fine. ( touch wood )
I have many friends who keep koi and they also have just an ordinary pond with an ordinary pump.
I don't find them anymore trouble or hard to keep than the rest of the fish.
If anything I get more problems with the goldfish.
I think as long as you have a pump with a uv and filter
Feed them properly and keep the water tested .
They should be fine.
Maybe we are just lucky.

And we used carpet underlay to line our pond.

 

i never said the pump was not ordainairy, just look before you buy considering it must run 24/7

the question about clear water pump or dirty water pump implies a sump pump is being looked at, bad idea
for general info about a pump v sump pump click here

people with koi ponds have no plants (koi eat them) and as they put it "gin clear water"

as koi "waste" is a lot it will soon cover the bottom of the pond hence a bottom drain to take it all away and keep the whole pond water "gin clear" I have purged my mates koi filters while he is on holiday, the colour of the water is almost black.

Any pipework is easy to install in the making of a pond, i.e bottom drain, not so eay after pond is full.

Dont get me wrong, i am only saying my point of view / experiance, i do think some koi keepers go over the top, but i do agree with a bottom drain.

You must be lucky with the carpet, but then you have changed your pond. as i mentioned carpets will rot over time, liners and liner underlay dont rot

 

Oh for goodness sake !! My first and only pond was used for Koi. You dont need experience to discover the wonders of Koi keeping, just enthusiasm. I didn`t have a bottom drain, although it would have been best, a pond-vac sorted that for me. Just give him a break eh ? Isn`t he just asking for advice ?

 

Whats best, say yes have an old carpet and any old pump it will work, only for him to find out liner g'tee void for not using proper underlay or give the correct information first. then its up to him to decide.

Its cheaper to do it right first time than to "make do" and have to do it all again later

suppose he later wants a bottom drain? Best tell him now what one is.

bottom drain (even if used for just a drain) is cheaper than a good pond vac

Best tell him now to check rating of pump, than wait till bigger than need be electric bill comes in.

 

All I`m saying is, help him, don`t lecture, it`s daunting enough as it is. Cheers...freddy.