Everything You Need To Know About Swell UK Pond Liners

There are few things are more important than a quality pond liner when it comes to making a garden pond. These layers of impermeable material keep water contained inside your pre-dug hole, creating a home for fish, plants, and other aquatic life. They come in a variety of materials and sizes, making them suitable for all types of garden ponds - from small wildlife ponds to large Koi ponds. Let's take a look at each type of pond liner for sale at Swell UK, their pros and cons, and the guarantees that cover them...

What are pond liners made from?

There are many different types of pond liner material, but the most popular are HDPE (high-density polyethylene), PVC (polyvinyl chloride), and EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer) rubber. All of these materials are impermeable and help to create a physical barrier between the ground around your pond and the water inside. Without a pond liner your garden pond would very quickly drain, leaving an empty hole!

What type of pond liner is best?

There's no single correct answer to this particular question. Instead, it depends on several key factors: the size of your pond, its intended use, local climate, and - perhaps most importantly - your budget. It's important that you consider the pros and cons of each material before you choose what type you're going to use to form the foundation of your garden pond. Here are some pros and cons of the most popular varieties:

EPDM rubber pond liners

These flexible yet durable garden pond liners are widely considered the best type of pond liner available, should your budget stretch to them.

Pros

• Supple, highly flexible material, makes installation quick and easy
• Great choice for custom-shaped ponds
• Resistant to punctures, UV rays, frost, and general wear and tear
• Reliable in very high and low temperatures, doesn't expand or contract
• Completely safe for fish and other aquatic life

Cons

• Heavy, need several people to help install
• More expensive than other pond liner materials

HDPE pond liners

These pond liners are amongst the most popular, not only because of their durability, but their affordability too.

Pros

• Very UV resistant and performs well in cold temperatures
• Great chemical resistance (often used in landfills and chemical containment sites)
• Relatively inexpensive compared to alternative pond liner materials
• Completely safe for fish and other aquatic life

Cons

• Fairly stiff and heavy, tougher to install than EPDM rubber pond liners
• More prone to punctures and surface scratches than other pond liner materials

PVC pond liners

This material is more commonly associated with pipes and plumbing, but it's also a popular pond liner material.

Pros

• Extremely flexible, easily conforms to tight corners and crevices
• Great chemical resistance
• Inexpensive, amongst the cheapest pond liner materials available
• Completely safe for fish and other aquatic life

Cons

• Not as UV-resistant as other pond liner materials
• Likely to degrade quicker than other pond liner materials
• Prone to cracks and splits in very low temperatures

Do you need protective underlay for a garden pond?

In short, yes. No matter what type of pond liner you've chosen to form the foundations of your garden pond, you're going to need a layer of protective underlay to protect it from any underlying twigs and stones. This layer of protective underlay also prevents your pond liner from shifting due to any ground movement and also acts as a layer of insulation.

Like pond liners, protective underlay is also available in a variety of sizes and types. Here at Swell UK we stock two types of protective underlay, heavy duty protective underlay or standard protective underlay, and both are available in sizes to fit our pond liners. We also have pond liner edging for sale. This is largely decorative, but it can protect the edges of your pond liner from wear and tear.

How much pond liner do I need?

Judging just how much pond liner you'll need to cover the base and sides of your garden pond is a difficult task and depends on three important factors: the length, width, and depth of your garden pond. Luckily, we have a handy pond liner calculator that will do all of the hard sums for you - just input your average measurements and hit calculate!

After a quick calculation, our pond liner calculator tool will tell you three important things:

• The amount of water your garden pond can hold
• The minimum amount of pond liner you'll need to cover your garden pond
• The minimum amount of protective underlay you'll need to cover the base of your garden pond

It's always a good idea to buy slightly more pond liner (and protective underlay) than you need, just to make sure that you have enough to cover any hard-to-reach areas of your garden pond that you may have measured incorrectly. You can also use spare bits of pond liner as patches if you accidentally puncture or tear your main pond liner.

How long do pond liners last?

No matter the material, all of our pond liners are designed to stand the test of time and, provided they're properly installed, can support a garden pond for decades. Most of our garden pond liners come with guarantees, ranging from 25-years to lifetime guarantees (these guarantees are stated in the descriptions of specific products).

Our guarantees cover pond liners from UV damage - the main cause of pond liner degradation. They don't, however, cover pond liners from punctures/tears. It's also important to note that your pond liner must be installed on top of proper protective underlay for our guarantees to apply.

While these guarantees don't make our pond liners any more durable than they already are, they do give you - our customers - that extra piece of mind should yours fail.

What else do I need to create a quality garden pond?

A pond liner may form the foundation of your garden pond, but to turn it into a real outdoor ecosystem you'll need to pick up some more equipment, like a pond pump, a pond filter, and/or some water features. There are really no limits when it comes to additional pond equipment; you can go all out and create a high-tech environment suitable for big pond fish like Koi, or you can keep things simple and build a nature-style pond that runs off of a single pond pump.

For those looking for a simple yet versatile pond pump that can do it all, then our Swell Filter Pumps range will have a model for you. These pond pumps have flow rates from 1,500-17,000 lph, 8mm solids-handling capacities, and detachable strainer cages that make them easy to clean and maintain. Partner one of these pumps with one of our pond filters from the Swell Pressure Filter Premium range and you'll have an effective and efficient pond filtration system capable of supporting many fish.

If you're after a more powerful pond pump, then check out our Swell Variable Flow Pond Pump Premium and Swell Multi Pump Premium ranges. These powerful pond pumps can be ran submerged (inside your pond) or dry (outside your pond). The largest models have flow rates ~30,000 lph, making them great for powering big filtration systems like box filters and specialist Koi pond filters.

There’s a lot of variety when it comes to pond liners and picking the type that will work best for you and your pond is a difficult task! That said, there’s a lot of information here to get you started, plus a handy pond liner calculator tool at the top of the page. For more advice, check out our FAQ on pond liners and useful help guides on pond building.