I'm in the planning stage of setting up a 800ish gallon water garden/goldfish pond. I've been looking for unbiased reviews of pond equipment but most seem to be info-mercials. In your collective experience, which manufacturers make pumps, filters, uv sterilizers that are reliable for many years? Or which should be avoided for poor construction or bad customer service/lack of obtainable parts?
Also, does the 45ml EPDM have much uv resistance or do the exposed sides of the pond need to be protected by a rock shelf?
Thanks!
Each of us can only speak about the actual products we've used. Sometimes we luck out and get a "bad one" when in fact they might normally be ok. For me, I like most of the OASE products but not all of them. They are more expensive but usually more energy efficient and built well. My 11-year-old pond has the same OASE Nautilus 60 pump it had the day it began. My OASE air pumpy thing though crapped out in just one summer. The less expensive pond brands tend to quit sooner. One of my first pumps was a Little Giant and lasted only a year. I've used PondMaster Mag-Drive pumps I think they are with good luck. My filter in my big pond did not have a manufacturer name attached with it (a fiberglass tub) but my 153 gallon pond filter is a PondMaster 1000 which I like but only for ponds under a few hundred gallons. I've never bought or used a UV sterilizer. I try to avoid negative "reviews" on my web site for fear the manufacturers might "come after me."
What have the rest of you used that did good and did bad?
The liner should be protected from light by covering it with rocks or having it underwater. Any part of it underwater will receive less UV degradation as water blocks most UV radiation. Also, algae will soon grow on it which blocks more light. Parts of the liner out of the water should be covered. You can build a shelf into the pond and put large rocks on that first shelf to hide the liner. Exposed liner out of the water will degrade but it may take a decade. You'll be more concerned that it looks bad if you can see it.