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 L# Coldwater, Watergardens, and Ponds
  L# I am having a pond built! Need help please
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SubscribeI am having a pond built! Need help please
goldfishgeek
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female uk
Hi

The pond will be 6 by 4 foot and 2.5 feet deep.

I want to keep goldfish.

It will be made with a pond liner and will be surrounded by a rockery, have a waterfall and a row of evergreen shrubs planted along the back.

I wil have a filter a pump and some plants

including all of the above and the labour the cost is £1200.

Is this too much? Am I being ripped off?

if any one from England could answer I would be very grateful.

GFG

_______________________________________
Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself.
Harvey S. Firestone
Post InfoPosted 17-Jun-2006 19:04Profile Homepage Yahoo PM Edit Report 
blazeybird
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well Im not sure if its a rip-off or not, but That is AWSOME! I SOOO whant a big pond, I just have a small 35gall pond with cattail, iris, and 2 water lillies!!

Post InfoPosted 17-Jun-2006 20:27Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
ophie99
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Fingerling
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well congrats, I'd say its steep, considering you can get a liner for around 50 and a pump for 25 and then just rig your own filter, plus from everything I've heard you want 3 feet, just to make sure its deep enough they dont get frozen in winter, but I guess it depends how well its designed, and how little labor you want to expend! I'm building my own as well, really no price is too too much for fish!!
Post InfoPosted 17-Jun-2006 22:29Profile Yahoo PM Edit Delete Report 
goldfishgeek
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thanks for the comments/suggestions.

really I am looking for some one like LHG to answer? I am not sure if this is expensive or not, I shall be getting other quotes etc, I just wanted an individual opinion/experience

cheers

GFG

_______________________________________
Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself.
Harvey S. Firestone
Post InfoPosted 18-Jun-2006 17:48Profile Homepage Yahoo PM Edit Delete Report 
longhairedgit
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EditedEdited by longhairedgit
Well bearing in mind someone else is doing it for you, ive seen worse quotes.It does seem a lot though. The biggest bit is digging the hole, for which I personally would hire a mini-digger for a few hours and chuck the soil on my dads trailer and dump it thus saving the best part of £500. The other expenses will be the filter if its huge, but I see no reason why that couldnt be done for less than £200. I guess youll need at least £100 of pond liner, maybe more. I guess it could be done yourself for much less, but it depends on you having the time to and experience to do it.

Id guess at least £600 or more is going into labour costs, but if they offer guarantees etc, it might be worth it, if it saves you the effort. I think for £1200, id be wanting it brick built lol.

Yep it seems expensive bearing in mind its just a lined hole with sand on the bottom, some rubber lining and some sealant. But then the problem is always finding a labourer for cheap these days.lol.

Personally Id get an itemised materials quote before having it done, bearing in mind they probably get them at trade. I reckon materials probably come to under £500 total, so if there workrate seems extortionate id get someone else to do it. Yours involves some landscaping by the sounds of it, but I would expect the quote to be cheaper. I recently had a friend have a 20x8 x4 pool, brick edged, and filtered for £3500 or so (minus koi of course) so I would be looking at that quote closely to see where they justify the cost.For that price the membrane and the filter had better be top quality.They should also offer guarantees for the safety of the electrical fittings and some support for leaks and pump failure if things are not properly fitted.

If you did it yourself you could do it for around £500 or less, so id be making damn sure where the other £700 they want goes.
Post InfoPosted 20-Jun-2006 05:28Profile MSN PM Edit Delete Report 
goldfishgeek
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Hi LHG,

mmm, it doesn't include fitting the electrics, which is worrying but it does include the building of the rockery, the fitting of the filter and pump, liner digging the hole, I guess I am writing this all backwards, but am trying to concentrate on "24" as well.

I am still not convinced going to get another quote on saturday.
I did wonder about digging the hole myself but I don't think I could.
cheers,
GFG

_______________________________________
Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself.
Harvey S. Firestone
Post InfoPosted 22-Jun-2006 21:11Profile Homepage Yahoo PM Edit Delete Report 
DwarfGourami
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Iv seen pond kits at wal mart here for $54.74 it come with the filter and the fountain spray thingy (LOL)
and alot of other lil things i was going to get one but im i want to make a kids pool i have a lil pond
Post InfoPosted 01-Jul-2006 18:37Profile MSN Yahoo PM Edit Delete Report 
goldfishgeek
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Right after getting a second Quote for ...wait for it.....

2500 pounds.

and finding out that the first bloke was a rip off merchant I have decided to dig the thing myself.

so that is my summer sorted!

I am thinking it will be crazy but doable.

any advice?

GFG

_______________________________________
Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself.
Harvey S. Firestone
Post InfoPosted 08-Jul-2006 15:21Profile Homepage Yahoo PM Edit Delete Report 
dan76
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get a price for someone to dig the hole , take the dirt away and deliver a meter or so of sand for the bottom. that way you can go bigger deeper etc and all that s left to do is the fun stuff of setting up the pond


cheers dan













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OH TOLEEDY!
Post InfoPosted 08-Jul-2006 23:36Profile Homepage PM Edit Delete Report 
goldfishgeek
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Nope have lots of pent up anger, will be digging the hole AND laying a patio as well........................

he he my Dad is going to FREAK!

ho hum.

wish me luck and remember i would appreciate any advice or experiences of what not to do.

thank you

GFG

_______________________________________
Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself.
Harvey S. Firestone
Post InfoPosted 11-Jul-2006 22:49Profile Homepage Yahoo PM Edit Delete Report 
longhairedgit
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EditedEdited by longhairedgit
If youre digging a big hole over a long period of time , dont forget to shore up the edges with planks , or when it rains youll have a lot more digging to do when the edges collapse. Its best to get the digging done in one day ( hence the suggestion of a mini digger or some extra hands) and get the sand and the liner in same day. It sounds like a hell of a job, but its better than just ending up with a soggy bog in your garden.If you end up bailing water out of the hole, you have to dunp it at least 20 yards away just so it doesnt seep back in. Dont forget to get the water in quickly too once the liner is ready, cos the pressure of that is the only thing that stops water and collapses happening below the liner. If your not careful the pool can end up much shallower than you originally intended!

Its better to plan the whole operation to go as smoothly as possible before ever putting your spade in the ground.Everyone needs to be clear on the plan and the levels of jobs, ie digging, shoring, laying sand, and how to fit the liner before they start .Make sure you have all the materials ready and placed conveiniently before you start digging. If you hit it with gusto theres no reason the pond cant be completed within 12 hours, and the pond filling overnight while you take a rest.
Post InfoPosted 13-Jul-2006 17:47Profile MSN PM Edit Delete Report 
Sideburns Dave
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big tip I got from my Laguna Rep this spring, it is often overlooked; do not have walls at 90degrees up and down as it may tear the liner if it freezes. make sure walls are at 120degrees or greater.
Post InfoPosted 21-Jul-2006 00:27Profile MSN PM Edit Delete Report 
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