Residential and backyard ponds make up the majority of new water features added to California by volume alone. Since California has relatively strict rules on the amount of water that can be retained for personal use, most ponds that are approved for new construction are small backyard structures. These features can run as small as just a few hundred gallons or stretch out over multiple acres. If you are thinking about building a new pond in your own backyard, you will need to determine what purpose or purposes you desire the most. While everyone dreams of a pond that is full of fish while serving as a pool and protecting the environment, it is more realistic to choose one primary purpose and one secondary use. No matter the use, make sure to choose the right liner for your backyard pond in California.
Decorative Ponds
Most backyard ponds in California, as in the rest of the country, as designed mainly as decorative features. The state water boards are all fine with the idea of homeowners adding ponds to their property solely to increase the beauty and value of it. However, these ponds must be limited in size just like any other type of domestic pond. They will also need plenty of stonework and extensive planting to appear natural and truly achieve their goal of being a decorative water feature. Decorative ponds also tend to serve as wildlife attractants or habitat restoration projects. They should be designed with the native and local wildlife in mind. If the pond isn’t designed to handle them, raccoons and muskrats can become a pest and damage the lining.
Koi Ponds
Fishponds in backyards are rarely built as full-sized fishing ponds complete with cold-water fish like trout or bass. Due to the limitations of both suburban properties and California water collection restrictions, backyard fishponds are almost always built for koi, carp, or goldfish instead. All of these fish can thrive outdoors in the entire state since even freezing temperatures in the North of the state won’t harm them if the pond is deep enough. Koi ponds should be a minimum of 3 to 4 feet in depth to give the fish plenty of water to dive and get away from warm temperatures and predators along the banks. They also need fish-safe liners to ensure there is no steady water loss over the course of the year that ends up threatening the health of the fish.
Natural Swimming Pools
One of the fastest growing designs for backyard ponds is the natural pool. Especially popular among the eco-minded residents of California that are not big fans of chlorine, these pools most commonly take the form of modified ponds. Up to 70% of the surface area is separated into a planted zone known as the filter bed, which is responsible for cleaning up the water quality and breaking down any unwanted waste products in the water. The remaining surface area is clear and ready for swimming, relaxing, and floating around in the summer. These pools can’t be warmed and require some maintenance, but they are far more natural and less expensive to maintain in the long run than traditional in-ground pools. Of course, natural swimming pools can only maintain high water quality and receive the occasional necessary deep cleaning if they are lined with a geomembrane made of a material like RPE.
Recreational Opportunities
Natural swimming pools are far from the only recreational ponds built in backyards across California. Ambitious homeowners with larger backyards may try to create ponds of an acre in size or more to install cable water skiing systems, fishing holes, boating areas, and more. These large recreational ponds may stretch the limits of water impoundment allowed by the local water board, but California homeowners can also apply for variances to get permission to make bigger water features than usual. No matter how much your backyard pond stretches the definition and crosses over into lake, there is a liner product from BTL Liners that can line it.
Pumps, Filters, and More
Most backyard ponds, regardless of what they are designed for, will need at least one pump and filter system to keep them clean and clear. Completely natural ponds must have a certain volume, size, and depth to host the bacterial colonies needed to break down their own waste. Even natural and well-established ponds generally need skimming to remove fall leaves to keep them from overwhelming the ecosystem. Keeping ponds clean with equipment that runs on a timer is generally much easier than trying to keep the pond healthy by hand alone. Make sure to choose a liner material that is easily sealed around penetrations like bottom drains and pump plumbing that runs through the sides of the pond.
Backyard ponds play important roles in the larger ecosystem of the state of California. Even though they are scattered across the landscape and tend to be small in scale, they offer valuable clean water features for animals, insects, and plants to thrive in. Even just a few new ponds added in a neighborhood can restore lost natural habitat and attract wildlife that once fled the area. Let BTL Liners help you build ponds that last with geomembrane liners that are easy to install and more affordable than you might think.
