Choosing a 45 Mil Pond Liner
There are several options when it comes to selecting a 45 mil pond liner. Different materials exhibit various strengths and weaknesses, depending on their usage. Popular materials include EPDM rubber, polypropylene, and RPE (reinforced polyethylene). In fact, the thickness of the liner is often the least important factor when choosing a specific material for a particular situation. Continue reading to learn more about selecting the appropriate liner for the right context.
Firestone PondGuard Liner
The tried-and-true option for ponds that need the most flexability in a liner.
45 mil EPDM Rubber Liners
EPDM rubber is a popular 45 mil pond liner used for ponds due to it’s flexibility. It is able to bend and fold around very tight corners and shelves allowing intricate designs. The most common brand of 45 mil liner in EPDM is PondGuard by Firestone.
There are a couple of downsides to EPDM, however. For one, this material cannot be heat welded. This means if you cannot purchase a single piece to fit your entire project, you will need to splice two sheets together using Firestone's tape and primer method, which, in our opinion, is less ideal than purchasing a liner where no seaming is required (like RPE). The other possible disadvantage is that this material is quite heavy and less puncture-resistant than some of the other options mentioned below.
3D Shaped Box Liners
For fitting rectangular or circular tanks with no folding or pleating.
45 mil Polypropylene Liner
Our reinforced polypropylene 45 mil pond liner is an upgraded product that, while carrying a slightly higher price tag, is approximately four to five times more puncture-resistant than the EPDM liners mentioned above. Additionally, it has an NSF rating that certifies it for holding human drinking water, one of the strictest specifications a liner can achieve. While the EPDM liner above is safe for fish and plants, our reinforced polypropylene liner is also safe for fish and plants intended for human consumption. Polypropylene also heat welds very well, making it our top choice material for our 3D shaped preformed box-welded liners. One possible downside, however, is that it’s stiffer and less flexible than EPDM, so it’s not as suitable for situations where the liner must bend and flex around irregular shapes, shelves, or tight corners.
Premium Pond Liner
Made with Premium RPE 30 mil Laminated liner, which offers exceptional UV resistance, improved waterproofing performance and 2 to 3x the strength of EPDM liners.
Reinforced Polyethylene Liner (RPE)
Not to be confused with the polypropylene mentioned above, high-quality reinforced polyethylene (or RPE for short) is also an excellent choice for certain applications, especially larger ones where large panels are needed. Its main advantage is that it's very lightweight and heat-weldable, which means we can create single panel liners up to 60,000 square feet. While being light, it is strong. As a reference, it's around one-third the weight of EPDM rubber liners but about three times as puncture-resistant! Like polypropylene, it is a bit stiffer than EPDM, so that’s something to consider if your application requires a very flexible liner, as in the case of many shelves, corners, and bends in a tight location. We use RPE quite often for smaller ponds as well because it’s lighter and less expensive than EPDM. RPE is also available in a few different thicknesses for when extra strength is needed. RPE is an excellent example of a liner that, though thinner than 45 mil, is stronger than many of the 45 mil options.
For More Information
Choosing among the various 45 mil pond liners available can sometimes be a bit confusing. If you have any questions about which liner is right for you, feel free to contact us! Or visit our Premium RPE Liner page for more information on our custom-made RPE liners.
