How To Find and Repair Pond Leaks

Sadly, most water gardens and ponds leak from season to season. However, they’re usually simple enough to diagnose and fix. The vast majority of problems with leakage are found in a stream or waterfall and pretty easy to point out and repair. Here are some simple tips on how to find, diagnose, and repair your pond leaking problems. This is not an all-inclusive guide! There are many ways to find the leak in ponds. These are some of the top problems we have come across and recommend!

Finding the Leak:

The first step in fixing a leaky pond is finding where the water is escaping. This is typically pretty easy to do, as the majority of leaks happen in a stream or waterfall. If your pond doesn’t have a stream or waterfall, don’t worry – leaks can still occur in other places, like the plumbing. To find the leak, start by filling up your pond to its normal level and then observing it for 24 hours. If the water level drops at all, you have a leak. Mark where the water levels drop using some type of marker so you can easily see it. Once you have marked the spot, you can begin investigating what might be causing the leak.

What If the Leak Isn’t in the Stream?

If the leak is not in the stream or waterfall, it might be in the plumbing or liner. To check for a plumbing leak, you will need to drain the pond and look for wet spots on the liner. Once you have found the wet spot, use a hose to trace the outline of where the water is coming from. This will help you determine if it is a liner leak or if there is another issue causing your pond to lose water.

It Might Be the Plumbing:

It’s in the Liner:

If it appears that the leak is in the liner, you can try to fix it yourself. Start by getting a patch kit from your local pond supply store. Follow the instructions on how to apply the patch and then wait for it to dry. If the leak is not too bad, this may be all you need to do to fix it. However, if the leak is more severe, you may need to replace the entire liner.

Removing the Liner: Replacing a pond liner can be a big job, but it is not as difficult as it may seem. To start, you will need to remove all of the water from your pond. This can be done by draining the pond or by pumping the water out. Next, you will need to remove all of the rocks and other decorations from the pond. Once everything has been removed, you can start to work on removing the old liner. Be careful not to damage the new liner as you are removing the old one.

Installing the New Liner: The next step is to install the new liner. Start by placing it in the pond and then filling it up with water. Once the liner is full, you can begin to put the rocks and other decorations back into place. When you are finished, your pond should be leak-free and ready for you to enjoy.