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About our products
Pond-Grade 'BUTYLITE' Rubber
BUTYLITE is a premium, synthetic rubber pond liner recommended by leading European water gardening experts. It has been field tested for more than forty years in hundreds of thousands of installations throughout the world, varying in size from 25sq. ft garden ponds to 4,000,000sq. ft water storage reservoirs. It is remarkably flexible and comfortable, it is safe for all aquatic life, it withstands exposure to artic cold and desert heat, and it will last longer than any other flexible liner underwater and underground. Although BUTYLITE costs more than other synthetic rubbers, it has superior performance combined with an unlimited range of sizes and shapes which easily makes it the liner of choice for projects of any size that demand the very best liner available.
Formulation
BUTYLITE is fabricated from a unique BUTYLITE rubber formulation optimised for pond liner use. It differs from other Butyl rubbers commonly used for commercial waterproofing in four important ways. It is completely safe for fish, plants and plant life, it contains some traces of polymer for superior durability in exposed applications, it has a talc free surface for easy handling and attractive appearance, and can be factory seamed with a high strength hot bonding process.
Lifetime
We guarantee our rubber BUTYLIFE liners for 35 years. Extensive field experience suggests that they will last longer than forty years in severe above ground environments, with even more life expectancy in protected underwater and underground environments. Other manufacturers may claim their liners can last as long as BUTYLITE but none have the track record to prove their claims.
Thickness
BUTYLITE liners are available in .75mm and 1mm thicknesses. Irregular free form garden ponds, particularly those smaller than 1,500 sq. ft, should be lined with .75nn BUTYLITE: no other pond liner is more subtle or elastic and none can be installed with so few folds. Larger projects should be lined with 1mm BUTYLITE for enhanced resistance to abuse since the thicker sheet offers significantly greater strength with only a little loss of flexibility.
Appearance
The talc free process used to manufacture BUTYLITE gives a slightly textured surface with a flat black colour.
Repairs & Seams
Should you inadvertently damage your liner, it can be permanently repaired with our self adhesive tapes; stream and waterfall liners can be easily joined to pond liners with our self adhesive seam tapes. Although we advise against ‘field seaming’ pond liners, unless the project is too large to be lined with a single sheet of rubber, durable seams can be made by using a combination of seam tape and repair tape.
Pond-Grade 'VARNAMO' Rubber
| THE MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN VARNAMO & BUTYLITE RUBBER ARE AS FOLLOWS | |
|---|---|
| Varnamo : 75% butyl content | Butylite : 80% butyl content |
| Texture : Course | Texture : Smooth |
| Varnamo : 20 year guarantee | Butylite : 35 year guarantee |
Butyl is a low unsaturation elastomer produced by the copolumerization of isobutylene and small amounts of isoprene. The rubber compund also contains reinforcing carbon black, fillers, processing aids, antioxidants and vulcanising ingredients. From the rubber compound a membrane is produced by calandering in two plies and vulcanising to an elastic membrane. Vulcanisation takes place in an autoclave where the rubber is subjected to heat and pressure. During vulcanisation the long rubber molecules are joined to each other by chemical crosslinking, giving the elastic, flexible membrane, which differs from thermoplastic materials in that it is stable to temperature changes, is chemically resistant and will always return to its original length after being elongated. It is this crosslinked molecular structure which gives butyl rubber it's unique properties, negligible aging over long periods of time despite exposure to the atmosphere sunlight UV-radiation, chemicals, water, high and low temperatures. Butyl rubber contains no plastizers or additives, which can evaporate or be washed out over the years.
The strength and elasticity remains virtually unchanted over decades, without shrinkage, melting, hardening or cracking, and remains flexible even if the temperature varies from -30 degrees c to +120 degrees c.
VARNAMO is supplied in limited widths, See chart below
| VARNAMO Pond Grade Rubber | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Width | Max Length | Gauge | Grade | Price inc VAT |
| 10ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 11ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 12ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 13ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 15ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 16'6" ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 18ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 20ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 22ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 24ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 30ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
| 33ft | 100ft | .75mm | POND | 47p sq ft |
Repairs and Seams
REPAIR & SEAMS: Should you inadvertently damage your liner, it can be permanently repaired with our self adhesive seam tapes; stream and waterfall liners can be easily joined to pond liners with our self adhesive seam tapes. Although we advise against (field seaming) pond liners, unless the project is to large too be lined with a single sheet of rubber, durable seams can be made using a combination of seam tape and mastic.
Geotextile Underlay Protection
GEOTEXTILE liner protection fabric is a tough synthetic fabric typically used below garden pond liners to help protect the rubber from puncturing from rocks, roots and other soil debris. Unlike sand bedding, carpet padding (never use old carpet!) and old newspapers commonly used for this purpose, GEOTEXTILE protection fabric also protects against puncture from objects above the liner by limiting how much the liner can stretch under pressure. When garden pond liners are covered with soil, gravel, rocks or concrete, fabric should be used both above and below.
Characteristics
GEOTEXTILE liner protection fabric is a non-woven polyester fabric with optimal characteristics for pond construction. We offer two types of GEOTEXTILE, the 440gram M2 is substantially thicker than fabrics commonly used for landscaping and soil filtration – being ideal for difficult terrain. Our 300gram M2 is for use in standard conditions. Both are extremely flexible and comfortable. Since it does not deteriorate under a wide range of soil pH and is essentially non biodegradable, it will last as long as your BUTYL pond liner. Its heat and sunlight ability makes it suitable for use under reservoir liners and flood barriers where levels fluctuate.
Sizes
We offer a standard roll width of 6ft 6” cut to any length and we can supply a combination of cut lengths to fit any standard or custom BUTYL liner.
Installation
Simply spread the GEOTEXTILE over the excavation, folding and pleating as necessary to obtain a good fit. Overlap adjacent sheets of GEOTEXTILE 3” to 6”. Then spread sand over the joints so the GEOTEXTILE stays in place when the liner is pulled over it. When installing large liners, it is often better to lay the rubber in place first then fold back sections of the rubber to install the GEOTEXTILE.
