Thank you guys. I have a much better understanding of what I'm trying to do now. What I'm hearing is that I need to lay the bentonite as thick as possible, cover it with soil, and then compact it. If I do this, I should form a nice mud layer in the pond that should prevent leakage, at least the volume of leakage that I've experienced. Thank you John for explaining about the hay. I'll leave it out. The bedrock is my biggest concern, but I think if I cover it thick enough, I should be able to seal those cracks. Thanks again to all of you.
