Setting the Skimmer
The task highlighted in the video linked below - that is, the process of setting and leveling the skimmer - is right up there at the top of the list when it comes to determining the success or failure of a pond-installation project.  In fact, it may be the most important of all with respect to aesthetics, because it's what sets the pond's water level and has a huge amount to do with how things will look to people who approach the water's edge. We don't do the digging for this part of the installation until
Setting the Skimmer
The task highlighted in the video linked below - that is, the process of setting and leveling the skimmer - is right up there at the top of the list when it comes to determining the success or failure of a pond-installation project.  In fact, it may be the most important of all with respect to aesthetics, because it's what sets the pond's water level and has a huge amount to do with how things will look to people who approach the water's edge. We don't do the digging for this part of the installation until
A Fair to Remember
I started to appreciate the fact that my Aunt Genevieve was one of the coolest women in the whole wide world in the Spring of 1964. In the days just after the New York World's Fair opened that April - while the networks and newspapers were still agog about one pavilion or another and how amazing the whole scene was - she sent a small package to me in California containing an embossed, gold-leafed invitation, a fair ticket and a keychain with a medal depicting the Unisphere attached to it. Even at eight years old, I knew my aunt was
A Fair to Remember
I started to appreciate the fact that my Aunt Genevieve was one of the coolest women in the whole wide world in the Spring of 1964. In the days just after the New York World's Fair opened that April - while the networks and newspapers were still agog about one pavilion or another and how amazing the whole scene was - she sent a small package to me in California containing an embossed, gold-leafed invitation, a fair ticket and a keychain with a medal depicting the Unisphere attached to it. Even at eight years old, I knew my aunt was
Designing for Access
This video is a great example of the phenomenon known as "mission creep":  We started out with a discussion of what's involved in making a residential swimming pool and spa accessible to someone who uses a wheelchair - a good and worthy subject on its own - but the project so perfectly illustrates a couple of additional points that we kept the camera rolling. The video covers one specific ramp in fine detail, but I want to stress two more general points about planning for wheelchair access:  First, a properly sloped ramp
Designing for Access
This video is a great example of the phenomenon known as "mission creep":  We started out with a discussion of what's involved in making a residential swimming pool and spa accessible to someone who uses a wheelchair - a good and worthy subject on its own - but the project so perfectly illustrates a couple of additional points that we kept the camera rolling. The video covers one specific ramp in fine detail, but I want to stress two more general points about planning for wheelchair access:  First, a properly sloped ramp
Helpful Heat
I've done an awesome amount of painting in the past six months - two bedrooms, two hallways, a den, a kitchen, a utility room and our living room as well as the outside of the front door.  I won't count the two bathrooms, because I painted them last year:  They looked so good that the pressure mounted to bring everything else up to speed. I learned two invaluable lessons along the way. First, having the right
Helpful Heat
I've done an awesome amount of painting in the past six months - two bedrooms, two hallways, a den, a kitchen, a utility room and our living room as well as the outside of the front door.  I won't count the two bathrooms, because I painted them last year:  They looked so good that the pressure mounted to bring everything else up to speed. I learned two invaluable lessons along the way. First, having the right
All Lined Up
With the excavation of the main pond area complete - that is, with all shelves cut and compacted and niches prepared for caves and hiding places - it's time to insert the underlayment and place the liner. The underlayment is something of an unsung hero in pondcrafting:  It keeps sharp stones from gouging the liner as it's being set in the hole and, longer term, deflects roots that might try to penetrate the liner to get easy access to a huge source of water.  Our goal is to prevent any such problems, so we
All Lined Up
With the excavation of the main pond area complete - that is, with all shelves cut and compacted and niches prepared for caves and hiding places - it's time to insert the underlayment and place the liner. The underlayment is something of an unsung hero in pondcrafting:  It keeps sharp stones from gouging the liner as it's being set in the hole and, longer term, deflects roots that might try to penetrate the liner to get easy access to a huge source of water.  Our goal is to prevent any such problems, so we