ARTICLES Archives - Page 293 of 325

Successful plumbing design for watershapes all boils down to a need to understand the relationship between water flow and line velocity, says hydraulics expert Steve Gutai. Once you have a good grasp of these fundamental factors, he observes, selecting the right pipes for the job and designing an efficient piping system that will drive your pool, spa or fountain is simply a matter of reading charts and paying attention to details.

Water Under Pressure

Of all the concepts of hydraulic-system design, there are few that have more importance than the correlation between water flow (that is, capacity expressed as gallons per minute) and line velocity (the speed at which the water travels). As water travels through a pipe, its increase in speed (that is, its line velocity) results in an increase in resistance (expressed as feet of head) and in a reduction of end pressure, which is measured in pounds per square inch (psi). In other words, an increase in friction losses and a drop in pressure is the result of increased water velocity at a given flow. If that makes sense to you without further explanation, then you know much of what you need to know when it comes to selecting pipes and fittings and setting up a watershape's plumbing system. If it doesn't, this article will cover the basics - from selecting pipes and sizing lines to

When a homeowner in suburban Chicago asked for a waterfeature and swimming pool that were aesthetically linked to one another and their surroundings, watershaper Lou Downes knew that close collaboration with the landscape architect would be crucial. The resulting composition offers a perfect testimonial to the value of getting client, designer and contractor all squarely on the same page.

On Common Ground

One advantage of building pools in the affluent Chicago suburb of Lake Forest is that many of our prospects have seen inspiring landscapes, pools and waterfeatures in neighboring backyards or at quality resorts around the world - and, as a result, come to the design process with plenty of ideas. With all of that experience and thoughtful exposure to the possibilities of water, quite often they're already visualizing the way they want their backyards to look. Such was certainly the case with the project seen in this article: The homeowner came to us with an armload of photographs and knew exactly what she wanted from the outset. And the canvas for her imagination was plenty big, with a backyard measuring more than two acres and including a

Watershapes intended to teach children (and their adult companions) about basic forces of nature stand at the heart of an innovative landscape program on the campus of the Montshire Museum of Science in Norwich, Vt. As designed by Boston’s Copley Wolff Design Group, the grounds around the museum now features an array of unique water effects that are beautiful, entertaining, informative and delightful.

Earth, Air, Light and Water

Teaching children about the science associated with the natural elements of earth, air, light and water in an imaginative, fun and engaging way is one of the key missions of modern museums of science. Conveying those concepts through a landscape, however, is a unique and ambitious goal - one we suggested to the directors of Montshire Museum of Science of Norwich, Vt., as a way of transforming the museum's grounds from ordinary exhibit space into a true laboratory for learning. During all of the early discussions of types of natural phenomena Montshire wanted us to explore, museum representatives always seemed most excited about those associated with water. They agreed with us that water exhibits could teach children about wonders as diverse as stream erosion and deposition, the reflection and absorption of light, how the pattern of water currents and flow velocities are affected by the size and shape of the water's container, how the pressure of water increases as its depth increases, and how the air temperature cools as one

Art of the Ornament

So often it's the finest or most delicate touches that make or break backyard projects - and exploring the constituents of those touches is what Garden Ornament by Linda Joan Smith (Workman Publishing, 1998) is really all about. This beautifully illustrated, 136-page book tackles head on the often overlooked subject of garden ornamentation and, in doing so, pulls back the veil on a remarkably rich set of design touches and specific objects you can use to lend interest to your projects, generate enthusiasm among your clients and, ultimately, give your projects real visual energy. That set of ideas includes items that can be used to add beauty and even

Changes Hit the Deck

It's impossible to know why some people change their minds the way they do or to predict exactly when it might happen, but in working with opinionated clients who demand the extraordinary, it's a fact that accommodating their changes in direction can come to define and redefine a project more than once as you move from start to finish. In many ways, our ability as watershapers to adapt and adjust midstream is at the heart of what we do - and no one says it's easy! The Malibu Colony project I've been writing about in several recent columns is absolutely

A Natural Assist

Let's continue the examination of soils we began last time, shifting our focus this time to fertilizers and the ways they can be used to tailor soil to the specific needs of the plants you and/or your clients have chosen. Fertilizing is important, because placing a plant in the ground and providing it with ample sunlight and adequate water in the proper location is only part of the battle. True, plants may thrive under those ambient conditions, but treat them to even minimal amounts of fertilizer and those same plants will show their gratitude with a beautiful display of foliage, blooms, fruit and other wonderful things. Fertilizers provide nutrients for plants that the soil and water alone cannot supply, and they come in hundreds of variations designed to

Devils in the Details

Why is it that, on the pool/spa side of the watershaping business, it's so difficult to find much by way of truly workable plans and specifications? In residential work, of course, the tone is set by local building inspectors and plan checkers, whose needs seem to vary tremendously from place to place. But that's no excuse for the fact that the plans used in a great many residential projects are grossly inadequate - especially when compared to the far more detailed and precise plans and specifications required by

Higher Purposes

Lately I've noticed a fascinating trend among the projects we've been approached to publish - a string of articles about watershapes that, for want of a better term, have been designed with

The way pond/stream artist Bob Dews sees it, simple structures he calls ‘dirt pockets’ could revolutionize the way plants are used in naturalistic watershapes. For starters, he says, these pockets give him unprecedented flexibility in taking care of the aesthetics. In addition, they also offer benefits when it comes to the sustained health of the streams, ponds and cascades he’s been installing for clients in the most beautiful parts of North Carolina.

Pocket Change

To make a pond or stream successfully "natural," the designer and installer must know what it takes to produce a convincing illusion that the end product is actually a naturally occurring body of water. It's no secret in the trade that this illusion is made or broken at the edges, where the physical boundaries between waterway and the hardscape and plantings must be both precisely controlled and completely concealed. Necklaces of stone won't cut it, nor will waterlines sharply defined by lines of terrestrial plants. In fact, the challenge here is to make visually linear boundaries disappear, and that's a tall order for even the best pond/stream designers and builders. In my own projects, I work almost every day in tweaking and refining my approaches to these margins and edge treatments, and I've come up with many ways to enhance the natural appearance of my ponds and streams. In recent years, I've been honing a technique for landscaping in and around the water that's given my work an entirely new dimension: It's a type of planting container I call a "dirt pocket" - a simple structure that lets me plant a broad range of non-aquatic plants directly in contact with

Outdoor cooking and entertainment areas are becoming more and more popular among his mid- to high-end clients in California’s Silicon Valley, observes watershaper Paolo Benedetti. That’s why he now sees ‘exterior kitchens’ as much more than an afterthought and has instead found ways to integrate them fully into his work with homeowners, from the start of the design process through to a highly functional finish.

Kitchens of Distinction

What started as a slow simmer has now come completely to a boil. Ten years ago, precious few of our clients had little or no interest in setting up outdoor cooking areas to go along with their pools, spas and waterfeatures. That's certainly not the case today, when fully 90% of our clients want us to set up some sort of kitchen amenity as part of their deck and patio areas. You don't have to be a marketing genius to see what's happening: It's great fun to