ARTICLES Archives - Page 93 of 317

The old poolscape had its problems -- chief among them having been built partly over a huge trash pit. Correcting that situation was no fun, but it was only the first step in a process that saw Shane LeBlanc revise and upgrade the space from the back door to the view beyond.

Trash to Treasure

This is the story of the rebirth of a pool - and then some. It all started when I was contacted by a homeowner who was in what I'd call perfectly reasonable distress: His swimming pool was a mess, he told me, surrounded by cracked decking, a crumbling slide structure and a deteriorating fireplace. He'd already spent a bundle on piers and other fixes recommended by engineers, hoping to

To the Good Life!

'If you work hard,' wrote Brian Van Bower to open his Aqua Culture column for September 2001, 'you should get to enjoy the fruits of your labor.' 'For all of the obvious truth of that idea, I wonder how many of us hard-working folks in the watershaping trades take the time for those things that bring us enjoyment and a sense of

Drain Wisdom

With new rules and varying codes, setting up drain systems for pools and spas is more complicated than it once was, notes Paolo Benedetti. Here, he offers a bit of technical advice that will help clarify the process -- and make it easier for systems to pass inspection.

Fountain Foolishness?

Where do you stand when it comes to people using off-limits public fountains to beat the heat? With the arrival of the dog days of summer, I've spotted a generous selection of news items about people getting in trouble (or at least being chased away) when they've sought cool comfort in the waters of

Rockin’ in Rio

I've been an avid fan of the Olympic Games ever since I can remember. It all started with the 1960 Games in Rome, which I watched with my brothers and sisters through some of the few hours of available television coverage. Mostly I recall Rafer Johnson's and C.K Yang's duel in the decathlon, with the mere concept of competing in ten separate events blowing my young mind. And I recall watching Cassius Clay in boxing

Communing with Ruth

A brief, late-spring visit to San Francisco gave me the opportunity to be just a tourist there for the first time in many years. Judy and I stayed at a place near Golden Gate Park and spent a long, full day in its huge expanse, moving from one great and wonderful attraction to another. The fact that the Park's museums

Faced with a small site but encouraged by clients who gladly accepted his initial design proposal as presented, Tanr Ross applied all of his skills in creating a backyard environment that combines great entertainment spaces with family fun -- no change orders required!

Shared Vision

As a designer, I am quite familiar with projects that involve a good bit of give and take between me and my clients. You know how it goes: the typical process of success by approximation as you work through sets of possibilities and navigate around a couple dead ends before a design is approved and accepted. In a WaterShapes article earlier this year, for instance, I wrote about the ordeal of developing seven distinct

Pond professionals have a unique opportunity to put food on their clients' tables, writes James Rakocy. All it takes is opening up the design process to a discipline called 'aquaponics,' which puts fish to work in encouraging the growth of a range of water-loving edible plants.

Think Food

When I look at the average pond, I tend to perceive a range of missed opportunities. I come from the world of aquaponics, where I've spent my career figuring out ways to integrate environments for fish and plants in ways that make both fins and leaves grow like crazy. For the most part, I work on an industrial scale, designing facilities where huge populations of fish are grown as food and, nearby, huge

Taking Care

'As obvious as [it] may seem, it's phenomenally easy to lose sight of the immediate importance of healthful habits,' wrote Brian Van Bower in opening his Aqua Culture column in the July/August 2011 edition of WaterShapes. 'I know deep in my heart that being healthy is a long-term commitment, but I also know how easy it is to set that discipline aside.' 'As we make our way through [the busy] summer season, . . . it's easier than usual to set aside concerns about healthy living in favor of

Back to Basics

By early 2015, my folder of saved emails was stuffed with years' worth of questions people wanted me to answer about either their ponds or, as frequently, ponds in general. I decided at that time to answer a number of these inquiries in a video series I've called "Ask the Pond Digger." Most of the questions came from pond owners and do-it-yourselfers, but many others had come from