ARTICLES Archives - Page 93 of 314

Meeting Minds

'What if you were so bad at your job that a person in a related field decided, for the good of his own business, he had to learn your business and replace you rather than cope with your incompetence?' That's how Brian Van Bower eased his way into his Aqua Culture column in the May/June 2011 issue of WaterShapes. 'Most people,' he continued, 'would say that this would be a justified response to the fact that you

Oxygen Rescues

In a well-balanced pond, the oxygen content of the water is seldom an issue. But if things move off course, notes Mike Gannon, it's essential to find the cause -- and then apply one of three possible remedies tailored to the urgency of the need and the extent of the budget.

A Personal First

As I noted a couple weeks back, my to-do list of household projects has long included installation of a small fountain. In the place I had always intended to put it, I figured that the watershape would be visible from the redwood deck where we do most of our warm-weather entertaining; from the stone deck where we

Called upon when other contractors couldn't give the client the organic look he wanted, Matt Wilson put his skills and long experience with artificial rock to the test in creating a water- and plant-draped outcropping that appears to have been in place since time immemorial.

The ‘Forever’ Look

It was a great project: The client called us in to look at a sloping backyard for which his one and only wish was an environment that would be "organic and pre-existing" - that is, a composition that looked as though it had been there forever, long before the adjacent home entered the picture. That sort of look is our stock in trade at Outdoor Republic, a Pleasanton, Calif.-based firm that specializes in the use of artificial rock. As is often the case, we became involved after the homeowner had

Active Water

When agitated or flowing water moves through the air, it loses carbon dioxide. That's particularly significant in systems with fountain jets, waterfalls or vanishing edges, observes Kim Skinner, with the loss affecting pH in ways that must be dealt with to avoid big problems.

What’s Up with the News?

The news wasn't great for public pools, hot tubs and waterparks in the days leading up to Memorial Day and the start of the 2016 swimming season: In five big states (Florida, New York, Texas, Arizona and California), a series of aquatic-facility inspections by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) found widespread violations and in some cases closed facilities pending remedial action. News of these inspections went viral

A Fresh Start

As I've suggested a couple times in the brief texts that have introduced the videos in this series on the spring cleaning of ponds, the process we pursue at Pond Digger Waterscape Design & Construction (Yucaipa, Calif.) is filled with opportunities - for minor adjustments, for new additions or, in this particular case, for completely changing directions and rethinking which forms of wildlife should occupy the ecosystem. Frankly, I doubt the

Knowing Your Range

'I understand that everybody has to make a living,' wrote David Tisherman near the top of his Details column in the June 2006 edition of WaterShapes, 'and I've always known that there are many people in the watershaping world who make their daily bread by selling, designing and building the pool, starting it up, selling pool toys and acid and chlorine, servicing the pool, winterizing it in the fall and opening it back up in the spring.' 'The range of activities some people try to master beneath the umbrella of

The Humidity Factor

Indoor pools are wonderful as both design challenges and family recreation centers. But as Paolo Benedetti discusses here, they'll stand the test of time only if you take care of moving the moisture they generate away from the indoor space -- no shortcuts allowed!

Generational Joys

Every once in a while, the fact that I'm not getting any younger smacks me right upside the head. This time, it's had to do with becoming a grandfather for the second time - an event that's led me to do more than the usual amount of reflecting in recent days and, in particular, think about instances when I've intertwined my personal and professional lives. My oldest daughter was born in 1985, just before I returned to Los Angeles after a few years' absence to take on the top editor's job with Pool & Spa News. By the time