Ponds, Streams & Waterfalls
As becomes clear in watching this series of videos, pond installation involves a bunch of specialized skills, from working with the liner and circulation system to moving large rocks and, as we'll see soon, arranging aquatic plants. But completing the project also involves a range of common job-site skills. As we've seen time and again, for instance, you need to know how to measure, fit and glue pipes, and you also need to
Installing a pond pump is a fairly simple process - and, as you'll see in the video linked below, represents one of my last big chances to sound off on the importance of basic pipe-connection skills. Yes, I'll admit that I'm a perfectionist and maybe a bit compulsive about making my pipe connections look right in addition to fitting right. In the operation covered here, however, there's good reason for care: If you're sloppy with glue application while installing a check valve, there's always the possibility that
As was mentioned a few episodes back, in designing this particular pond we settled on a filtration system that made the most sense for the setting and the situation - and now it's time to show you how we install its permanent gravel bed. As the video shows, it's a straightforward process of rinsing the material to get rid of as much dust as possible and doing what I can to cull any smaller-than-desired chunks of gravel that might
Of all the messages I've tried to convey in this video series and its introductory texts, one of the crucial ones is my observation that the people who buy and own ponds will spend lots of time enjoying their watershapes after it gets dark. The only way to make that happen, of course, is to include an effective in-pond lighting system to make the watershape's best features
As the process of installing this beautiful little pond moves toward its conclusion, we find as always that we have lots of smallish details to consider - including the important task of creating a great look with the waterfall's spillway. This step may not take the strength or persistence or grand vision of some of the project phases covered to date in this video series, but I can assure you it takes both care and finesse - especially
Of all the steps we've covered so far in this series of videos on pond installation, this is the only one that might be considered atypical, basically because the need for completing this operation depends on the type of filtration system you're using. In this case, we're installing a permanent gravel bed in the waterfall/filter unit, which means we need to include a backwash system in the form of a three-way valve and a drain line to make the bed easy to clean, refresh and maintain. The great thing is
The project we've been covering in this series of videos is definitely in the home stretch, but there are several key details that still need our attention. The most important of these from the perspective of long-term performance is properly securing the liner to the faceplate of the waterfall/filter unit. As seen in the video linked below, this step in the process is all about preventing leaks: No matter how small they might be, the fact that they'd allow water to
Earlier in this sequence of articles and videos, I mentioned how much I enjoy the fact that pond installation is an improvisational art form: You can roll through a design in your head and sketch it until your pencils are worn to nubs, but the reality is that working with boulders is a process of placement and on-site adjustment that ultimately brings a design vision to life. That's particularly true with waterfalls, which is why this single part of the series encompasses four videos and nearly 40 minutes of running time. And as you will notice, there are probably more
I've always been a demon when it comes to getting everything having to do with my pond skimmers right: If they're set up properly, they'll work so well that you rarely need to think about them - and that's always my goal, both for me and for my clients. Trouble is, you usually end up securing the liner to the faceplate at a fairly awkward point in
A surprising number of my clients come into the pond-buying process without having given any thought at all to how the watershape will look after the sun goes down. That probably has something to do with the fact that the big natural ponds they've encountered in their lifetimes have not benefited from any kind of illumination beyond the occasional pole-mounted floodlight. So they're in for a treat when we complete their pond and they watch it
