I wanted a
little pond in the back yard... which I made in a day - digging a
hole and using a pond liner and some rocks.
Over the
winter I decided that I wanted a bigger one, and I wanted it to be
made of concrete so the kids could play in it without tearing a
liner. I thought it should have a waterfall, so I made
one with rock from the local iron ore dumps and used a mixture of
mortar for stability and fine iron ore for colorant.
The kids play in the pond in
the summer. There are steps on the right, but but the pond is
less than three feet deep so they can get in and out from anywhere.
I used a "Simmer" sump pump to
circulate the water to the top of the waterfall. You can see
the rock where the sump pump hides in this photo. The bottom
of the pond is sloped toward it for easy emptying.
The
waterfall sounds wonderful, it is very relaxing to sit by when the
kids aren't jumping around in it.
If you take
the hose out of the top basin and aim it away from the pond, it will
empty the pond for cleaning.
I painted
the pond with UGL waterproof paint. Making the pond was
hard work but really did not cost a lot. "Quickcrete", mortar,
paint and a sump pump.
The pond has
now wintered one year with minimal damage, which I repaired with a
little concrete patch and a fresh coat of UGL.
A night shot
of the pond
If
I had it to do over again I would make the pond
bigger
and the waterfall
higher!
