A waterfall can add a tranquil sound of splashing water gently flowing over pebbles into the pond where fish lazily swim about. The difficult and expense of constructing a waterfall to add to your pond depends on the size and materials you want to use to build it.
The degree and levels of drop before emptying into the pond is a matter of personal preference and the amount of work and expense you want to expend. For this example we'll assume the pond we are building into is a 10' x 18' oval sunk into the ground. The bottom is harden clay with a rock and stone covered perimeter for decoration.
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The first matter to address is what degree of drop do I want the waterfall to be. The easier way to look at this is "how high" do I want the waterfall to be. A 6' high peak which only travels 3' into the pond would resemble a waterslide, which is not our intent.
I could quote mathematical equations, but why. Simply build the waterfall to have a gentle slope which would be associated with a babbling brook, not Niagara Falls.
The easiest method of installing the waterfall is to purchase a prefabricated hard plastic one. They are available in many sizes and shapes at pond stores or home improvement stores such as Home Depot and Lowes. The only draw back is depending on the size and levels of drop, these plastic waterfalls can quickly become rather expensive.
I suggest finding a waterfall with at least three (3) drops, which are small pockets or pools which are built into the falls, which is size proportionate to the size of the pond.
To install the falls place a block under the bottom of the falls' drop off, keeping it @ 6"-8" above the rim of the pond and 4" - 6" out over the pond. The intent is to allow the water from the falls to free fall into the pond water creating the splashing sound.
Now go to the other end of the falls and raising it to the desired height, block it up. Now both ends of the waterfall are at the proper heights, fill in under the falls with large rocks or dirt, in order to stabilize it.
At this point you can begin building up the sides, enclosing and hiding the black plastic form. Decorating can easily be done by simply piling decorative large rocks and stones, which can be acquired along the side of the road, or Windsor type blocks. Do not entirely finish the decorating, yet.
You'll have to buy and install a water pump, which can be purchased at the same place and time you buy the waterfall. There are a few choices to be made regarding the pump. Pumps are measured in GPH (gallons per hour) amount of water the pump will move through it. The larger the pump the more water. Be sure to buy a pump of adequate size or it may not be capable of pushing the water up to the top of the water falls.
Next, do you want only the waterfall or do you also want a shower for the pond? If you want the shower you'll have to buy adapters to allow the pump to have two outlets, if not, no adaptor is required.
Buy enough flexible tubing to go from the pump to the top of the waterfalls with a little extra for insurance. Connect one end of the tube to the pump outlet. String the tubing along and through the decorative rocks up to the top of the waterfall.
Drill a hole through the plastic and insert the hose through it @ an inch. It's usually a good idea to use clear caulking and caulk around the tubing at the opening to prevent leaking or the tubing from falling out. Do not drill the hole too low in the plastic or else you'll have leakage problems.
Complete the decorative rocks or blocks, insuring the tubing and black plastic are completely covered. Unless you want to place some pebbles into the pools of the waterfall, you are finished with the installation.
How to Build a Waterfall For Your Fish Pond Lowes Build
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