Making a Waterfall

[Steve W]

Again we are not sure if for long or short term. I am a natural type of guy. I have a pond that has a water wall that is as natural as can be. My top section has a pipe with holes drilled in it and capped at one end. It sits under flat rocks and on top of another flat rock. The water comes out and rolls down the bottom rock to the fall. The width is based on the rock size and pipe size. If you want the water to fall into another holding area I would recommend a rubber pond liner with rocks siliconed to the rubber. That would force the water to go over the rocks as the water rises. Repeat as desired. The whole waterfall will have a backing of rubber pond liner that directs any back flow to go down the back on into the pond.

The head pressure depends on not just height. Bends, elbows, tubing size, length and filters all effect the head capacity. My findings are that I always go bigger and if I have too much I just put a valve with either another outlet (frog, pump, fountain) or jus allow the flow straight back into the pond. There is nothing worst than having too little of a flow. I have in my pond a foam filter in the water, a mechanical filter outside of the pond and an ultra violet filter between the mechanical filter and the waterfall. As the foam and mechanical filter get dirty the water flows drops quickly as the greater the resistance the.......

This is an easier to build idea with flexibility and easy maintenance. Easier as the rubber will conform to whatever size hole you have and is not ridged. The rubber can be patched if a hole occurs. Enjoy the experience.

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Sandi,
Take the above advice, if you use one pump for the whole thing it will require some thinking and planning. If you want a really outstanding look, remember that water can be made to appear like a large flow with the addition of turbulence and air. Turbulence can occur with a textured water trough and you can introduce air through small jets behind the water. Don't forget you can also add to the illusion with an audio recording of falling water.

[petek]

I can't improve much on all this helpful advise (though I second Dan's reminder about manufacturer's specmanship), but if this will be a permanent fixture, you'll need to include filtering and maintenance in your plans. The annual Cleaning of the Pond at our house is always a fun-filled festival of fish capture, snail rescue and tadpole counting, accompanied by the pleasant aroma of algae and year-old bottom of the pond muck.

If you find your project to be too easy, you can always make the water go uphill.