Having a water feature in your own garden can give a huge sense of well-being, but the thought of creating it can be overwhelming. The obvious solution is to hire a contractor to handle putting the water feature together, but you can save yourself a large amount of money if you do the job yourself.
The first thing you need to consider when you decide to have a pond or waterfall in your outdoor garden is how large the project will be. As a general (and fairly obvious when you think about it) rule, the larger the area you are putting the water feature in, the larger the water garden can be. You may even have the space to put in a large pond that could hold several fish - a fantastic refuge for you to retreat to at the end of a long day at work, where you can listen to the sound of falling water and watch fish lazily swimming around.
If you are putting together a large pond, you will need to select a garden fountain pump that will be able to move the large volume of water required to suit the feature. A good rule of thumb for the pump is that it should be able to move approximately half of the volume of water in the pond in an hour. So if you have a water feature that holds 500 gallons of water, you should select a pump that can move at least 250 gallons an hour. Depending on the type of water feature and fountain you have, you may need a more powerful pump to move the water up several feet to the top of your fountain or waterfall.
Another important consideration is the energy rating and reliability of the pump. The pump will be running continuously for many months - you don’t want one that will constantly break (since you’ll have to get someone in to repair or replace the pump), and you don’t want one that will cost a lot to run. Many of the cheap pumps you can buy may save you a few dollars at the start, but they’ll cost you many times the saving in higher power bills over the years. Many landscapers recommend magnetic drive pond pumps as they are energy efficient, compact and quite durable.
One final tip when installing the garden fountain pump - since it is usually installed behind a rock or feature wall, it is important to make sure that the pump and everything else is working before you put the outer facade in place. Correcting any problems in the setup is much easier to do before the final touches are made to the water garden!
While the installation process may take a little time to master, before too long you’ll be able to sit back and enjoy the results of your labor with your own personal fountain.
