Fountain design
Fountain design, here are some tips
So you have decided that you want to design a fountain, but you are not sure how, well let us give you
some "tips"
First when you design a fountain you should decide where it is going to go, it must have the
following criteria.
Not be near any trees, this way in autumn you will not get leaves blocking
your pump, or roots trying to get in
That's about it really, because if it is not level you can, with some
effort make it level.
Next thing is how big is your fountain going to be. (Do bear in mind
that you only build a fountain once and to do it properly it will not be
cheap.)
As always when starting from scratch it is best to draw it on paper
first.
So you have decided to have a fibreglass pool as it is quicker and guaranteed
not to leek and will last a life time. You are going to have it
raised but you have a slight incline, we would suggest in this
case that you excavate the ground at the highest end so that the pool is
partially below ground to compensate.
Now that you have got your ground level and the pool fits how are you
going to bring the pump (s) and lighting cables in. We would suggest
that you use specialist cable entry glands for this as you do not want
it to leak.
Why not run a conduit to where the cables will come in through
the base.
Fit pool and decorate edges as require, fill switch on and enjoy. why
not send us a picture?
Some things to remember.
The Diameter of the pool should be at least twice as high as
your fountain.
So if you want a 5 foot high jet then the pool should be 10 foot
across. Why? because the wind can blow the water in any direction and
not to mention the fall of the water. so if your jet is 5 foot tall and
your pool is only six foot across that means there is 2 foot all round
that the wind can blow the water which will soon empty your pool.
see the JW rule for more information
The Pool
| Believe it or not fountain pools are never that deep as they
have no need to be most are or less than 15inches deep.
If you look carefully at this picture you will notice that
the lights are barely covered with water, that is because the
pool it self is very shallow |
 |
Pool decoration.
 |
You can leave the inside of the pool as it is or you could put
decorative gravel in the bottom to cover the cables etc. Some
commercial fountains use metal plates see picture adjacent.
As you can see holes have been cut for the nozzle to protrude
but leaving the lights hidden when the pool is off and during
the day |
The Pump
You can have a pond pump , but in our opinion surely that would
look like what it is, a pool with a pond pump in it, why not have a
bigger pump and a reasonable sized jet. You could even have several
pumps
Lights
You do not have to have lights, but it would be easier to install
them at the beginning rather than later
Controls
"I do not need controls, i only have one reasonable sized pump
and a couple of lights" That is why you do need
controls. Think abut it you are going to need a three core (and earth)
cable, one for pump, one for lights, if you had controls which can be as
simple as a time switch and photocell you could even put a weather proof
socket adjacent for your lawn mower. (you must of course comply to all
local wiring practices and or codes, which usually means the supply must
be protected by an RCD)
The Parts
The parts we have mentioned, fibre glass pool, medium sized pumps,
Nozzles controls and further information can all be found
here
One thing we would ask of you, do not tell too many people less the
secret get out; Fountains are FUN.
You may also want to see things not to do
Fountain ideas home
see here
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