Reviving water feature

[Mrfourpointo]

I am ready to revive a dead water feature at my house. I have 2, and this will be the first to get going, as I hope it is the easier of the 2. I hired a contractor to fix it and he quit because he couldn't figure it out. After some exploration on my part, I think I can do this. Pictures are attached. My plan is to go pondless. I just want the look and sound of water (no fish for me). I hope to fill up the pond portion with aqua blocks and then a small layer of stone to bring it close to ground level. The perforated pvc at the top allows water to flow down the wall and into the pond. The capped pvc pipe at the bottom, believe it or not, appears to be city water supply. The vertical pvc with the drain cover is an overflow.

The rest is somewhat conjecture. I believe the water from the overflow pipe leads to the basin in the other picture through the large (4 inch?) pvc pipe, which is nearly completely blocked. You can see that there used to be a mesh wire cover to keep out debris. There was a sump pump in the basin. It appears that the pump was once connected to a pvc pipe where the white flexible hose is now connected.

For now, ignoring filtration and the state of that basin, I believe I can put a pump in the basin, connect it to the pvc, fill it up with water, and it should circulate. Thoughts?

My next questions will be on picking a pump, replacing or lining the basin, filtration, and sealing the concrete.

All advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[addy1]

Welcome to our group! That is going to look great when it is running.

I believe I can put a pump in the basin, connect it to the pvc, fill it up with water, and it should circulate. Thoughts?

I would start by filling with water,give it a try and see what happens

 

[JamieB]

Fill it with water and see if it leaks. If it was a water feature previously, it might still hold water. That’s save you on any need for liner/ treatment/ water proofing. When you do waterproof it, a liner is probably the quickest easiest way to go. Other options would be marine grade epoxy, as later on you might change your mind, or sell to someone who may want fish.

 

[JamieB]

I’d say it looks good, but on zooming in on the picture, is there cracks? If there are, you may want to patch them first. Pressure wash, remove excess water, make a paste of concrete powder and brush that on before applying any patch, and you’ll get a better bond.

 

[j.w]

@Mrfourpointo

 

[sissy]

welcome and looks like you have an interesting project there .Do you have an idea how big it is .Measure the back wall from side to side and then from the back wall to the front wall at it's widest point (being the middle of it .Agree fill it and make sure it does not leak

 

[Mrfourpointo]

The pond does not leak. I actually have a sump pump in there to remove water from rain. What may look like cracks in the picture are actually small vines growing into the pond for a drink. I'd like to try and run it to make sure my presumptions on the design are correct. It would also give me a chance to see if any of the plumbing leaks. However, my sump pump has a standard hose outlet, and it looks like the pvc that feeds the waterfall is 2". Perhaps I can frakenstein something together at Home Depot to use the sump pump to test everything.

I'll measure it this evening. It is actually part of a long retaining wall between my lot and my neighbor's. I'd guess that the wall portion is about 6 feet tall and the pond is about 5 feet across at the widest part in the back. It's probably about 2 feet deep.

 

[sissy]

I use a sump pump hose for my pond pumps and adapted it with pvc parts from lowes and hose clamps

 

[Mrfourpointo]

Several posts here because I wrote a long one and lost it. First, dimensions: 8ft wide along the back. 6ft front to back. 2ft deep. The wall is 5ft high.

 

[Mrfourpointo]

The basin looks like it had an overflow that dumped into the creek. There was also a pretty cool stalactite coming down from the large pvc pipe on the left. I dug around and found that smaller pvc pipe with the 90 degree turn down. I placed a garden hose in the overflow in the pond. The water emptied out of this smaller pvc into the basin.

 

[Mrfourpointo]

I used the bladder/pipe cleaner on the end of my garden hose and placed it in the white flexible hose. Voila, the waterfall works. It didn't want to discharge out of the left side. I think the wall has settled and is no longer level. I think with enough water flow it should cascade on that side also.

 

[addy1]

It is like exploring! Finding out what is hidden

 

[sissy]

treasure yet to be found and when you do WOW

 

[Mrfourpointo]

My current plans are to put a plastic basin inside of the rusted metal one, plumb the inlet, discharge, and an overflow. Filtration would need to be in the basin plus the pump. Fill the pond with aquablox and a layer of stones on top of them. Any suggestions on pump and filtration? Any flaws in my plan? I'd also like to figure out a way to control the filler. I have a hard time believing that whoever built this didn't put in an external valve somewhere, but I can't find one.

 

[Mrfourpointo]

Here is my plan for the pond. How and where would I incorporate a filter? I would think it needs to be in the basin.