Spring feed waterfall and brook

[jdieter]

I live on a slope and have a spring feed gravity water fall on the back outside wall of our house with a small brook that continues downhill to the creek beside our house. The spring is about 400 ft away and maybe 20' higher in elevation. The spring water is piped to the house with 1.5 black plastic pipe.This was all built by the homeowner in the 60's and was the original water system for the house. The original owner had to install a well to sell us the property. We kept the waterfall and brook for aesthetics and use the water for lawn and garden watering. The last 2 years my outside bar beside the waterfall has frost heaved about 2-3". I built the bar 15 years ago and these last 2 years are the first time the bar has moved so I suspect the waterfall and/or brook are leaking and saturating the soil. I plan to tear out the waterfall and brook down to the sub-soil and rebuild with a liner. What advise or good links does anybody suggest. I can post some pictures if that helps.
Thanks
Jeff

 

[Meyer Jordan]

I live on a slope and have a spring feed gravity water fall on the back outside wall of our house with a small brook that continues downhill to the creek beside our house. The spring is about 400 ft away and maybe 20' higher in elevation. The spring water is piped to the house with 1.5 black plastic pipe.This was all built by the homeowner in the 60's and was the original water system for the house. The original owner had to install a well to sell us the property. We kept the waterfall and brook for aesthetics and use the water for lawn and garden watering. The last 2 years my outside bar beside the waterfall has frost heaved about 2-3". I built the bar 15 years ago and these last 2 years are the first time the bar has moved so I suspect the waterfall and/or brook are leaking and saturating the soil. I plan to tear out the waterfall and brook down to the sub-soil and rebuild with a liner. What advise or good links does anybody suggest. I can post some pictures if that helps.
Thanks
Jeff

Where does this brook lead to? Is it part of a larger watershed? If it is, you may need to obtain permits before any modifications can be done.
That said, I have never seen or heard of lining a naturally occurring waterfall and/or stream. No way to attach the liner that will ensure absolute protection from leaks. In fact, it could make the situation worse by disturbing soil that has been naturally compacted over many, many years or decades.

 

[jdieter]

I was misleading in my original post. This is not a natural occurring water feature. The only natural part is the water source being spring feed that flows year round. The brook continues the downhill slope to a creek just off the edge of our patio. It's not a part of a larger watershed. At the top of the hill above our house the 3 springs pop out the side a ravine and a small concrete dam contains them in a pond probably 20' in diameter. Any watershed overflow breaches the dam top and continues down the ravine to the creek. The pond is where the 1.5" plastic pipe originates that feeds the waterfall and brook on the back of the house. The floor of the brook is done with flagstones laid in concrete till it clears the patio, from there to the creek it's essentially a natural shallow ditch. The brook is about 2' wide. I'm not sure how the waterfall was constructed. Over the years the calcium growth from high limestone content in the spring water has overgrown whatever was the original waterfall structure on the side of the house. My guess is it's similar to the brook sides native stones embedded in concrete and mortared to the concrete block side of the house. In the 20 years we lived here I 've had to chisel back the calcium overgrowth on the waterfall a few times.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Can you post some photos?

 

[milhousebarks]

Hi. Photos will definitely help, but I'm also wondering if part of your problem is related to the very cold winters we've been having. During the last 2 winters I've seen frost heaving of a walkway that has been in place for years and never moved. I'm not sure about your area, but at least around here (Washington, DC area) we've had much colder winters with lower lows and longer stretches of deep cold. I'm sure the rebuild may be necessary anyway, but thought I'd mention what I've noticed based on recent weather.

 

[sissy]

My dad had a spring fed pond that we built together but it was really great water .We used some for the farm and some for the pond .The way it sounds is that if there is calcium has caused the problem and the big job of rebuilding it may be your only choice .I don't know about cold but it sure will heave things up and then when ground thaws you may get a lot of cracking where your bar is .Calcium can really build up over the years .Sometimes having a beautiful feature like that can be a big pain .

 

[jdieter]

Being new to the forum I apologize if I make a mess of attaching some photos. The pad in front of the waterfall was a lower support for steps to the deck above, I going to remove it and make more of a pool in front of the waterfall. I removed the original steps and added the rr tie steps to the left. The 2nd pic is looking from the bar toward the brook, 3rd is a close-up of the waterfall and the last is standing on the bridge with the brook going down to the creek. The bridge is original and I'm replacing it during the remodel also. The distance from the waterfall to the bridge as around 20' with a fairly gentle slope. From the bridge to the creek is around at 25' drop overall. I'm only planning to extend the engineered section of the brook about 5' past the bridge.

 

[sissy]

looks like the stone wall is absorbing a lot of that water and it could be making the cement between the rocks freeze and thaw and mortar will crack .Is that all dirt there under it or do I see a rock also .The mortar over time will give way and swell with all the water and the freezing and thawing of it .

 

[Lisak1]

Well, I don't know what's causing your problem, but MAN that's gorgeous!

 

[addy1]

Really nice looking! A liner might be your best option, it would contain wandering water.

And welcome to our group of ponding fanatics! Ask away as you work on your project, if you have ??'s

 

[jdieter]

looks like the stone wall is absorbing a lot of that water and it could be making the cement between the rocks freeze and thaw and mortar will crack .Is that all dirt there under it or do I see a rock also .The mortar over time will give way and swell with all the water and the freezing and thawing of it .

I don't know how the water fall is constructed, it was overgrown with the calcium/lime growth when we bought the place 20 years ago. Fist move will be to knock all the overgrowth off the waterfall to see if there is stone laid in concrete against the block house wall. That seems to be the construction method for all of the brook. The stone on the house above the waterfall is the lightweight concrete flat on the back cultured stuff. We did that about 15 years ago. Thanks for the compliments, the waterfall and brook were one of the features that drew us to purchasing the place.

 

[sissy]

like they say curb appeal will sell a house any day .If that concrete against the house is absorbing water that you are talking about that could be the only problem you have and will save you money .By the way great idea to add the stone it looks great .

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Liner would certainly be you best option, but it is hard to tell from the photos where the proper attachment site would be. This attachment would surely need to be watertight and stable,

 

[jdieter]

Liner would certainly be you best option, but it is hard to tell from the photos where the proper attachment site would be. This attachment would surely need to be watertight and stable,

Exactly what I'm struggling with. Assuming I can tear the waterfall down to the existing block wall behind it, what will the best method to attach the liner. And after that hurdle is jumped how to rebuild the water fall against the liner. The waterfall being spring fed runs year round, but during the freezing parts of winter a thick ice coat covers the outside of the waterfall, so that poses some challenged in rebuilding.

 

[sissy]

And a lot of work and time .I don't want to be you .Sorry but I have to tell it like it is .