Pondless® Waterfalls

The hottest tread in landscaping!  We have the equipment available for the do-it-yourself installer or the pro installer who wants to purchase and install a Pondless® Waterfall.

What is a Pondless waterfall?

Yes it is what you think it is a waterfall with no pond and no fish.  You know not everyone wants a pond with the maintenance of plants and fish but everyone enjoys a great looking waterfall with the serene sound of water to ease the tensions of our busy workdays.

Advantages of the Pondless Waterfall

• Fits into small spaces.
• Perfect for people where child safety or the liabilities of a pond may be a concern.
• Virtually maintenance free!  Simple refill the reservoir every week or add water automatically with an auto fill valve.
• Great alternative for a front yard pond.
• No ecological need to run the system continuously.  Can be shut off with a timer or shut down during vacation time.
• No fish to maintain or be concerned about.

What would I want a Pondless® Waterfall?

Do you have memories of a gorgeous mountain stream and waterfalls you saw as a child on your walks in the woods?  You can still hear the water as it gushes over the rocky stream and hits against the wet rocks.  Imagine that you can receive this picture in your very own backyard.  It’s perfect for those who want the sound of water but not the maintenance of a pond.  If you live in the Ohio Valley area, call Meyer Aquascapes for an estimate 877 780-1174.

Where does the water come from and where does it go?

A Pondless waterfall actually works much like the equipment in a pond.   A basin, usually deeper than a pond, is dug and then underlayment and liner is put down in this basin.   Then we figure up how many matrix boxes you will need according to the size of the basin.   Water Matrix boxes are snap together sides that form a spacer in the basin and these spacers allow your basin to hold more water in the basin.  This means less maintenance of filling because of evaporation loss while saving on the amount of boulders in the basin.  You can hold up to 7 times more water.  Matrix boxes are essential equipment in order to have a basin large enough to accomodate the stream.

The basin also hold a Pump Vault which houses the pump and check valve, centipede which helps direct the water to the pump.  We do recommend that you order extra underlayment so that you can wrap the matrix boxes and/or cover them so that the rock and gravel will not fall through.  Then the rock is placed on top of the water matrix boxes and topped with decorative gravel.

The pipe is connected to the pump and heads up hill to the waterfall box.  This box aids in the ease with designing a waterfall.  The liner of the stream is attached to this box and you build your waterfall and stream from here.

So as an overview, your pump housed in the pump vault which pumps water up to the waterfall box which then flows down the stream into the basin and completely re-circulating system.  Since the water level in the reservoir basin never pools above the level of the rock and gravel fill, it gives the appearance of a Pondless® Waterfall.

Pondless: Winterizing Pondless Waterfalls

This is very important information.

It has been recommended by the manufacturer that those of you who live in Zone 1 (very north) to Zone 6 (parts of the east, Northern parts of the south, mountain areas) should remove the pump in the Pondless. And if you have a checkvalve, release the checkvalve from the pipe and then remove the pump with the checkvalve attached.  If you leave the pump in the skimmer and want to turn it off, don’t forget to disconnect the check valve (if you have one) from the pipe. Check valves have been known to freeze causing a leak in the spring which makes the falls appear to have a lot less water flowing. This also assures you that the pipe has been emptied.

Hint:  It is not always necessary to use a check valve with the pondless system. The pipe can directly connect to the pump.  Some of the older systems do have check valves so check your system to see whether you need to disconnect or not. However, if you have a long stream and a powerful pump, you may want to install a check valve which keeps the water from back flushing your system which could damage the impeller of the pump.

Pump should be submerged in water in an area that will not freeze.

If you leave your pondless running, and I know it can create beautiful ice sculptures but you will have to replenish the water very often. You lose more water in the winter than in the summer. If your pondless gets low, it will suck the pump dry and will damage it.

If you live in milder areas of the country, you can just disconnect the check valve  from the pipe and leave the pump in the water as long as the freeze line will not reach the actual pump.  If the pump would freeze it could damage to the pump and will cause the check valve to crack.  It is best sometimes to make the decision early so you are not dealing with a frozen basin.  The checkvalve will freeze first since it is close to the surface.

So in a nut shell, the advice is to shut the pondless down and remove the pump in all climates except those that do not get below 20 degrees and where a freeze only lasts a few days. Remember when running, your basin still needs water.

Happy Pondering,
Aquascapes.com

877 780-1174
info@aquascapes.com