["Deadhead"]

Hello!
After digging out a HUGE DITCH at the end of the garden for our new shed I now have a collection of stones.(Granite and limestone). I would like to make a small water feature(not expensive) ,with a 'trickling' flow through the rocks.In the photo you can see the size of pile and I was going to put the feature under the blackthorn tree. The clay being dug out is for a paved area and now is the time to consider 'pipes/cables etc. Any help appreciated .
Thanks.

[kindredspirit]

Sorry you haven't had a reply so I'll stick up some comments.

Where are bringing your electrical power and water supply from? The house? You'll need armoured cable for the power.

The pile of stones don't initially look very interesting but the simplest answer would be to buy a circular? cattle trough, put in your fountain type pump and fill it with the stones.

Can't see clay either, only topsoil. Will those roots be a problem?

[vulkan]

I have just joined, sorry for being late, but this may also help others.

I would like to point out that it is never a good idea to build a water feature or pond under or near a tree.

When you dig down you may hit the tree roots, or the tree roots will (after some time) puncture the liner for the water feature.
Also come autumn the leaves will fall into water. Even if its a non visible pool the leaves will get trapped and rot and at "best" discolour the water, at worst they will kill any fish in a pond (depending on leaf type)

Water features in particular can be harder to design than it appears.

Take the pile of rocks mentioned for example. Where will the water flow? It will always find the easiest way to flow, so you imagination says that it will look nice with water flowing over the front of them all from top to bottom, but if its just a pile of rocks the water will flow where it wants, the easiest way, not where you want, the nicest way.

To have water flowing down a pile of rocks, the easiest way is to build a pyramid shape and have water falling onto the top rock, but you then have the problem of getting the water there, often this is done by drilling the centre of each rock and stacking them on a pipe which is connected to a pump. (The pipe should not be connected directly to the pump, as that would mean you would have to remove all the rocks to remove /service the pump)

Another idea would be to build a support "wall" fit a sheet of liner and put the rocks "in the liner" and again have the water running from the top down, the liner would then stop the water going else where.

[vulkan]

Again, although I am late in the day, below are a few examples of what I mean.



Although large in size, this is a pile of rocks sitting on a sump. The top rock has been drilled all the way through and a pipe inserted to allow water to be pumped up from the sump. The top rock is sitting on other rocks for a reason, to make the central rock higher, and to also hide the pipe. The water flows up the pipe, over the rock and back to the sump.

Consideration should be taken with rocks this size, as once installed you will not want to move them, so the pump should be off set from the rock (To allow access to it) as well as the rock having a strong support in the sump. You wouldn't want it to collapse after a short while would you.



This next one is one solid rock



But it's construction method is similar to the multiple rocks.

[ponddigger]

hi deadhead,did you finished your water feature,if so any photos, yours ponddigger

[ponddigger]

hi valkun,did you build the lovely water feature in the photo .yours ponddigger

[vulkan]

no.

[ponddigger]

hi vulkan 2 questions please .how big is the sump/bason. what did ye fill it to take the weight of the big heavy stones. yours ponddigger

[vulkan]

[ponddigger]

hi vulkan, i understand you did not build the water feature, i taught you design the water feature ,because you uploaded the lovely water feature photo ,sorry for the mistake. yours ponddigger :

[ponddigger]

hi ,saw a lovely water feature in co wexfofd to day ponddigger