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Garden
pond kits are fabulous! They take all the guesswork out of pond building.There's
no figuring out how to piece together
miscellaneous fittings or plumbing. And
you don't need to know which filter goes with what
pump.
The
convenience makes a pond kit the simplest and least expensive
way to add a pond to your life.
And
whether you use a kit, or decide to assemble what you need
from individual parts, there's hardly any difference at
all in the installation
process.
So the
Guide to Garden Pond Kits has the
hardware-intensive scoop on all the nuts and bolts you
should expect in a garden pond kit.
Plus a
quick 10-step overview of the entire pond building process
from start to finish. So you can decide if this will be a
do-it-yourself project or if you'll hire the neighbor's kid to
help out with the digging.
But
first, a quick word about design.
While you're in
the planning phase, why not consider how you
can make the pond visible from inside the house, from the
patio, and from the deck.
Streams and waterfalls can be dammed up by falling
leave. So carefully consider the presence of trees close
to your pond site.
Landscape
contractors recommend that a waterfall be no higher than one
third of the vertical distance from the base of the waterfall
to the base of the stream.
When
comparing garden pond kits, make sure yours features either
a flexible EPDM liner or preformed
pond liner.
It should
also include underlayment, a pump, a skimmer, a biological
filter, a check valve, and a precast reservoir box.
Here is a materials list
of what should be included in small
garden pond
kits with a flexible
liner:
- EPDM liner and
underlayment
- Mechanical
Filter
- Waterfall Filter
Unit
- 2500 gph
Pump
- Plumbing assembly
- 25' of 1.5", Kink-Free
Pipe
- Installation hardware
- Silicone Sealant
-
Bacteria with dechlorinator
- A complete 20-step installation
instruction manual
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Step 1:
Mark The Layout
 The standard
streambed is typically 2 to 4 feet
wide and 6 to 12 inches deep.
Play
around with different shapes for your waterfall and stream
bed.
Use a
garden hose or rope to outline the space.
Lay
in a fewcurves, some rapids
and a smaller falls or two on the way to the
pond basin.
Once it's
perfect, mark the winning shape with a can of spray paint.
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Step 2: Place the
Reservoir Box
At the top of the stream, decide on a spot for the
garden pond kit's waterfalls reservoir box.
Dig out
this spot until the box is at a height you like for the start
of the waterfall.
Then dig
another 5 inches down and fill this void with crushed rock.
Now
install the water supply pipe connection and the pipe itself
to the back of the reservoir box according to the
manufacturer's instructions.
Use a
carpenter's level to make sure the reservoir is level
from side-to-side. Then tilt it forward ever so slightly
until the level's bubble is just about a quarter off center.
When the
reservoir is in position, backfill the hole with the
excavated soil. Tamp it firmly, while keeping an eye on the
level to make sure the reservoir box isn't moved.
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Step 3: Dig Out
The Stream And Pond
 Make adjustments while you dig to
the depth and width of the streambed of your
dreams.
If
you want the waterfalls of
your garden pond kit to roar, dig out a pool of about 2 feet
right underneath the falls.
You can even dig deeper holes in the
middle and along the sides of the stream for laying in larger
rocks into these holes.
When your liner is in you'll lay the
rocks in these spaces.
And once the water is going, it will
swirl around and over these rocks.
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Step 4: Install
the Skimmer
Box
Dig out a
space for the skimmer box at the edge of the pond.
Set the
box on crushed rock following the manufacturer
instructions.
You'll
want the skimmer perfectly level at both sides and from front
to back.
Then set
the pump in the skimmer box. Install the pond liner on the
face of the box using the manufacturers instructions. And
fit the check valve into the pump's
discharge side.
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Step 5:
Build Up the Borders
 Starting from the top, place different
size rocks along the stream. Outline the shapes and reinforce
the banks.
To avoid
water from washing over the sides, add more soil to build up
the lower sides of stream and at the curves
You can
also make the streambed deeper at the curves to keep water
from escaping when it hits the curve.
Fill
up any gaps between large rocks with smaller rocks.
When you put the liner in place later,
you'll fit it over the built up embankment and use large
rocks to anchor the liner. This foundation will be an integral
part of the stream's edge that you'll spruce up with pond landscaping.
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Step 6: Run
the Supply
Pipe
Lay the flexible vinyl supply
pipe that comes with garden pond kits between the waterfall reservoir and the
pump in the skimmer box.
You can
bury the supply pipe about 6 inches deep to protect it
from damage.
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Step 7: Add
the Underlayment and the
Liner
 Start at
the top and pull the underlayment across the stream and the
pond.
Fit the
underlayment into the contours of the stream as you work your
way down the slope.
Then use
the same technique to lay in the EPDM liner.
You can't avoid folds and wrinkles, so
just lay both the underlayment and the liner in as
smoothly as possible.
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Step 8: Hid
the reservoir
Box
Pull the
stream liner up to the front of the reservoir box and attach it
using the manufacturer instructions.
Now you
can start installing rocks for a natural appearance.
Place the
largest rocks on each side of the reservoir then build up the
center section.
You can
glue the rocks in place and to each other with silicon caulk
or pond foam. Use the foam between the
gaps.
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Step
9: Fine Tune the Falls
Some garden pond kits have a plastic lip at the edge of the
reservior box that forms the pond waterfall.
To boost the appearance, fit
a wide, flat rock to the waterfall lip and lock it into place
with lots of silicon caulk. The further out you extend it the
more dramatic your waterfalls.
For a real plunge extend the
lip over the pool. Or shorten the length to make the water
splash over the rocks that support the waterfall.
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Step 10:
Landscape the pond
 The very best
part of any water garden pond kit is
garden pond
kits landscaping.
You have lots of choices, but choose wisely by letting the
climate in your area be your guide.
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