Our project the last couple weeks has been working on the rebuild of a failed pond and waterfall in Asheville, near the famous Biltmore estate.
Old pond and waterfall
The existing waterfall had failed previously and the homeowners had it filled in and abandoned it. We were contacted to try and revive the feature in the same footprint as the old one.
We were happy to help and recommended installing a Pondless waterfall instead of a pond and waterfall system. The Pondless feature would be easier to maintain for our clients.
Plus their main objective for this project was to hear the sound from the porch.
We will typically recommend a Pondless waterfall to our clients who are not necessarily interested in raising Koi.
Custom waterfall
The Pondless waterfall system will give you the beautiful sound and enjoyment of a water feature with all the maintenance included in having a pond.
With this feature we re-landscaped the project area and installed a new low voltage lighting system, including aquatic lighting so our clients could enjoy the waterfall at night.
Here’s a quick video of the project.
Give us a call anytime if you need help designing or installing a water feature of any kind.
We just finished this awesome, 100 ft long Pondless waterfall in Hendersonville, Nc.
This custom waterfall features a meandering stream through the upper yard of our clients house. With a stone slab stairway that leads you up to a beautiful dry laid flagstone patio.
Hendersonville waterfall
Every stone on this project was hand selected and placed to create a magical one of a kind feature.
Flagstone Patio
Our focus at Living Waters is to create custom, artistic, one of a kind water features and stone work for our clients.
Pondless waterfall
Give us a call for your next water feature or stone work project!
We just finished this really fun project in Burnsville, NC. Our clients had an existing Koi pond that was failing. It was an old wooden structure the retained the pond.
We talked about options to fix the feature and deck that a rebuilt was needed. So we made plans to create a new outdoor space around the pond. The finished design incorporated a new dedicated Koi pond, a Pondless waterfall, stone stairs and a dry laid flagstone patio.
Koi pond and patio
The pond ended up being 10×15 ft by 6 ft deep. We installed a rotating drum filter with a moving bed biological filtration system. This filter is top of the line and automatically cleans itself!
Below the pond we installed a Pondless waterfall with a Filtrific filter. We installed this waterfall seem as it flows out of the pond, but it’s a separate system.
Pondless Waterfall
We also installed a stone slab stairway that wrapped around the pond and leads you down to the lower waterfall.
Pondless Waterfalls
There is a stone bridge over the falls that makes a great feature.
Stone bridge
It was an amazing project to be a part of. And I’m very thankful to be able to work with such awesome clients!
The focus of our company is to offer custom, artistic and functional landscapes and outdoor living areas in the greater Asheville area.
We are mostly known for our water features and stone work. However what some of our clients don’t know is that we offer quality woodwork in our landscape designs.
Stone pillar with raised wood planter
Using wood features along with stone, water features and plantings can create a very well rounded and desirable outdoor living area.
From fencing to pergolas. Benches to planter boxes. And anything else you can imagine. We can create a a very welcoming landscape for your yard.
Custom Wood Gate and Fountain
We always think of functionality and longevity first. But to be able to add an artistic flare to your outdoor living space is a beautiful thing.
Using wood, rock and water together in a project always gets me excited. It reminds me of nature every time. Like sitting by a mountain stream with the roots of a tree hugging a large boulder.
Pond and Gazebo
Give us a call for your next landscaping project our outdoor living space.
Jacob
Living Waters Landscaping
828-301-8017
Custom built potting bench
The possibilities are endless!
Curved wood bench with fountain in Asheville Custom Fencing
Here is a quick guide to building a pondless or vanishing waterfall in your backyard or garden area. The Pondless waterfall is a great addition to any landscape design. Simple and low maintenance, yet guaranteed to be the focal point of your garden. We will be detailing a Filtrific Vanishing waterfall in this post. To read more about the difference between a Filtrific Vanishing Waterfall and the traditional Pondless Waterfall go Here.
As with any waterfall or landscape design, I always recommend doing a drawing or having a professional designer draw out a plan for your project area prior to construction of your water feature. This will allow you to plan for future planting or hardscaping and make sure you are satisfied with the location of the waterfall before construction begins.
The first step, after you have decided on the right location for your waterfall, (considering things like, the view from your house or seating area, and making sure the water flows from a naturalistic starting point.) would be to size your system. Your system size is the total amount of water that will be circulating through the waterfall and any point. Using the Filtrific sizing chart is a very useful tool, and will help you figure out how much space you will need to hold the total volume of water in your feature. This is a very important part of the project. You will need approx. 3 times the volume of water, flowing trough the waterfall or stream, in your holding tank or pondless basin. Do not under estimate this step! I have seen many projects gone wrong by not having enough volume of water to run the system.
The Filtrific system has two basic components. The first is the filter box and pump housing. This box will hold your leaf catch baskets, pump, overflow port and automatic fill valve (if you choose to use an auto-fill). The second component is the expansion tank. This is only needed if your system has a greater volume then the filter box can hold. (See sizing chart).
Once your design, location and system size are set, you are ready for excavation. Dig out an area to set your filter box, as well as, a rough excavation for the waterfalls and stream. Give yourself enough room in the waterfall excavation to account for placing boulders and stone. Always make sure your excavation is ‘cupped’ into your slope to give the feature a natural look.
Here you can see the installation of the Filtrific filter box as well as the expansion tank.
Make sure to set you box to the level of your finished grade for it to flow correctly.
Here is the box installed with the plumbing roughed in. You can see the overflow, pump discharge and auto-fill lines ready to be backfilled.
The best part of the Filtrific system is the fact that you can install the filter box in a remote location away from the bottom of the waterfall. This allows for easy access to the pump and can aide in the overall ascetic view of the feature.
Now that your box is placed and your excavation is roughed in, you can begin the construction of the waterfall. The first step is laying your liner out. Measure your length and width of the excavation area to be sure you have enough liner.
We used a 45 mil EPDM rubber liner with a 9 ounce Geo-textile fabric underlayment for this system. Be sure there are no rocks or roots under the fabric that may puncture the liner.
Now you can start placing stone.
Starting at the bottom of the falls, set your stone and boulders on top of the liner, using extra caution not to damage the liner.
At each step, or fall, make sure you stop and backfill behind the liner to achieve maximum flow of water over the stone. You can use mortar or waterfall foam behind the stone to aid in this process.
Stone placement is a very artistic endeavor, it can be tedious, but is rather rewarding in the end.
Work you way up the falls until you reach your desired height. At the top of the falls you can choose to install a waterfall starter box or just run you pipe from the pump into the stream or falls.
After you are satisfied with the waterfall you can move back down to the bottom of the falls and install the fixed skimmer. The fixed skimmer allows for a small pool of water to gather at the bottom of the feature while it is running. When the waterfall is turned off, the pool of water drains into the filter box, leaving no standing water in the feature. A real maintenance plus!
Now you are ready to install your pump and get your new waterfall flowing! Trim the edges of exposed liner, leaving approx. 8 inches around the edge to compensate for settling.
Using the Filtrific system when installing a vanishing or pondless waterfall will make the maintenance on your system much easier then the traditional pondless waterfall system. Do some research on the different types of waterfall systems, or give us a call for a free consultation.
Thanks for reading this post and enjoy your new Vanishing Waterfall!! JacobLiving Waters Landscaping828-301-8017
Living Waters Landscaping LLC 