My boyfriend and I recently moved into a new apartment that has a screened in patio with a semi-obstructed view out to a small lake in front (still a million times better than the parking lot/dumpster view we had from the old apartment!). Anyways seeing the water made me think how nice it would be to hear the water too, hence the idea of a fountain!
Since fountains can get expensive quick, I began brainstorming how I could make one affordably and also simply, since I have absolutely no plumbing experience! I starting trawling the internet and I did find some tutorials but it seemed most of them were relatively complicated, so I have done a simplified version here...
WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
-a Reservoir - this is the creative part! - it can be anything that holds water really- I did mine with a large vintage enamel pot I found at a thrift store for only 6$, but I have also seen them done with large gardening pots, vases, etc. - Use your imagination!!
I got these from home depot. On the right is the pump itself. I got the smallest one they had ($18.99) since this is not a very big fountain. On the left is the nozzle set ($9.99) - this is the standard set for a doming fountain.
- Decorative Rocks - I used a couple bags of seaglass I had in my craft storage from Michaels.
- Lots of Water!!
STEPS:
1) Select your reservoir. Here is a better picture of the old pot I used:
Ignore the Campells cans!
2) Add your decorative rocks to the bottom.
3) Place your pump on the bottom of your reservoir in the center. The pump I bought had suction cups to hold it in place. Then connect your nozzle pieces to the top of the filter until your nozzle is at the appropriate height. The nozzle kit I bought came with an adjustable piece of tubing, I connected this directly to the pump and then put the nozzle on top of this. I kept the tubing at the lowest height since my pot wasn't very tall.
My nozzle is about 2 inches above the rim of my pot.
4) Add water! I filled mine to about 2-3 below the rim.
5) Turn on your pump and adjust the nozzle. Turning the top part of the nozzle to the right makes the dome of water bigger in diameter and vice versa.
Here's the finished product!:
Not too bad for a rusty old pot!
Extras:
-With a larger reservoir you could make a "mini pond" by adding some floating plants or even goldfish!
-try adding a floating element like floating led lights or old glass fishing floats
-use unexpected reservoirs like a worn down sink or even bathtub!!
If anyone has upcycled any interesting items into fountains please share! I would love to see some more ideas!
-Liz :)
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