Spruce Up Your Water Feature: Three Ways to Revive Your Pond
Does your once-vibrant pond no longer spark the same joy? It might be time time for a revitalization project to reignite the spark. While embarking on an upgrade can seem daunting, a thoughtful approach can yield remarkable results.
Start by considering the end goal. What image fills your mind as you picture your ideal pond? Be realistic about the time and resources you can dedicate to this project. Expanding the pond's footprint will require a different plan of action compared to adding a captivating spitter. Remember, even seemingly minor enhancements like strategically placed lights, a cascading waterfall, or the introduction of colorful fish can significantly elevate your pond's visual appeal and reignite its captivating energy!
Add some decorations:
You can quickly revive your water feature with some new decorations and landscaping. You can get some new fancy rocks or just rearrange the ones you already have. Rocks and plants can help make your pond feel more organic as if it were naturally occurring. Some plants have the added benefit of helping to filter the water.
If you want the look of flowers without any maintenance, you can add the smartpond Floating Lily Pads. They look realistic while adding shade to the water and giving your fish a place to hide from predators.
Lighting makes your pond equally fun at night, great for barbeques or just sitting outside and watching the stars. smartpond pond and landscape lights have sensors, so the lights automatically come on at dusk and shut off at dawn to save energy. Each light also comes with four colored lenses (blue, yellow, red, and green) to add even more fun!
The Color Changing Floating Fountain already has a pump, so all you have to do is place it in your pond and plug it in. The fountain has 16 color options that you can control with a remote.
Spitters add some aeration and sound to your pond and are enjoyable to watch. The pump will sit in the pond, and the tubing will run to the spitter, pouring water back into the pond.
Build a new water feature:
Waterfalls and fountains help circulate the pond water, adding aeration. You can use the Nozzle Kit to adjust the shape of the spray for your fountain: trumpet, water spray, water bell, and foam jet.
Waterfalls allow for more creative freedom, as you can add a stream and add rocks to disguise the pond and create more noise. You can easily build a waterfall using the smartpond Spillway. Spillways are easily disguisable using rocks.
Expanding your pond can be a lot of work but extremely rewarding. A bigger pond will allow for more decorations and more fish! The tiny koi you bought as babies soon grow over a foot long, some up to three feet long. This can quickly come as a surprise, and overcrowding can be a big issue.
To make your pond bigger, you will need to drain the water and remove the liner so you can dig and create a larger spot in the ground. Before you do this, you will need to relocate all of your fish and plants and move any rocks out of the way.
Make sure you give your fish adequate room and aeration and protect them from predators if the temporary location is more shallow and open. Once you've dug the new dimensions you want, put the liner back, making sure it's nice and smooth, with rocks securing it along the edges, and then add your pond life.
Make it inviting:
Ponds are an oasis and sanctuary, a place to relax and disconnect from the stress and chaos of the world. They're great places to paint, read, write, or just stop and think. How comfortable is the space around your pond? Do you have a nice place to sit? Do you have shade? Try adding a hammock, bench, or lawn chair so you can sit by the water and relax.
You can add side tables and a DIY fountain. Sandboxes aren't just for kids; you can create a mini beach for yourself. Outline a box in the yard, close enough to your pond. You can dig a hole, or you can just use wood or stones for the perimeter and fill it with sand. Put your chair on the sand, add an umbrella if you need shade, and watch your stress melt away as you wriggle your toes in the sand.
Adding fish to a pond really brings it to life! Daily feedings will also give you a reason to visit more. Goldfish are great starter fish, as they tend to be hardy and relatively undemanding as far as fish go. Koi can require a little more care and can get rather large, but they are extremely beautiful and calming to watch. A good rule of thumb is to have at least 10 gallons of water for every inch of fish. When doing these calculations, keep in mind how large your fish will get and use their full-sized length for the calculations. Before adding your new fish, be sure to treat the water with a chlorine remover and allow the fish to adjust to the new temperature.
A pond is the perfect focal point for a yard. You can get as elaborate or as simple as you want. Additions can be drastic or just a little pop of excitement with some floating flowers or fish. It's really up to you. The slightest change can make your pond just a little more enjoyable. Make your pond a personal sanctuary and retreat by adding a waterfall or comfortable chairs and shade so you can decompress whenever you need to!
