Pot Fountain Design

Hi all,

I posted this on Water Gardening but want to get input from a larger field. I want to use one of those beautiful large glazed ceramic pots to make a fountain. It would be a large one so that the top will be at a decent elevation - something on the order of five or so feet high. I guess it would have a 50 - 70 gallon capacity, depending on the shape. I want to have the water bubble up over the top and run down the side. I figure I will bury a plastic tub in the ground, center the pot in the tub and fill the tub with large decorative round stones. The overflow would make its way to the tub where it must be pumped back to the pot. Here are my questions. Where should the pump go? At the bottom of the pot - with a long extension tube to provide the bubbling action at the top and tubing that passes through the bottom side of the pot to the tub area to suck the water? Near the top of the pot, perched on something with the tubing (and power cable) going down the pot and out? Don't need the extension in this case. Or possibly in the tub? Should it be a 120v or low-voltage pump? Now for the biggie, what size pump would I need? I'm not looking for Niagara Falls - just want a nice steady bubbling over that I could hear inside. This will be right outide my window along my front walkway. Maybe a variable flow would be helpful. How much would the pump cost? I know the pot will be very expensive. Any other considerations, ideas, etc.? Obviously I have to get to an electric outlet as well. Thanks.

Victor

this link is not as a big size that u anticipate to have, but give u a thorough info http://kish.cc.il.us/cad/gallery/rprtsp00.htm

another design http://www.salondaily.com/us/lifestyle/design/home/home_0003.html , http://www.mccloudnine.com/Actually%20Make%20A%20Fountain.htm

Thanks. However, in these two examples, the pot contains all the water. It does not spill out of the pot into another vessel, as mine would. Also, the scale is completely different.

Victor

Not sure what size pump but I do know you buy them by the number of gallons they pump per hour. You can figure out how many gallons your container holds and figure it from there.

I have seen plastic containers designed just for what you are describing . You position them underneath your large pot and there is a space for the pump and for the polished rocks.

Sounds like it will be lovely. Post pictures when you are finished. alice

MaVie, thank you for those links.

You would put the pump in the tub and run some black tubing (can get at lowes--plumbing dept) thru the hole in the bottom of the pot. Then silicone around the hole and let it dry for a day or two before using. The water will then fill the pot and overflow back into the tub where the pump will pump it into the pot again.

You'll need enough water in the tub for the pump to work effectively, so in the bottom part, fill it with hair rollers or something sturdy and porous like that. This will also double as your biofilter, filtering out dirt and debris. You want to surround the pump in hair rollers or something like that and then add a layer of rocks on top to hide them.

For the pump you want, you can get a statuary pump at Walmart and Lowes which will pump about 100 gph (gallons per hour) for about $20, or order one from Ebay for about half the price (after shipping is added. I got 3 for $20 last year). If you want a little more gushing and sound, you could go with more gph for a more powerful pumping action.

Look for submerisible pond pumps. Here's a 315 gph pump. I really don't think I'd get one too much bigger than this one or you may end up with a geiser. Most pumps are adjustable so you can reduce the pressure if you need to.

http://cgi.ebay.com/315GPH-Submersible-Pump-Pond-Garden-Water-Fountain-NEW_W0QQitemZ110003042037QQihZ001QQcategoryZ519QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Here's a 526 gph:

http://cgi.ebay.com/526GPH-Submersible-Pump-Water-Fountain-Indoor-Pond-NEW_W0QQitemZ200002811137QQihZ010QQcategoryZ519QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Either of these would suit you, I'd think. And their volume is adjustable.

If you don't have an outlet nearby, then you may want to find a solar powered one.

Hope this helps.

NancyAnn

Thanks so much Nancy Ann. I really appreciate your time and effort. The ebay links did not work but I can search for them. One question though. I do want the water to bubble up at the top of the pot, not simply spill over. I think bubbling will make it more interesting and will create a nicer sound. If the pump goes in the tub, how can I accomplish this? Run the tubing all the way up to near the top and somehow fasten it? Thanks again for your input.

Regards,
Victor

Victor, yes, you'd run your tubing thru the hole in the pot and all the way up near the top. You can fill the pot with rocks to hold your tubing in place. And right at the top of the tubing, if your pump is powerful enough, it should gurgle.

Rocks are pretty heavy, so you can fill the lower portion of your pot with lighter weight "fluff", like hair curlers, sponges, etc. But near the top, you'll want some rocks to hold the tubing in place.

Then for effect, you might get some creeping jenny or some other water plant to stuff in the top of the pot, in the rocks (they won't need soil), to kinda disguise the rocks. Creeping jenny would cascade down and be beautiful. You could also use other water plants and make a nice arrangement in your pot.

If you need something solid to slip your tubing into, you can use PVC pipe from the plumbing section at lowes. Just insert the pond tubing thru the PVC pipe and then fill in around with rollers and rocks and such.

Well, you know, now the links don't work for me either. I just had them a minute ago. If you find some that you're interested in, dmail me the links and I'll tell you what I think.

NancyAnn

NancyAnn,

Thanks so much again. You have been a wonderful help. I did not think of filling the pot with rocks or 'stuff'. Great idea. I have a pond so I am familiar with Creeping Jenny (love it and am using it as a groundcover in the landscape, in addition to the pond edge) and other water plants.

Filling the pot with rocks and stuff will reduce the volume of water needed to fill the system, of course. I imagine that will affect the sound of the gurgling. I will no doubt experiment until I find what I like. The plastic pipe sounds like a good idea to hold the tubing. Could buy the black one to assure it's not seen through the rocks.

Thanks once again. I will let you know how it goes and hopefully will post some pics. Take care.

Regards,
Victor

My fountain is a smaller version of what you have described. It has the urn you see here which looks like glazed clay but is fiberglass. It is about 24 inches tall. It has been formed with an inset just below the rim which has a small hole in the center. A long piece of tubing projects slightly through there and provides the bubbling effect. The other end of the tubing is connected to a small 120 gph pump. The pump has a screw adjustment to control water flow but I run it fairly full open.
The urn sits on top of a square vinyl tub (approx 15gallons)that is sunk in the ground. It has a lid with a small cut-out in the middle for the tubing to pass through and a slightly larger (3-4inch square) hole in one corner to re-fill when the water level drops. The pump is put in the tub, the lids is put on, the tubing is threaded through the small cut-out and up through the urn. I wrapped the tubing with waterproof tape for a snug fit as it passed through the hole in the urn. After the reservoir tub is filled, the urn is positioned and the pump is running ( be sure to plug into a GFCI outlet) I stack rocks around the urn to disguise the tub.

It can get kind of green and mossy in the heat of summer so I don't grow any plants right near it. I just scrub it down with a long handled brush and add a cup of bleach to the water once in a while. I haven't noticed any adverse effect on the birds etc. from this treatment- the robins love to bathe in it but they do splash the water out and I need to top it off.

With our zone 5 winters I dismantle it and move everything into the shed for winter- I cover the hole in the ground with a sheet of plywood and just have to re-shape it in spring so the tub fits into it.

Thank you mwhit. The only difference seems to be the size. Do you have a closer photo? After reading your post a few times I'm still a bit fuzzy about how the tubing is brought into the urn and how it stays near the top. Is it brought into the urn at the bottom, inside the tub and run up to the top? If so, how is it held near the top? If not, how is it done? Mine will be under a covered walkway so I will not have to deal with as much dirt, debris, etc. Thanks so much for your time and help.

Regards,
Victor

Sorry but this is the only pic I have.I looked for but can't find the orignal paperwork -thought it might have a sketch.
The "urn" is open at the bottom, hollow inside and the top is solid except for a small round hole for the tubing to stick out (only 1/4 inch or so). This solid part is set down inside the lip at the top (about 2 inches) so when the fountain runs this area fills with water and it spills down the sides.
The tub is sunk in the ground, the lid of the tub is level with the ground and the "urn" sets on top of the lid.
Hope this helps-it is a really attractive water feature-I've had it about five years and still just love it. The paint/finish started to flake off so I spray painted it with some of that "stone-finish" spray paint from WalMart and it turned out GREAT!

Yes, that does help me visualize it better. Thanks again!

Victor