Repourposed Lampshade Into a Solar Water Fountain
by
Judy
6 Materials
$20
20 Minutes
Easy
Starting out as a joke, I decided to turn a lampshade I was given, (simply because my husband didn't want me taking any more "junk")into a solar water fountain.
Who can relate?
Using a lampshade from a ceiling fixture which is 10" in diameter, a large vodka bottle, E6000 flexible paintable clear industrial-strength glue $6 from Amazon for and a solar water fountain that was $14; I began my project.
I wanted to add some weight and color to the bottle even though it's fairly thick, so it doesn't blow over during summer storms.
I started out by using a funnel and pouring the sand into the jar to see if I liked it
After pouring the darker more natural sand in, I put in the white sand. I decided to use a long skewer to poke the sand down the sides to give it a little bit of a design.
I wish I had more colors of sand to add more layers but I can always do that later.
Deciding to add more bling, because who doesn't need more bling? I was not sure if they will float in the water but I guess I'm gonna have to find out. They did not float. Using the skewer, I could move them around to mix up the colors. I am using purified water so I don't have any sediment in my bottle.
Using the funnel, pour in the water and let it sit until all the sand is wet because otherwise there will not be enough water in the bottle. I chose to do water because I thought it would add some reflections with the jewels with the sun.
I gently rocked the bottle back-and-forth on the counter to push out the air bubbles and let the water settle being careful not to disturb my design.
Next, I screwed on the cap of the bottle. I did not glue it down so I can add more water, change my design every year, color the water or whatever I'd like to do.
Glue the hole and seal it off. Next, glue the shade to the bottle cap.
Let this dry 24-48 hours.
Place the fountain top on and fill with water.
The fountain disc had little suction cups on the bottom so it would stay stationary. But my lampshade is concave so I had to use a small dessert plate to not only weigh it down, but provide a flat surface for it to stick to.
The plate is only 5 1/2 inches in diameter which fits perfectly under the fountain desk which is about the same size.
Before I glued the E6000, I took an old cork and traced a hole for added sealing power then just cut the cork away. Adding the glue next, I assembled the fountain after it was all dry.
If I ever find a larger lamp shade I will trade this one out to give birds a larger area to use.
Here is my solar 18" fountain that won't work because it's raining and cloudy.
I will place it on a small table to raise it up and let the birds enjoy it off of the ground. First I have to refinish the table which is another project.
Resources for this project:
CPPSLEE Solar Bird Bath Fountain Pump Solar Fountain - Outdoor Watering BirdBath Submersible Pump for Garden and Patio - 1.4W Free Standing Water Fountain Pump Kit
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Comments
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3 of 6 comments
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Junk smunk!!! My wife says silly rabbit things like that all the time...but, when she needs something...she knows I have "something" that will work for her project.
Great idea!!! I've got (of course) a couple of those and was wondering what to do with them. Thanks for the idea!
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This is so clever!
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