Soothing Sounds- A DIY Outdoor Fountain
What is it about trickling water that we all find so soothing and relaxing? I love it, therefore I wanted that sound in my garden. I needed to make a fountain, I already had the pump and hose from an older purchased fountain that sprang a leak. I just had to find containers that I would pump the water into and then spill over to fall back into the base. A quick look at flower pots in the gardening center hatched the plan, they were resin but looked like old barrels.
The smaller pot would need to sit inside and above the larger pot, we accomplished this by securing it to an overturned bucket. The bucket acted as a stand for the small flowerpot and it provided a protected, concealed place for the pump and hose. The recycled bucket was bright yellow so I gave it a few light coats of brown spray paint. I wanted to color coordinate it with the pots although little if any would be seen once it was set up but I wanted to be sure. Holes were drilled into this base with a 3/4 " drill bit to allow the water to flow back inside to the pump location.
Here is the viewing looking up through the bucket stand, the water tubing was secured up through the bucket and the bottom of the flowerpot with plumbing fittings.
Here is the fountain setup looking down onto it, more detailed instructions are included in the video of the actual assembly.
The cavity in the base I intended to fill with the beautiful, smooth beach rocks seen below but on second thoughts the amount needed would create too much weight on the containers I was using. Solution? I used scrap styrofoam blocks about brick size and pop bottles that I cut slits into so they would fill with water and stay submerged to fill the cavity.
The rubber tubing that came up through the flowerpot seen in the yellow bucket above was a bit flimsy, therefore I had to create a way to keep it rigid. Luckily I don't throw out a lot of things that I think may be useful for another purpose. I had bought dollar store lights for another DIY project that didn't require using the posts. I took two of these hollow plastic posts and just taped them together and slided it over the tubing. The top spout? It was an elbow piece used for plumbing I assumed, I saw it in a clearance bin at my hardware store. I added it on after the video was made, it shoots the water out just enough to create more of that trickle sound I love. For just 50 cents I just had to try it, cha-ching it worked!!
The true test is to plug in the pump and wait for the moment when.....that wonderful trickling sound starts. As an added touch I bought faux lily pads at the dollar store to float on the water surface. This project was a great way to reuse the old fountain pump of the first fountain I owned and a chance to get creative in the process of making a new one. Thanks for viewing my project, I hope it has inspired you.
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Yes I am going to try this project. Thank U 4 sharing.
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Thank you for visiting and you are most welcome.
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Just an FYI: In case you have hummingbirds in your area they will drown in more than 2 inches of water. Unlike other birds that can fly out from deep water hummingbirds cannot fly out.
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Thanks for that great, helpful tip but sadly no I do not get hummingbirds here.
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You say large and small but the Amazon link uses numbers. Which diameter pots did you use?