How to Install a Waterfall

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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To install a waterfall in a garden, there are three things to consider. First, elevation—for water to fall, you must have a difference in height between the beginning and end of the fall. Second, location--the waterfall must be where there will be minimal maintenance and traffic issues. Third, layout--set up your waterfall to achieve the visual look you are trying for. Remember that water plus volume plus obstruction create the sound and ambiance you want to achieve with the waterfall.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

Shovels
Submersible pump
Many smooth, attractive rocks of various sizes
Hose or piping

Step1

Determine the location of the waterfall. If you already have a pond, that will be a factor in the placement. It should be in a place, though, that will not impede foot traffic and will not have a lot of trees that might shed leaves and cause obstruction of the pump.

Step2

Move the earth if needed. If the location of the beginning of the waterfall does not have significant height for water to fall, then you will need to create it. You can accomplish this by making an earth embankment or placing large rocks stacked to create the elevation to stage the water at the top of the waterfall.

Step3

Create a staging area at the high point of the waterfall to pump the water from the low end of the pond. You can buy and install a commercially available plastic pond for this purpose or create a small staging area from a basin chiseled from a large rock. If you don't already have a small garden pond at the low end, create one at the end of the proposed waterfall.

Step4

Run your piping or hose from the submersible pump in the holding area to the staging pond. Bury the hose or piping and use landscaping to hide the end of the piping.

Step5

Determine the path the waterfall is to take from the staging area to the catch pond. Create and install a channel from point A to Point B by using commercially available flumes or by hand digging the path of the waterfall and lining it with concrete.

Step6

Place stones and a large rock in the channel to create eddies and ripples that are both pleasing to the eye and ear while the water is flowing down the channel. The more dramatic the elevation, the more sound you will have as the water flow will be faster.

Step7

Landscape to suite your style and to create the desired effect. With the waterfall installed, the sound of the flowing water is both soothing to the ear and pleasant to the eye.

Tips & Warnings

River rocks brought home from vacations and trips to the lake or river can create remembrance in your waterfall that only enhances the enjoyment you will receive.
The flowing water helps to keep the water aerated, which is helpful if there are fish in the lower or upper pond.
Remember that you will have to be ready to get wet. You will have the water running quite a bit while you are putting your waterfall together.