DIY water fountain: Part I

The "front yard" of our house was one big ol' mess this weekend when I decided I would spruce it up my building a water fountain. All it took was one terra cotta planter, a fountain kit and some rocks. These instructions are for the easy fountain, Part II will involve inserting the cording through the pot.

Materials:

- Large Planter
- Fountain Kit (available at your local garden center)
- Landscaping Rocks (at Home Depot, come in bags of about 20 lbs, use any size you like)
- Outdoor extension cord may be needed to reach an outlet (or you can buy a solar fountain kit)

Cost: about $100

Step 1:

Get a large pot and position it in the space you want. I choose the "Mynta" pot from IKEA for it's weight (55 lbs) and large diameter. I think it was about $25.




Step 2:

Fill the pot with the landscaping rocks, leaving about 1/4 reserved for later. Make sure you wash the rocks off as there will be some dust/dirt on them. I neglected this step and you will see the consequences later.



Step 3: Assemble your fountain kit and place it on the rocks, adding the reserve rocks on top to hold it in the center. I got my fountain kit at a local garden center for about $70.




Step 4: Fill pot with water, plug in fountain cord to outdoor extension cord and bury the cord under a light layer or mulch.

Before and After:

A semi-before of the space (I had already done some serious trimming at this point and forgot to take a "true" before picture):

After

** see how the water is cloudy? That is because I didn't wash the rocks off when I put them into the planter.

Part II will involve drilling the bottom of the planter and sealing the cord to create a sleeker look.