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Once you have a pond installed, your life immediately changes. That might sound dramatic, but it proves true. The beauty alone is an enhancement to any outdoor environment, but along with that beauty comes peace, relaxation, new plants, and new pet fish. Water features create an outdoor experience like no other landscape element or home improvement. Whether you’ve had your pond for many years or just a few months, you might find yourself wanting to tweak it for ultimate enjoyment. Here are just a few ideas that might interest you. Pond LightsWatch your water garden come to life at night with underwater lighting! Tuck lights into the waterfall and enjoy the shimmering effect of the light on nearby bushes and trees. Place lights underwater to shine across the pond so you can see your fish during evening hours -- we swear, they play tag! In the spring, you’ll see frogs dart across the shadows of the pond’s surface. Warm white lights create special ambiance, while color-changing lights create a spectacular display. Driftwood AccentsDriftwood is ideal for concealing water feature components or adding realistic decorative accents. The addition of driftwood looks great in and around your pond – however you choose to use it.  Faux Log Fish CaveEnhance your pond and give your fish extra protection from predators when you add a fish cave to your water garden. Simply lower the Faux Log Fish Cave into your pond and watch your fish swim through it. The cave also provides shade for your finned friends during the hottest days of summer, and it looks extremely realistic.  Decorative SpittersSpitters and decorative fountain elements add a touch of excitement and a flow of water to your water features. Decorate your pond or waterfall with a toucan spitter, lazy frog spitter, naughty dog, spillway bowl(s), etc. There’s one to suit your taste and style! These are just a few ideas to get your creative juices flowing. We'd love to see what YOU come up with! OTHER POSTS YOU MIGHT ENJOY: SIX PONDS FOR THE PRICE OF ONE NOT SO SECRET TIPS FOR A CLEAN & HEALTHY POND WHY WE DON'T BUILD WITH CONCRETE How the Supply Chain is Affecting the Pond Industry (and What it Means for Your Pond Project)12/1/2022
 The supply chain affects every business and consumer on the planet. And over the past year or so, we’ve all seen what happens when it breaks down. You probably remember the great toilet paper shortage of 2020. These days, you’re more likely to see shortages of stuff that makes other stuff, like building materials, mechanical parts, and plastics, for example. We’ve been waiting for four months for a plain ol’ picture window for our kitchen! And then there’s the truck shortage. There aren’t even enough parts to build Chevys, so General Motors literally stopped making pick-up trucks at two of their manufacturing plants. The pond industry has been impacted by these issues in massive ways, as well. This is also why, if you’ve signed a contract for a pond installation in the past year or so, you might still be waiting to enjoy seeing your Koi swim their first lap around the pond. The Pond Gnome has done its best to mitigate this issue by thinking ahead and stocking up on commonly used materials. Supply of and Demand for PondsDemand for new Koi ponds as one of the biggest home improvement trends nowadays is at an all-time high. Everyone is feathering their nest, improving their home & lifestyle, rather than put up with the hassles of modern travel (flight delays & cancellations, COVID tests, etc.). Not everyone has a Koi pond in their back yard, but everyone seems to want one! It feels like such a luxury item and, when built properly, provides hours of enjoyment and asks only minutes of maintenance in return. The entire pond industry is working through a serious supply shortage, in a wide range of critical materials, especially in the plastics field. Our supplier (Aquascapes) continues to produce over 50% of the products we use domestically, which has been a big help. But even sourcing domestically, these parts and materials are currently in short supply for pond builders:
We wrote this article to help you understand specific reasons behind the longer timetables and higher costs you might be experiencing.  Unexpected DisruptionsThe COVID-19 lockdowns felt like the mother of all supply chain disruptions when businesses of all kinds were forced to shut down in 2020. But 2021 and 2022 have thrown a few of their own monkey wrenches into the works. Producers might ordinarily turn to overseas supplies to bridge the gap, but then a massive container ship got itself stuck in the Suez Canal for a week, slowing sea-borne shipping to a standstill and depriving manufacturers of critical supplies. And the hits just keep on comin’!  What This Means for YouIn short, the market for ponds has been hit by a perfect storm of perfect storms. We’ve gotten through pandemic shutdowns, weather disruptions, and one really big, really stuck boat in the worst possible place. It’s rather baffling if you look at all the events as a whole. Like most pond builders, The Pond Gnome is working as hard as we can to install every customer’s pond, but the simple reality is that we can’t work any faster if we want to maintain our industry-leading standards. In our book, good enough is NOT good enough. Quality of materials and workmanship is priority one at The Pond Gnome. Nor can we overcome supply chain issues when they are simply out of our control -- regardless of our desire and efforts to prevent them. No doubt, it’s a frustrating situation for all parties involved. Homeowners want their ponds to be installed right now. Pond builders are doing their best to make hay while they can. But the obstacles we’ve discussed will likely continue to affect our entire industry (and many others) for the foreseeable future. So, whether you’re planning on getting your pond from The Pond Gnome or from another contractor, we can only say this: Hang in there. Seriously. The wait will be worth it. The memories will soon be made. They may not start being made when we all hoped they would, but they will certainly be made nonetheless. The pandemic has forced a patience upon each of us that we likely had no idea we were even capable of. The best advice we can offer is to plan ahead, and enjoy the anticipation.  OTHER POSTS YOU MIGHT ENJOY: SIX PONDS FOR THE PRICE OF ONE WATER FOR ARIZONA WILDLIFE WHY DON'T YOU BUILD OUT OF CONCRETE? Sounds like the deal of the century, right: getting six ponds and only paying for one? It is! Every Phoenix pond actually has six distinct personalities: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter (yes, we do have Winter here, although it doesn't snow -- at least not very often). A pond is a living, breathing entity, and it changes with the weather and the seasons. In Phoenix, we don’t have a lot of seasonal change compared to the Midwest and East Coast, but your pond notices! Believe it or not, a Spring Phoenix pond is not the same as your Summer Phoenix pond, and the Fall pond is very different from the Winter pond. Spring Pond in PHoenixA Spring pond is yawning and stretching (figuratively, of course) and getting ready to burst forth with life. The plants that were dormant and dull all winter start shooting out some new growth. This is when the old growth can be trimmed/thinned away to allow the new growth into the light. And algae is always the first weed in the garden, so there's some of that to deal with.  Summer Pond in PHoenixA Summer pond is growing aquatic plants like nobody's business! You have to stay on top of it, or your aquatic plants will eat the pond. It's an active time for water gardeners. And what better place to garden in 115 degree heat? Your Koi and goldfish are ravenously devouring food and constantly begging for more. This is the time of year you train them to eat out of your hand.  Fall Pond in PhoenixAquatic plants are starting to slow their roll as the water temps begin to dip. You still need to tend to them, but not quite as often as during the summer. Koi and goldfish begin to go into their dormant season, as well, and you stop feeding them the commercial fish food. Winter Pond in PHoenixDuring our "winter" months here in Phoenix, most of your aquatic plants are dormant, and your Koi and goldfish are generally hanging out at the bottom of the pond, clustered together for warmth. There are some cold-water loving plants, like Iris, that will give you some winter color. However, most of your plans will look a bit chlorotic during this season. Some areas of the Valley even have light freezes, so you might see some ice around the edges of your pond in the morning.   Nighttime Phoenix PondsThat covers four ponds. So, what about the other two? There’s also the day time Phoenix pond and the night time pond. The magic of the daytime Phoenix pond, with the sun glistening off the water’s surface, the colorful Koi darting around below and between the lily pads, all surrounded by lush green and colorful plants is truly spectacular. The nighttime Phoenix pond is full of romance, with underwater lights turning the entire aquatic ecosystem into a transparent liquid world that, for all practical purposes, is invisible during the day. Do you know anyone who can resist the seduction of the night time Phoenix pond? It’s absolutely spellbinding!   Oh, wait! That’s actually EIGHT ponds for the price of one, when you consider all four seasons, as well as both night and day. Hmmmm….. That’s a deal just too good to pass up! See some Phoenix ponds for yourself. And then Contact Us when you’re ready for yours! OTHER POSTS YOU MIGHT ENJOY:
GREAT WATER FEATURE IDEAS BUILD A POND THAT YOUR NEIGHBORS WILL ENVY! EXPECTATIONS OF AN ECOSYSTEM POND Thirsty for Survival
Water is Arizona wildlife’s most important resource, and it’s vital for more than just quenching thirst. Fish and frogs live in or near water their whole lives. Birds use water to keep their feathers clean and free of parasites, bees use water to cool their hives, and larger animals use water to cool down their bodies.
Arizona is in a cycle of long-term drought, which means there’s less available water for animals and a bigger fight for their survival. Urban sprawl has taken out many natural wetlands and catchment areas that our wildlife used to be able to depend on. As temperatures here rise, their search for water becomes even more crucial. Arizona Wildlife Needs Our Help
Arizona Game & Fish Department and their partners use trucks and helicopters to haul water to remote sites and keep 3,000 catchments full. These partners are mostly individuals volunteering. You can help them out by donating at SendWater.org, or volunteering your time.
Pond Owners Are Already Helping Arizona Wildlife!
As a pond or water feature owner, you are already helping! Keeping organic clean water in your yard invites our native feathered friends and the visiting migratory birds to quench their thirst and bathe. If you live in a neighborhood with a NAOS area, the wildlife living within counts on your water feature to survive alongside our human-built habitats. Bees count on your water feature to gather water to take back to cool the hive, ensuring their survival (and we all know how important they are!).
By having an ecosystem water feature, you are actually helping to replace our disappearing wetlands. You’re one of the good guys!
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CONTROLLING PLANTS IN A PHOENIX POND BACKYARD POND ENHANCES QUALITY OF LIFE 5 BASIC FENG SHUI PRINCIPLES FOR WATER FEATURES Have you ever looked at your pond and thought the water level looked like it had dropped recently?
We get this call quite often. It goes something like this:
Client: I think my pond might leak; the water looks as though it has dropped an inch or two today!
The Pond Gnome: What is it that makes you think the water has dropped and inch or two?
Client: Well, there is a wet line on the rocks over an inch above the water where it was obviously higher recently.
The Pond Gnome: What you’re describing is a “wicking line.” Water can actually move up a rock or concrete surface using the imperfections in the surface through a process called capillary action. Capillary action leaves a wet mark that can be as much as 2” above the water level. This is also how the dreaded “white line” (hard water deposits) is formed, as this wicking line evaporates and leaves behind the minerals from the water.
Often, someone who has not been looking at their pond very closely (I know, how is that possible?) for a while will suddenly realize the water level is well below the coping rocks. The water in an organic water garden is set an inch or two below the membrane system, not the rocks around the perimeter. If those rocks are four or five inches thick, then the water level could easily be 6-8 inches below the top of the coping stones, depending on what type of stone was used and how the pond was put together.
what is the most accurate way to check the proper level of your pond water?
The answer lies within your skimmer. Well, actually, at the front opening of your skimmer, where the debris enters into the skimmer basket is the first place to look. The water level should be ¾” to 1” below the top of the skimmer opening. This maximizes both your pond water level and the skimming action possible for this piece of equipment.
Second, you should first check the overflow pipe within the skimmer box. Your water level should be set between ¼” to ½” below the overflow outlet pipe. Third, if your autofill is not running at more than a drip or drizzle, your pond does not have a leak.
Have more questions about ponds in Arizona? Let us know!
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ROUGHING THE POND IS NOT A FOUL NOT SO SECRET TIPS FOR A CLEAN & HEALTHY POND CONTROLLING PLANTS IN A PHOENIX POND |
