Fountains – My New Blog

Posted on September 26, 2010 by Steve

As many in here know, I have been closing in on a stable relationship. Yes, that is new. Well – it’s happened and I have opened up a brand spanking new blog in partnership with the good folks at Pond And Fountain World here in Louisville, Kentucky. Right down the street, in fact, from where I live.

Here is the blog, catch the pithy and snazzy title: Pond And Fountain World Blog

I’ve always loved their premises. Browsing reveals some truly wonderful naturalistic waterfalls and features, construction aspects of which they do work at in Louisville. The waterfalls, ponds and small residential and commercial water features numbers in the hundreds.

Cool carp, too!

Although they have a fairly sweet – if crowded – premises, their primary sales are in fountains of all types. And I do mean “all types”, including indoor and outdoor fountains, wall fountains which hang on walls, great huge spray fountain systems for lakes and the cutest little “tabletop” fountains. Needless to say, I’ll be posting about lighting, installation and upkeep like nobody’s business, but I will also feature pictures from fountains they’ve installed as well as abundant subjects congruent with water itself. In the end, as my “About” section details, water is much more the subject at hand – water and its handling.

It’s a marriage as well of convenience and pleasure because of the tight connection with what I’ve always dealt with in landscaping and my obvious love for using water in my own landscaping designs. The owner, George, visits her from time to time and he was aware of this blog already. I’ve already enjoyed the relationship and I hope it takes off as a good little fountain corner of the blogosphere. It sure is fun to write about.

Anyway, we launched it yesterday, September 25. Go take a look.

Or else.

What’s In A Picture? – Swimming Pool Angst

Posted on September 21, 2010 by Steve

There is such a thing as “Potential Energy” in something as simple as a photograph. I get this from my own reaction to what is implied in the picture below. I had a funny reaction, looking at this recently, seeing as how it took place so long ago and the Completion Party – July 4th of that year – saw me sleeping on the couch there, pretty much unable to drive. Of course, this was long, long ago.

But now and then on projects one gets a sense of being literally “overwhelmed”. I recall even the day that this one was taken and that sense I remember like it was yesterday. We also deal in time constraints impressed in a world where we promise completion. At that time, it looked impossible what with all the hundreds of small chores and even a few big ones left. We made out fine – as usual – but I’ve never forgotten those sensations.

Let’s look deeper into this picture. This was taken about 2/3 of the way through the installation of a patio around a swimming pool. For those who follow this blog, I have used other pictures showing various views of not only the finished product but of some of the construction phases I was far-sighted enough (for once ) to actually take. I will refer to things as this post enlarges below and I will ask the reader to go back to the picture. I think it will reveal better what, exactly, I am speaking of. If one really cares to get a concept of what’s involved in constructing landscapes – and particularly if you are considering having it done – you might want to pay some attention. Everyone does things differently but all landscapers will tell you what you see below is a factor in any project.

click image to enlarge, sometimes twice for more detail

What sort of electrified me when I looked at this shot was not just the obviously “clustered effect” which typifies many of our projects when you include the varied number of machines and equipment we use and the storage issues relative to them. From parts and supplies to the machinery that moves them around to the Porta Potty – these all needed addressing. Then, of course, there is the actual work…………….oh yeah! But first – space……………

The mini excavator shown above is a bear to find space for, as well as the Bobcat skid steer machine which sits behind it. Then there are the piles of gravel and soil one wishes to have precisely when one needs them. This can lead to problems – owing to the timing of completing certain areas which then make it impossible to cross by machine, etc. etc. ad nauseum. Lots and lots and lots of logistical problems comprise these larger projects, many of which do not offer such a wide sweep of land to park our parts and equipment. This then, produces yet other sets of budgetary and “manners” problems. We take up space!

Now the work. The work! Almost forgot!

The stage of construction above began at the point of the following photographs:

This picture complete with Owner! Oh – and the painter. We are not around just yet.

Obviously, this is a somewhat primitive stage in the development of the project. Where Tim is standing and in all the areas where pavers are to be laid, we will need to add a whole bunch of gravel first, to provide the necessary underlying foundation for a strong, never-altering patio. What may be missed – even in this photo – is some noteworthy work we accomplished to get even to there. Placing the large boulders on the edges of the swimming pool required our efforts as well as placing the bricks near the cascade hard by the “spa” – the circular area where paving bricks were virtually ‘hung” on mortar. The same bricks which are shown here are already adhered as the “coping stones” surrounding the pool itself, giving us our level and one permanent outer parameter for installing the paver bricks.

Back to the picture – am I Marcel Proust?

So – finally, referring back to the origination of this spiel – what we see there are some accomplishments, first. Note at the top of the picture the gorgeous blue color the swimming pool water accrues once it’s loaded into the pool itself. That is the upper portion of a cascade that actually does fill the pool and marks the entry point of the pool’s recirculating water. This is actually “finished”.

This picture, believe it or not, comes around the period of the top picture and shows the same pile of pavers hanging at the spa, feeding the eventual “turn” the pathway makes up alongside our creek and back into the house.

Once again, referring to the top shot, the pavers shown where they are below the spa are also “finished” – the cuts made, the curving pattern accomplished, pipes supplying drip irrigation and lighting wire are laid in. Now, the pavers themselves will make the corner there and turn, accompanying the side of a long creek which played strategically into the design. With a waterfall beginning in the front yard, we coursed a small river down that side of the house, ending at a point we can also see in the above picture.

If you notice, there seems to be a ramped incline of sand running hard by the pool cascade. Well, our hope was to make it appear as a bridge where water would “seem” to flow from the creek to the cascades themselves. That “bridge” needs addressing yet as well as the corner turn of pavers. The picture below is a very early morning shot of at least a partial angle of what “finishing” implied. Enlarging the picture shows it a bit better:

In the end, we completed the little river and the little pond faking itself into the pool. It all looked as wonderful as it possibly could and I was left with a huge sense of satisfaction……….until the next job – which had already started!

The Patio – What Is Possible?

Posted on September 18, 2010 by Steve

This post was originally entered a year or ago. Since then I have visited a few places recently with owners wondering what to do with patios. It has inspired me to post this again, but with yet a few more example patios added. The constructions of these vary from stamped concrete to interlocking brick pavers to natural stone slabs. But the one thing I have prided myself on was in making each and every one of them appealing as possible to all of our senses.

(click on any image to enlarge)

Patios are places to relax and enjoy the warmer air. We entertain there and we invite others to share our environments with food and drink and nice sights. I have a strong bias – and always have – towards using brick pavers and stamped concrete in my patios. I also love stone but I always found the durability issue led me away from using the native stones, at least set in sand. Bricks and cement rarely break down. I overbuild the bases of these things, beyond doubt, but the results have been universally stable which, to me, means much.

click any image to enlarge

There is also this – I prefer that the design of the patio be as pleasing as possible, by all means. But at the same time, I also prefer to know that the developments around the edges and background be equally important – if not far more so. Elements of night lighting, visible features such as waterfalls, gorgeous blooming plants, the many and various points of interest a landscaper and the gardener can provide occupy every bit as much priority in design for me.

In some ways, I guess I’m paranoid about eventually losing integrity of the bases of my constructions more than anything. Add that I have done so many driveways and fire lanes in large commercial projects and you get someone who values stability over just about anything. I suppose it is my own particular training and that experience of watching things over time more than anything that lends to biases towards surfaces. Issues of drainage, compaction, underlying strength are huge for me. But I also enjoy the notion that spills and accidents which regularly occur can be dealt with merely by replacing the bricks themselves instead of reinventing the wheel trying to find matching natural stone pieces, then worrying about their fits when dealing with some fairly obscene accidents and discolorations. In the end, no doubt, I have become a brick guy, with a definite nod towards poured stamped concrete. With all the new patterns, colors and textures, it just seems like the best product.

I feature this patio below elsewhere and it is otherwise not particularly noteworthy in terms of creativity, but it illustrates well my sense of how I prefer putting them together and my sense, upon leaving, that this place will stay very much the way it began – with ample range for improvement and augmentation around the edges. I really do believe a surface is just the start.

In a patio such as this there was very little sloping tolerance allowing for drainage. It is also plain huge. The homeowner himself installed much of the piping (and we had to make a few “adjustments”) owing to such a small slope. We also figured out the best possible way of dealing with keeping the water from the occasional torrential downpour and Reno’s snowfalls away from the house, away from the pool and devise a way to make all that go away.

We arrived at the “Channel Drain”, coursing across the patio, as the ideal solution. Complexities such as this are why brick pavers are such a delight to work with as well. They lend themselves to such tricks by being segmented and adjustable at the onset. The remainder of the project, on the back sides, could simply be diverted into beds and away from both pool and house.

Nor are bricks the only cement solution. Large slabs can be artfully arranged as well, even split such as the ones below and filled in with Thyme and aromatic herbs whose smells light up when crushed by foot traffic and who don’t even mind.

Who wouldn’t enjoy a foot-massaging surface such as the pathway construction from Portland’s Chinese Garden below? Detailed and fascinating stone – or pebble – work such as this one show what is possible if one has the time and inclination for the installation. I actually did run across a few where homeowners have done something similar to this. They were an entire Summer’s work and they were amazing.

Imagine an entire patio of these:

Small, intimate places beg for sharp-looking and fascinating surfaces. Larger ones tend to relate to a theme which struggles to see the relevance of a surface dominating the view or even the local scenery.

Since so many of my constructions have tended towards the “large”, I guess it should be understandable I would prefer some heavyweight base for the patio, driveway and sidewalk surfaces to lay on.

Some of these are lots of work, too!

Like Forrest Gump said. “I’m tired now. I think I’ll quit.”

Pond and Fountain World – My New Buddies

Posted on September 13, 2010 by Steve

Pond and Fountain World (link)

I have a new bff. I think that’s the Internet term, for new bestest friends. When I first moved to Louisville, almost a year ago now, I kept noticing this place with all the fountains, their big ol’ sign sporting their name and logo. Well, it didn’t take long for me to visit, needless to say. It’s not as if that’s not completely right up my alley or anything. Wow – I was pretty stunned. They admit they are crowded but who cares? What a treat. They have Koi!

(click images to enlarge)

Browsing Pond and Fountain World’s headquarters was a wonderful refreshment for me – they display a phenomenal number of their products but they have far, far more. There are water pumps pretty much everywhere, running the fountains they feature – we’re talking well-hidden electrical cords galore. But the incredible water falls, ponds and constructed displays are also off the charts. We’re talking “The Natural Look” side of things, ala this blog’s many water features. These guys are brothers.

I rudely introduced myself and dropped my name and this blog’s presence. I actually got to speak with the owner, George, at that time, but he was as distracted as any landscape business owner would be at that time of the year. He did, however, say he knew of me and wanted to speak further. I was intrigued. Finally, we actually produced a get-together and they mentioned they might want me to blog for them as well. This could happen. There is a definite synergy of interests there.

What I was really interested in was selling their products in other blogs and George mentioned his eBay page and such, which would work just fine for me as an affiliate of eBay. This I intend to do unless we produce a blog together – which we are talking about now. We’ll see. In any event, I like the place and the folks there.

It’s a fascinating resource so close to home for me and they do so many things I have done. It’s also wonderful to watch someone else deal with the stress of business, I confess, while I now possess this newer identity as a “blogger” who can stay in his pajamas all day long if he wants. I suddenly feel like The Grateful Dead. Or is that Cheech and Chong?

It’s definitely crowded. It reminded me of those cemeteries in New Orleans, with all the closely-clustered and sculpted graves and statures. Ironically, it’s still possible to imagine any fountain or feature sold there on its own, at the same time. Plentiful, gorgeous and quite satiating for the water fanatic in us all. Check out these two Bronze items from Italy:

At any rate, they reminded me not just of the glory of fountains, per se, but also of the human love affair with water itself. Water as art, water as a movable feast for the eyes and the ears and for the soul – and all the different ways the civilized human species has devised to present water as a kinetic art form.

Me likey.