Relax Next To Back-Yard Fish Pond

When it’s hot, the cool spray and soothing sounds of running water can provide a refreshing escape.

With this waterfall-fountain-fish pond project, do-it-yourselfers can create a private retreat and a focal point for landscaping in their own back yards.

Best of all, they can do it all without the help of expensive contractors.

The pond pictured here measures approximately 4 feet wide by 16 feet long and holds 300 gallons of water, but a variety of shapes and sizes can be substituted for this one.

The project follows several basic steps, from prepping a site and digging a hole to forming a wire framework, installing a pump, and pouring and sealing concrete. It takes time and some heavy lifting, but if a few friends help, the work goes fast.

Once the pond is complete, finishing touches can include benches, steppingstones, trees, shrubbery, flowers, even goldfish.

Materials for this project, including concrete, plaster, sealant, decorative boulders, steel rods, chicken wire, PVC pipe and a pump, can be found at most home centers. The Waterfall-Fountain-Fishpond plan, No. 508, is $7.95 and includes thorough step-by-step directions with 20 photos and a complete list of materials.

A package of two water-wheel plans, No. C101, is $12.95 and includes two operating water wheels - one with a planter box and one modeled after a Tennessee grist mill. A catalog picturing hundreds of do-it-yourself projects is $3.95. Prices include postage and handling. Please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery (for first-class mail, add $1 per item up to $3 maximum).

MEMO: To order by mail, clip this article and send it with a check or money order to U-Bild Features, c/o The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2383, Van Nuys, CA 91409-2383, or call (800) 828-2453. Please specify plan numbers.