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24 April, 2009

The Water is Falling, The Water is Falling...

I just love it when a project comes together. This one came together almost flawlessly.

In the previous posting (http://winjama.blogspot.com/), you could see the notch Cody and I were cutting into the pool-side wall of the pump house. This was to house the new waterfall unit I had ordered from the States.

The unit itself was two-feet across, with a six-inch lip and a three-inch plenum box, both running across the whole width. the six-inch lip is where the water comes out as a nice sheet, making a really cool waterfall.
Cody, Using the Air Chisel
We started off making a 1-1/2" by 25" notch at the very top of the wall. We assumed that 4" blocks had been used all around the walls of the pump house. Wrong. On the pool side, 6" blocks were used, but we didn't find that out till we had finished the notch and stuck the waterfall unit in to trial fit it.

There was a short-fall of about two inches. Of course, this meant that we were going to have to cut a larger notch in the back to accommodate the box portion of the waterfall. And was probably a good thing, as that notch, forming a shelf, would help support the waterfall unit itself.

After finishing the notch - front and back, we trial-fit the unit again and got Dianna's concurrence that it was centered and level. I had purchased a small bucket of hydraulic cement (sets in 2-3 minutes and is designed to cure under water. I didn't want to buy a whole back of cement. Most of it would have gone to waste.

As you can see below, we slathered it in the back, as we had done the front of the unit. Neatness didn't really count. With a 2-3 minute set time, your working time is even less - about a minute to a minute and a half at best. We didn't fully encase the backside just in case we ever have to remove the waterfall unit, it will be relatively easy to chip the concrete away, cut a pipe and slide the unit out.

The Waterfall From the Backside
Closeup of The Waterfall
The hangy-down thingy is a rock and debris trap, so that any incoming crud will get trapped before going into and blocking part of the waterfall outlet. The outlet is extremely critical to obtaining a smooth sheeting waterfall. The slightest piece of material will disrupt the smooth flow and will be immediately noticeable.

As you can see below, it looks pretty cool.
The Waterfall in Action
Here's a closeup of the waterfall. The only part of the whole thing that remains is an approximately 1/2"x24" reveal. It barely sticks out 1/8" from the wall.
Waterfall Closeup
I was apprehensive when it came time to turn on the pump. I don't think Cody really knew what to expect. It wouldn't be the first project that blew up at the start... Not that I do bad work, it's just that sometimes, sh** happens. Anyway, when the pump was turned on, there was no need to doubt our handy work. It functioned exactly as advertised with nary a leak.
Couple of  Happy Campers
Just so you know, I'm not shirking my other duties. On the walk this morning, Cindy carried the mail (one letter) and 4 lbs of bones from the market. Secret also carried 4 lbs of bones and in addition, carried some onions, okra, romaine lettuce, cilantro, and green sweet peppers.

Just in case you were wondering about costs of things, bones for the doggies, knuckle bones chopped into quarters and bagged in four separate bags (so each dog has a load to carry and that their packs are balanced) cost $1.00 BZ per pound, or $8 BZ total. The veggies came to $8.00 BZ total for 2-onions, 2-peppers, 5-okra things, a bunch of cilantro, and a head of romaine lettuce. Secret carried all the veggies.

Along the way back from town, I stopped and shot the Corozal Resort sign again. This time it had landscaping done, making it look quite professional. They're also adding an almost 25' planter box behind the sign.
Corozal Bay Sign Landscaping
What happens next at our place? Well, so there's little danger of paint being spilled on the mosaic, painting of the pump house will take place next. After that, I'll install the mosaic. Barring the unforeseen, it should go quite quickly. I'm looking forward to seeing that whole project jus

2 comments:

sandy a. said...

that waterfall is really cool! I like the way all your blog posts are very good at explaining the technical details!

Dave Rider said...

Thanks Sandy. I do try to keep it informative with some humor thrown in for good measure. Unless I'm on a rant about something, then it's my soapbox for that instance.

Cheers,
Dave