A number of philosophical, religious and personal balance strategies (including Feng Shui) favour the calming and balancing capabilities of running and sometimes still water.

Most of us are made to feel at ease by sounds like, for example, rain on the roof, the distant sound of surf, the babbling of a small brook or a fast flowing creek over pebbles. In addition, the spectacle of crashing waves, rushing torrents and cascading waterfalls move many of us to better understand how small we are as individuals in the broader picture of life.

Small wonder, then, that we pause by these phenomena – to gaze, to listen, to reflect.

In many ways, a water feature in your home or outdoor garden area can offer similar opportunities to put perspective and relaxation into your life.

Whilst the keen “do it yourself-er” can pick up all the necessary components, including a feature pot, here at Pots R Us, there are a range of “ready to go” water features in all sizes and types that offer the calming, balancing advantages that can be installed by almost anyone in little more than a few minutes.

Care & Maintenance Of Your New Water Feature

In most outdoor situations, water features are quite easy to live with. On hot days, water will evaporate and, in strong winds, the resultant splashing might also deprive the water feature of some of the water in its pond. Care is required to ensure the pump is always fully submerged whilst in operation. If the water level is too low, the pump impeller will be mixing air and water – this causes it to over-rev such that the pump can burn out in a short time.

If your area is leafy, winds can sweep up leaves and plant matter, some of which ends up in the pond water – dirty water should be removed and replaced with clean water promptly, as this can also affect the lifespan of the pump. In most cases, clean water additives are not necessary, and in fact some can actually attack the oxidized surfaces of the water feature, causing fading and ultimately complete colour loss.

Always ensure that there is nothing obstructing the movement of water in the pond. People have filled the pond with stones, unaware that this restricts water flow and will ultimately destroy the pump.

When in doubt, consult an expert.

Types of Water Features

There are 4 main types of garden water features that you can choose for your garden:

• Urn style water features – these are ideal in central areas as they are designed to be viewed from all sides
• Panel style water features (of which one variant called water walls) that are best suited as a feature against a wall, as they are designed to have maximum visual effect when viewed from the front
• Bowl type water features that often retain the water in one bowl (the water reticulates only within the one bowl or is a static  - no pump – water feature, and finally
• Cascading water features that have 2 or more ponds with water cascading from the top bowl to the pond below, usually via one or more intermediate bowls between top and bottom

Wide Choice Of Colours For Your New Water Feature

In GRC water features, the colour choices include: