10 DIY Pond, Fountain and Waterfall Projects That Will Transform Your Yard

Peaceful Pond and Deck

Are you in need of a little serenity now? A reflecting pond is just the place to rest your gaze after a trying day. This pond and deck are unique, not only in appearance but also in building technique. Most ponds are free-form, informal shapes that have either soft or hard plastic liners dug into the ground. But for this homemade pond, we used simple wood walls to frame it and form the base for the surrounding deck. A single-piece rubber liner keeps the water in. And the garden berm that surrounds one end is practical and has a nice landscaping feature. We simply mounded the soil dug from the pond hole so we wouldn’t have to haul it away.

This homemade pond isn’t exactly a weekend project. In fact, even if you’re in great shape, you should expect to spend the better part of a long day just digging the hole and laying in the gravel footings. The good news is that the construction is simple and doesn’t require a bunch of expensive tools.

One-Day Mini Pond and Fountain

Build this compact, charming, inexpensive little pond and fountain in one day using simple off-the-shelf materials. This homemade water fountain will spruce up your yard and provide a pleasant place for you to sit and for neighborhood birds to get a drink and splash around a bit.

Pond in a Box

Build this simple, above-ground pond with a trellis and fountain on a weekend. The advantages of an above-ground patio waterfall are:

• With this design, there’s practically none of the worst part of pond building — gut-busting digging. And that also means there’s no huge pile of dirt to get rid of.
• Talk about instant gratification! Build the walls and trellis in the morning, assemble the pond in the afternoon, add the trim the next day, and then go buy goldfish!
• Traditional in-ground ponds can be a drowning hazard for toddlers and pets, but this above-ground design reduces the risk.

Low-Maintenance Backyard Pond

A backyard pond with running water, floating plants and darting fish can make a bland space breathtaking. Keeping a patio waterfall attractive and trouble-free takes work, but with a little extra care at the planning and building stages, you can create a pond that’s almost maintenance-free.

Patio Pond

This freestanding pond-in-a-box features a place for water plants and planters for in-ground plants. Construction is easy for this homemade pond, and a brush-on rubber lining keeps the container watertight.

Pond with Waterfall

Add the magic of moving water to your backyard with a waterfall and pond. Preformed shells, rubber liners and off-the-shelf pumps and filters put the project’s costs and skill requirements within easy reach of any do-it-yourselfer to build a homemade water fountain. You’ll put in your share of sweat equity, busting sod and hauling stone for a patio waterfall. But when you’re done, you’ll have a landscape feature to enjoy for years.

Private Pond and Waterfall

A backyard pond doesn’t have to be big to have a big impact. This private pond is less than 6 feet long and just over 4 feet across. But with its striking stone surround and sparkling waterfall, it can become the centerpiece of any landscape. Build this small pond in as little as one weekend! This design is versatile, too. You can make the pond twice as large as this one or half the size. You can locate it on flat terrain or tuck the stone waterfall wall into a slope. Unlike most ponds, this one won’t leave you with a small mountain of soil to deal with—you can simply use the excavated soil to form a berm behind the waterfall wall.

Bamboo Waterfall

You don’t have to settle for some kitschy plastic-resin waterfall if you’re looking for a unique water feature. There’s a simple and elegant way to add a soothing waterfall to your backyard, and you don’t have to be particularly handy or have a shop full of tools. Follow these simple steps to build this bamboo sluice (in a single day) and a small pond to catch the water, complete with a pump and water plants.

Natural-Looking Artesian Fountain

If you’re looking for an eye-catching feature for your patio, deck or even front entry, this natural-looking fountain will do the trick. Designed around a special stone with a 1-in. hole drilled through it, water from the pump gurgles up through the hole and overflows the stone. To reduce maintenance, we eliminated the collection pond. A gravel-filled reservoir below collects the overflow for recirculation. Since no sunlight can reach the water in the reservoir and support algae growth, the water stays pristine.

Cast Concrete Fountain

Enjoy the splash and sparkle of water indoors or out—with minimal maintenance and expense. Learn how to build this fountain out of concrete. You’ll save several hundred dollars building this fountain yourself instead of buying it. So make a trip to your local home center to pick up the supplies, then follow these how-to steps to cast the fountain.

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