Curbing Installation Problems: Water Features

Consumers are more willing than ever to dip into their savings for the chance to dip their toes in a custom landscape water feature, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy money for the landscape contractor. It takes a clear understanding of installation procedures and maintenance to ensure the customer is happy with the way it works as well as the way it looks.

UPFRONT & HONEST. Before any water feature installation takes place, customers of Aquascape Designs Inc., West Chicago, Ill., are given a video informing them about the maintenance involved in a water feature.

"This lets them know ahead of time the demands involved in a pond," noted Greg Wittstock, president. "And it helps reduce possible callbacks after the job is completed."

The biggest problem with the construction of water features according to Ken Thomas, president, Landscape Techniques Inc., Atlanta, Ga., is customer callbacks.

The company routinely leaves behind a post-job packet explaining the pond and answering questions for the customer’s maintenance concerns, Thomas said. Still, the company had to begin charging for each visit an employee made to instruct a customer on how to care for the the pond.

"It’s a dynamic ecosystem," Thomas remarked. "We have certain times during the year when ponds are high maintenance. The early summer algae blooms are one example. We try to educate customers verbally up front and paint a realistic picture of what they’re getting into."

People also tinker with their features and callbacks are often to fix something they changed, such as moving the rocks used to build the waterfalls, he remarked.

BLACK HOLES. Contractors should do some research about the water feature market before they even think of jumping into it, advised Kyle Worthington, general manager of Webb Landscaping, Ketchum, Idaho. Worthington said that too often contractors do not spend enough time putting together an accurate bid. They often understimate the time proper installation takes, and don’t take into full consideration the materials costs.

After losing money from water feature installations in past years, Steve McHale, vice president of McHale & McHale, Upper Marlboro, Md., said he now prices his water feature installations at nearly twice the estimated cost of a normal installation to compensate for a high level of difficulty.

"Sixty percent of the time, you have to go back and work out the kinks," he added.

Two reasons some companies fail to profit from water feature construction are the lack of a consistent installation plan and an inadequately trained installation crew, suggested Wittstock.

"If contractors don’t have a system in place, they can’t turn a profit," he warned.

Other problems, Worthington recalled, are unforeseen problems like tears in the liner that force partial or total replacement of the feature, or installation problems such as ground water levels being higher than the prospective depth of the water feature.

To protect the liner, Worthington recommended using a thick, 45 millimeter liner to waterproof the feature. "Contractors should also make sure the liner has been cut straight, without any jagged edges that could progress into extended tears," he said, adding that his crews are only allowed to wear tennis shoes when working on a water feature. "Also, watch not to place anything sharp on the liner, such as tools or rocks."

Worthington also recommended only using the flat back of the rake to spread rocks in the feature, so as to not accidentally puncture the lining with the rake teeth. He also noted that scrap pieces of liner can be used as a buffer or padding underneath heavy boulders in the water feature to keep the main liner puncture free.

MAKING MONEY. Profitability depends on an efficient crew an an accurate bid. Wor-thington relies on his experience when bidding a water feature and said he goes about his informal formula by looking at a pond as a triangle. For his typcial sized feature, 11-by-16 feet, 3 to 4 feet deep, with a 30- to 40-foot long streamway, he uses a total of 20 feet of liner and adds 10 percent of liner for slack. He figures that he dedicates about 6½ feet of liner for the streamway and the rest for the pond.

Worthington also factors in six tons of boulders and about three days of work to build a feature that carries a price tag of about $4,800, he explained.

"Really research whether you can afford to get into this market correctly," advised Corey Johnson, design landscape coordinator, Kimberly Nursery, Twin Falls, Idaho.

Trying to cut corners in cost could lead to big problems in the future when working with a water feature, Johnson said. Use only quality and high efficiency pumps and filtering systems and be sure talk to people in the trade, he recommended.

"You could lose two to three times the original profit trying to fix a problem," Johnson said. "For example, when a liner fails, you have to remove all of the water and search on the bottom and sides of the liner, and perhaps even move some 8,000 pounds to 10,000 pounds of rock. It could take days to find the problem."

Contractors are fearful of excessive maintenance, said Gary Wittstock, president of Pond Supplies of America, Yorkville, Ill. They are hesitant to work with water and have the idea that water features are built like swimming pools, he added.

Contractors need to remember that products must be specifically designed for either the pool or pond and can not be used interchangeably, Gary Wittstock noted.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT ROCKS. The use of rocks in water features is one of the most important facets of an installation and one that causes the most difficulty.

When using rocks in water feature construction, Gary Wittstock recommended avoiding round, unstable rocks that leave gaps, and warned never to use river rocks for liner coverage. "Also, avoid using single-sized rock that can give the impression of a gravel pit," he mentioned. "Instead, use decorative stones inside the water or along the pond or stream edges."

Waterfall stones should typically be flat and angular, providing stability and surfaces for the water to flow over. Gary Wittstock suggested selecting stones with interesting textures for the more visible portions for the pond and landscape.

"Size stones to match the scope and scale of the landscape, and use boulders to add interest to waterfalls," he urged. "Be careful with limestone, though, which can have sharp edges and can disrupt the pH level of the water by making it too alkaline."

OXYGEN NEEDS. For larger ponds deeper than 8 to 10 feet, an aeration system may be necessary to add oxygen to the deeper parts of the feature, said Don Fulmer, aquatic biologist at Aqua Doc, Chesterland, Ohio. Fulmer maintains ponds of about a half-acre to one acre that are often used with fountains or for drinking water. He said that only about 10 percent of ponds require aerator systems.

Fulmer explained that adding oxygen counters some algae growth and also allows fish and other aquatic life to use the entire pond, not just the first few feet where the oxygen is most plentiful.

Whether or not a pond requires a system may be determined by its watershed design, such as a stream feeding into the pond that may bring high amounts of undecomposed materials into it.

"Using a filter pump to remove debris can cut down the amount of decompositon that takes place in a pond," he said.

Any type of debris or materials that falls into the pond, and is decomposed, depletes the pond of oxygen. "When a pond is depleted of oxygen, it causes fish and plants to die and gives an unpleasant odor of hydrogren sulfide or methane," Fulmer said.

ATTENTION-GETTER. As the popularity of water features increases, there are more demands for contractors who install them. Thomas said the growing popularity of water features is a result of homeowners searching for new and unique ideas for their yard.

"Water is soothing, relaxing and a conversation piece," he added. "It is also becoming a hobby, and the water feature business is getting more exposure."

Thomas started constructing water features about eight years ago when he said he saw a niche in the market. Now water features are included in their sales pitches for landscape designs starting at about $30,000.

"We throw it out there in the dream stage of the plans," he remarked. "It’s not cheap. You got to have the right kind of buyer for the feature."

Thomas requires an $8,000 minimum landscaping design in order to install a pond, typically 8-foot by 10-foot, he said. The company turns away less expensive projects.

"The economy is doing so well that people have the money to spend," he said. "The smaller garden ponds people tend to build themselves."

"Customers are getting away from the patio pond that has a fountain spitting water into the air," Johnson commented. "They’re almost going all or nothing, more elaborate, more natural looking. If you plant a tree, in 10 years they can enjoy it. With a pond, they can enjoy it instantly."

Profits in ponds are not only in their building but also in the additional installation work they create, such as added landscaping or hardscaping around the pond or increasing the overall size of the landscape to match the size of an existing pond, Greg Wittstock explained.

People also want to be able to sit down next to their water feature, which spurs customer desires for hardscapes such as gazebos, decks and patios, he added.

A person can spend $30,000 to $40,000 on their landscaping and people will think it is nice, but add a $4,000 or $5,000 waterfall to it and people will notice the water feature immediately, Greg Wittstock commented.

"It becomes the center of a landscape. It’s alive," he added. "I don’t know many people who sit and watch their lilies grow, but they will sit and feed their fish."