Can I build my own river?
Discussion
my old school was based in the grounds of a stately home which (when owned by its previous owners) had been an arboretum and had an artificial river running through it - still operational to this day... so if they could do it many many decades ago, should be much easier with today's technology...
I don't want to thread hijack with a loads of pics, but yes it is a Adventure Golf Course we started in Oct 2019 and finished over 1st Lockdown, it was ready for last summer and it was a great success.
I built (with help of team of builders!) and project managed myself as the professional companies wanted a serious amount of money to build. I also sourced everything from Boulders to Dinosaurs from China and even with help of Pistonheads a Mitsubishi Shogun complete with Safari strips which is now plonked on a 6 tonne rock! Not done anything like it before, but I loved it.
I was lucky that a local company was building some houses over an old bog which someone years ago had tried to suppress with the huge rocks you see in the pics. They were wanted to get rid of them so all I paid about £2,500 to transport them all away for them !
The water system was a lot more complicated that I first realised, but it all works OK now. Just getting ready to re-open on the 29th of March.
Few more build picture for you:
Pool Lined - you can see the fabric material on top
Overview of the pools, I need an island on the cheap, so bought the largest concrete ring I could find and put it on top of a concrete base. The liner can take large weights on it due to the fabric protector..
Turned out great !
Also needed some logs and found a company cutting some down nearby on the roadside and bought them delivered for £400! They are huge and make great features.
Unloading one of the Dino's, fully animatronic. First time I had seem them and very happy (there is a protective layer on it.)
Got to have a vehicle! Drove it back from York, real shame to leave it as it worked great. The man had put the strips on it for his wife as she loved the look. Saved me doing it ! Spot the elf, which was for Christmas elf hunt!
Put some lights around the pool for nigh time golf!
I built (with help of team of builders!) and project managed myself as the professional companies wanted a serious amount of money to build. I also sourced everything from Boulders to Dinosaurs from China and even with help of Pistonheads a Mitsubishi Shogun complete with Safari strips which is now plonked on a 6 tonne rock! Not done anything like it before, but I loved it.
I was lucky that a local company was building some houses over an old bog which someone years ago had tried to suppress with the huge rocks you see in the pics. They were wanted to get rid of them so all I paid about £2,500 to transport them all away for them !
The water system was a lot more complicated that I first realised, but it all works OK now. Just getting ready to re-open on the 29th of March.
Few more build picture for you:
Pool Lined - you can see the fabric material on top
Overview of the pools, I need an island on the cheap, so bought the largest concrete ring I could find and put it on top of a concrete base. The liner can take large weights on it due to the fabric protector..
Turned out great !
Also needed some logs and found a company cutting some down nearby on the roadside and bought them delivered for £400! They are huge and make great features.
Unloading one of the Dino's, fully animatronic. First time I had seem them and very happy (there is a protective layer on it.)
Got to have a vehicle! Drove it back from York, real shame to leave it as it worked great. The man had put the strips on it for his wife as she loved the look. Saved me doing it ! Spot the elf, which was for Christmas elf hunt!
Put some lights around the pool for nigh time golf!
skilly1 said:
I don't want to thread hijack with a loads of pics, but yes it is a Adventure Golf Course we started in Oct 2019 and finished over 1st Lockdown, it was ready for last summer and it was a great success.
I built (with help of team of builders!) and project managed myself as the professional companies wanted a serious amount of money to build. I also sourced everything from Boulders to Dinosaurs from China and even with help of Pistonheads a Mitsubishi Shogun complete with Safari strips which is now plonked on a 6 tonne rock! Not done anything like it before, but I loved it.
I was lucky that a local company was building some houses over an old bog which someone years ago had tried to suppress with the huge rocks you see in the pics. They were wanted to get rid of them so all I paid about £2,500 to transport them all away for them !
The water system was a lot more complicated that I first realised, but it all works OK now. Just getting ready to re-open on the 29th of March.
Few more build picture for you:
Pool Lined - you can see the fabric material on top
Overview of the pools, I need an island on the cheap, so bought the largest concrete ring I could find and put it on top of a concrete base. The liner can take large weights on it due to the fabric protector..
Turned out great !
Also needed some logs and found a company cutting some down nearby on the roadside and bought them delivered for £400! They are huge and make great features.
Unloading one of the Dino's, fully animatronic. First time I had seem them and very happy (there is a protective layer on it.)
Got to have a vehicle! Drove it back from York, real shame to leave it as it worked great. The man had put the strips on it for his wife as she loved the look. Saved me doing it ! Spot the elf, which was for Christmas elf hunt!
Put some lights around the pool for nigh time golf!
Perton Park?I built (with help of team of builders!) and project managed myself as the professional companies wanted a serious amount of money to build. I also sourced everything from Boulders to Dinosaurs from China and even with help of Pistonheads a Mitsubishi Shogun complete with Safari strips which is now plonked on a 6 tonne rock! Not done anything like it before, but I loved it.
I was lucky that a local company was building some houses over an old bog which someone years ago had tried to suppress with the huge rocks you see in the pics. They were wanted to get rid of them so all I paid about £2,500 to transport them all away for them !
The water system was a lot more complicated that I first realised, but it all works OK now. Just getting ready to re-open on the 29th of March.
Few more build picture for you:
Pool Lined - you can see the fabric material on top
Overview of the pools, I need an island on the cheap, so bought the largest concrete ring I could find and put it on top of a concrete base. The liner can take large weights on it due to the fabric protector..
Turned out great !
Also needed some logs and found a company cutting some down nearby on the roadside and bought them delivered for £400! They are huge and make great features.
Unloading one of the Dino's, fully animatronic. First time I had seem them and very happy (there is a protective layer on it.)
Got to have a vehicle! Drove it back from York, real shame to leave it as it worked great. The man had put the strips on it for his wife as she loved the look. Saved me doing it ! Spot the elf, which was for Christmas elf hunt!
Put some lights around the pool for nigh time golf!
My father's mate built a very nice house recently. They have a small stream running around the property kind if hugging it in places and then moving away from the property to a pretty little lake. At points the stream is just a meandering trickle over stones down from the top, then into what really is like a small canal around the patio, at points it disappears under the patio, then re emerges.
At the top corner of the plot there's a beautiful circular, purpose built stone building that houses the pump system. I haven't looked inside but it must be substantial. The building is around 8 foot diameter, possibly ten foot high. Looks something like an old windmill house, but purpose built for the pump.
It's an impressive feature. And well engineered. It made me realize I don't always want to sit by moving water. At times its relaxing, but not at all times. Their plot is plenty big enough to sit elsewhere so it's not an issue.
At the top corner of the plot there's a beautiful circular, purpose built stone building that houses the pump system. I haven't looked inside but it must be substantial. The building is around 8 foot diameter, possibly ten foot high. Looks something like an old windmill house, but purpose built for the pump.
It's an impressive feature. And well engineered. It made me realize I don't always want to sit by moving water. At times its relaxing, but not at all times. Their plot is plenty big enough to sit elsewhere so it's not an issue.
If the several acres are on a slope, is it already drained?
Maybe drain to a common point above the house, pond there, augment it with a pump too, then let it run from that along a bit of a channel guiding it around your house to the pond below the house which you pump back up from.
Just make sure you can’t flood your own house.
Maybe drain to a common point above the house, pond there, augment it with a pump too, then let it run from that along a bit of a channel guiding it around your house to the pond below the house which you pump back up from.
Just make sure you can’t flood your own house.
Digger said:
Promised Land said:
How?
No seriously, how does that work?
eta - i get it is some kind of optical illusion . . . still wondering though
Edited by Digger on Wednesday 24th February 00:59
With regard to the OPs idea, re filling/topping-up the river, chances are you’ll need an abstraction licence if you wish to use groundwater. Current regulations allow for a maximum of 20 cubic metres a day to be abstracted without a licence. However, as you’re already abstracting water for one purpose (domestic water supply) I don’t think (although I could be wrong) another purpose (filling the river) would be allowed. If you do apply and are issued with an abstraction licence, then you’re into the world of meters, annual returns, charges, compliance checks etc. Worth researching.
Jimbo. said:
...However, as you’re already abstracting water for one purpose (domestic water supply) I don’t think (although I could be wrong) another purpose (filling the river) would be allowed.
I guess the question would be where domestic water supply ends and extraction for environmental purposes begins?What we're talking about, effectively, is a water feature in a domestic garden: it it's designed as a 'closed loop', there would be no discharge beyond the garden boundaries, and in principle it's not much different to topping up your goldfish pond with a hosepipe?
I love all this and would seriously love to make a little stream in my garden, i have some natural slope but unfortunately my garden is just too small to do something properly 
But if you've got the space it is relatively easy tbh.
a hole at the bottom and a hole at the top is ultimately all it is. Just need a strong pump and i suppose really some sort of welded liner.
Please make it look natural though!
One day i will do this!
But if you've got the space it is relatively easy tbh.
a hole at the bottom and a hole at the top is ultimately all it is. Just need a strong pump and i suppose really some sort of welded liner.
Please make it look natural though!
One day i will do this!
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