Preparing to Build a Fountain

• You'll need a reservoir (container for holding water), a riser (a rigid platform that will hold your fountain design), an adjustable water pump with flexible tubing, and mortar. We have convenient indoor fountain kits that contain all of these items. In addition, you'll need decorative pieces with which to design your fountain. These can be whatever you want them to be -- rough rock, tumbled rock, shells, slabs, geodes, or anything else you can imagine. Be creative!
• Think of how your elements will fit together. Do a few dry settings (set all the pieces together, including the pump, tubing, and light, without mortaring them in place). This will help you work out any flaws in the design of your fountain. Sometimes it's hard to tell how your water will flow until you've set everything up.
• Make sure your water pump will be easily accessible after your fountain is mortared -- later on this will be important.
• Mortar is a permanent fixative and takes about 24 hours to cure. If you want to use something with more flexibility, you can substitute clear silicone. With silicone you can pull your design apart even after it has cured.
• Most fountain pumps are adjustable, so you can vary the strength of your water flow. Read more in our Learn More article about adjusting the flow of an indoor fountain pump. If there's no flow at all, you probably have an air bubble caught in the pump -- jiggle the pump a little and the bubble should be dislodged.

Tabletop fountains have long been a staple of good Feng Shui design. In addition to soothing, relaxing sound, fountains help to keep the ch'i (life energy) circulating in a refreshing and invigorating manner, as well as enhancing the "color energy" of your environment.

Learn more about the Feng Shui of Fountains

Learn more about Putting Together Your Fountain