DIY Mini Bird Pond ~ Inexpensive and Easy to Build Water Feature Bath for Birds!
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- Опубліковано 21 жов 2022
- [9/20/23 Note: Use underlayment under your pond liner. When I made this mini pond, I skipped putting a layer of underlayment between the ground and the pond liner. Now, about a year after building the pond, it has developed a leak. It shouldn’t be a huge problem to replace the liner, and it will give me an opportunity to make some other changes, but I wish I had used underlayment. It adds some cost but probably worth the expense.]
I made this little "bird pond" as a demonstration to show that it is possible to create an easy-to-build and inexpensive water feature for the birds in your yard. I hesitate to even call this a "water feature" because it certainly is not something designed as a garden or landscape feature. It is small and quiet, and will hardly be noticeable in your landscape. But ... the birds will notice it and enjoy it! And the birds coming and going from this little bird pond will definitely add activity and beauty to your landscape.
I made this in one day and the total cost of materials was under $50. This does use a small electric water pump, so you will need to chose a location that has an outlet nearby. I built mine on a terraced area next to my house and ran an extension cord from an outlet on the back deck.
It only took about three days for the birds to discover and start using this little pond. Some of the birds that visited were migrating warblers, which makes me think that, although it is quiet, the water makes enough sound for it to be discoverable by birds that are new to my yard.
Subscribe to this channel and watch the weekly Sunday Morning Bird Show to see what birds visit the mini pond and the other water features on my property.
Supplies for this project:
Note: I'm an Amazon affiliate. If you make a purchase after following these links, I will receive a commission from Amazon for the sale. Thank you!
PULACO 95 GPH Mini Submersible Water Pump amzn.to/3Djgzku
Small pond liner - 4'x7' seems to be as small as they come. You'll need most of the four feet to line the reservoir and have plenty left at the top edges. amzn.to/3VLES1L
River Pebbles - I found 48lb bags of river pebbles at Lowes for under $6 a bag. I reused some pebbles from a previous project, so I just bought one bag. I probably would have needed two bags if I was using all new.
Berry Box - I have tried various containers to protect these mini pumps. This berry box is the best solution I've found yet! Since it's almost exactly the same height at the pump, the pump helps support the center of the box. And the box I had even has a nifty opening for the cord to pass through. The label on the box says it held 6 oz of berries.
If you have questions, please ask in the comments section. If you build one of these or something similar, please leave a comment and let me know how it works out for you.
#birdpond #diybirdbath #attractbirds #tinypond #birdbath #wildlifehabitat
If you enjoy bird videos with lots of nice close up views of the birds, or if you’re interested in creating a backyard habitat with wildlife-friendly water features and landscaping, subscribe to this channel and turn on notifications so you don’t miss any new videos. New Sunday Morning Birds videos are posted each week on Sunday mornings at 6am eastern time. The Sunday Morning Birds videos follow bird activity here at my Tennessee property throughout the year. We have lots of year-round birds but our most active and exciting times of year are spring and fall migration. Summer can be pretty wonderful too. The number and variety of summer resident birds keeps growing! When there are a lot of nice birds around, I sometimes post extra videos during the week - so make sure you have those notifications turned on! - Домашні улюбленці та дикі тварини
Hey, everyone. Important tip! I skipped putting underlayment down under the pond liner when I built this. I wish I had not skipped that step. It’s September 2023 and about a year after building the mini pond, it has developed a leak. I’ll be replacing the liner soon (and adding underlayment) and I want to build it as two little pools this time so it holds more water and so there’s more water movement. I’ll do an update video when I get around to getting this done. In the mean time, the pump is still running and birds are still using the pond. I just have to top it off around mid day if I want a full pool of water. Thanks for all the comments! I hope those of you who have added a mini pond or something like it to your landscape are getting lots of beautiful birds visiting!
Thank you so much for this great tutorial - was looking for an efficient strategy to make a small wildlife-supporting pond, and this is fantastic! I’ve looked up the pond liner and am wondering if you recommend a certain kind/specification of underlayment to use with it?
@@barbaraloring9476 it’s called non woven geotextile underlayment. I found a 7x10 piece on Amazon for around $40. Good luck with your project!
Thanks for all the great tips, but how to keep it to be that clean water without moss coming?
We used left over carpeting underneath pond liner.😊
Thanks so much for this! I have a solar pump that I was going to mount on my rain barrel to keep it from growing moss, then I saw a video showing how to make a "bog filter", then it started to get complicated. You show how to just get something small up and running. I'll give it a try!
This is cool. My cats think it would make a great restaurant. I told them that was ugly.
😆Bad kitty!🐱
Wonderful video. Thanks for helping the birds and wildlife with a nice water source!
Thank you 🙂
At 11:49 I thought you put a censor over the warbler bathing, like it was too risqué 😂 Took me a second to realize it was water on the camera
😂
We have a house in Mexico that gets no rain from October through to end of May. I started out putting a plate outside on the grass for the little seedeaters and warblers and the Aztec doves, beautiful tiny doves that nest in my bougainvillea. Now lots of birds are discovering it as a water source and a spot to cool off before bedtime. I am refilling my plate a lot. When the satellite dish was obsolete I put it on its back in the grass too, and they need filling and rinsing a couple of times a day. This little pond will be perfect and might make my life simpler, thank you! I just have to find some copper to keep the mosquitos from laying eggs in it. In Australia I used to put pennies in my birdbath, but it’s hard to find pennies now! I just subscribed, I imagine a lot of bird care will translate to far south too. I’m just a bit worried about keeping it clean with our hard water and dusty atmosphere, but I can hose it out with the overflow going into a garden with your design. Thanks again!
I hose mine out when I add water, just like you describe, letting the excess dirty water flow out into the garden. Mine needs water added just about every day in the summer because of evaporation and the birds splashing out the water. In your hot location, you might want to dig your pool basin a little larger so it holds more water and might not have to be refilled as often. As long as there’s movement on the water surface, you shouldn’t have a problem with mosquitoes, but the copper is a neat tip! Thanks, I didn’t know about that! Good luck with your project and thanks for watching!
Great video! Another way to protect the pump is to put it to into a Paint Strainer Bag. It’s a nylon bag that painters use. They are inexpensive. I used them on my sump pumps when my patio would flood. They did a great job keeping the dirt out of the pumps.
I put my pump for the goldfish pond in one of those plastic shoe boxes that I had drilled holes all in. That way the debre doesn't get all trapped in around the pump.
Great idea!
Great Idea! I will do this in my future ponds
Thank you!!! I was about to take down a goldfish pond out front. I can use my liner for this and we would ENJOY this big time close to our patio. I have a natural hill there and everything for a small waterfall. I also have the flagstone and rocks. I will have to buy some of the smaller river rocks but that's no biggie. I know the birds like really shallow water so I am going to do this!!! SOOOOO glad I saw this when I did or I'd gave away my liner and then regretted it later. I have had this liner for more that 30 years and it's still holding up very well. The pond is almost waist deep so I have plenty of liner! THANK YOU again!!! I can't wait to get started on this!!!! I LOVVVVE birds!!! PLUS I have a little solar powered fountain I could use for the hummingbirds to play in.
Oh, you’re all set! Have fun with it and enjoy watching the birds enjoy the water 🙂
Prewashing the pebbles will help, too.
Washing buckets full of dirty pebbles is no fun. Easier to let the pump do the washing.
That looks like a naturally made pond! Great job!
Thank you!
Genius idea with the berry basket.
Thanks! I’ve been trying for years to come up with a little “pump vault” for those mini pumps. This is the best option I’ve found.
@@WarblerRidge you might want to add some sort of filter around the pump, they clog up so fast when I had a pond once. I used a coffee can and (I cant remember what I used!) and filled it with I think was from my furnace filter. beautiful pond! I have a place for one , hope to get to it this summer! Happy May!
Javanese culture in Indonesia understands that if we are friends with nature then nature will give us a lot of goodness, success for "Warbler......." ....Java Central, Indonesia, watch this video
Yeah, I too, don't understand the people who don't want anything to do with nature.
Maybe the don't have souls?
I consider them some sort of inhuman creatures.
I think I would pine away and die if I couldn't have some connection with nature every day.
It's just....natural!
Very beautiful. I too am a birder. Last year in Alberta Canada, it was so dry I took some tarp and made a kind of river and filled with bricks and water and the birds were in heaven. Thank you for your videos they are very inspiring. I will send some more Robins your way.
Good idea with the tarp! And thanks for the Robins 🙂 I’ll be watching for them
I would wash the stones before adding them to the pond so the water clears up sooner. Just a thought. 😊
I think that’s the #1 comment I’ve been getting on this video 😆 I think I had worked myself almost to the point of grumpy-tired when I decided to not do any pre-rinsing. But, really, this type of ground level pool is going to get a certain amount of soil washed into it anyway. It worked out fine. And saved me some grumpiness 🙂 Thanks for watching and commenting! I appreciate it.
One other tip--but does require more work in the initial build but less over the long haul is to give the larger pool a negative edge into a sump. For reference, check out pond-less waterfalls. This allows for a larger reservoir of water that gets replenished with the rains and maintains a constant depth within the pools. This could be helpful for anyone that has a high evaporation rate. It can still be done on a budget with a bucket with drilled holes for the pump containment and milk crates to create the voided space for more water volume. If topping off with water isn't an inconvenience, then this might not be necessary but it's still important to remember the evaporation rate--go on a trip with the family and the pump could potentially burn up--that's why I like the sump--peace of mind and consistent water depth.
Really nice video for a well worth it project!
That’s sort of what I did with my larger bird pond, although it flows into an open water reservoir. I tried to keep this mini pond as simple as possible. And this layout makes for a very small footprint and requires very little digging. It does need to be topped off with about a gallon of water every couple days. But my larger pond with the larger reservoir has to be topped off every few days in the summer too. There’s evaporation and the birds splash a lot of the water onto surrounding rocks (or fly off with in on their feathers, lol) If I had an unlimited budget, I’d like to have something with an automatic refill when the water level gets too low. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this. There are so many options for how to do these things.
@@WarblerRidge - yeah, not every solution is friendly on the wallet!
I built a pond for my boys to enjoy a couple years ago with an intake bay that sits in full sun and the evaporation loss is pretty significant.
Quick flashback--my father had a koi pond growing up and killed everything three times--twice forgetting about when filling up the pond and the excess chlorine did them in. Another time, the PVC line that was valved off for filling the pond broke (inadvertently by a kid playing basketball--it was on the other side of the fence, ball hit it and the kid didn't say anything--our house was where everyone came to play anytime they wanted).
Anyways, this has always been my fear for this pond... now that we've decided to build a much larger one, it'll have a negative edge dumping into a large reservoir that will collect rainwater from our gutters.
For a smaller water feature like the bird pond, perhaps a rainwater barrel and a float similar to a toilet would suffice and not break the bank.
By the way, what kind of camera do you use for the birds? It has a great resolution and looks perfectly clear.
I always wash the dirt off all the stones before placing them to keep the water clean. I really like your little pond.👍❤❤❤
I'm excited to try this! I hear frogs out not too far from my yard at night, maybe we can bring them in with this to help catch some of those mosquitos! :)
Maybe build yours a little bit bigger with a deeper end (you can vary the water depth shifting or removing some of the pebbles) if you want to attract frogs. Good luck with your project!
Thank you for this wonderful video. It was informative and relaxing to watch. 😄
Glad you enjoyed it!
I love to sit on my front porch swing and watch the birds in my feeders. I have a stone looking fountain with 3 waterfalls that the birds have discovered this year! They drink and splash around under the falls! I’ve also had a chipmunk stop by for sips of water!
That sounds perfect! I love the little chipmunks too. 🐿️
Nice video -- thank you! One thing I would like to add is that the liner should be well rinsed before using as well as any other plastics being used in the project, including the tubing and taking off the stickers from the fruit container, if using. Plastic always has a toxic residue when made that one should try to get rid of as much as possible for the sake of the birds and other wildlife that may use this.
👍
I was looking for a simple easy diy water hole video, this one will do 👍🏻 I will add underlayment. I am in the Sonoran desert where it gets to 110, 115 F so very hot, i will share this little pond trying to keep water from getting too hot. Thank you
That’s hot! Good luck with your project. I hope it works for you. You will have a lot of evaporation. You may need to make you pool larger. If you make it deeper, the water may get cooled some when it’s drawn through the deeper, cooler layer.
And all the birds were like * it's a Mandela effect . This definitely wasn't here yesterday 😂
Lol 😂
Using the berry box is pure genius! I’ve made a few water features and what pure joy to watch the birds and wildlife enjoy it. Thanks for sharing 🎉
Thanks :-) Who knew that berry boxes are actually mini pond pump vaults in disguise? 😄
Nice! We used to have a nice 2-level Koi pond (they even had babies!) and I miss it so much. They loved coming to the surface and snacking on the Swiss Chard leaves. Eventually, we had what I think was a Heron that continually raided the pond. I'd go out and chase it away but it would circle back after a little while and get right back in the little pond.
That pond sounds wonderful. I’m sorry the bird got all your fish. I had a small goldfish pond at my previous home but there are so many raccoons and other critters here, I decided not to try a fish pond.
I don’t know why this showed up on my feed, but I’m thankful it did. I was just thinking I got two low spots on my property that I wanted to make into little pools for wildlife. Thank you!
Good luck with your projects!
@@WarblerRidge Thank you. 😊
Nice job, both with this project and sharing your experience making water features for wildlife. I've been enjoying your Sunday Morning Birds for some time and was inspired to take up a DIY project. There is a small pond. Storm water drains into it through a shrubby swale. It is too far to use AC power, so I found a solar powered pump to supply the swale. I will need to haul the pump in before freeze up. The site is visible from a few windows in the house. I'm keeping a list of bird species that visit to bathe and drink, great fun! Many thanks for your videos and commentary.
Yay! I love that you were inspired to make a water feature for your birds! There are so many different ways to make it work. it’s kind of addictive, lol. I’m mulling over ideas for a redo of one that’s located next to my main bird pond/creek. Thanks for watching and happy birding!
I have seen dozens of videos but yours is by far the best. I have small area with a bird bathe but after seeing the vid am going to incorporate it into the space.
Thank you and good luck with your bird pond. Make sure you read my note in the video description about using underlayment under the liner. I skipped that step and ended up with a leak. Rebuilt, a little bigger this time - but still small, with underlayment, and everything is doing great so far. These are really perfect for small spaces.
I am totally doing this! So glad I came across this video! Thank you.
Yay! Every yard needs a tiny bird pond 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing. I know it took lots of time to make this video and I appreciate it so much. I’m definitely going to try it!!
I did discover that it’s easier to make videos of birds than it is to make videos of myself doing something 😂 Let me know how it works for you. I hope it’s a little bird magnet!
Creative and beautiful work. You reminded me to not overthink projects and be creative. The video had excellent production quality too.
Thank you so much!
So Nice!!! 👏
Thanks!
Thank you for sharing! I actually have a small pond in my courtyard with my favorite water plants like cattails, which is a good nesting material. I needed an overflow for the pond and wasn't sure what to do, this will do nicely. I can use a bridge to separate them and the birds will have the best of both worlds. I was thinking of using your overflow as a secondary overflow but primarily as a dirt bath area which is also vital for the birds in feather maintenance. Again, thanks.
It sounds like you’re creating an excellent habitat for the birds! I’ve also been experimenting with a pumpless “puddle” for the birds that’s just a depression with a pond liner. I’m trying to work a mud/sand beach into the design. Something like that might work for your overflow area too.
Just beautiful...love it!!
Definitely would have rinsed out the rocks before putting them in 👍❤
That seems to be the consensus. 😄 All I can say is I was getting worn out and letting the hose run to clear the water was easier than rinsing a bunch of rocks.
Amazing job 💯. Thanks 👍
Excellent 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Thank you for sharing Great job!
❤
Beautiful, natural looking little pond, lovely support for birds and other small creatures.
P.S. I did not see a Cardinal in the video even though there was a label.
The Cardinal got edited out of the video at the last minute. I don’t remember why now. I think there may have been a lot of traffic noise in the background. When I swapped out the clip, I forgot to edit the label. Thanks for watching!
Thank you so much for the inspiration.
Will be working on one next spring. Thanks!
wash pebbles/rocks before putting in pond... much less work
Looks very natural, great for other animals and insects too
The chipmunks and squirrels visit regularly :-)
great video and update! Thanks!
Thanks for watching!
Thank you for sharing! Awesome idea :)
Lovely ❤
Thank you 🙂
Perfect! I have a little pond liner and other materials left over from building my larger pond. Will make one of these.
I ❤ this!!
Thank you!
Really beautiful!
Thank you! 😊
Thanks
Thank you! Hubby and I will do something like this for my birthday. Just what I wanted!
What a great birthday present! I hope it brings in lots of birds for you.
It’s gorgeous! Great job.
Thank you! 😊
Nice
Thank you
Thank you so much for this! I am moving to a new house soon with a large flat "tabula rasa" garden. I had thought about a water feature, but it seemed daunting (I'm 74). But this looks doable.
Glad it was helpful! Good luck with your project and your new home
Very nice.
Thank you!
Thank you for this. I have all the equipment needed but have just been fixed on the idea of a bowl fountain. This helps me think of something more natural is possible. I’m going to give it a go and hopefully it’ll be as beautiful as yours. Another thing, I have a solar fountain so I hope it works. Yours is beautiful. ✌🏻🤍🤞
Solar fountains tend to not be as powerful as the plug in types. The main question will be if it has enough power to lift the water from the bottom of the pool basin to your outfall. Maybe test that out before you bury the pump. You could also try using a more accessible pump container like the plastic coffee tub I used for my woodland stream. That would make swapping out the pump easier if you’re not happy with the solar one. Good luck!
That is adorable and beautiful. I love birds.
They are truly wonderful creatures. Thanks for watching!
Excellent video and very informative!
Thank you 🙂
Well done it's just great! Anything to attract wildlife is fantastic in my book. Thank you so much for making and sharing this video. I love it!!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Absolutely💯beautiful 😍❤♥
Thank you!
liu gang 💪🏻
Great video! I would love to build something like this. The squirrel at the end made me smile. 😊
You should build one! Your birds will thank you! 🙂
This is a pond I think I can do myself all I need is a small pond filter. Thank you for your pond video.
Good luck with your project and thanks for watching!
Me, too :)
Thank you for your video. Wonderfully created, easy to follow, and thorough. Thanks!
Thank you for the kind words!
Love this! Thanks for taking the time to put it together. Will definitely try this out at some point. ❤
Thanks! And I hope it works for you
Very nice! This gives me an idea to do that with what I've already got. I'm using a large round (heavy) thing for my birdbath on top of a table frame. I don't know what it's made of, but it's heavy and thick. I do have some rocks in it, but not enough. I'm going to get some river rocks and put them inside and around the edges of it. The birds already come to it, but I want to make it look more natural like you did.
That sounds nice. Is it deep enough to put a little pump in there so you get some water movement? Maybe a little bubbler in the middle? The sound of moving water really attracts the birds.
You gave perfect step by step instructions that anyone can do! Wish I would have seen this when I set my first pond up. Now I'm going to do a bird bath with the information on your site. Thank you. The wildlife in my yard will love it.
Glad it was helpful and good luck with your project!
I love the way you kept the nature look with the tree branches and wood. This is a nice idea. Thank You for sharing.
Thank you. I think the birds are more comfortable with something that looks like their natural habitat. Plus the branches and wood give the birds somewhere to perch while they decided whether or not it’s safe to get in the water.
I’m building this thank you…I already have a koi pond
Wow I am glaed this popped up into my suggested videos so I could learn how you constructed your bird pond. This will definitely be something fun I try to make for us! Thank you kindly
I’ve had so much fun trying out different water feature designs for the birds. This little one has ended up being a favorite spot for the woodpeckers. They almost never visit the larger bird pond but they love this little spot. Good luck with yours and have fun :-)
I made this. Well in the process. Added the rocks inside but still have the outside to do. I love this! TY! I wish I would have seen about the underlay before I started but I should be fine. All sand
Yay! I hope your little pond brings you and your birds lots of enjoyment. You probably will be fine without the underlayment. I have not only lots of rocks but also lots of burrowing chipmunks. Both are hazardous to pond liners 😀 And replacing my liner wasn’t all that difficult because the pool is so small. Enjoy your birds!
@@WarblerRidge ❣
My neighbors feral cat colony would love for me to install a little bird pond like this!
Ergh. Definitely not a good option with a bunch of cats around
@@WarblerRidge I keep my birdbaths up high, under the cover of trees and on my deck where the cats can’t go. So far, so good. But earlier this year I lost a male Cardinal to them. I love cats, in general, but I am very angry at my neighbors who allow the cats to breed out of control. So irresponsible.
@@Mrs.TJTaylor trap them yourself and get them spayed!
I have that problem too. The lady behind us is a hoarder and she's been in trouble with animal control for many years. It's a real problem. Not only for the birds, but they use my flower beds as a community cat box 😡
@@socalgal714 I feel for you. It’s a serious problem. The stench, and fleas and flys and the poor sickly cats too. These hoarders think they’re doing a good thing but they only create misery for everyone and every thing. I haven’t seen a squirrel or a chipmunk here for years.
Lovely video: peaceful and calming. Thanks for the content. I really want to try this!
Go for it! Your birds will thank you
Excellent and affordable! You said to keep it shallow. What’s a good depth? 1 or 2 inches?
I’d say one inch max.
I love this video, came out amazing looks totally natural
Thank you!
the little pond is lovely. I have used the same water pump in my bird bath and it gets pretty clogged with debris fairly often. How often do you have to dig up and clean out your pump? thanks for sharing!
Thank you. It’s been running for about eight months now without clogging. The layer of rocks works as a filter so there shouldn’t be much gunk getting to the pump. And the berry box should keep any small stones from getting into the pump and jamming the impeller.
You have an absolutely beautiful yard setting. Thank you so much for posting this. I’ve wondered how to do it. Guess what I’m doing after the ground thaws?!? (The Hungry Little Birdie)
What a lovely little pond! Thank you so much, for sharing how you made yours. I even think I can manage to make something similiar, from watching your video. Thank you again!
I had fun building it. I hope it turns out well for you and that your birds enjoy it 🙂
Beautiful and useful. 🙂🙃🙂They will love it.
The birds are enjoying it so far!
@@WarblerRidge If I were a little bird, I would be there, too. 😄😆
I keep bowls of water out for the animals and birds. This is a much better looking idea! Thank you.
I’m sure the water bowls are appreciated!
Awesome. I want to upgrade for my feathered friends and would like to make it more sanitary. Two things I've learned is good sized pieces of copper in a typical birdbath have a sanitizing effect. The second thing is putting live aquatic plants in the pond will process bird waste and keep it clean but it's important to not allow leaves and dead matter to decompose. Think pool cleaning.
I didn’t know that about the copper. That’s interesting. I have a couple concrete bird baths and I’ve found that scrubbing them daily with a nylon bristle brush and refilling with fresh water does the trick for me. And plants in the pond are a good idea. When I built my “woodland stream” pond, I added some plants along the edge. Since these little ponds/pools benefit from natural filtration via the pebble bed the water passes through, I think fish pond - without fish 🙂
Built something very similar which feeds my fish pond, shallow water with a deeper end for plants and frogs etc leading into a small waterfall. Birds love it…
Great idea to tie it into a fish pond!
It seems as though everyone in Tennessee has a big, wooded lot. My house in central IL is about 10 feet away from the neighbor's fence on 3 sides. I can't do anything like this on my own property because the neighnors don't like wildlife being attracted to the neighborhood. You've been blessed with a beautiful property and the freedom to do with it what you choose. I thoroughly enjoyed your project, though!
Tennessee does still have a lot of wild open spaces. The hilly terrain in the eastern part of the state, where I am, keeps things from being developed too densely. But we do have close together housing developments with lots of restrictions here too. I love being out in the countryside where there are lots of birds and other wildlife, but there are tradeoffs - like a 30 minute drive to the grocery store 😄. Thanks for watching and leaving a comment, I appreciate it!
Sounds like you just need a higher fence, lol!
Screw what your neighbours want or don't want!
If they "don't like wildlife being attracted to the neighbourhood" then I personally would go out of my way to plant nut trees and fruit trees and berries of all sorts, AND build a lovely big, rambling water feature to attract ALL the wildlife from everywhere, lol!
Screw those guys!
A connection with nature is food for the soul!
Don't let other people's stupid demands hold you back.
Be a rebel!
Plant stuff and create water features!
Build your paradise! :D
That's great I have all that already except getting a solar pump/ fountain live in desert so I have to keep water going in it
If you’re in the desert, I’d recommend making yours larger than what I did so it can hold more water. Between water loss from bird splashing and evaporation, I’ve been having to add water to mine every day. I imagine the evaporation is much worse where you are.
@@WarblerRidge yes i made deeper with big flat rocks in it
This is so lovely and I cant wait to create something very similar in my rather wild-garden yard here in central Texas! Question: I couldn't quite figure out the purpose for the smaller hole that you dug near the pond. How is it used and how deep is it? I very much like the little water fall you created and wish you had shown how you created that as well with stacking the various rocks just so it spills just as you like. Thanks again and I look forward to watching your videos and getting out the pick axe!
The little upper pool isn’t really necessary but since the bathing pool area is so small on this, I was trying to get the the outfall rocks out of the way and keep more area open for the birds to use. But I actually modified mine recently to move the outfall to drop right into the main pool because I was having algae problems and wanted more water motion. It seems to have helped. All I did to create the water fall is put a flat rock under where the water comes out and then used a few more stones to cover up the water tube so it doesn’t show. Good luck with your project! I hope it brings in lots of birds :-)
I've been thinking I'm getting too old to put in a water feature, but this really looks doable, and worthwhile for the bird watching, thanks for posting!. One thing I thought about but have never tried, there are pumps that can run on a low-voltage system like your outdoor pathway lights. Since I haven't tried it, I can't vouch for it, but it would be nice not having to run a separate 120v circuit to a removed spot in the yard...anyone ever use one of those?
I have successfully used a solar powered pump ( 6.5 W ) for my small pond. Your never too old !😄
I didn’t know that sort of pump existed. I’ll have to look into that. I didn’t extend a circuit into the yard for this project or my larger bird pond. They are both fairly close to the house and I just run them off extension cords. Probably not the best solution but it works for me.
Awesome job n thanks for sharing!! How large/deep should upper pool be approximately?
The upper pool isn’t absolutely necessary. But I think it adds some motion and extra water sound. Mine is small. Maybe 6 inches by inches. And just a couple inches deep. Deep enough to hold a base layer of pebbles to cover the liner.
I would wash the pebbles before dumping into pond. That little pump has to work overtime with all that dirt.
I need something similar for animals' drink off in the yard
That clear fruit plastic container won't last. Will break and Crack in no time with the sun and water but the size is a perfect reference to look for a more permanent solution
The container is buried under about eight inches of stones, so sun isn’t a problem. I dug this up after about six months of use and it was fine. But I think I prefer the coffee tub I used in last year’s woodland stream project. You have to dig a larger hole to accommodate it but since it has a lid and is taller, it’s easier to access the pump if you need to. But for a tiny shallow pool like the mini pond, I still stand by the berry box and would use it again for that type of project - and probably will soon 🙂 Thanks for watching and good luck with your project.
@@WarblerRidge really appreciate the berry box idea! It’s so low profile and easy to obtain. I think this is a project I can handle! Do you remove the pump in the winter?
Love this! I wonder how deep you dug and for underlayment will you use sand? I would have washed the rocks to keep the water clean but looks like it cleared up on its own. Again, thank you for a great video!
Hi and thank you for the kind words. I dug about 8 inches. I skipped underlayment when I built this and ended up with a leak after about six months (see my pinned comment). When I rebuilt this as a slightly larger water feature with a little stream (look for the woodland steam or DIY habitat projects videos on my channel), I used a geotextile underlayment fabric. It’s doing well so far. My experience with washing rock is that it’s not much fun, lol. And the native soil that was mixed with the pebbles I used for this project probably gave the biological filtration process a kick-start. The microorganisms help clean and filter the water. If you do a search in fish pond bog filters, there are some good videos on this type of natural filtration. Thanks for watching and commenting!
If there are ways to solar power this, that’d be great. I think we can make it work plugged in, but solar would be a good next step.
There are small solar powered pumps that would probably work but they’re only going to run when there’s good sunshine available. I’ve experimented some with solar pumps and they go on and off on cloudy days.
It’s why I sink a 20 gallon container under ground that is covered but allows returning water to drip through. It is still a project in the making. Would add photo if I knew how!
That sounds like a neat idea
Thanks for this! I’m working on one now. What kind of camera do you keep there?
Yay! I love that people are building these. I hope it brings in lots of birds for you. I use a GoPro so I can get high quality video to use on UA-cam. I also use Blink Outdoor cameras to monitor activity at my bird ponds. The Blink cameras are motion activated and plenty good enough quality to see what birds are visiting your pond. They also record at night, which is great for seeing the occasional nocturnal visitor. My GoPros are not motion activated. I set them out and let them record for a few hours and then review to see what I get. Much more time consuming. But the video quality from those is great and, because they’re waterproof, I can set them up really close to the birds and not worry about them getting splashed. Good luck with your bird pond!
@@WarblerRidge Thank you!
just wonderful! Can you keep it going in the winter months? Or do you unplug the pump?
That’s a good question! And I’m not sure. Last time I built a mini pond like this, with the pump buried under a layer of stone, I lived on the Virginia coast where the winters were pretty mild. I’m just going to keep an eye on it and turn it off if the water freezes. Our weather is all over the place here in TN, so I’m hoping to be able to run in on warmer days.
@@WarblerRidge thanks for the quick reply! I live in central VA, so I'm in the same boat. One other question, probably stupid, but the smaller hole for the overflow, is that a bit higher than the adjacent main pool, or are they the same level?
@@meganrollins595 a couple inches higher. That way the water flows down and creates a little bit of motion in the lower pool. Also, something I didn’t address in the video the spot where the water comes out of the tubing should be positioned so that the water drops down into the pool and makes some noise. It doesn’t have to be much, but the trickling water sound is what attracts the birds. For mine, I had the water flow out over a flat rock and it drips into the water from there.
Wonderful job. I would like to ask you question. Can I use a solar system with this type of pond? I don't have electricity outside. Thank you for answer.
Solar pumps are usually less powerful than the ones you plug in. It may now have enough power to pump the water from the bottom of the basin to the outfall. Also, the solar pump will stop working it is very cloudy or if it is shaded by trees, and the best place for these ponds is in at least partial shade. Look for a pump that has a long cord between the pump and the solar panel so you can locate the panel in a spot with the most consistent sunlight. Good luck. I hope it works for you!
Great video. Thank you.
Thanks for watching!
Very nice looking! This might be a dumb question, but how do you clean & freshen the water? I ask because birds bathe & usually poop in the water. I try my best to keep them healthy:-)
Not a dumb question. By burying the pump under a bed of gravel, you create a biological filter that helps clean the water (similar to the bog filters used in larger fish ponds). Also, because this is such as small water feature, it loses quite a bit of water to splashing and evaporation daily, so there is fresh water being added regularly. When I’m adding water, I also use the spray from the garden hose to rinse off the stones and let the dirty water flow out for the pond, just like I showed when I washed the dirt out of the pond when I set it up. Thanks for watching!
@@WarblerRidge THANKS! Makes sense. I've never had a pond. Only bird baths. Maybe I'll give it a try :-) Have a good evening!
I'm planning a bird pond and like your simple design. I'm unclear on the function of the second smaller pool. the pump's in the large pond, water flows out the tube onto rocks and drains back into the large pond. Only the amount of water the pump delivers is available to run into the pond. What good does the smaller pool do?
The second pool isn’t really necessary, but it provides a little more surface water movement and additional water sound. And some of the smallest birds seem to prefer the really tiny pools.
Curious to know if anyone in colder climates has made one and how the pump holds up through the winter
Hi. If you’re in an area where things freeze solid over the winter, you may want to go with something that has a more easily accessible pump so you can remove it for the winter. I show a variation on this that I did using a plastic coffee tub to hold the pump. The top of the tub is just below the surface of the gravel so easy to access. I show that in the woodland stream section of my DIY habitat projects video.
Thanks I saw that video… I know I currently have a fountain that I completely remove the pump from for winter and bring it indoors
Do you let the pond freeze over in the winter? I’m excited to build my own pond in the spring, but the weather outside has me wondering. ☺️ Thanks for posting this video.
Yeah, I don’t do anything to heat it. It doesn’t stay all that cold here in Tennessee, so mostly I get surface ice that melts during the day. When we have weather that stays below freezing, I just unplug the pump until it warms back up.
@@WarblerRidgeThank you! I’m in Virginia’s Ridge and Valley, so I get a little freezing weather. 😊