Infinity Edge water feature

11 years ago

I would like to add an infinity edged water feature in front of my mid century home in southern California. A mason, who did a wonderful job with my concrete work, is available now to do. And I have a small window before my softscape is slated to be installed. The water feature will be in-ground, abutting the home, and about 15' x 5'. If I have my mason simply build a 1' deep concrete pond/water feature, with a hidden catch basin, will I then simply be able to buy a pump to put in the catch basin that will keep the water feature full and maintain the infinity edged look? My mason does outstanding work, but has never been asked to do a project like this. Thanks in advance.

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Comments (4)

steiconi
11 years ago
you would need a pipe to move the water from the pump in the catch basin back to the pond, and you probably won't want to look at it, so it should be hidden or covered with something decorative like a fountain.
garyfla_gw
11 years ago
Hi
Sounds more like a fountain than water garden or fish pond.?? Would be concerned with the fish going over the edge? Those infinity edge pools look fantastic but would require careful sizing of the pump to water flow or the effect would be ruined. There are ways to figure that of course but beyond my knowledge lol
Hope you show us some pix sounds like a fantastic project!!! gary
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I don't believe it "standard" but it certainely doesn't hurt. Most people don't really run their negative edge pumps more than a couple of hours a day, unless they are having a party or something because the water running over the wall, and the pump operation consumes a lot of energy. Also neg edge troughs typically pull off bottom suctions to there isn't that much debris that ends up back in the pool.
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The only compelling argument I've heard to have a separate filter for the negative edge is if the pool is large enough (>50K gallons) to require the use of 2 pumps to get adequate turns per day for chlorination and filtration at lower, more energy efficient speeds. Our pool is 35K gallons and only has 1 main filter..no filter for the infinity edge circuit. We have to run the main circulation pump for 20 hours per day in the summer to get adequate chlorination and filtration at low speed on our 2 speed pump. If our pool were larger, we would have likely added another filter and chlorinator and it would have been logical to add it to the infinity edge circuit. Another thing to keep in mind...the addition of another filter and chlorinator doubles the maintenance and replacement expense down the road in addition to initial installation expense. With only one filter, we've had no problems with the infinity edge pit water clarity or cleanliness...it gets turned over 10x per day using another 2 speed pump for the infinity edge which pulls water from the pit and provides water to our waterfalls as well as 4 returns in the main pool. Agree with the other posters....the engineering of the wall and plumbing is highly dependent on the specific design of each pool and how the pool sits on the site. Also, the sizing of the pit is critical along with the adjustment of the autofill level in the pit. Think of the pit as a surge tank with widely varying water levels throughout the day....tile the first 12" or so of the top of the pit rather than just 6" as is normal for the rest of the pool. This will allow the level of the pit to be adjusted lower via the autofill setting so that water loss out the overflow is minimized during surges. When surging is not happening, the extra 6" of tile will ensure the plaster is not exposed for long durations when splash out is not happening and the water level is lower. Surge levels can be minimized by making the pit larger and this is where each PB may differ on how the pits are sized in relation to the main pool area. The larger the main pool area, the larger the pit will have to be sized to accomodate splash out. Think of pit size in terms of inches of water lost from the main pool and resulting volume that ends up in the pit and you'll start to get an idea of how the two are related to each other. Lastly, surge level can be minimized by running the infinity edge pump at higher speeds. This will keep the water moving faster from the pit to the main pool when lots of splashing is occuring. Occasionally, we'll turn our infinity edge pump on high speed during parties when lots of jumping, diving and splashing is occuring. The additional people in the pool also displaces water from the main pool into the pit, so this should also be considered when sizing the pit. Also, remember that filters and chlorinators reduce efficiency of circuits, especially at higher pump speeds. This is another reason not to install a filter or chlorinator on the infinity edge circuit if high speed operation is expected. Some people like the sheeting of negative edges..especially when the water sheet is highly visible (like lakeside lots)...sheeting requires high pump speeds, so desired use of the infinity edge should also be considered in overall design. Our negative edge was primarily for the negative edge reflections and views and not so much the water sheet wow factor...your specific needs may vary. Hope this helps.
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OK... The tile guys are done. They left an overhang of about a quarter of an inch, like trhought and jmcknc advised. Thanks guys for the suggestion. It was in the nick of time. We will see how it works first thing in the morning. As far as A&S goes... Every single problem that has come up on our build, or every little thing that I changed or just did not like, they stepped up to the plate. They upgraded my easytouch 8 to an intellitouch (no charge), they upgraded my 2hp infinity edge pump to a 3 hp, they upgraded my 1.5 hp blower to a 2hp whisper ( no charge)because I did not think the bubbles were quite right, they gave (no charge) me enough coping to let my subs build all of the patio steps, and so on. As far as the tile guys go, the ones that did my pool 45'ed the tiles where the water tiles meet the ones that go into the skimmer, and the same for the ones that meet at the raised bond beam and the steps. Every area has their own subs who do things their way. As far as my infinity edge goes, I do not know why they just rounded it off. But like I said, A&S had them out here w/in 2 days to get it right. That is what matters to me right now.
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buyorsell888
11 years ago
I would suggest you talk to swimming pool contractors since they do infinity edges. It is not something I've ever seen in a pond. It does sound like it would be great with your home. I love all those Mid Century Moderns in Palm Springs.
waterbug_guy
11 years ago
I've done this type of build several times, it's my preferred way to build a pond. Main pond over flows into a smaller basin which pumps water back. My overflow would always be a stream or skimmer, but same concept. Lots of benefits to this type of design imo.

Couple of keys...obviously the infinity edge has to be level...not, "I put the level on that and it looks level", I mean dead level. Really hard to do. If the mason really understands this he can do it. If he says "yes I understand what level means" he may not. If it was me I'd test him. He stood be able to explain why, in detail, why it has to be dead level. Everyone is happy when finished and perfect. Otherwise there's bad feelings and finger pointing. Better for everyone to be happy.

A larger pump can some what fix a less than level edge. But the sheet of water will be jacked up. If the sheet isn't seen and you don't care about that then less than level can be OK, will still look like an infinity edge.

Wide sheets take big pumps. You can do a drip edge type deal, still looks like an infinity edge but you don't have the sheet to worry about. Sheets are very difficult. Most infinity edges are viewed so you don't normally see the water coming over the edge, but I don't know the goal in this case.

Another key is the catch basin has to be sized to the pump size. When the pump goes on it takes a while for water to fill the pipe and then fill the pond enough so water overflows the edge. During that time the pump is sucking water out of the basin, level goes down, pump goes dry, end of story if basin is too small. Even if the pond is filled to the top it still has to be filled more to over come surface tension. Could be talking about 100 gals of water.

This can be fixed somewhat by sticking a hose in the pond and filling until it over flows and the basin is full and then turning on the pump. You may even have to keep the hose running. Downside is that when the pump is turned off the basin will overflow. So it's a good idea to install an overflow pipe in the basin and direct flow away from the pond and house. Muddy damp soil can lead to foundation problems. 1" of rain in a 100 sq ft pond will result in 10" water level increase in a 10 sq ft basin. Overflows are good, and very cheap.

Last key is all evaporation will appear in the basin. Same deal as the rain only in reverse. IMO the basin should have an auto fill to keep it topped off. I like a regular horse trough automatic float value ($7-15), but fed by a sprinkler valve set to go on for a few minutes everyday. The float valves don't work forever and the sprinkler valve is your insurance of minimum flooding. Unfortunately the horse trough valves only last a couple of years, but are easy to replace. I'd buy a couple.

Infinity Edge water feature

Comments (4)

steiconi

garyfla_gw

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