Bowling Ball Fountain

17 years ago

Well remember all those bowling balls I scored? I finally finished one. Man did this take forever. Originally I was going to plant it in the ground, but I decided to put it in a big pot for now.

GinGin

{{!gwi}}

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Comments (29)

gin_gin
Original Author
17 years ago
My husband just came home, he says he doesn't like the pot. Says it's too big for the fountain. Well I haven't decided yet. This is probably not the final configuration.

GinGin
haziemoon
17 years ago
I love it!!! Mosaic the pot... and the pot will be just perfect for it! Too cool GinGin!!

Hazie
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What are you using for glue ritaweeda? GE silicone II works well. I have a penny covered BB I made into a fountain and I have four other balls in my garden. Two with glass stones two w/o. I found a large rot iron candle holder at a garage sale and buried it in the ground. It holds my BB very nicely. In the spring it may list a little but I just pack the dirt with my foot. My two w/o stones are colorful but they are fading. They sit under oaks in my shade garden but still the color is slowly fading away.
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Hi DaNita, I'm usually hanging out in the "Garden Junk" (GJ)forum but like to check in on this one also. Nothing says you have to grout your BB, that's up to you. There are a lot of folks in the GJ forum who do mosaics and they prepare their own grout by mixing it. For the styrofoam ball I did with the half-marbles, I did grout it using a premixed grout I got at Home Depot. It was $7 something for a small purchase but since it was my first project using the grout and didn't really know what to expect, I went with the premixed stuff. I used the clear liquid nails also. In the GJ forum, a lot use GE Silicone Glue II as a glue. I bought some of that also and it is fantastic. I've read the liquid nails doesn't hold up to the elements but mine did just fine this past late summer/early autumn. Mine isn't sealed yet (it will crackle) so I did bring it in during nasty weather because my porch does not have a roof. I also read in the GJ forum that after grouting the BB, they seal it with grout sealer. Check Home Depot or similar store for that stuff also. Go to a hardware store or just call them and ask what to use, I'm sure they'll be very helpful. As for your question - does the glue have to be clear, that's up to you. I used clear because I didn't want a white spot to show up through the clear glass half-marbles I used. My project was with teal (???) marbles (if that's the color you want to call it) but you can see through them so that's what I meant by "clear glass..." Those who mosaic in GJ forum do color their grout when mixing it up by adding acrylic paint to it. I guess it all depends on how you want your project to look. Check out the GJ forum, I'm sure you'll love it, and do a search for "bowling balls." You'll get a ton of posts picked out for your by the website. Pic of my project attached, I used the base of a lamp for the holder. I thought the white looked good on the teal color. Sal Here is a link that might be useful:
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Well I had them in the car still, so I ran over to my parents' house & my dad helped me. He's got a drill press & we used a really big drill bit (1 inch). It was easier than we thought. I had no idea what was in the middle of the bowling ball, turns out to be some kind of plastic or resin type material that wasn't very hard to drill through. You could do it with a regular drill if you have a large enough bit, but it would be more difficult. You'll also need someone to hold the ball still & be very very careful. My dad was holding the ball steady & he was wearing heavy gloves just in case. When I told my husband this morning that I was headed out to the bowling alley to get some BBs, he gave me a really funny look. He wanted to know what the heck I'm going to do with them. I told him just wait & see. He scoffs now, but he always likes my projects in the end. I learn something every day. Today I learned how to drill through a bowling ball. I also learned it's fun driving over speed bumps with a box of bowling balls in the car. LOL Virginia
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Image by: Barbu Bowling ball bubbler Bowling Ball Bubbler Member Barbu gives us her directions: I drilled a bowling ball from both sides, starting in the thumb hole. This was a green ball w/green half marbles glued on. I used aquarium sealant just because that's what I had. There is a 22 gal black plastic container (from Lowes) in the ground. We put 2 cement blocks on end, put the pump between them, covered the whole thing with hardware cloth (a hole in the middle), ran the tubing up through the bb, which is sitting on a short stand thing purchased at Goodwill. I covered the hardware cloth with rocks. We keep it running all winter with a bird bath heater. Caution: The ball said something about ceramic core and, sure enough, there was a ceramic core that could not be drilled! Lucky for me the drill bent to the side and met up with the hole from the opposite side. I'll probably be more careful next time! Member luvsroses adds this winter freezing caution: The freeze and thaw could very well crack them. It depends on what your bb is made of. Rubber ones will sometimes crack left out in the freezing weather, the plastic ones will sometimes crack if left in very hot direct sun. I think Barbu's does ok in the wintertime because of the birdbath heater. It's better to be safe than sorry later and I think it's a good idea to bring the balls in during the winter. A mild winter might be ok, but not extremely cold ones like past winter (2002) was.
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Calamity_J
17 years ago
You did an AWESOME job on that puppy!!! It's beautiful! Put some potted plants around the base and I bet DH would like it!!! Are you going to get a light to shine up from the water to reflect it at night? Again, very nice job!!!
foxglove44
17 years ago
wow.. that is wonderful.
I want to make one now!
texaswild
17 years ago
Just wonderful. I like CALAM's and HAZIE's ideas. Plants/mosaics - he'll love it. You did a beautiful job.
tasymo
17 years ago
OOOOOH! I LOVE THAT!!! Did you use anything special to seal the grout?
shrty411
17 years ago
That is So pretty!! I think it's fine in that pot, just dress it up a little like Jane and Hazie said

Maria
gin_gin
Original Author
17 years ago
I actually haven't sealed it yet. I'm planning on using regular grout sealer, but it says I have to let the grout cure 28 days?? Well I just couldn't wait that long to test out the fountain. I used GE II for the adhesive, so I think it should hold up in the water.
d3bbi
17 years ago
Gin, I love it! I agree some nice ivy hanging over the sides would just add what you need. Very creative!
nanatricia
17 years ago
I love that I want one .Looks great in that pot.
bamasusanna
17 years ago
Ok, so all this talk about bowling balls has got me wanting to do one!
That fountain is wonderful. I like the pot too. It doesn't compete with the ball. I would add plants like the others suggested. Parrots feather is an aquatic plant that would do well.
lyndalu
17 years ago
That's beautiful! What kind of grout sealer are you using? I was surprised by the 28 days for curing. I use the Tile Lab sealer and it says to wait just 48 hours. But I believe my grout packages say to wait 21 days before immersing in water.

Beautiful job, I really like it! Did you tell us what the mosaic'd base is made of?
chickeemama
17 years ago
A bubbler fountain is on my list of to do's..just not enough time. Gin gin that turned out great!! Really great colors!
crackpotannie
17 years ago
I love it as is but you could always just put a band of mirrors around the pot to pick up mirror on the ball.That is great was it hard to drill thru?Annie
gin_gin
Original Author
17 years ago
HA! NO I am NOT mosaicing the pot, it's huge & just the ball took me forever. A band of mirror.... that's an idea....maybe. The base is one of those concrete sprinkler donuts. You know, the things that go around lawn sprinklers to protect them. I got it at Home Depot really cheap, like a buck something each. At my HD they're outside by the pavers & stuff. When I saw them I thought they were perfect to sit a bowling ball on. I epoxied the ball to it.

Oops I didn't even read the grout bag, I hope my grout's ok. I grouted it the day before I set up the fountain. Oh well, too late now!
barbfrizzell1955
17 years ago
I love the colors on your ball! How did you drill the hole in the bowling ball?

Barb
gin_gin
Original Author
17 years ago
With a drill press & a really big drill bit. The hardest part is getting the hole through the center. This one's not in the exact center, but very close.
tiffy_z5_6_can
17 years ago
WOWEEE!!! That is beautiful! You picked what I find to be the best colour for a BB - blue. It always goes well on them.

Really, really nice!
texaswild
17 years ago
I LOVE Annie's idea of a band of mirrors. A band of anything would look great, but I love mirrors in mosaics.
crystal01
17 years ago
That is wonderful! I can only dream of doing one!
lyndalu
17 years ago
A sprinkler donut - I love it!! That was very clever of you. I might borrow that idea.
Thanks!
gin_gin
Original Author
17 years ago
Feel free Linda!
cait1
17 years ago
WOW!!! I think it looks great as is! OK, maybe mirors around the rim of the pot - I love mirror tiles.
Cait
haziemoon
17 years ago
Just had to look again GinGin!!
I'm just so inspired! I JUST LOVE THAT!!!!
You did such a great job...just too cool!

After I saw this yesterday, a light came on!
"I will make one for my mom, for mother's day!"
she doesn't care much for mosaics.......but who wouldn't totally love that!! So I searched my town for BB's. All 3 bowling alley's said no..every thrift store, Savation Army
etc. I posted for some in freecycle, for the last 6 months...none. So Bummed. Hubby called an alley in Utah, our daughter is going there this weekend for "Jeep Safari"......they have a couple! So I told her I'd make her one, if she'd get them for me. So I'm hoping I'll have some by monday!

Thanks so much for sharing that with us Gin Gin!

Hazie
Shades_of_idaho
17 years ago
WOW You did a great job on your fountain. I also love the pot with it. Love the sprinkler ring idea!! And they look so pretty together.

I was getting by on the cheep with my fountain last year and found out plain old Daylilys up rooted with roots cleaned off well will grow nicely in a fountain for the season. They even bloomed. I just stuck mine down in some in pots. THEN I forgot about them figuring it was too late to plant them back into the yard so left them in their rock filled containers with the fountain tub drained and turned upside down over them to keep it from filling with snow in my fall clean up. When I turned it back up again this spring daylilys are doing GREAT and will live another season in the fountain.

I am still working on getting the right base for my fountain!! Darn. Going to go look in just a little bit. I am HERE now and do not want to leave.:^)))

Chris
ladyronnie
17 years ago
Gin Gin, I'm inspired same as everyone else. I REALLY like this. I like the pot too. Is it shiny black? It sure reflects the stones well. Do consider the mirrors on the pot, that would be easy enough. And the plants. CHRIS, love the daylily idea. Think I may even have some around here somewhere...The lilies had pushed up leaves, but we've been SO cold the past couple of nights, they may have succumbed, I don't know.
gin_gin
Original Author
17 years ago
Thanks for the compliments everyone. Ronnie, the pot is pretty shiny, it's supposed to look like glazed ceramic. It's really some kind of dense foam material. It's pretty convincing, when I saw it in the store I had no idea it wasn't ceramic until I touched it. I was thrilled because I could pick it up & put it in the cart & get it home by myself. I would've never been able to lift a ceramic pot of this size. I got it at Target just last week.

Gin
curbdiver1954
17 years ago
What a wonderful fountain! Love the idea of using the sprinkler collar as a base - looks like it was made in one piece with the BB! BTW, what size drill bit did you end up using? I don't have a drill press, but can probably finagle some sort of vise to hold the BB while I drill it with that huge electric drill in the garage.

Glad you told about the pot being one of the ultra light ones! New information is ALWAYS welcome!!

Pat
gin_gin
Original Author
17 years ago
It was a huge drill bit, I'll have to ask my Dad. He helped me with the drilling, it's his drill press.

Bowling Ball Fountain

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