What's the Big Deal About Ponds?

Over the last 3 years there has been a phenomenal growth in the backyard water garden business. There is more and more demand for ponds, ponds with streams and waterfalls, goldfish ponds, koi ponds -- you name it -- every year.

Ponds, particularly those with fish, have had a reputation for being hard to maintain, and in the past it was very true. They tended to be expensive, labor-intensive, and the natural plants and fish had a fairly poor life expectancy. People were rightly cautious about getting into something that might well prove to be an expensive, time-consuming, boondoggle that would end up adding nothing or even detracting from the value of their home. So what has changed?

As with so many other things, new technology has quietly revolutionized the way ponds are designed, installed and maintained, with the wonderful result that they are no longer a worry or a risky investment for the homeowner.

• They are much easier, faster and far less expensive to build than in the past.

• They are completely natural looking, looking “like they just grew there.” No more molded concrete that looks like, well, molded concrete.

• They require very little maintenance (only about fifteen to twenty minutes on a weekend), with a few periodic applications of inexpensive materials to keep them in crystal clear, beautiful shape.

• For less than $1,000, the do-it–yourselfer who only needs a small water feature for his yard can now buy a complete pond kit and build it himself.

But there is more to this explosive growth in the popularity of ponds than just the new technology. The hectic pace of modern life (and also, perhaps, the deteriorating and decadent quality of mass media entertainment) has created a need for people to have somewhere to relax, a place to de-stress at the end of a hard day’s rat race and long commute home. A well-designed pond brings a piece of nature into even the most urbanized back yard, transforming it into a personal oasis for the whole family to enjoy.

One of the common, unlooked-for benefits of a water feature is that it quietly but emphatically changes the family lifestyle. It entices couples away from the television long enough to discover that they not only CAN still communicate, but that they actually have a lot to talk about and enjoy in each other’s company. A pond, particularly if it includes fish, quickly becomes a favorite hobby for everyone in the family. With a waterfall, it helps to mask the nearby freeway or street noise, and replaces it with one of nature’s most soothing sounds: running water. And, of course, it brings a whole new dimension to entertaining friends and family.

At Pacific Outdoor Living, where we have been installing ponds, streams and waterfalls since 2001, we often have customers who were skeptical about the stories of more spouse communication or not watching TV as much. But they then come back after they have had their new pond for a couple of weeks and then tell us: “It’s really true!”

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