Every Journey Starts With a Single Step...
Step 12 -Build Waterfall and Stream

Hook Up the BIOFALLS®

• The first thing that needs to be done before you build your waterfall is to hook up the snout of the BIOFALLS®. Once the snout is done you can start the creative and fun part of pond construction.
• Pull the liner up to the front of the BIOFALLS®. Make sure that you have plenty of slack in front of the container and also enough liner on each side to build the waterfalls (We recommend having a minimum of two feet of liner on each side of the BIOFALLS® when using the Mini or Standard BIOFALLS®). Slack is left in front of the BIOFALLS® to avoid stretching the liner when rocks are stacked to build the waterfall.
• Lay the liner against the BIOFALLS® and using a nail or awl, poke a hole through the BIOFALLS® snout and liner and into the corresponding nut insert in the BIOFALLS®.
• Install the two opposite corners first.
• Then install the rest of the screws lightly.
• After all the screws have been installed, cut the remaining liner out of the BIOFALLS® opening.
• Spread a thick bead of silicone between the BIOFALLS® mold and the liner and tighten the screws. Be careful not to over tighten as they may pull through the holes in the snout.
• If there is any silicone remaining simply spread it across the sealed liner/snout area for added protection.
• Let the silicone dry for at least ONE HOUR!          
• Clean out any soil or debris that may have fallen into the BIOFALLS®.
• Now it is time to install the filtration media in the BIOFALLS®. (See BIOFALLS® cross section as reference). Make sure that the support tubes are in place and set the three filter mats on top of the support tubes.
• Fill the media nets with 20 to 25 pounds of lava rock and rinse thoroughly before placing them on top of the filter mats. Failure to rinse the lava rock will cause the pond to be clouded with fine silt.
• Spread the bags across the entire surface of the filter mats.

Building the Waterfall

• The construction of the waterfall is what will make or break a water feature. Take your time when build­ing ft and step back often to look at the placement of rocks from the viewing area.
• The waterfall will always look better and more natu­ral if large, irregular stones are used in the construc­tion. Do not stack small fiat rocks together to build the waterfall. This technique will make it look more like a chimney than a waterfall.
• Start by selecting larger stones to "frame" the side of the falls. Place these large rocks on each side of the face of the BIOFALLS®.
• Next, select larger rocks to construct the actual waterfalls. Waterfalls effect can be changed by place­ment of stone. For a sheeting effect stack rocks directly against the BIOFALLS®, for a splashing effect set stones sloping away from the BIOFALLS®.
• Try and keep the rocks tilted slightly forward so the water will run forward, not behind the rocks. Stack the rocks up until they reach the level where you will be placing the BIOFALLS® “stone”. Failure to stack the rocks or properly support the "stone" on top can cause the waterfall weir to tilt or sag, which can cause a leak.
• Once all of the rocks are stacked, dry fit the BIO­FALLS® stone to make sure that it has a nice fit. If the fit is good you can now foam the rock into place.
• Squirt the Aquascapes' Black Waterfall Foam on to the BIOFALLS® where the "stone" will be placed. Be generous with the foam, but remember it is triple expanding 50 ft will fill in many of the voids.
• Place the BIOFALLS® "stone" over the foam and place a small rock on top of ft to hold ft in place while ft dries.
• Find two small stones that you can place on each side of the BIOFALLS "stone" that will help hold ft on the snout. The best rocks for this purpose are ones that have two fiat sides so they will fit into the right angle better. Dry-fit the two rocks to make sure that they fit and are large enough to hide the plastic on the side.
• Remove the two rocks and spray foam into the cor­ner of the BIOFALLS®, along the vertical wall of the snout and the "stone". Place the rocks back into place and your waterfall is complete.

Finishing the top of the BIOFALLS®  

• Find some smaller rocks that can sit on the rock ledge in the BIOFALLS®.Place enough rocks on the rock ledge to hide all of the plastic.
• Dry-fit all of these to make sure that they will not fall into the container.
• After all of these rocks have been dry-fitted, spray some foam behind all of these to hold them in place and keep them secure.

Connecting the Check Valve to the Pump  

• While the other crewmembers are working on the waterfall, one person should be working on the installation of the pump, check valve, filter mats and overflow.
• Important: Bring the pipe through the back of the skimmer before attaching the fittings.
• Remove the threaded collar and slip pipe adapter from the check valve. (Important: Make sure that you put the threaded collar on the pipe before you glue the fitting on the pipe.)
• Slide the threaded collar onto the flexible PVC pipe.
• Using the flexible PVC primer and glue attach the slip pipe adapter to the flexible PVC pipe.
• Thread the check valve into the pump discharge and place the pump into the skimmer box.
• Once inside the skimmer, feed the electrical cord through the slot above the pipe discharge hole.
• Next, thread the PVC and fittings onto the check valve.
• Place the filter mat on top of the PVC support tubes in the bottom of the skimmer. You may need to cut a hole into the mat to accommodate the pipe and/or pump housing. (See skimmer cross-section diagram as reference).
• The debris net may then be installed around the skimmer assembly into the appropriate slots in the top of the skimmer. (See skimmer net installation and maintenance reference).

Hooking up the Overflow  

• The bulkhead fitting is now installed into the lower overflow hole and tightened, similar to the connec­tion on the BIOFALLS®.
• Connect the PVC pipe adapter to the bulkhead, and then glue a piece of flexible pipe into place, (2' mini-mum). This is for the overflow and can be left open-ended, or it can go into a drainage area.
• The only requirement is that the overflow pipe must be sloping away from the skimmer in order to prevent water flowing back in during hard rains.