Planning a water feature: what happens before we dig
Site study, sound, sightlines, power, access, and the decisions that are expensive to change later.
The build is the visible part. The decisions that determine whether you love the feature in year five are almost all made before a machine arrives.
Placement is a sound decision, not a shape decision
The first question is where you'll be sitting, the kitchen window, the bedroom, the chair on the deck at seven in the evening. Water is placed to be heard from there. A beautiful waterfall aimed at nobody is the most common design mistake in this trade.
What the site study covers
- Existing grade and where water already wants to go during a storm.
- Soil and what excavation will actually be like.
- Mature trees, root zones, and canopy, we have a certified arborist on the crew for exactly this reason.
- Sun exposure, which drives planting and algae behavior.
- Power availability and the run for pump electrical.
- Access: how a boulder gets from the street to its final position. This can move the budget more than any other single factor.
The design consultation
We charge $350–$500 for the design consultation and credit it in full against the project. It buys real work: measured site review, feasibility, a concept, and honest cost guidance. Free estimates in this trade are usually sales calls with the cost of the sales call buried in the build.
Things that are cheap now and expensive later
- Sleeving for future lighting or a second feature while the trench is already open.
- Sizing the reservoir or the pond for what you'll want in three years, not the minimum today.
- Getting the electrical run correct the first time.
- Deciding about fish before the shape is dug, since it changes depth and filtration.
Timeline, honestly
Design and planning take longer than clients expect and construction usually takes less. We would rather spend an extra week resolving grade and access on paper than discover it with a machine on site and your driveway torn up.