Custom water fountains are beautiful and provide many benefits such as stress-relief, beauty, unique decorating and even advertising your business. As custom fountains become increasingly popular so do the questions on how to clean water fountains and how often to clean them. Waterfalls do require some TLC to keep them looking beautiful and flowing nicely for years to come. Below is a guide on how to clean your custom water feature. Keep in mind, this is a general guide, your fountain may have a different set up or different materials, but this should guide you through some tips on maintaining your fountain.
Keeping your Water Fresh from the Start in your Fountain:
When you first get your fountain it is important to keep the water fresh right from the start. If you have the ability to use distilled water this is going to be ideal as it will keep your custom fountain free from hard water and calcium deposits. With large fountains, this is sometimes not always a feasible option so most people opt to use regular tap water in their larger fountains. Depending on how hard your water is, you will probably start to see some lime or calcium build up on your fountain over time. This is normal with any water feature. To avoid this and still use hard water, you can use a product called No More White Scale. This will help prevent the white scale build up at the water line and face of your fountain. Algae will be the other problem you will see over time with any type of water you use. Wherever there is water, there will eventually be algae. There are several fountain care products that will help keep your water fresh and combat algae build up. Some suggestions for large fountains are Fountain Fresh, Fountain Block and No More Algae. Using fountain care products will definitely help keep your fountain water fresh it does not eliminate the need to clean your water feature. Read on for cleaning tips for your wall fountain.
Cleaning your Water Fountain:
I always recommend a cleaning schedule of every 4-6 months completely cleaning your water feature. In some cases this may mean taking a lot of it apart so you can get at the critical parts of the fountain.
Emptying the Water from the Fountain: The first step to giving your water feature a good cleaning is getting the water out. A couple ways to do this: You can take a second fountain pump and pump the water into a bucket or use a shop vacuum to suck the water out.
Cleaning the Fountain Pump: The pump of a fountain is what makes the fountain tick! It is important to keep it clean. If it gets clogged with debris or algae it will not function properly. Because it sits in the base of the water feature it makes for a good place for algae to grow. You can simply unplug the pump, unhook the tube that connects the pump to the fountain and remove it to clean. I find it easiest to clean it in a sink. There is typically a back on the fountain pump that can be removed. Run fresh water through the pump and use some type of brush, a toothbrush works great, to remove any build up in the small areas.
Cleaning the Fountain’s Distribution Unit: This is another area that is important to keep clean. Typically the distribution unit will have holes in it that the water flows out. If these holes get clogged, water will not flow properly. It is sometimes easier to remove the distribution unit and clean it in the sink. If this is possible, take a long brush or something that you can stick through the unit to get rid of any debris. You can also use a toothbrush from the outside to clean the holes as good as you can. Some fountains have more of a trough at the top that fills and water spills over the edge. This is important to keep clean as well. Wiping it or scrubbing it with a mild abrasive sponge works great.
Cleaning the Tubing: You will typically see a tube that carries the water from the fountain pump up to the water fountain’s distribution unit. This tube can also get build up in it and cause water flow issues. If you can, it would be a good idea to disconnect the tubing and clean that as well trying to get in it with a brush.
Cleaning the Face of your Fountain: The face of your fountain should be very easy to clean. If you have a slate wall fountain simply using a non-abrasive pad or scotch brite pad to free the face of any build up or algae should work great. If you have a glass or mirrored face water fountain, cleaning the mirror can be done with windex, CLR or any other glass cleaner. A highly recommended glass cleaner is Jazz Window Prep. This will not only clean the glass, it will make the water flow flawless over the face of your fountain.
Wiping the Base of the Fountain Clean: It is unnecessary to take the base of the fountain down. Once the water is out of the fountain you can simply wipe the base clean with a sponge and clean water. This will remove any slime that has started to build up around the base of the fountain.
Now you are ready to put your fountain’s pump back in and add fresh water. If this cleaning ritual is done every few months it will truly save you a lot of work and keep you fountain pump and custom water feature in great condition for years to come. For more tips on fountain care, please visit our tips and advice center.
July 21, 2009
Posted by
chuckgreg |
Custom Water Features, Fountain Maintenance and Care | Custom Water Fountains, Water Fountain Maintenence |
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I am just going to make a few suggestions about water fountains and your pets.
Many people that have water fountains have pets that just love to play with and drink the water. Is the water safe for pets? Yes, if using tap water or distilled water. If you are adding chemicals to the water make sure it is safe for pets.
Care Free enzymes fountain protector is safe for pets.
Here are a few popular water fountains for pets.
Solar fountains are very popular outdoor fountains for pets.
These copper tabletop fountains have been a hit with pets.
Here are a few of my favorite websites for Designer Dog Beds , Large Dog Clothes and Large Dog Collars.
July 15, 2009
Posted by
chuckgreg |
Fountain Maintenance and Care | Water Fountains for pets |
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Fountain Care Products to recommend for getting rid of white scale in your water fountains:
White Scale/Hard Water Mineral Deposits: White scale can be hard to get rid of in water fountains if it is allowed to build up for too long. The best suggestion is to prevent is from forming. To do this, you can use distilled water in your fountain or use a fountain care product such as No More White Scale.
Once you have mineral build up on your fountains you can try the following to remove it:
CLR – Calcium Lime Remover - This is something you will find at a home improvement store or a discount store such as Wal-Mart or Target. It is a general kitchen/bathroom cleaner used for removing mineral deposits. Be sure you use a soft, non-abrasive sponge to scrub your fountain. We also have a fountain cleaning kit that works great and contains a non-abrasive sponge and a small bottle of lime remover.
Vinegar and water may help get rid of some of the deposits as well, you will want to leave this sit on your fountain for awhile to let it work and break down the deposits and then scrub with a non-abrasive sponge.
Water Fountains need some TLC too. Take care of your custom indoor or ourdoor water fall and your enjoyment will last a very long time.
March 10, 2009
Posted by
chuckgreg |
Fountain Maintenance and Care | Custom Water Fountains, Water Fountain Maintenence |
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If you have any kind of tabletop, floor, or indoor wall fountain, you are going to discover that you need to know how to clean them. Many wall water fountains require a fair amount of diligent maintenance to ensure you get the most from whichever fountain you may have. Luckily, such maintenance is most often easy and manageable, and I am sure you will be thrilled to know that maintaining your indoor wall fountain requires little effort and cost. Be sure to follow all the operating instructions along with these tips.
If you want an easier time keeping your fountains in shape then it is recommended that you use distilled water. Why distilled water? The main reason is because ordinary tap water contains a high mineral content. This high mineral concentration often leads to nasty mineral buildup in the basin, and it might even clog the pump, adversely affecting your water fountain’s performance.
Sometimes, the water fountain pump makes loud noises. This usually means there is a problem in the pump that requires immediate attention. The whole purpose of the fountain is for you to hear the trickle of water not the pump. The main goal is to simulate the soundof water lapping on rocks, not metallic clangs. Most often, a noisy pump signifies that the water levels in the fountain basin are far too low. It might also be a good idea to reposition the pump, as sometimes those obnoxious clanky noises come from the pump vibrating against the sides of the indoor wall fountain itself.
One great way to stay organized with the proper maintenance of your fountains, you may want to formulate a “cleaning schedule” and set up dates to change the water in your wall water fountains. Through utilizing the distilled water this task will not have to be done as often. All this entails is emptying the water out and sponge off the basin and the entire fountain if need be. Also remove the algae from the rocks in necessary. Make sure to clean off the pump and all that is connected to it. Return the pump, fill the basin with distilled water, turn the pump on again and presto, you’ve cleaned your indoor wall fountain.
If you follow these steps and are careful to properly maintain and care for your wall water fountains, you will surely find that your water fountains will last a long, long time.
March 2, 2009
Posted by
chuckgreg |
Fountain Maintenance and Care | Maintain your Water Fountain, Slate Wall Fountains. Lightweight Slate Wall Fountains, Water Fountain Maintenence |
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This is one option that you would like to have if you have access to a water line and drain that is close to your water feature. Here is how it works.
Water line auto fill and filter
First you have your Plumber run a 1/4″ water line to your water feature. You will notice on the picture a copper water line that we have on the water feature. You will connect this water line to yours. Next you see the water flows into the filter. This filter is to remove minerals from your water. This will help prevent white scale build up.
Filter and Float
Next you will see the water exiting the filter and the float. The float works just like the one in your toilet. As the water level lowers the float will activate the flow of new water. The water level will lower as the water evaporates into the air.
Over Flow Drain
Next we will install an overflow drain. This is needed incase there was something mechanically wrong with your float. If the water keeps running like it does in your toilet sometimes; the water will over flow into the drain instead onto your floor.
Overflow Drain exiting the fountain.
Finally this picture shows the overflow drain exiting the fountain. This one exits from the bottom; we can also exit from the side or rear of the fountain. Your plumber will just hook this up to the overflow drain and run the water away from the fountain into your sewage system
The system will reduce the maintenance of your fountain. You will not have to manually add water several times a week as the water evaporates. The filter reduces white scale build up on the fountain.
I would recommend this if you have access to your water line and drain for all Custom Wall Fountain and Custom Floor Fountains. This works great with Commercial Water Fountains too.
February 13, 2009
Posted by
chuckgreg |
Custom Floor Fountains, Custom Wall Fountains, Fountain Maintenance and Care | Auto fill and drain, Water fountain auto fill |
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Many times people ask me about glass. Can it break easy? How do you clean it? How does it react to heat?
The glass we use is normally 3/8″ tempered glass, This is very hard to break. It will not shatter like glass you have on your home windows. More like glass on your auto.
For cleaning glass on water fountains we suggest you use Jazz Glass Cleaner. This product is great for removing oils that may build up and restrict water flow.
The tempered glass is heat resistant glass. This glass is heat-treated or leached to remove alkali so that it withstands high heat and sudden cooling without shattering.
We have many Floor Water Fountains with Glass. Just a great addition to your life.
February 13, 2009
Posted by
chuckgreg |
Custom Floor Fountains, Custom Glass Fountains, Fountain Maintenance and Care | Custom Glass Fountains, Tempered glass |
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