One of the worst things you can do if you are interested in having a water feature built is to hire the wrong person to do it. This article will explain what a re-build is, and why you want to avoid it at all costs.
A water feature, water garden, pond, waterfall, pondless waterfall, Koi pond rebuild is when a consumer hires someone who is not qualified to do the work performed or a DIY install goes bad, and that water feature is rebuilt properly for functionality or ascetic purposes. This could be a feature created by a contractor, homeowner, landscaper, handyman, or anybody with a shovel and a good back.
Water features can become very expensive if you have to rebuild or remove your water feature because it is dysfunctional. The biggest mistake that I have seen is inclination to hire the least expensive contractor. Many times our estimates have been passed over for the one that is cheaper. This may work sometimes because not all people building water features will get you a rebuild, but it can be a risk. In the business of selling my craft, I have personally witnessed at least half a dozen people (that I know about) pass our company up, and get burned by the cheap guy.
One lady in Amelia Island had this experience. I talked with her and created a design. The cost was $8000. It was an honest and fair price for the work to be performed. She hired the guy that would build, "the same thing as me", for $5000. I can't force someone to hire me, so she hired the $5000 guy. Jacksonville is a small town, and about a year later I hear from one of my job sources that this lady had inquired about water features and was given my card. Her reaction was, "that guy's expensive". I never heard from her again, but I do know from my source that she paid someone about $2000 to remove the $5000 feature, and she was looking for someone else to rebuild her dream water feature. So which project was really the more expensive one, the $5000 one, or the $8000 one that would have been beautiful, built right, and guaranteed?
Another experience that comes to mind is just as heart breaking. A young couple purchased a home with a good sized pond that was built by the homeowner who also was a landscaper. The project wasn't what they wanted so they hired a actual professional water feature, pond company from Jacksonville. I was told that $4000 was spent on that rebuild, that it leaked, rocks fell into it exposing the black liner, the people who did the work looked like inmates, and that it was too much work to upkeep. They wanted to minimize the pond. I made the suggestion to create a pondless waterfall. "What a great idea. What would you do?" I created a design and told them the cost could be any where from $5000 to $8000 depending on factors like pump size, landscaping, lights, rock size, etc. They said work up a bid that is closer to the lower end. Well coincidentally enough the same source as the other example told me that this couple was inquiring about a water feature and was given my name. Their reaction, "that guys expensive." This one bothered me because I called the only other company in this area that I would recommend besides us for building a water feature properly, to see if he had heard from these people. He hadn't. Hopefully these people don't end up having to rebuild a rebuild more than once. That's expensive.
We have many golden rules that we follow when creating water features. Some of these things can easily be overlooked by someone without a lot of experience, uninformed employees, or a subcontractor. Will your contractor use the right glue? Will they use shrinkable silicone? Will they glue two pieces of liner together? How will they protect the liner? Just when I think that I have seen it all, someone surprises me with something foolish.
The best advice is to realize that unlike other trades like electrical, plumbing, pool, and roofing, there is no code, laws, permits, or inspectors that make sure it is properly built. Knowing this will keep you informed of the fact that dozens if not hundreds of people in Jacksonville, Florida have spent thousands of dollars on what they thought would be their dream water feature only to either remove it, live with it, or rebuild it. People every week in Jacksonville play, "hire a water feature company Russian roulette".
You may ask what authority I have to make a statement like that? Well, I'm in the business and see it all of the time. I am highly qualified to make that statement. If some of these contractors (landscapers, handymen, actual water feature, watergarden, pond companies) had some type of code to follow, and they created some of the messes I have seen, they would get their licenses taken away. One gentleman that I spoke with was told by his pond contractor, "if we have to keep coming out here to fix this we will start charging you." A roofer with that type of product and attitude wouldn't have a license. I saw what was wrong, and unfortunately the only solution was to rebuild it.
About 25% of our business is rebuilds. So you have to remember that if that is the case, how many people with a potential rebuild don't want to spend twice as much for a water feature and either live with it or remove it?
The bottom line is don't purchase a rebuild. A water feature can be a very rewarding purchase (check out our testimonial page). We have transformed over 100 landscapes in the Jacksonville, Fl area and have positively affected many people with our waterscapes. We can arrange for you to speak with any of our clients, and view in person any of our jobs. Some of our clients welcome you anytime without notice, others need a heads up.
And if you have a pond or pondless waterfall that needs to be reworked, rest assured that we have the experience and expertise to make it work within reason. Meaning if it is salvageable, then we absolutely will not try to re-build the entire project just because, unless that is what is requested. We have plenty of re-build references available.