How To Make a Viral Limestone Fountain For Cheap!

by Haxman Team

We wanted one of those gorgeous viral limestone fountains...

...until we saw the price $$$! So, today I'll be showing you how to make your very own dupe for a fraction of the cost and no special skills and no special tools necessary!

What you'll need:

First step is to grab some pool noodles...

Yes. Pool noodles. Making a square concrete form is easy, however making a circular one is not so simple. So this is how I am going to build the it. They're flexible, waterproof, and concrete won't stick to them.

Now to build this form, all we're going to need is the pool noodles and some duct tape.

Now optionally you could use some spray foam as well, but I did that and it didn't do much so I would personally leave it out. To make the size I wanted I took two pool noodles and taped two together at the end, then cut off roughly around 19 - 20 inches of another pool noodle and taped them all together, making a big circle. I then proceeded to make 7 more rings exactly like this to build it up to somewhere around 21 inches tall. Each pool noodle I used was about 3 inches thick.

With all the rings made and stacked up, I went ahead and taped them all to each other to hold them in place. I wrapped them in about four different places to keep it secure.

Since this will be heavy and hard to move once the mortar mix is added, we decided to make it in place. So next I marked the location and went around it with an edge trimming tool so that I would have clean edge of grass in that area.

Then I went back with a shovel and cleared all the grass out. When that was finished I went back with a rake and a tamper and made sure everything was level. I then laid out some plastic.

I wanted to make sure I had a spot in the fountain that I could drain water if I ever need to, and a spot for the cord of the pump that was going into it.

So, I got a piece of 3 quarter inch PVC pipe and drilled a hole in my mold to place it into. Before installing it however, I sprayed the pipe with some WD-40 to ensure it wouldn't get stuck.

It's now time to sculpt the fountain.

I dumped the mortar mix into the middle of the form onto the plastic and spread it around to make the bottom. Once that was dried I started building up the walls, spreading it up slowly from the bottom. So that it doesn't crack before i'm finished I spray it with water in between coats/layers.

Once everything had dried I took a utility knife and carefully cut the pool noodle form and pulled it off with caution.

I used a mallet and wiggled the PVC pipe loose and removed it.

Now, this part isn't totally necessary as the mortar is so strong by itself, but I did it anyway.

I took alkali-resistant cement board and wrapped it around the structure before adding a second layer of mortar over it to make the walls stronger. I went back with a trow to give it an aged look. I then further accomplished this look by throwing some dirt and rocks in it and spreading it.

***Be careful to not cover the PVC pipe hole!***

Time to add the pump.

I picked up this tiny 300 gallon per hour pump. The drain hole is also where the cord for the pump will have to go, so to stop it up so water will not drain when the pump is going I took a rubber stopper and drilled a hole through it. I then took a razor blade and cut from the drilled hole, all the way to the outside until I could slide the cord into it easily.

Now you'll need a copper pipe that fit's inside the pump and cut it down to whatever size you need.

Then thread the pump wire through the hole you made with the PVC pipe, making sure your stopper plugs the excess space, and set the pump in the middle of the fountain with the copper pipe attached. Then take some silicone putty and/or Flex Paste, and put it around the hole just for extra good measure that it's sealed. I had more success with the flex tape than the putty!

Next, I washed some rocks to get all the dust off and then poured them into the fountain as the floor, essentially.

Then I fill the fountain up and turn the pump on.

And that's it! It's that simple!

Now you have your very own "limestone" fountain for way less, and it looks amaaazing! We love ours, as it makes a great addition to our property and the animals love it as much as we do! LOL!