Concrete & Hypertufa Leaf Fountain Making Tips
A Reader Asks Construction Questions About A
Decorative Cast Leaf Fountain
I received an email from Jan R. asking me:
Hi there, I want to make a hypertufa leaf or concrete leaf fountain. After the leaves are made how would I form the fountain and to what? Got any ideas? Thank you for your time.
Sincerely, Jan
My reply:
Hi Jan:
Thank you for contacting me about making a concrete or hypertufa leaf fountain, which is a fun project to do. The answer to your questions will be rather difficult ones to answer at this point, as you’ve not told me how the leaves are to catch and/or collect the water; how many levels you want; or what sort of base you want the fountain to set on, to name a few.
Make sure you read through the ins and outs of working with hypertufa and concrete for leaves. Here are a couple of articles on my website that will be of help: Leaf Casting with Hypertufa: Tips for Success, and Concrete Leaf Casting: Super Tips From the Pro’s.
There are many variables I’d have to know in order to walk you through this, but basically here is what I believe will help you think this project through:
- Most crafters make two or three leaves set in a tiered fashion, and at angles to each other, which allows the water to spill over the edge(s) and finally collect in the bottom leaf.
- Joining all the pieces can be accomplished by mixing up a fresh batch of your recipe with bonding agent included in it and some bonding agent also painted onto the areas of where everything will be joined for good measure. (You would have to wait until the leaves were cured enough to be handled before you start joining them.)
- You need to seal the concrete or hypertufa leaves with a water-proofing sealant.
- You need to know how to install a simple pump in order to get the water flowing back up to the top-most leaf; you also need to get a pump that has the right GPH rating to effectively keep the water flowing.
- Another consideration – WHERE are you going to hide the pump and cords? Inside the base, or …? I wouldn’t think you want the pump and connections visible.
- You will need a GFI electrical connection available to plug in the motor for the pump. **There’s no side-stepping this requirement – water + electricity do NOT mix!
To learn about GPH and GFI, read this article on my website. Skim about half-way down: Garden Spitters Installation: GPH & GFI Considerations.
This is as specific as I can be for you at this time as I’ve no clue as to what actual shape/form you want your fountain to have. Nor how large you foresee the thing to be. What kind of leaves do you plan on using? Huge gunneras or something medium sized?
But, I do hope these tips help get you to thinking and sketching your ideas out on paper. Though not the easiest project, it is quite doable. Obviously your creative skills will really come into play with a project like this!
Good luck. I really hope you are successful with this leaf fountain project … personally I think there’s nothing nicer than the sound of trickling water in my garden. 
March 5th, 2011 at 11:23 am
How do you prefer to paint your concrete or hypertufa projects?
Also do you seal them at all, and if so before or after the painting/coloring
Judy
March 18th, 2011 at 7:10 am
Hi Judy:
To answer your questions, I don’t paint my hypertufa items, rather I will add dyes or colorants to the mix; and I’ve not yet had reason to paint a concrete item. I tend to paint on terra cotta pots and such. But yes … do use at least 2 good coats of sealant on ANY painted object you’ll be using outside. I apply a base coat of paint first; then my paint color(s); then the clear coats of sealant.
Please refer to my Paint Project Techniques web pages on my main site to learn more about the ins and outs of successfully painting on garden art objects: http://www.the-artistic-garden.com/decorative-paint-techniques.html Look at the bottom of this page for all the links to the other pages of info.
Good luck!
May 2nd, 2011 at 6:10 pm
Thank You for your thoughts on this. I have read soooo many websites on this subject. I was about ready to feel comfortable with what I had read from concrete specialist in sealing the concrete first with a high quality stain or sealer, then priming it, then painting your design on, and then putting on a few THIN coats of a clear top coat. Also what I’m referring to painting is birdbaths, which holds water continuously. I will check out your “Painted Project Techniques” section. Thanks
June 28th, 2011 at 12:07 am
I too want to make a fountain out of concrete cast elephant ears but not sure how to support them. I would like to have a one at the top and then split out to leaves on both sides coming down to one large leaf at the bottom which would sit on a tub where the pump would be stored. The bottom leaf would have several small holes or one with a strainer attached to keep out the gunk. How does one go about anchoring the leaves to ????. I’m thinking about using 6-8 leaves. Thanks!