Commercial Lake Fountain Highlight: City Center Floating Fountain Installation
June 25th, 2015
Written by Environmental Scientist, Kyle Finerfrock
Large display fountains can be stunning to watch; the sight of water being jetted thirty to fifty feet in the air in various patterns will definitely grab your attention. I remember the first time I discovered the 12 floating fountains at City Center in Newport News, VA, and how awesome a sight it was.
In addition to adding beauty to your waterbody, aerating floating fountains increase and stabilize the amount of dissolved oxygen in the entire water column, improving the natural systems taking place beneath the water’s surface. Aeration systems can have a widespread effect on many different aspects of pond and lake health including improving water quality, reducing the likelihood of pond algae blooms, decreasing mosquito activity and reducing the accumulation of organic sediment.
Now it is my job to maintain and keep those fountains running so everyone else can have the same experience that I had when I first saw them. Although it may not look like it, all 12 fountains are floating in the pond and anchored to the bottom. Access to the pond is difficult and the maintenance and repairs to the fountains must be done by a small jon boat, since the water depth ranges from 8 to 15 feet where the fountains are located.
When one of the fountains goes down and needs to be replaced, things get really complicated, really fast. One of these large floating fountains can weigh over a thousand pounds, so the use of a crane is a necessary to remove the old broken equipment and to place the new fountain into the pond. While the crane can do the heavy lifting, we still have to maneuver the floating fountain to its proper place then make all of the electrical connections and anchor it into place. This work requires several experienced fountain technicians and many hours to get it done right. At the end of the day when all the work is done and the new fountain is put into place, I still enjoy the moment of turning all 12 fountains back on.
Floating fountains are a beautiful, cost-effective and pro-active approach to controlling a variety of challenges when it comes to pond and lake management. Not only can aeration prevent hazardous and troublesome issues with a pond before they occur, but it can also drastically improve the health of an aquatic ecosystem with existing issues.
Kyle Finerfrock is an experienced Environmental Scientist with SOLitude Lake Management. Since 1998, SOLitude Lake Management as been committed to providing full service lake and pond management services that improve water quality, preserve natural resources, and reduce our environmental footprint. Services are available throughout the Eastern United States. Fisheries management consulting and aquatic products are available nationwide. Learn more about SOLitude Lake Management and purchase products at www.solitudelakemanagement.com.
