We have a problem with the water disappearing from our water feature!

Question

We have recently added a water feature to our garden which was working perfectly for a couple of weeks and only needed topping up with water every week or so, however over the last couple of weeks it runs for about an hour or so before running out of water. When we open it up it appears not all the water has vanished (just below the minimum water level) and it only seems to go when the motor is running. We have left it for a couple of days without running the motor and no water disappears nor does there appear to be a leak anywhere. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

Could the wind be blowing the water away as it sprinkles ?

Answer 2

May well be that the water is being blown away from where it should land by the wind. This happens in my fish pond with the spitters.  it does not take much of a breeze to knock it off course

Answer 3

Its probably due to evaporation, my two water features are the same, plus if birds are able to bathe and splash about in the water, a loss will occur there as well. Wind also aids evaporation.  

Answer 4

its probably due to evaporation its been rather hot lately.My pond has needed to be topped up more recently

Answer 5

could be somone stealing your water mate.be careful

Answer 6

I have seen this problem with the large vase type container leaned over at about a 45 degree angle.  When the pump is running and the water spills out it can run back down the bottom side of the container and miss the area that it is supposed to spill back into.

To correct I build up stones or bricks depending on the feature and rope putty between the stones and the container making sure all the water spills back to a point where it is supposed to be.

Answer 7

I have both a 700-gallon pond and a little 2-gallon urn http://www.flickr.com/photos/21211516@N0... http://www.flickr.com/photos/21211516@N0...  Both of these occasionally have to be topped off.

Since your water is disappearing only when the pump is running, your issue may be leaking or splashing.  My little urn can, if it's tilted slightly, run out of water in half an hour.  Even a tiny trickle can result in your water feature running dry.

Since I don't know if your feature is an urn, fountain, or something else, I can't be more specific in helping you troubleshoot.  If you can contact me via e-mail with a photo of your feature, I may be able to help!

Answer 8

Leak in the pipes.