How to build an artificial stone waterfall from scratch PART I 

You had me with "drinking beer and looking at it"! I do this all the time and it's a critical step when creating anything, especially in the garden.

Love your humor…..and absolutely beautiful waterfall…. You gave me inspiration for the backyard this spring. Thank you !!

I've been hunting on YT for tutorials on how to build a fake rock garden but none of the videos matched the scale I was looking for. This is perfect since I suspected from the beginning that this was going to require some form of wooden structure to support the entire thing. Brilliant! Thank you for your video! And BTW: No project that is worthwhile, EVER goes without hard work, some blood loss and a lot of beer! Those 3 things are an absolute necessity before you even consider going to Home Depot (which we don't have in my country but you get the idea)!!! Good job! You should be VERY proud!! And thanks for the heads-up about trusting the process when just the frame is built. I also would have doubted myself at that point. But it turned out fantastic!

Excellent Narration and step by step info. Good humor, Relaxed delivery appreciated as well. Great job all around!

I was asked to repair/rebuild an artificial rock waterfall for a client, and I followed these exact steps. I did frame my original design with 2x4s and 2x6s, and used a heavier 2x4 wire (2 layers) as it's on the edge of a pool and I know people will be jumping from it. Just wanted to say thanks for the lesson!

Sir, that is one fantastic waterfall and Little Paradise you have built there. Congratulations

Looks great! for anyone trying to do this, a helpful; tip is to apply an elastomeric membrane to the entire structure after the cement/fabric step. then your cement on top will be able to remain pours without the worry of a sealer failure.

What a brave man you are to tackle this project, you made a fabulous job, congratulations! You inspired me to make my own boulders as they are far too expensive and impossible for me to move on my own. Thank you so much.

It’s amazing what a little beer, time to think, concrete, water, blood, & a lot of hard work, can create! Great Job! THANK YOU for sharing your precious time, thoughts, & ideas with us! 😊

Excellent. I have another tip that I'd like to add if I may, regarding aesthetics. After the stage where you've built up the rockwork but before painting in the detail work (vines, etc.) and once the cement is cured, apply black latex paint using a brush to all the crevices and indentations; basically where shadows would form. Your project will look like a big gray brain at this point, but after that paint cures, use a paint sprayer and apply a thin coat of a lighter gray paint around the whole thing. On larger rock outcroppings you can apply a little thicker, but the idea is just to "dust" the surface allowing the darker paint in the lower spots to bleed through. This adds a lot of depth and will make the rockwork even more realistic.

I am very impressed! I live in Montana. I decided to buy the old money pit that I grew up in.( great memories) I guess my folks were bigger hoarders than I remembered...I finally clear the back yard and in the process, I found that I inherrited a pretty large pile of old assorted tires from trucks, cars and even airplanes. Someone said to go to RU-vid and look up *diy yard waterfalls made with tires*-so I did! Yours has not one tire in it...but your creativity in building, is off the charts, Amazing! You give me inspiration! I'm going to use tires AND some of your ideas towards a hopeful success! I saved your video and when mine is done, I will send you a finished look with credits for using some of your ideas! Thank You! Now I'm Going to pour a glass if Chardonnay and get to planning! 😊

This is by far the best video I've seen on how to do this.

I could relate so much starting at 4:32 on being irritated and having an ugly contraption in your yard, lol. I do not know how many of my projects seemed to have this chapter imbedded in my project! For some reason on many of the books that I buy on do it yourself projects, none of them ever had that chapter? Ya just gotta' laugh at the classroom books, like college, never drenched in reality! Ha Ha! I suppose in truth, like life, when we encounter the difficult aspects in life, at the time, we are irritated, discouraged and frustrated but if we work through it, looking back, we will always remember how we felt and what an impact it had moving forward and with the rest of our lives. Kudos to you for mentioning that, probably one of the most insightful stages of this video project and one that I shall remember well! You did an amazing job both on your waterfall project and conveying the essence of your project. Well done!

Really sir ......your told every thing .....exactly how u felt at that time ........u r a man ...simple ...and.....excellent

Love it! And yes you have motivated me to build one. Maybe not quite as big a scale as yours, but my ideas are just going crazy here. I really like this idea better than most I have seen, as where I live, I couldn't possibly build up a staircase as a base. Adult paper mache, perfect! Thank you so much for sharing. I just hope that my idea isn't going to break the bank LOL I only wish you had shown the process for the pipes and lights. But thank you just the same for sharing!

Very nice you did a great job. Your an artist and didn’t know it. I’m sure your really full of ideas now. Happy creating.

Thanks for posting this. I'm about midway through making my own right now. I'm at the gopher wire stage. It's a bit daunting and feel like I need to take a week off work to finish, but so far it is looking like a good frame and I have my pond about ready to go. Thanks again for the inspiration!

dude, you did a fantastic job. i am so proud of your determined effort. i really like what you did and will try and do this in my yard. you are very excellent in your stick withitness. bravo!

Really love your waterfall and video. Got lots of chuckles,especially with the beer and blood. Gonna try my hand at this and an arch this summer,but with the addition of some Margaritas. Cheers and thanks!🍹

Amazing and very creative endeavor! Thank you for sharing your ideas!

I can't wait to build one! Growing up my Grandma had one that was about 6 foot tall and not that wide.... It had a little water reservoir at the bottom and i'm not sure what they used for the guts of it but it was sprayed with foam, detailed, and painted. I LOVED that waterfall. Sadly it got passed on to my Mom who then sold it later and i've missed seeing that in Grandma's front garden so I want to make one for mine!! Now I have a good idea of how to get started and oddly enough think the concrete will come out cheaper than the foam as that spray foam is EXPENSIVE. Thanks for sharing this!!!

Turned out fantastic! Thank you for capturing this build. It inspired me for sure!

That is absolutely wonderful! I'm motivated.... to convince my husband that we need this in our backyard!

Am I the only one who thinks he sounds like Clause from American Dad? But seriously! Very creative! Great job and you are very enjoyable!!!❤

I'm in the process of making rock looking letters. And after watching your video it is a total motivator in that I now know what I need to do thank you very much for a well-done video thank you.

You did an amazing job!!!! You inspired me.

Stunning! You did an amazing job. I would love this in my yard.

You are brave and patient!!! Bravo mister! 👏 Very nice end product!

'Tropical Paradise'... What a word! Wonderful! Congrats!

Very attractive.Thank you. Am going to use some ideas for an outdoor tropical man cave party area.

I've got the "drinking beer" part perfected. Trying to move on to step two.

Thats realy awesome!! I have customized a background of my own 200cm tall terrarium. But when i have a home with a garden im certainly going to build something like this. Its absolutely astonishing. Great job dude

Well done . I need this video to get me going . I been picturing mine now in a spot in the yard for a long time. It so hot here and this idea would be what I been thinking about to keep yard cool. Las Vegas

Yours turned out great but the one I plan to start in a few months will be framed with 3/8 rebar and 1/4 wire instead of lumber. My experience with even treated lumber in such an application has only had a longevity of 5 to 7 years before the structure was failing.

I shouldn`t have watched this. Now I want one. Awesome job!!!

very good, i am going to build a pond in a few years once the children are bigger, i think im going to go for something like this, initially lightweight construction that should hopefully last, looks very effective.

Great work just the answer I was looking for,. I aim to build a waterfall as part of a water purification system to aerate the water and this idea is just what I need. Thanks for showing us what you did.

Very nice work, i'm impressed with all the little details

You give great commentary on this. It inspires me to try this but maybe not so big.

Amazing piece of art! I would also place some pebbles, shaped drift wood here and there and small ornamental plants on the cliff itself to spare me a bit of the detailing effort :)

I really enjoyed this and you have given me solutions to a lot of stumbling blocks. Thank you

Amazing, curious if there is a way in in case you have to do any maintenance to the plumbing? Nice work on the video with the explainer and pictures.

I absolutely lo e what you've done. Amazing job. A few things were confusing but I got the general idea. I'd love to know more about how you got the lights in and the overall price it cost you to make the waterfall including plants and a list of plant names you used. Thank you so much for making this video. God bless 😁

One of the best designs I've seen and I've seen many, Thank's!

Looks great, great imagination, and excellent excellent execution. Very well done...👍

Great work! You have helped inspire me to do one! I’ve now started

This is awesome!!! Absolutely awesome and your instructions are spot on!! I believe we can do this!!!

That's awesome, you did a fine job. Y'all have a badass day 🤘

Very nice....was looking for a D.I.Y. way to create a waterfall...thanks for all the good information!

Just came across this video, very nice work, if I have one critique it would be that you should have used pt lumber to deter termites and the elements, I’m curious to know if the frame work has held up after 6 years? Thanks for sharing!

For mosquito-control: Small mosquito-eating fish are cheap and low-maintenance . You can buy them at pet stores from folks who can help you decide which species are best for your area and needs. I live in North Florida, and I have a variety of Gambusia, Danio, and Florida flag fish in my ponds. Also, I love your accent - German? (Ich habe Alles was deutsch ist sehr gern!)

Thank you for your video was quite informative. I Wii give this a try in the summer time. I love your rockery and waterfall

I love it came out great. I started with just little things like old ringer washtubs and old buckets. My next one is going to be something like this. If the wifey let's me lol

Great information in here! And you are a delightful person!!

Thanks for sharing 👍 very impressive and helpful 👏

In a word ~ WOW!!! That was a GREAT idea and an even greater outcome! Good for you & BRAVO! You deserve all the accolades for attempting such a project! Did you have previous experience, at all, in building/constructing things? It sounds like you learned quite a bit on your treks to Home Depot and just paying lots of attention to all the different types of materials available to you. It really looks great! I love the different basins & the grotto was another very smart addition. The lighting really made it come to life as well. I love your video and your relaxed way of describing everything you did...well, except for the parts you either "forgot" or were too buzzed from the beer to remember. Lol! Thanks for inspiring so many other folks to get out there and build that amazing water feature that we've all DREAMED of adding to our backyards! Thanks, also, for continuing to offer tips & suggestions to those of us who are newly embarking on this cool adventure! I'm subscribing & will be watching for future videos from you! Peace and love always. 🕊💜

Thinking about building something similar in the future with fish in the pond. TY for the ideas.

Your Vid was useful thank you. I have completed step one of my waterfall and stream. I have a tiered backyard so a natural 2 waterfall drop

Totally awesome. I definitely want to do this in my backyard

Awesome Job. I will use a lot of your tips. I think from your video and others Ive seen, I may use chicken wire topped with concrete soaked sheets. Seeing what you did with weed block and others using towels I think it should work awesome.

What a beautiful waterfall! Very nice!

You did a nice job I want to try to do something like that too, I’ll try to find some more videos and start looking at my yard a little more scrutiny

very good, complete information & honest vlog

Well done !! Must have been nervous half way thru, that wooden structure looked odd, but the final waterfall is amazing !!

It looks relaxing! Great job! Thanks for sharing!

Simply fantastic!!! Thanks for sharing such a creative work!!! 😆😀😎

Looks great. But won't the wood rot over time and isn't all that cement too heavy for the wood frame? Would it be easier to just make a hill of soil, cover in wire, and spray gunite on it like pools are made?

Not bad man hella good job on the rock structure looks good! Thinking of putting one up in my yard!

Great job! Lots of work but looks great.I have had lots of smaller waterfalls in my Koi ponds but always dreamed of full backyard wall of water falls, maybe now some day! Thanks!

Awesome work!! I see here a lot of work but you did great job. Looking great!!

I just want a shallow one for humming birds..butterflies..small birds frogs lizards..and .make noise......its hard ro decide and get going...id like to use what i have laying around..but i cant find what i want that inspires me...so here i am.

Vert nice ! very creative! Great job! Thank you for sharing this video with us!

I think I saw your video before , but this time had to subscribe. The end result, well worth it! I just think I'm too lazy to pull it off, so I'll still with my baby pond fall.

Very nice & creative work 👍 super , congratulation man 👏

Didnt realize how simple it could be. Good job.

Hello, I will subscribe. I am planning to build an aviary in about one year and have a quarter acre to do it on. I also want to have a few water features with a 30 foot waterfall. My idea is to put the waterfall up against the enclosed stairway going up to the second floor and roof. It sticks out from the house about 8 feet so I can wrap the fake rock around it with windows and doors so I can get up high and build a elevated walkway. I want the waterfall to come down from the very top but hit shelves and cascade off of them and eventually land in the koi pond at the bottom. I also plan to put walkways and streams around the aviary with some other water features. I will have to watch more of your videos.

Nice job, I'm trying to build one in an existing caliche retaining wall. Will be using some of your ideas for finish work. My structure is already there, just needs to be sealed and shaped😎

Very inspiring how to video. Now I'm imagining a waterfall cave with a jacuzzi Incorporated on the inside. A cave window with waterfalls. I'm afraid I'd have to buy a keg of beer to build that. Lol

Would including a polymer binding additive improve the concrete strength and flexibility? As with mortar? The cheap way frequently done in non-Western countries is with PVA glue, better and more water resistant is EVA glue, but there are plenty of grouting etc additives made specifically. This project is so inspiring, thankyou! Really appreciate you sharing this. Jeez I'd want to wear a mask for the fibreglass fibres, that's for sure.

Looks like a lot of work! Great job

Very nice work my friend!!! I'm less scared now to start mine but you forgot to tell us what the beer to hour racial was😂😂😂 I have to have my beer while building mine but I don't know how much I should drink! Hopefully it's the usual 3 beers per hour working 👍👍👍👍 Again great job as I just hope mine comes out just half as nice as your, I will be happy!!!!

Thank You for sharing and you sure did help in deciding what to do in my little oasis. :)

Very motivated. Beautiful work

Inspiring.. When are you uploading the expansion😬

FABULOUS! Absolutely LOVE it!

this is for sure beautiful. I'd like you to build one for me for my pond lol

#1 diy pond on youtube.

Great Job... Nice video of it all... And the best thing of all was NO music in the background like most videos on here!!!

Well done sir! True artistic talent

Thanks for posting. Have you had any leakage since you built it? I'm thinking about doing something similar for my garden railroad

Awesome mate. Awesome build and awesome narration.

I always wanted to do a volcano ! Love this

Well done mate real good job shame about size of pond liner at the beginning apart from that looks natural 👍🏻

Excellent ! You gave me some great ideas. Thanks.

Things can get bloody at this point!!! You are hilarious!!!😆

I love your video. I want to build a hug water like 10 x bigger than the one you built bit trying to figure how to build it as cost effective as possible. I was thinking about making faux boulders and rocks or maybe using concrete to look like boulders. Any thoughts or suggestions

GREAT WORK Mate, just one Question how much Beer should I allow to complete this Project ?

Very helpful video. Can you please provide a list of items needed?

What a beautiful garden project!

Greetings! I have returned to your video as I embark on my own tropical oasis projects at the tiki bar. Would it be possible to chat about your waterfall project as I have some questions. I started trying your "paper mache" technique yesterday, using landscape fabric I bought (not at Home Depot) and was quickly halted in my process by the concrete mixture simply rolling off the material. It would not adhere to the fabric at all! Did not expect this one bit. The stuff I bought was pretty cheap from a discount store, so maybe landscape fabric can vary a lot in what it is made from? Currently looking into alternatives . Finding this video initially, has opened a whole world to me! My project is beginning with a raised garden bed/retaining wall and built-in faux rock bench seat and later a waterfall, inspired by this project. Saw this about a year ago which is when I started planning doing something similar based on what you did here, and visited Orlando for the first time last month. I totally get it and all the landscaping and water features at Disney and such are just amazing. Can't wait to stroll down the boardwalk towards my tiki beach and as I enter through a thick collection of large tropical plants hear the sound of water. Ahh! Cheers :)