Building a Copper Water Wall

Begin by outlining the water wall on the ground, making sure that the basin is at least as wide as the wall itself. Now dig a hole for the water basin. It should be sized such that the walls of the basin will be flush up against the sides of the hole. The hole should be exactly deep enough to house the basin. Now dig two 2 feet deep holes for the posts that will support the copper wall. Lay out the two 4 x 4 posts and cover them with 3 x 5 cement board so that the cement board runs one inch out of the long side of the posts. Attach the cement boards with galvanized screws.

Now cut three 4 x 4 boards to fit snugly between the two posts to act as horizontal supports. Now position the boards on the top, middle, and bottom of the posts and nail them into place. Now you can build the sheer descent. This is a trough shaped object that will cause the water to flow down the wall. It will protrude about a quarter of an inch through the copper wall. Fit it about 14 inches from the top of the wall and then trace it on the cement board and cut using a jig saw.

Now sand one side of the copper to give it a rough surface and then glue it to the cement board using heavy duty construction adhesive. Once the adhesive is dry, cut a slot in the copper for the sheer descent. Paint the sheer descent the color of the copper. Use a small amount of tiling to cover the area around the cut for the sheer descent. Glue them on using the same construction adhesive. Now attach the sheer descent by inserting it into the slit that you cut. Stand up the wall and drive the posts into the holes you dug for them. Set the posts with cement.

Place your pump inside the water basin and then use PVC pipe to connect it to the sheer descent. Fill the basin with water and cover it all with either a mesh grate or with stones to conceal the pump.