New Product Review ** Aquascape Pondless Spillway

I guess we were good boys and girls here this year because Santa has sent us some new product to test, explore and experiment with. We are really excited about this new entry into the water feature market for several reasons.

• Compact design allows us much more flexibility in designing and building breathtaking waterfalls
• Durable construction allows us to actually place these into the waterfall and place large rocks on top of them .. versatility is cool!
• Thru- liner bulkhead allows us the option of placing the connection lines inside or outside the liner without the addition of another bulkhead

We couldn't wait to get these spillways installed and we were not disappointed in the results.  These are a great option for pondless waterfalls or secondary falls on an ecosystem pond.

o yeah I almost forgot the best part.....

This product represents a savings to our customers! The price point on these of $120.00 they are a great value against the signature series biofalls  ($459) and even the microfalls ($260).

Keep in mind not every product fits every application but for what we can see, the Aquascape Waterfall Spillway is a winner!

Top Ten questions asked during our recent Home Show

Pondtastic was recently featured in the largest Home Show in our area.

We built and amazing waterfall and pond and complemented it with a breathtaking slate staked urn with with water pluming from the top splashing down among 25-30 tropical water lilies.

Putting together a display like this is ... well the only way to put it is to say , Its hard work !

We then get the opportunity to talk with hundreds of people a day. Talking about ponds is fun for us... we kinda like em if ya haven't noticed.....

But we thought it would be funny to make up a  
Top Ten List of the questions asked at the Orlando Home Show
... in Letterman style !

Number 10... How much is something like this?
Answer: Every pond we build is custom. That means that every pond has a different amount of rock, pumps, filtration, fish, plants, labor, lighting..... as you can imagine that is a difficult question to answer in such broad strokes.

Number 9 .... where are you located? are you local ?
Answer: Yes we are local. We are located right here in Orlando.

Number 8.... how difficult is it to maintain a pond like this?
Answer:  We LOVE ecosystem ponds !  Nature works !  10-15 minutes a few on the average pond.

Number 7... are these rocks real ?
Answer:  Yes they are real!  In our display this year we used about 20,000lbs of Tennessee field stone and river rounds. It always cracks us up when people walk up and knock on the big rocks.... yeah their real.. real heavy!


Number 6... what kind of fish are those?
Answer: We prefer to stock a pond with Koi. They are really Japanese carp and carp are scavengers by nature.. so they help us to maintain the pond ( see number 8)

Number 5... can you build a waterfall like that into my pool?
Answer: Sorry we don't do pools. In most cases the decks of the pools are not built to handle the weight of the real rock we use. We recommend building a feature near the pool or create the illusion that the waterfall is entering the pool.

Number 4...how long does it take you to build this display?
Answer: We begin the preparation months in advance as the design stage begins... but actual building time is usually about 30 hours.. all hands on deck!

Number 3... how do you get the water in there?
Answer: Yup...people really ask that. You know who you are!

Number 2...Is Pondtastic Water Gardens a chain or a franchise?
Answer: Nope we are a family owed and operated company. We believe that family is important and our pondtastic family is always growing!

Number 1... can you put this in my backyard?
Answer:  SURE  you grab that side and Ill grab this side and we can load it in your truck !


On a serious note we had a blast talking with so many people about ponds, waterfalls and water features.

Look for us in a backyard near you !

Tell a story !

Recently Seth Godin wrote in his daily blog:

People are moved by stories...

It took a minute for this is sink in before I realized how true that statement really is and the impact it has had on our business.

If you know us at all, you know that we love a good story !

It doesn't really matter what it is about we love sharing our lives and experiences with our friends/ customers.

I think that because of this our customers/friends enjoy sharing their stories with us.

We like to say that "we build friendships one pond at a time " and that attitude carries thru our entire staff.

We have been invited to many of our customers/friends weddings , birthdays, BBQs, Christmas parties, etc... We are so thankful that our customers/friends invite us into their lives.

We love sharing stories and we love hearing stories... got a good one to share?  Send us an email and let us know.
Info@pondtastic.com

I'm Happy !

This past week was our annual pilgrimage to St. Charles Illinois for the pond industries largest gathering of water feature professionals, Pondemonium.

The first words from Greg Wittstock in the opening speech were " I'm happy "
He then went on to expand on the many reasons he has to be happy.... it kinda made me think.
 
You see as a small business owner in today's climate (and I am not talking about the weather ) it is easy to get down or let the stress of the day wear you down.  It is easy to NOT be happy.

I am sure that applies to you too, no matter what you do for a living.
So I started making a list as I sat listening Greg,  ( in no particular order )

I am Happy because:

• I have a healthy family 
• I have a loving family
• I have a thriving business
• I have an amazing wife who shares my passion and dreams and is always by my side
• I still have a business
• I get to do something I LOVE everyday
• I get to work with people that share my dreams
• I get to change peoples lives in ways they didn't ever foresee
• I have created so many friendships that I would never had :
• Clients/Customers
• Pond builders all over the country
• Pond hobbiests all over the world
• I am happy I work in an industry full of people who are inspiring people who are willing to share their successes and failures to help us all be better

Now that was just a quick list I jotted down and I am sure there are so many other things I should be happy for. 

How about you?

Do the butterflies ever go away ?

Today we spent the majority of our day preparing for an event tomorrow here at our Orlando location. This " Build A Pond" seminar/class/event is something that we have done as a team many, many times and the subject we are teaching... well lets just say we are pretty good at it.

But I still find myself running around double checking and  crossing off items on an never ending to do list and having this feeling in my stomach. You know what I am talking about right?... the nervous stomach?

I know that tomorrow will be a GREAT day .

Tomorrow we get to share with people who are eager to learn.
Tomorrow we get to start people towards enjoying the pond lifestyle. 
Tomorrow we get to create Paradise !

But for some reason I still have butterflies.......

Pondtastic Travels to Chicago's Pondemonium Event.

From August 5th - 7th, distributors, contractors, and retailers from across the country will come together in Chicago for an event designed to help educate, learn and inspire professional water garden businesses.

We look forward to this event each year and with a theme focused on returning to our roots and getting back to basics this year is no different.
 
 This year's Pondemonium® focuses on the core business of the water garden industry and will provide classes, hands-on builds, and networking events.

The workshops on advanced pond building techniques, new water garden filtering products, and the latest technologies in maintenance and repair will only help us to serve our customers better and provide you all with exceptional service.

A Clowns Prayer

Many of you may have heard this before but, I heard it for the first time this past weekend.

As I listened to the words I couldnt help to think to myself...

"Thats how I feel about building water features"

I think that the world would be a better place if we all lived our lives like this....

As I stumble through this life,
help me to create more laughter than tears,
dispense more cheer than gloom,
spread more cheer than despair.

Never let me become so indifferent,
that I will fail to see the wonders in the eyes of a child,
or the twinkle in the eyes of the aged.

Never let me forget that my total effort is to cheer people,
make them happy, and forget momentarily,
all the unpleasantness in their lives.

And in my final moment,
may I hear You whisper:
"When you made My people smile,
you made Me smile."

-Anonymous-

 I feel so lucky to be able to do something I love for a living and so blessed to have surrounded myself with people who feel the same.



Jim