Introduction: 3D Awesome Serenity Fountain
Build a maker project to inspire some summer fun or a natural respite to add to your fortress of solitude.
Step 1: Gather Your Materials!
First stop is to the 3D printer. We love our Imade 3D Jellybox and you can access the designs through Tinkercad or Thingiverse https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3062956 and adapt as need. I chose the "ring" element to build the walls for the pieces so that I could add some flair to the sides. I then added a base, measured my dowels and finally added a nozzle to make the water flow better. You are building a layered fountain of cups for the water to cascade down. I used one top, three of the "stem2"s and two of the "stem1"s. Get printing!
Step 2: Find Your Other Resources
One medium sized pot
One small submersible pump, like for an aquarium (like this $10 one https://www.amazon.com/Homasy-Upgraded-Submersible...
One bag of stone (I actually used a half bag of pea gravel and a half bag of 1/4 inch river rock)
Two feet of silicone tubing (1/2-Inch OD x 3/8-Inch ID)
Two 1/4 inch x 4 feet wood dowels
Total cost, about $20
3D printed parts
Step 3: Getting Started
It's probably not necessary, but I wanted to create a barrier between the pump in water and the stone on top. A strong piece of plastic is needed. Maybe an old frisbee would do the job, or in this case, the lid from a can of driveway asphalt that I cut to size. Get creative on this step.
I also drilled some holes in this for drainage. Pump with tubing attached goes in the bottom of the pot. Power cord and tubing run out the top. Place lid over the pump.
Step 4: Prep Your Rocks
Get your stone ready with a quick rinse. That way you'll avoid a sandy fountain.
Step 5: Insert Stone
Start to fill the pot with stone. Start with the largest stone and then fill the gaps with smaller rocks. Luckily, my kids are going through a "precious gems" phase, so I had some fancy stone to decorate the top surface with.
Step 6: Time to Dowel
Get your dowels ready. The 1/4 inch dowels should snugly fit into the 3D printed caps. I decided to create a layered fountain with a two-inch difference between each layer. Starting with the lowest, cut dowels at the following lengths:
6 inches
8 inches
10 inches
12 inches
14 inches
16 inches x 2 for the final piece which requires two dowels
After fitting the dowels into the 3D printed parts, create a circular cascading pattern in your pot. Push each dowel into the stone until it will stand vertically and feels solid. Arrange the stone if needed.
Step 7: Run and Cut the Silicon Tubing
Insert the tubing into the center of the top piece ("stem top"). Remove the slack from the tubing and then cut. This fit for me without glue (awesome!), but if it doesn't for you, glue with a waterproof epoxy. Turn it on and make adjustments as needed.