Disappearing waterfall feature

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Hi All, newbie here and I’m looking for some advice. I purchased a home that has a disappearing waterfall/pond feature and over time it loses water and I have to fill it back up. Is this normal?
 
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Jhn

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Answer is it depends …lhow much you are losing?

Some water loss is normal due to evaporation. If that pond the stream dumps into Is losing half its water or more in 24 hrs water it's getting out another way either an edge is pushed down in the stream or pond edge or it has a hole.
 
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Pondless is subject to evaporation, just like a pond. Not as much, obviously. How much are you losing/how often are you refilling?

Looks like your reservoir Is exposed (like a pond!)? That will contribute to evaporation.
 
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Pondless is subject to evaporation, just like a pond. Not as much, obviously. How much are you losing/how often are you refilling?

Looks like your reservoir Is exposed (like a pond!)? That will contribute to evaporation.
I think it loses all its water in about eight hours. I didn’t think that was normal but I just wanted to double check. I’ll post a picture in an hour to show how much water has now so you can get a sense of how much to lose this and how quickly
 

Jhn

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If it is losing all its water in 8 hours it is getting out somewhere. Shut off the pump and see if the ponds water level still drops, if it doesn’t the leak is up in the waterfall…Most likely its leaking out in the waterfall/stream, over a low edge
 
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That’s what I figured, how hard is it to try to troubleshoot?
jhn just gave you the key; turn everything off and see if the pond portion loses water. If it does, the leak is there. If not, the leak is higher up; either the stream or waterfall. If you can disconnect the feed to the waterfall and let it fill only the stream, then do the test again and if you still lose water, then it's at the stream. If not, it has to be with the waterfall. You may have to take your waterfall apart to inspect all the ways the water SHOULD be contained, IF it's at your waterfall.
 
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I’ve had several leaks over the years. This just happened again to me. There was a hole between 2 large rocks where the water was being diverted. It takes a bit of investigation to figure out where the issue is. Look for wet soil, too. Always have a can of some Pond Rock and Stone expanding foam to plug up any leaks.. Amazon sells it. Good luck!
 
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Hi All, newbie here and I’m looking for some advice. I purchased a home that has a disappearing waterfall/pond feature and over time it loses water and I have to fill it back up. Is this normal?
Hi looking at the picture it looks like there is a large rock on an angle at the bottom of the pond. I would bet it wasn’t designed that way and it might have tipped causing the problem. There could be a leak somewhere close. I definitely agree with @brokensword. Try to isolate different elements and check to see which part of it is creating the problem.
 
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Let me add one more factor - how much water does your reservoir hold? You can build a pondless to hold 75 gallons or 750 gallons or 7500 gallons... the starting point matters.
 
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Welcome. Nice water feature and yard/landscaping. Advice above is the start to finding and solving leaks.
 

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