Reddit user power-cube recently shared his backyard DIY project that he has been building in his free time over the last three years. Instead of installing an in-ground swimming pool, he decided to build a natural swim pond with a waterfall, small beach, fish (in one of the two ponds) and plants.

Aside from the many man-hours he has put in himself, he figures he has spent about $30,000 on materials. He’s made plenty of mistakes on the way but says working on the project has been just as satisfying (if not more) as the finished product.

In an extensive 88-picture album on Imgur he explains his build process and shares progress photos along the way. For more, be sure to check out the original reddit post and the full photo album with captions on Imgur.

[via power-cube on reddit]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Excavation and laying a 200 x 50 heavy duty pool liner to minimize water loss due to seeping.

 

 

 

60 tons of sand was used

 

 

65 tons of river stones and pea gravel

 

 

One pond for swimming, the other natural pond for fish, plants and wildlife visitors

 

 

Building the waterfall

 

 

Adding flagstone to each step of the waterfall

 

 

 

Setting up water pumps

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the main pond you can find bass, bluegill, catfish, and a few grass carps. End to end the pond is just under 200 feet. The swim pond (sans fish) is 35 feet in diameter and the natural swim pond (with fish) is about 40 feet at its widest point. In terms of rough costs, he estimates:
 
70 tons sand ($100/ton) = 7k
65 tons rocks ($100/ton) = 6.5k
Deep well drilled and pump installed = 5k
Pond Liner = 4k
Initial Excavation = 2.8k
Equipment rentals = 1.2k
Pump and PVC = 2k
Mortar, Landscaping, misc = 2-3k