Brounger Swim Pond & River Project
CONSTANTIA, CAPE TOWN
Size
Top Swimpond is 60 000 liters
River is 60m long and on average 1.2m wide
Lower wetland pond is 90 000 liters
Type
Swim Pond and natural beach, 60m river & wetland
Power
2kw pump running river and waterfall 10hrs p/day. 75 000lph
2 x 300w pump circulating to swim ponds 24/7
(all running on solar)
Established
2022
Notes
For this project we were asked to build a natural swimming pond that feeds into stream that meanders down through the garden terminating in another swim pond which acts as more of a filtration wetland. The top pond also features a large 2 meter high waterfall that tumbles down over natural boulders as well as a large beach on the opposite end. The project was completed in September 2022 and the pictures posted here were taken just as it was commissioned. There is obviously a lot of plant growth required before it reaches the ultimate vision.
The Process
The whole river and and the ponds are all lined with EPDM rubber and the stone swim areas are created on top of this. We wanted the river to be as natural looking as possible and used coir erosion control fabric to create many of the river banks which were than planted with sedges so that by the time the coir has biodegraded there will be a strong network of roots to prevent the river edges from eroding away.
The top pond is stocked with fish and the whole system maintains crystal clear clarity right to the bottom thanks to the large wetland filter at the end of the system where all the water is forced to make its journey up through 40 cubes of gravel (this is the large rectangle with the big blue pipe going into it below). This wetland filter can be backwashed and serviced in a few years).
