The view from the new Tiki Hut.

The project was completed on time as promised and the client’s were delighted with the results. The big, ugly, out-of-proportion  fake waterfall that blocked  their view of the water has been replaced with a beautiful grotto style waterfall cascading into their hot tub.

The backside of the waterfall is actually a stream which wraps around the waterfall so that the falls are beautiful from all angles.  And the size of the waterfall and stream is now perfect.  The view is not blocked and the beautiful oak tree beside the falls is

now an important part of the picture instead of being hidden by masses of fake rock.

The back of the grotto waterfall

The addition of the Tiki Hut made a part of the property which was not being used into a complete outdoor bar area. Everything needed for the perfect party is now part of a beautiful design.  The decking area has been expanded.  The area has been re-landscaped. The stream, grotto falls and water wall all add the soothing sound of falling water.  In the stream are misters which add an aura of mystery at night. The scene is completed with landscape lighting and tiki torches.

Tiki hut with complete wet bar for great entertaining

The tiki hut is covered with real palm thatching that is completely waterproof. The polymer cabinets are all built to last a life time and were installed by Outdoor Kitchen Cabinets and more .  The polished granite bar and countertop  were provided by International Artistic Stone and accent the colors of the thatch roof and the pecky cypress wood used for the base of the bar and the back of the tiki hut.

With this complete exterior design the true potential of this property is now being realized and the clients are delighted and their first party on New Year’s Eve was a complete success in their new back yard.

To see other pool renovations and exterior designs visit Lucas Lagoons.

In the next blog we will have pictures of everything as well as links to all those trades who contributed to making this a really spectacular renovation.

Demolition was fun.  The fake rock was mainly styrofoam and chicken wire and flew apart when we hit it with the forks on our JCB. (Of course, cleaning up all the pieces of foam wasn’t as much fun.)  We are now busy building the new, natural stone grotto, falls and stream.  We will be showing pictures of our progress.

Today let’s just show you what was there

Fake rock grotto does not add beauty

and what we promised the clients we would do.  This is just a virtual photograph of Lucas’s design.  When we finish we will post pictures of the completed project.

A virtual photograph of a Lucas Congdon design

As we blog along we hope to share with you some of the design concepts that have worked for us.  The concept for today is that fake looks fake.  This may seem obvious, but sometimes when you see a picture the fake looks sort of real.  In reality there is no comparison.  And even worse, fake has to be repainted every couple of years.  OUR RECOMMENDATION: Always ask to see some examples of the “real’ thing after it has been in service for at least two years.  This way you can make in informed decision when it comes to adding a water feature to your existing, or yet to be built, pool.  If you would like more pool remodeling ideas you can always check out Lucas Lagoons and click on the pool remodels section.