What to expect from a new piece
Concrete is a living material for the first few weeks. Here's what's normal, what's not, and what to do about it.
Two things in one.
What you've bought is two things attached together. The piece itself — the concrete sculpture — is an heirloom that weathers into the garden over decades. The water feature — the pump, the hose, the flow — is a system, like a pool or an aquarium, with consumable parts that wear out over years.
This page covers the first month of both.
The first month, in five parts
Most of these aren't problems. They're concrete doing what concrete does. Knowing what's coming makes the difference between a piece you trust and a piece you worry about.
- 01
Don't panic
The chalky white residue
For the first three or four weeks you'll see a chalky white film on the surface, especially after rain. That's lime working its way out of the cure. It's not a defect, it doesn't damage the piece, and it weathers off on its own.
Want it gone faster? Wipe the piece down with a soft cloth and clean water once a week. For a deeper, more weathered tone, finish with a wipe of white vinegar diluted 1:4 with water. The vinegar lifts the rest of the lime and brings the underlying concrete colour through.
- 02
Also normal
Fine hairline marks after a few days
Concrete shifts as it cures, especially when it's sitting somewhere different to the yard at Hatton Vale. Very fine lines that appear in the first month are surface-only — they seal themselves the next time the piece is wet.
If a line gets visibly wider after a month, or you see water seeping through, that's a different conversation — see Care & repair for the fix.
- 03
Worth doing once
Setting the piece down properly
Spend ten minutes on the base and you'll never think about it again.
- On grass or dirt: dig down 50mm, fill with builder's sand, level it with a spirit level, sit the piece on top.
- On pavers: check for rocking — use a couple of plastic shims to take it out.
- Never sit a fountain directly on dirt. Water collects underneath and the base sits unevenly within a year, which is the most common cause of cracks later on.
- 04
Before you turn the pump on
The first fill
Fill the bowl with the hose, run the pump for an hour, then drain and refill once. This rinses out any cement dust from the cure and stops it clogging the pump.
From the second fill on, top up with the hose as needed — no special water, no additives. Rainwater is fine too.
- 05
After about six weeks
You're past the new-piece phase
Lime stops coming through, hairlines have closed, the colour settles. From here on the piece looks after itself — see Care & repair for the small things to do once or twice a year.
Care & repair guide.
Routine maintenance, the three things that occasionally go wrong, and how to fix them yourself — with a shopping list from Bunnings for each.
Care & repair →