The Islands of the Fraternal Order of Moai

Adding something like this to my bar room. A large component is getting the audio from running water via things like a rain onto a thatch like material, a waterfall onto lava rock, and the running water sound of a bamboo sluice.

Complicated design I fear, far beyond any outdoor pond I've worked on. I'd ask on tikicentral normally, but, welll....

Mahalo

Consultation from an engineer is worth at least one cocktail when you are done. (btw, resizeimage makes pictures viewable on one screen)

Looks like a job for Fiber Reinforced Plastic.

I'd build a structural frame with plywood and 2X lumber, carve the rough shape from Styrofoam insulation panels, use plastic polypropylene tarp and packing tape to cover the foam, then go to town with polyester resin and chopped strand mat. Once the outer shell was set, the foam can be removed to make space for the pump and filter. Given the height and surface area, a fairly large fish tank would make sense to use as a reservoir, surge volume and sump.

Use marine polyester fairing compound to get the surface texture and details. Maybe bed some lava rock from the gas grill section of the hardware store to give some gurgle. Chicken or lath wire can give a base for mortar or stucco which can be colored.

_________________
Set a course for the Foc's'le Lounge!

Excrementus Cadaemus

Mahalo for the formatting advice. It's fixed now.

I've asked a couple places on reddit as well, so I hope combining what you've told and what they recommend gives me enough to start in. Since I'm 2nd floor of a duplex, weight is an issue so I'll definitely talk to other engineering buddies once university starts up again.

You've given me a ton of options I wouldn't have thought of (my normal diaramas are styrofoam of sculpt-it mix).