Decorating a summer cottage well: tips and original design ideas.

What is important to consider when decorating?

The correct design of a summer cottage well will allow you to harmoniously fit the structure into the existing style, but before you start, you need to understand a few important points:

• Functionality. What is the purpose of the well design on the site? To hide communications, protect from rain and debris, or is it just decor?
• Style. What style is the entire summer cottage decorated in? This same direction should be followed when improving a decorative well.
• Design. Depends on the type of your well and its functional purpose – there is a gable, with a crane, a column.
• Operating conditions. The harsher the conditions in the region of residence, the more durable the materials should be: high resistance to humidity and temperature changes are mandatory characteristics for finishing.

What types of materials are suitable for finishing?

The design of a well in the country must meet at least two characteristics: maintaining functionality and decorative decoration. An ordinary concrete ring, for example, is very functional – but it cannot be called an example of amazing decor, concrete needs to be decorated.

In order for a decorative well to serve for many years and please with its appearance, choose high-quality materials:

• Moisture resistance. This is the main nuance, because there is really a lot of water in the well.
• Compliance with outdoor conditions. Use only raw materials that are intended for outdoor use.
• Resistance to temperature changes. A decrease or increase in temperature should not destroy the house.
• High wear resistance. The structure should not be afraid of mechanical impacts.

Wood

Finishing a decorative well with wood is a classic option for a summer cottage. Wood is an affordable, budget-friendly material that is easy to process.

The only nuance that needs to be taken into account is the absolute lack of natural protection from water. Constant contact with water destroys the structure of the wood and promotes rotting. But if you take dense beams of larch or aspen instead of flat boards, additionally treating them with special compounds – the log house over the water source will stand for many years.

Classic Russian design option: a frame of rounded logs, a gate with a handle and a bucket on a chain, two posts for a gable roof. In this way, it is appropriate to design a well near a rich estate and near a modest house. The finish is perfect for a typical country style, Provence, chalet.

In some cases, it is appropriate to replace a classic log gate with a block with a counterweight, or even install a crane – a roof is not erected over such structures, so you will have to take care of installing a hatch directly above the opening. It should be easy to open to fill with water and close when not in use.

You can improve a wooden house in various ways:

• paint it with a suitable paint (for example, to match the color of the house or gazebo);
• cut out a pattern with a chisel yourself;
• order carved decorations from professionals.

The photo shows classic log masonry

To summarize, let’s look at the pros and cons of using wood again.

Advantages:

• Natural origin allows you to blend in with the landscape.
• Widely available and low price.
• Ease of processing.

Disadvantages:

• Additional protection from water is required, which means additional costs for processing agents.
• Even insects can spoil the wood, and the well will also have to be protected from them.

Brick

Brickwork is a practical and quite aesthetic way of arranging a decorative well. If the house and other buildings are made of brick, the additional structure will fit perfectly into the existing picture.

The photo shows a round brick well

Advantages:

• Availability, low cost compared to natural stone.
• Wear resistance. Brick is difficult to damage mechanically.
• Ease of installation. You can cope with the task yourself, even without serious experience and tools.

Disadvantages:

• Can be damaged by moisture. Constant contact with water without drying is not the best environment for brick, it will simply crumble over time. But this will not happen if you immediately treat it with protection.
• Not suitable for all styles – for example: rustic. A decorative brick well will be inappropriate.

Advice! Choose solid brick – it will be more economical if you lay it on the end.

If you are going to lay the bricks around it yourself, follow these tips:

• Make a round decorative well – it will take much less material.
• For the mortar, choose a water- and frost-resistant mixture.
• Increase the service life – to do this, you need to cover the ring from the inside with plaster.
• Reinforce the plaster – rub cement into the dry surface, this method is called ironing concrete.

Stone

A decorative stone well has a huge number of advantages.

• Naturalness. The natural origin allows stone structures to easily fit into landscape design.
• Wear resistance. Stones are not afraid of water, temperature changes, mechanical impact.
• Versatility. Suitable for every style: from traditional to modern.
• Durability. Correctly executed masonry will serve for decades.

There are fewer disadvantages, but they are also present:

• Price. The cost of both the material itself and the work is quite high.
• Complexity of installation. If it is easy to build a brick wall yourself, then it is better to contact a specialist for processing stone (especially if the structure is planned to be round).

Additional tips for creating a well in the country from stone:

• The choice of the material itself depends on the finishing of the buildings on the site: if the house is already finished with expensive stone, take the same – there is no point in saving. If you do it without reference to the house, choose the shape, size and color that you like: from light crushed stone to dark cobblestones.
• Use waterproof tile adhesive or brick mix as a solution.
• Patterns are laid out from stones of different shades or a gradient is made.
• A canopy over a well made of metal tiles or slate goes best with stonework.

Advice! It is not necessary to make stonework from scratch – to make the task easier for yourself, put a concrete ring and refine it with stone from the outside. The cost price of such a solution will be much lower.

The photo shows a narrow stone well

For laying only natural stone, a foundation is required: cast in accordance with the ground, at a distance of 25-35 cm from the hole. The material itself is laid on a reinforcement frame set according to the level – it will hold the elements in place and strengthen the structure.

Plaster

This simple and affordable solution is used to decorate a concrete frame: the result will depend on the material itself and your abilities.

Advantages:

• Fast. It will take no more than 48 hours from application to complete drying.
• Simple. The work requires dexterity, but not special skills.
• Inexpensive. Even relatively expensive decorative plaster will cost less than the previous materials.
• Aesthetically pleasing. Plastering allows you to imitate any surface and make the well the way you need.

The photo shows a well decorated with plaster

There is one drawback: the plastered surface will not last long, it will have to be updated every 2-3 years.

Important! Choose waterproof mixtures, the surface should be additionally ironed – cover the dry plaster with cement.

Improvised means

In addition to traditional methods, there are also more economical options for decoration from what is at hand.

Tires. For those who prefer reliability to aesthetics. Rubber is not destroyed by water, will last a long time. The only downside is the small diameter of classic tires.

The photo shows tires being used to decorate a spring.

Barrel. Why invent something if you have a wooden barrel lying around in the barn? Protect it with impregnation and place it over the hole.

Logs. It is not necessary to buy beautiful rounded ones, cut old trees into pieces of equal thickness and build a well.

Pipe. Plastic is not susceptible to damage from water, so a PVC or polypropylene pipe of the required diameter is a budget option for many years.

Look on your site for something suitable in diameter and characteristics: the main thing is that the improvised means are not afraid of water and are easy to use.

Beautiful ideas for decorating a well

Whatever design you choose, decorations will help you blend in with the garden:

Flowers. Plant them around the structure or make several flower beds near the source. Among the flowers, choose moisture-loving plant species: meadowsweet, calamus, loosestrife, marsh rose varieties, milkweed.

See also: Catalog of the best perennial flowers

Time. Due to constant exposure to moisture, lichens form on the surface of stone and brick – this will allow the well to look as natural as possible.

Painting. If the surface is smooth, it is painted with various patterns, prints, pictures.

Unusual design examples

In addition to traditional styling, there are original options that will become an accent of the site. For example, a well in the oriental style: similar to a pagoda – with a characteristic bell-shaped roof or a 4-6 pitched canopy.

Another option is a hut. From a distance, the structure looks like a small house. And the window or door is used as a hatch to collect water.

Another idea is a nautical style. Instead of a curved handle, a steering wheel is attached to the winch with a thread, the chain is replaced with a cable, and the body itself is made in the form of a ship’s bow.