Best way to build a river

On my holiday layout, I'm using hollow-core doors for the underlayment and what I did was set a circular saw to the thickness of the door shell and rip the doors and pulled out the section of panel leaving a "canal".  What's nice about this is that the door sides are solid wood so that I don't lose support.

 

After that, I cut a 1x3 to length and fit it vertically along the "canal" edges.  I will then run a bead of caulk under the wood strips and screw them in from the bottom, creating a water proof seal.  Then siliconing the corners and along the bottom of the strips to provide an extra layer of protection.  I will then pour a thin mix of plaster for the canal bottom and paint to simulate depth.  The plaster will find the holes I missed and fill them. While the plaster is still wet, I'd like to sprinkle in some fine sand to look like a sandy bottom along the edges.

 

Then, I'm going to pour a layer of Woodland Scenics Realistic Water to make it look like water, and finish with a brushed on layer of Woodland Water Effects to simulate waves.

 

If I was going to make a river, all i would do is replace the 1x3s on the edges of the canal with triangular pieces to make a river bank, and plaste over them.

 

 

PS - I'm going to spray the canal walls with the same "concrete" spray paint that I use for the sidewalks, and scrape in marks to simulate cast lines.

 

Thanks,

Mario

 

Mod Podge.

 

Fast water - clear silicone caulk:

 

 

 

 

Slower water - Mod podge or acrylic gloss medium:

 

 

Jim

any one use real water any more? I know over the years its been advised against. My grandfather had real water on his American Flyer layout, and it just really seemed to set the mood.......

Jim and Vulcan

 

Great looking rivers.  I will defiantly take the mod podge approach.  Can you describe in more detail on how you achieved your great looking result?

Mod Podge fan here too. Get the gloss Mod Podge. I use a 1" brush and stipple it on for a ripple affect. I apply it over a suitably colored surface since it dries clear. You can recoat several times to add the illusion of depth. It is simple stuff to use frankly, experiment on some scrap and you will be a pro in short order. The results are better than many more involved methods frankly.

 

Bob

 

Yeah, what Bob said.

Envirotex and gloss medium.

 

Dave

David......where did you get the mermaid from? She caught my eye! At first I thought you had a topless swimmer and then wondered where he legs were. The water did not look deep enough for her to be standing up. Only when I zoomed in did I see her mermaid half!!!! Guess that will teach me to look a pictures with my iPhone!!

Baker.  He has a few different mermaids.

 

Dave

So do you pour it on 1st or just keep brushing on layers to get the depth you want?

If you're asking about Mod Podge, it's best to do in in layers.

I don't have any pictures to post of the previous installs I've done, but I've used clear

liquid nails (Ace hardware carries it), envirotex, and mod podge with excellent results.

 

PS: Ryan, its funny that you mention the "real water' water feature...as you know elec and water aren't a good mix...let alone any potential mold related issues with using water....but over the last 5 years I've been running a series of tests using different types of clear oils to simulate "flowing" water. The oil that I've found to work the best is non corrosive, non conductive, does not have a smell, doesn't evaporate, and flows like true water in reduced scale. I've fully submerged runiing electrical motors within the oil with absolutely no issues (during testing for moving watercraft/objects features such as boats/dingy's/etc.) I've made several mockups presenting the idea to our club here in Massachusetts and have received great feedback. I've put the whole project

on hold at the moment, mainly due to having to create/engineer a custom impeller that will give me better "push" from a pump that was designed to pump water at high volumes. As long as the scenery elements where the oil traveled are sealed (minwax brushable acrylic clear gloss) I didn't get any "bleed" into the scenery. Also on a final note the oil does not attack paint.

 

Just food for thought for all you mad scientists out there like me.

 

Nick B

Boston Metro Hi Railers