Smart Solar 24260RM1 Chatsworth 2-Tier Solar-On-Demand Fountain, Oiled Bronze Finish, with Patented Underwater Integral Solar Pump and Pump System

I bought this fountain to replace one that I had purchased from another store. That one was fiberglass and soon after using it the paint began to chip so that after a little over a year there was little paint left on it. This one by Solar Smart appears to be much better made. It is darker than I thought it would be but I assume it will tone down after a little while in the Arizona sun. But that is neither here nor there, the quality of this fountain compared to our first one is far superior. I expect to have this one for a long time from the way it feels and looks. The very first moment we put it outside the fountain started working right away. You can use attachments to change the type of water output; from a high shooting stream, to a low burble and also a sprinkle type. We chose to use the low burbling attachment since we have a problem with winds and low humidity here. Over all we are extremely pleased and wish we had bought this one the first time. We had also purchased a diferent style of Solar Smart fountain for my parents and they have been enjoying theirs for over a year now. There was only one issue with the product that we had to contact the company about. The fountain came with a large crack in the base. Rather than sending it back to Amazon, I decided to contact the company first. They promptly sent us a new base, no questions asked. I have a feeling someone had sent this fountain back to Amazon because of the crack before. The booklet and pump were packaged in a Ziplock bag, not exactly standard new product packaging. So a slight thumbs down to Amazon for not checking returned products before reselling them. But a huge thumbs up for Solar Smart for being a great company to deal with and making such a nice product.

This is such a great little fountain! Just the right amount of water noise without being obnoxious, and no splashing outside it’s bowl. It was easy to put together. To those that complained that the water just ran back through the center instead of spilling like it should, there is a troubleshooting card inside the instructions that addresses what is causing that problem (spoiler alert- it’s because they didn’t seat the plug properly) and it’s a super easy fix. The only complaint I have is it did have a small chip but is in noticeable once assembled so not that big of deal to me, as long as it doesn’t deteriorate down the line. Edit: purchased in May and loved it as stated above. No longer working in August and I’m super disappointed. I’m not sure if it’s the motor or the solar cell that is the problem, one day it was a weaker out put then the next day it no longer ran at all. I’m hoping there is a source for replacement parts. Because it was perfect and I really enjoyed it when it was working

The first thing I did was go to the hardware store and purchased two cans of clear coat. The paint was already chipping. Next, you will want to purchase vinegar or Lime Away or CLR to remove the scaling that develops every month. I tried the commercial liquid that is recommended for the fountain, but it just made the water slimy, so plan on changing the water on a weekly basis. Make sure they system is fully dry before doing any maintenance on it. They have a couple of videos on YouTube on assembly and cleaning. Their customer service is very good. After six months, the system stopped working so I contacted customer service. After going through the thorough trouble shooting steps, they sent me a new panel and on/off switch. Make sure you let it sit out in the sun at least a day to allow the battery to fully charge before you start using. You will want to do this every other week or so to allow the battery to fully charge. It's a beautiful fountain as long as you do your homework and take good care of it, just like your car, or garden, or camera or anything else worth having.

I bought this fountain for our front yard courtyard. I like the simple design and the gray-green color that blends in nicely with our garden landscaping. Some buyers commented that the fountain peeled when they washed it. I sprayed all sections of the fountain with several coats of Krylon Fusion clear spray paint to protect. I have done this in the past with other resin and plastic products with great success. The fountain was extremely easy to assemble. There are only three pieces (plus the two small turtles that snap into the large basin) and each piece snapped right into place. As some others commented, the only challenge was to snap the pump outlet into the solar unit. It's easy enough if you just reach up inside the piece, hold the pump outlet in place, and slide the solar unit's outlet over the pump outlet. Very easy. The fountain looks lovely in our yard and I am thrilled to have it there. (I am currently charging the unit. So, I can't comment on the fountain's function, but if it performs with the same quality that I have noted, it will be fine.) Update: July 3, 2014. Fountain is still working like a champ. It did fail to restart after I cleaned it, but I discovered that I had not fully disassembled the pump while cleaning. After I dug out the directions, I recleaned the pump removing the little propeller-looking piece for cleaning, and it works great again. No chipping or peeling as others experienced. Still looks like new.

I wanted a bird bath/ fountain for our patio and liked the looks of this one. I read almost all of the reviews and totally agree with most of them. That is, you need real sunlight to make them work. When the sun is out (Arizona) they work great. The pump runs and water comes out of the top and cascades down into the lower bowl and make a nice waterfall sound. When the sun is hiding behind clouds (Washington about 1/2 the time) it stops working. Bright light won't cut it! If you turn the pump off for several days of sunshine the built in battery will charge and give you up to 5 hours of continuous running sun or no sun. So far no birds have bathed in it that I know of. Perhaps because it's off most of the time and the big lower bowl is so deep that the birds can't wade around.

I searched for a long time before finally purchasing a bird bath. I actually ended up asking a question here on Amazon, and got some great answers which made my decision easy and I couldn't be happier with my purchase. I wanted this bird bath for my hummers. It has a very shallow top and I was looking for something my hummingbirds could get in and have it be shallow enough for them. I have seen the hummingbirds taking baths on the top tier, but I get more action from all the birds in my yard. They absolutely love this bath. They love to drink from the bottom tier and then drink and bath in the top. I love looking out and seeing 5 or 6 gold finches splashing around. The little sound that this fountain gives off is also very peaceful. I am very glad I went with a solar fountain, I was very hesitant at first, afraid that it would work much, but this fountain really works, it even works for me when it's filtered sunlight. The problem I have had with it, is that I do have a little of the finish peeling off in the bottom bowl. I have used a pretty hard scrub brush on it, and so I think it' my own fault, but I actually don't mind because I even like the look underneath the finish. To me it gives it an aged look. This is one of my best purchases from Amazon, I am so glad I went with this beautiful fountain, and getting it through Amazon prime and having it delivered to me door in two days was an added benefit.

After researching this fountain on several sites and reading a ton of reviews I decided to give this one a try and so far have not been to disappointed. It's dimensions and size are correct, I found it easy to put together with no issues, color is more of a off white/very light grey, and weighs enough to not get knocked over by high winds but light enough to move around. I have this in my front yard in full sunlight and in between 2 small chairs with flowers in them and it looks great! I have received plenty of complements on it already! I am fortunate enough to have it in close proximity to my garden hose so it is a piece of cake to clean and fill, which I do about every 3 days, and allows me to not have to use algaecide of any kind. The 2 reasons it did not get 5 stars is 1.) Because I followed the directions and charged the solar panel for 3 days and it still doesn't last even 1 day in full sun (I will be contacting the manufacturer after this review about this issue, it may just be a faulty panel like several other reviewers had). and 2.) I did take the advice of a couple of reviewers and clear coated the fountain so the paint would not peel off and it seems to be working so far. I would suggest to the manufacturer to correct this issue though, as it's kind of a pain to do and not a good selling point being as its a fountain and will have water in it all the time. If you really love the look of it I would definitely give it a try, most people are not having the solar panel issue, or they are just not all writing a review about it. Bottom line is I would buy another one if I had another place to put it. It is with great sadness that I must change my review of this fountain; it WAS great as my first review stated, but after almost 2 month of being in operation everyday (when not charging) and sealing it with an acrylic sealer-The paint is still chipping off in large chunks (as other reviewers have reported), it DOES NOT last long even in full sun, which I followed the manufacturers directions and let it charge for the first 3 days, before initial start up, so it would hold the longest charge possible (sadly this doesn't make a difference), and it stains very easily (which you can't clean because the paint chips off even more). The problem about the panel being faulty may be true still for some reviewers but in my case I found that the pump was plugged solid with cotton wood and was stopping it from operating (another reviewer had mentioned that it needed to be cleaned way to much which tipped me off to look at my pump). I cleaned it and have to do so on a weekly basis. I absolutely love the sound of the water fountain and the fact it doesn't need a power cord, so I will live with the upkeep, try to ignore the chips of paint that are missing, and enjoy the sound every few days, but I must change my bottom line to- NO, I would not purchase another one or recommend this fountain unless you want the upkeep and like chips :) One more thing, the bottom bowl is to deep for birds (at least mine anyway) and I have not seen a bird or anything else in it since it was purchased, whether its on or off.

It looks and sounds great, was easy to put together, and is easy to clean. I really like the battery so that it keeps bubbling away in the evening when we’re outside. Well worth the money. Year 2: Still looks and sounds great. The only problem is that the on/off switch has failed (luckily in the 'on' position) which means that the battery drains to zero every even and the fountain is unusable on cloudy days (i.e. the battery will be dead) Update 3: The fountain subsequently quit altogether - I assume because of the solar array switch. However, replacement parts are readily available on the Smart Living web site, so I simply purchased a new solar panel/switch, swapped it out and all is back to normal.

Came exactly as shown. Very nice for the money.

When it worked it was nice. But within the first week the filter in the pump clogged and the whole unit needed to be drained, disassembled and rinsed out (filter the size of a quarter). This repeated every few days. Then a month in the pump simply stopped working. I again took everything apart but to no avail. I even checked the current from the battery pack, which showed it wasn’t the solar/batteries. I was able to do so as there was a simple plug connection between the two. Putting an electrical connection in submerged water is plain stupid. Likely shorted the motor. Finally when I used it as a plain birdbath without the fountain it cracked and fell apart within 3 months. It is very thin mortar on top of styrofoam. Total garbage.

This could have been a 4 but I found the craftsmanship poor. The reason it loses big marks is because the base was not level - which is pretty darn important for a fountain. The water was running off to one side. I was able to find a makeshift solution as returning an item of this size is no small task. I just think making sure the base is level is a pretty big deal for an item such as this. A smaller issue was that one of the pegs for the turtles was not well made and had tons of extra bulk resin on it. Again I was able to chisel it off but just another craftsmanship issue that I don't think I should have had. Given these two issues I did take it down from a 4. It does work as advertised and in time I hope I'll be happy with it. I just don't think I should have had to make the modifications needed.

Better in real life than the promo pictures offer. Functions as good as advertised. Neighbors are VERY jealous.

This beautiful fountain came without the accessories so the fountain is 1/2 inch high. I have waited one month for the accessories and new battery to be sent to fix the problem. I and am still waiting. I like the fountain but would love it if I had a beautiful high spray for the birds and I to enjoy. Please let me know when I can expect to get it delivered.