# How would you undercoat this lake?



## davefr (Oct 22, 2020)

Here's a lake bed I plan to "fill" with Woodlands Deep Pour clear with a tint of turquoise. I estimate the depth at a little less then 1/4" if I use the full 12 oz of Deep Pour. I've never done this before and you only get one chance to do this right.

How would you paint the bottom of the lake and with what color(s). I know it's recommended to start dark and gradually go lighter towards the banks. Is there an undercoat color that would work best for this lake with a pour of clear+turquoise tint?

Any other tips? TIA!!!


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## Stumpy (Mar 19, 2013)

If you're wanting to give the illusion of any depth at all you'll want to go pretty dark because your water medium is going to lighten it up a LOT. Especially with turquoise tint. The first two pics linked below are my river before I poured the water. The darker areas toward the middle are a dark, dark green - almost black. The last two pics are after the water was poured.

Just remember, unless you're in the tropics or the gulf stream, water isn't blue.









Second HO Layout


Thanks Michael.




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Second HO Layout


This build is beautiful, and so detailed! A question from way back when laying down the dirt. Did you paint and pour the dirt after you had already laid down track? Or did you remove the track for the dirt layer. Excited to see more!




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Second HO Layout


Stumpy, your stream came out beautiful. Magic




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Second HO Layout


Stumpy, your stream came out beautiful. Magic




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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

Strongly.....STRONGLY...advise against tinting the water any colour...UNLESS you want it semi-opaque and turbid. Then I use Hauser Green and yellow, a single drop of each, mixed into the pour before actually pouring it where you want it. I also add a pinch of Plaster of Paris powder for turbidity.

Mix up some gray paint and some dark blue, add a dollop of black if necessary. Paint the sealed bottom that colour. Let it dry. Then feather out from the banks a lighter tan, or green to simulate more light reaching the shallower bottom.

When you mix the first batch, or pour if it's just a simple liquid, use just enough to let it creep and run outward to the limits, the 'shore'. LET THAT CURE!!! Do not pour more than enough to cover the bottom with about 1/8" (4 mm). Deep pours almost never work out unless you do it in two or three stages. Even then, deep pours are wasteful and unnecessary. The illusion of depth is caused by the gloss over the painted bottom.

I have two different effects, one with the turbidity, the other clearer and deeper water that is running a bit faster.


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## davefr (Oct 22, 2020)

^^^Thank you. This is very helpful. I'll focus on the base color and not tint the epoxy. I want the look of a fairly calm lake/pond. I'll keep the pour thin.


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## davefr (Oct 22, 2020)

Here's my undercoat. I've tried to go from light tan/green to dark blue/green from the shore to the deep part. I kept the rock wall border all dark to simulate depth.

Will Deep Pour Clear in a 1/8" pour be as clear as glass? I would like just a tiny hint of opacity and wonder if a 1/8" pour thickness will provide some on it's own. I could add just a toothpick tip of green if that would help. Any other last minutes suggestions? Thanks!!!!


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

That looks quite good! I would suggest that you paint the middle portion black, though. The lighter colour near the centre of the pour will appear a little too light, maybe contrived. Just pour one or two drops of acrylic craft 'black' into the centre, and spread it around some with a brush. Let that dry for at least two full hours, and then you should be good to cover it all with an epoxy pour, or just with Mod Podge gloss medium, from the crafts section at Wally's.

Note that, if you would like to have the glassy surface that results appear more natural, you can add a thin top coat of Mod Podge once the original pour hardens to the finger nail tap, and use the side of a small foam applicator to 'stipple' the thin layer of gloss medium. It's what I did when I got tired of the glassy surface look of my very first pour 14 years ago.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

One advantage of adding a small amount of tinting to the epoxy is that it makes it easier to see when you’ve thoroughly mixed it before pouring.


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## davefr (Oct 22, 2020)

Thanks everyone for the tips/advise. I'm very happy with how this turned out. Next step will be adding a waterfall.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

It does look very good! Congrats!


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

Nice result. Looks like a swimmin' hole, too!


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