Design: Top Swimming Pool Shapes
Swimming pools come in many shapes and configurations. Your pools shape and style are dictated by a few things. The first is the material. Vinyl and concrete can be formed into nearly any configuration. This includes custom designs that may follow any number of shapes. Fiberglass pools are often limited by the manufacturer. They may have a set number of shapes and sizes to choose from because each shell is made in a mold.
When it comes to custom designs, the sky is the limit in terms of what you can do. However, there are also many popular pool shapes that you can find nearly anywhere:
Design: Choosing The Pool That’s Right For You
Before you begin scheming your personal pool design, get an idea of what pool types are even possible. Maybe you want an infinity edge, for framing the horizon, or a cocktail pool that’s only waist-deep for happy hours. Also note that depth, shape, and landscaping aren’t just for funthey also all play a pivotal role in the overall safety of your pool. There are three main approaches to consider when building a family-friendly pool and backyard.
Use Case
Think again about how you’ll use this pooland how much space to dedicate to certain functions like shallow play space, or a hot tub in the pool. If you’re having a hard time choosing between or balancing the two, “Ask yourself: What matters in 5 minutes? 5 days? and 5 years? Kids’ needs will keep changing, so a jacuzzi has a much longer of a lifespan as they wont be splashing around for their entire lives,” Feldman advises.
Safety
Cost
On average, you can plan to spend at least $35,000 to install an in-ground pool, according to HomeAdvisor.comand that doesntinclude the maintenance that follows. You should be putting in a poo lfor yourself, not because its going to make the house more attractive to buyers, say sNew York area Realtor Robert Khederian.To take out a pool is a lot of money, too.
Cost: $
Cost: $$$
The look: Matte and modern. Unlimited design potential.
How its installed: Shotcrete, whether wet or gunite, is pumped into a rebar-framed hole, smoothed, and plastered.
Gunite Shotcrete Or Concrete Pool Cost
A gunite pool costs between $29,000 and $60,000 with most paying around $50,960 on average for a 14 by 28 pool. The long-term 10-year cost of ownership to maintain a concrete pool averages $27,500 which is the highest of any pool material.
- You have more options regarding creative shapes for your pool.
- Typically require more chemicals and electricity to keep them swimmable.
- It may need an acid wash every four years to remove any mold or algae.
- The method used to remove the algae will also weaken the structural integrity of the concrete. This will also hasten the need for it to be resurfaced.
- Gunite pools need to completely be replastered every 10 to 15 years, which costs around $10,000.
- Gunite is the name of the process to apply concrete to a form that will create your pool shapeits created by spraying the concrete and sand mix over a metal shape made of rebar.
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Lifetime Cost Of Ownership Associated With Each Type Of Pool
Now, let’s take a look at how much it costs to own each type of pool over time.
This chart compares the 10-year swimming pool cost of fiberglass, vinyl, and concrete pools:
You can see the huge disparity between the maintenance costs of these three types of swimming pools.
Why is the cost to own a fiberglass pool so much less?
First, they are incredibly durable.
Second, they are very efficient.
Let’s take a closer look.
Gunite Plastering Vinyl Fiberglass 1 To 3 Weeks
It’s finally time to install the pool part of the swimming pool. Depending on what type youre building, the process may take 1-3 weeks. Vinyl and Fiberglass pools are faster as the manufactured pool liner is shipped and installed directly. A gunite pool will take a little longer since a crew must be scheduled, the crew needs time to plaster, and it can take up to a week for the gunite to cure afterward.
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Find Out The Property Line Boundaries From Your Swimming Pool & Pool Equipment #
As much as scheduling an inspection before pool construction can be hectic, it would help if you dont skip this process. Local authorities will advise you on the way forward and will ask you about your property lines. You need a survey expert to identify your property lines. Afterward, ensure that you install the pool based on the state guidelines. Doing this enables you to avoid future pool problems and hefty state fines. But note that different state guidelines vary. So, not all states require you to leave at least one-meter distance when you build a pool.
Sample setback requiremets for building a swimming pool .
What Will It Cost
There are many factors that come into play when building or modifying your pool. ;Time of year, soil quality, water levels in the area, size of the yard, local licensing and shipping just to name a few. ;Your best bet is to;write down what you would like to do to your existing pool;and then work with your builder to determine the costs. ;There is no obligation to move forward with the project until you are comfortable.
If you are in the Chicago area and want to learn more, contact Aqua Pools today or;find a local builder near you.
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Amazing Diy Inground Pool Ideas
Summer comes with its warmth and you would like to cool off in a swimming pool? Even if your budget is limited, this dream can turn into reality by making your own DIY inground pool. Some materials, recycled or not, some ingenuity and DIY talents, and the trick is done!
Here are 10 examples of easy to build DIY inground pools.
Dealing With High Water Table Around Your Inground Pool:
Water issues from a high water table, encountered during excavation, is the main topic of this blog post. It usually happens while digging an 8 deep pool, and at 6 or 7 feet you hit water. Usually you can pump it out and it doesnt come back, but sometimes the water seems to come back in as quickly as you can pump it out.
De-watering Solutions:
If the water keeps coming in, even though the weather has been reasonably dry, heres what you do. Keep digging! Over dig your deep end about 2 feet deeper than the pool depth. A trench should be dug, from the deep end floor, up the slope to the shallow end also 2 feet lower. Then have your gravel delivery company bring you enough 3/4 stone to fill in your over dug areas to within 2 from your finished floor level. If the soil is very sandy and loamy you will need more gravel than if you have a tight clay soil, to keep the water flowing.
How to Test for High Water Table:
Ill admit it, there are some locations that make it difficult to build an inground pool. Low, topographically depressed areas, or shoreline areas that are actually below sea level. In severe cases, those who really want an inground pool can truck in enough fill dirt to raise the pool area up a few feet, so that ever-present ground water wont be an issue. In most cases, however the dewatering approaches described here will solve the problem.
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Diy Swimming Pools: 10 Risks Of Building Your Own Inground Project
Why owner-builder gunite pools often pose surprising hurdles and hidden costs
Are you thinking about building your own pool? Are you considering becoming whats known as a pool owner-builder?
A gunite swimming pool can provide a beautiful, functional, permanent addition to your home. But it also represents a major financial investment.
Depending on factors ranging from backyard conditions to the designs complexity, a custom pool is a big-ticket project costing thousands of dollars.
For this reason, some homeowners look for wayseven extreme onesto save money on this purchase. You may think you want to join those homeowners who have bravely bypassed expert pool builders and served as owner-builders for do-it-yourself inground pools.
Many industry experts will tell you, more often or not, the desired savings dont come to fruition. Owner-builders often face unexpected obstacles during and after their home-made pool, and they also end up with outcomes that dont live up to their original backyard dream.
Inground Swimming Pool Construction Photos For Gunite Cement Plaster Swimming Pools
The excavator comes in and digs the hole for your pool.
Next, the actual form, or shape, of your pool is outlined using wood framing.
Then the wood frame is actually shaped into the swimming pool with steel rebar.
After the shape is perfect, then gunite, or shotcrete, is power sprayed into the form, actually making the pool.
Here you see what it looks like when dry.
Next, the plumbing fittings are installed.
Then, other elements such as rocks or boulders can be set in.; You can be quite creative with the design of these type of pools.
This is a nice close up of the rock coping, or decking, that is going on this pool.; Also note the inset tile at the top of the pool wall.
The actual surface of the pool walls and floor then get installed.; You can chose tile, Diamond Bright, gunite, marble dust, plaster or paint for your surface.; The cost of the surface can vary greatly.
Here you can see details of some high end elements added to this pool which include an overflow to give it that negative edge type look from inside the pool.
In these photos, you get a good before and after view.
Before
After
Here is a finished pool which is sort of a natural or lake effect swimming pool.; Time to jump in and go for a swim!
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Wall Stack And Plaster
We drilled holes in the blocks for all the return and pressure pvc pipes, and cemented them in with expansive cement. Fittings are available to point the water flow in the direction you want it to circulate.
A floor drain tube gets positioned at the low point of the pool. Your temporary screeds should all go downhill to this drain so crud gets pulled to the pump/filter.
Installed the pvc return weir with expansive cement following their instructions. Normal cement shrinks, and leaves a crack.
Blocks are stacked with no overlap so cores match up. Any rebar is overlapped a foot and tied with wire. Blocks are stacked to the waterline. The inside and out of the block is plastered with 1/16″ minimum thickness surface bonding cement to hold the block while concrete is poured. A rubber float makes spreading this easy. It dries quickly, so mix just a little at a time, and clean tools every 10 minutes, or kiss them good by.
Surface bonding cement holds blocks better than mortar, and also waterproofs the wall. Our pool was was waterproof with a second coat on floor and wall after the pour.
A solid 12″concrete bond beam gets formed with 14″ plywood. We wanted a vanishing edge so that part is formed an inch below the final water line to leave room for tile. This edge needs to be angled so water will not sit on the tile. We built a large catch basin below the edge, but I won’t get into that. It is not easy to design the size of the basin.
Now you are ready to pour wall and floor.
Advantages Of Small Inground Pool
Aside from taking up minimal space in your backyard, small inground pools also come with a few other advantages.
What takes longer to heat up: A gallon of water, or a cup of water?
Easily the cup, right?
Now imagine that as the difference in water volume between a normal size pool ;and a small inground pool.
Having less water to heat means two things:
- It takes WAY less time to warm up a small inground pool
- And it takes WAY less energy to keep it warm
And heres another benefit. Since you save so much money by choosing a smaller pool, you can easily extend your swim season and put the savings towards a reliable pool heater.
If you swim occasionally and dont mind sticking to the sunnier days for recreation, a solar heater could be a good choice.
But if you want on-demand heat regardless of the weather or chilly temperatures, a pool heat pump is the way to go. Heat pumps offer the most energy efficient operation of any pool heater ;and cost less than $100 a month on average. Plus, some units can cool down your water too a valuable feature for those blazing hot summer days.
Heres all the good stuff about small pool maintenance:
- Less water to skim
- Smaller floor to vacuum
- Lower chemical demand
If you remember from earlier, certain types of pools also offer unique advantages over others. For example, fiberglass pools require the least physical maintenance overall, due to their gel coated surfaces that repel buildup.
More affordable to run
Costs less
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In The Swim Is There For You
If you are a handy homeowner familiar with household projects or even if you have no mechanical experience at all we have a way for you to build your own inground pool at an affordable price. During the installation process our team of Pool Experts are with you from start to completion, with unlimited technical support by phone and email, to answer any question or concern that you have. Our hands-on customer service after the sale; helping you get that pool kit in the ground, is what sets us apart from websites that also sell pool kits, but know very little about them.
DIY pool installation is hard work but not difficult; and after the job is complete you can be proud to say you built your own inground pool.
All of your family and friends can now enjoy your hard work in the backyard escape you designed and built.
Gunite Pool Construction Process
Gunite is a pneumatically applied concrete mixture reinforced with steel rebar.
This is the most effective way of creating a swimming pool from concrete. Gunite is superior to alternative pool construction techniques such as vinyl liner or fiberglass pools in terms of structural strength and design options. Gunite is a porous concrete mixture that allows for better expansion / contraction tolerance and is less prone to cracking, shifting, translating or sinking.
Aside from the shell, or structure of the pool being concrete, gunite, vinyl, or fiberglass the majority of the steps involved to complete a pool installation are very similar.
- Our pools Always custom
- 3 Free Revisions
While providing the elegance and functionality of your pool design, our engineers will also make sure that the project layout will satisfy all local municipal ordinances, HOA deed restrictions, and utility set-backs. You will get a personalized swimming pool design proposal package.
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Cheap And Simple Inground Swimming Pool
If you buy one from a professional pool company, an inground swimming pool will easily cost you about $10,000 or more. You can build your own, and one that looks just like it was professionally designed, for less than $3,000. Imagine what you can do with that extra $7,000! This one is really simple. Once you get the hole dug, you just follow the easy steps to finishing your pool and you end up with something that looks like you paid tens of thousands of dollars to have it installed.
Initial Layout In Your Yard
The contractor or builder will spend a couple of hours staking out the basic shape of the swimming pool in your yard. The shape depends on the location, position, and size of the pool. The pools shape will be close to accurate at this point, and its shape will be brought into sharper focus in later stages. All underground services such as electrical wires, plumbing supply pipes, irrigation lines, and communication lines are identified.
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Cost Of Inground Saltwater Pools
The average cost of an inground saltwater pool is $35,000 for the pool and another $1,100 to $2,200 for the salt water generator, bringing the total cost to around $36,100 to $37,200. Saltwater pools do not need any chemicals added, are easier to maintain, and don’t have a chlorine smell.
For homeowners who would prefer not to use traditional chemicals in their pool, a saltwater swimming pool uses a system that converts the salt in the water to chlorine, but the levels are much lower than in a chlorine pool, so it is kinder to clothes and your skin.
Estimating Long-Term Salt Water Pool Costs
- Replacing the cell in the generator every 36 years at the cost of $800 .
- Adding salt to run your saltwater pool An average pool measuring 14 by 28 with a depth of 6.5 feet has a water volume of just under 20,000 gallons, and for that much water, you will need around 11 x 40-pound bags of salt, which should total just under $100.
