Once you have established your budget for the pool and the landscaping, what other pool related questions or issues should I consider?
1. Obtain a Certificate of Survey from your local city’s planning or engineering department to see if there are any easements, set backs, or other restrictions for your property.
2. Site conditions will also affect the placement of the pool. Some of these are overhead electric lines, hill or slope proximity, septic systems, and soil conditions.
3. Where will the pool equipment be located? Pool equipment is designed to be placed outside and it is not necessary to place them next to the home. If they are adjacent to the home, they should be kept away from windows that open and your air conditioner condensing unit. In addition, the pool pump is going to work better when it is at or even below the level of the pool. The reason is that pool pumps are good at pushing water, not drawing water above two to three feet above a pool.
4. What type of pool construction is desired? Vinyl lined, concrete, or fiberglass.
5. Size and shape of the pool? Most pools in our market are rectangular to accommodate an automatic cover, but free formed pools can also have an automatic cover if properly designed.
6. Do you want a diving pool or an activity pool? The minimum water depth for a diving pool is 7’ 6”. But the national trend is for activity pools with a maximum depth of five feet.
7. If you want a diving pool and a diving board, there is a wide range of board/stand styles and quality levels. We recommend the SR Smith Cantilever stand.
8. How will you enter and leave the pool? Stairs will be used in the shallow end. Stairs add a lot of beauty to a pool and should be given careful consideration as to design and location. Some pools now also incorporate a sun shelf that is only a few inches deep to allow the placement of lounge chairs in the pool.
9. Do you want the pool to have under water lights? Options range from incandescent, to fiber optic to LED lights. The current trend is the installation of LED lights that provide color options, last longer and use a fraction of the energy of incandescent or halogen lights.
10. What type of deck and coping do you want? How much deck will you want for both walking around the pool and for pool side activities such as lounge chairs and tables – which are typically located at the shallow end of the pool.
11. If your pool will have an automatic cover, will the lid over the cover be aluminum, concrete or stone pavers? When the pool cover is closed when the pool is in use, will the cover be exposed or hidden beneath the lid?
12. Do you want to incorporate any family activities for the pool such as basketball or volleyball? You can have anchors installed in the deck (and properly bonded) so that games will be properly secured.
13. Will your pool have a winter mesh cover? These are important in our climate. If your pool deck is using pavers, you may need a concrete base under the cover to secure the anchors.
14. Do you want to have any special features such as deck or laminar jets? Attached spa? Water fall? All of these add beauty to the pool and increase the use of the of the pool beyond just our warm summer days.
15. Will your pool have an automatic cleaner? If so, will it be a suction side, pressure side or a robotic cleaner? (see our blog article on types of cleaners)
16. When your pool loses water (typically a ¼” a day in the summer due to evaporation), how will you fill it? With a garden hose? We always recommend an electronic water level controller.
17. How will the pool be sanitized and what chemicals will be used? Systems range from (least expensive ) putting chlorine pucks in the skimmer baskets to an automated chlorine generation system (which is what we recommend and install).
These are just a few of the issues you should consider before you decide on your pool.
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