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The definitive SWIMMING POOL questions thread. UPDATE 6/13/18

If you are going to use a solar cover either to keep in heat or prevent evaporation, keep in mind that an irregular shape will be more work to cover and you probably cant use a reel.

My sister has an irregular shaped pool and uses a solar cover with a reel. It's not perfect, but it works just fine.

Their pool goes from shallow to deep. The only point of a deep end is diving. If you want to play games like basketball and especially volleyball, don't bother with a deep end. At my sister's house, the shallow end sees way more use than the deep end.

Hers is salt water, which is much nicer to us swimmers. I saw mention of long term issues, though no details on what those issues might be. I don't believe they have had issues yet.

Her pool is also heated, but I think they mostly just use the solar heater thing that floats on top of the pool. She's in Mechanicsburg, so much further north than NC.

Not sure any of this helps, but thought I'd drop in what I know here for you.
 
We have a rectangular and love it. Great for hosting parties ... great for kids to play games in... just very efficient use of space. Classic clean look.
This is pretty much my exact thought.

The waterfall feature can be nice and is also a white noise feature in your backyard.
This would be the main purpose of the water feature. Lots of white noise.

Kids are going to dive in, no matter how much you tell them no. I would be afraid to do the shallow pool like you've described. Our kids spend a decent amount of time playing games in the deep end. Without it, the games would be way less fun.
Glad to hear your kids love staying and playing in the deep end. I just looked at a sports pool and wasn't a huge fan. The entire pool had slope in it since you had to slope it twice, and this was in a 40' long pool! But even in my shallow/deep end pool, it's only 6.5' deep. Not exactly deep diving depth. How deep is your pool?
 
I have a swim spa and it adds about $30-35/mo to my electric bill to run and heat (to 90 degrees) during the non-winter months, do you have guesstimates on much it will cost you to run and/or heat with or without a spa?
That's not too bad for operating costs. I have no idea how much a spa is going to add to operating costs. The more I think about it, I can't justify the extra $12K+ for the spa feature in NC. Thanks!
 
I am putting in a pool right now. My backyard is currently a construction site. Hoping to have it complete by mid-June. I modeled my pool and deck to look very similar to this (photo courtesy of EP Henry):

3_758-pool-deck-pavers.jpeg


These are the pavers I am using (EP Henry Sonoran). My pool is/will be rectangular just like this -16X32. I thought it was going to be on the smallish side, but now that I have the concrete shell in place and the patio around it, it seems quite large. I am also building a fire pit and bar on the deck using a gray-ish wall block. No spa/hot tub but I will have a sundeck in the square where you see the spa above. If you do elect to put in a sundeck, don't forget to have the concrete guy cast an umbrella holder into the deck.

My pool is gunite. I went with a plaster finish to save some cost, but would have loved to go with a pebbletec finish. Just couldn't justify another $12K.

I opted to go salt water - nicer on the skin and less maintenance but also adds a piece of equipment in the salt water generator.

My pool will be heated with an electric heat pump. I have no other option as I do not have natural gas or propane on my property. I'm total electric.

Think about where you want to put the ugly stuff -- the pool filter, heater, etc. I placed mine on the side of my house where they will be unseen. Need to figure that out so that the plumbing and electric can be run before you start the patio, etc.

Also think about landscaping, lighting.

One more thing....have some contingency built into your project budget. You will want to change/add something along the way.
Wow, very nice CFLion. You are going to love that! Very good information. Thanks. I think I will go salt water and also add the pebbletec. I already know where the equipment is going to go, and I doubt my neighbors will like it, but oh well.
 
I know NOTHING about any of this but is geothermal heating an option? Or are the initial costs too high?
No clue. My buddy does geothermal for his house in Wilmington NC. Not sure if it's an option within city limits of CLT, NC.
 
My sister has an irregular shaped pool and uses a solar cover with a reel. It's not perfect, but it works just fine.

Their pool goes from shallow to deep. The only point of a deep end is diving. If you want to play games like basketball and especially volleyball, don't bother with a deep end. At my sister's house, the shallow end sees way more use than the deep end.

Hers is salt water, which is much nicer to us swimmers. I saw mention of long term issues, though no details on what those issues might be. I don't believe they have had issues yet.

Her pool is also heated, but I think they mostly just use the solar heater thing that floats on top of the pool. She's in Mechanicsburg, so much further north than NC.

Not sure any of this helps, but thought I'd drop in what I know here for you.

Thanks for the info MJG. This deep end / sports pool debate is my biggest sticking point. Ugh!
 
Glad to hear your kids love staying and playing in the deep end. I just looked at a sports pool and wasn't a huge fan. The entire pool had slope in it since you had to slope it twice, and this was in a 40' long pool! But even in my shallow/deep end pool, it's only 6.5' deep. Not exactly deep diving depth. How deep is your pool?

My family thinks we are 8 ft. at the deep end (I think we are 10 ft.). Our pool size is 20' x 40'. It is a great size.... One thing we love is that in the shallow end, we did steps the entire width. Becomes a common place to sit and for littles, they play on them endlessly.
 
That's not too bad for operating costs. I have no idea how much a spa is going to add to operating costs. The more I think about it, I can't justify the extra $12K+ for the spa feature in NC. Thanks!

....keep in mind that the swim spa has an insulated cover so it may not be an apples to apples comparison with a spa that's built in to a pool (I assume those are typically not covered)
 
Well, to help me out with budget, I am offering lifetime limited memberships to my new backyard oasis! For the low low price of just $1999, you too can have limited lifetime access to my pool! Add $499 for each family member, and they too can have limited lifetime membership! Act now, as this rate won't last long and availability is very limited.


Sounds like FAIRGAMBIT ENTERPRISES might be the appropriate organization to handle your pool memberships! :)
 
All good questions by you.

I highly recommend salt water and the spa, as others have done. Very worthwhile.

If you have space for a poolhouse, that is also a good investment.
 
My sister has an irregular shaped pool and uses a solar cover with a reel. It's not perfect, but it works just fine.

Their pool goes from shallow to deep. The only point of a deep end is diving. If you want to play games like basketball and especially volleyball, don't bother with a deep end. At my sister's house, the shallow end sees way more use than the deep end.

Hers is salt water, which is much nicer to us swimmers. I saw mention of long term issues, though no details on what those issues might be. I don't believe they have had issues yet.

Her pool is also heated, but I think they mostly just use the solar heater thing that floats on top of the pool. She's in Mechanicsburg, so much further north than NC.

Not sure any of this helps, but thought I'd drop in what I know here for you.
MJG...small world. I also live in Mechanicsburg.
 
I have a large L shaped pool and two kids - 15 and 18 years old. I live in PA. I didn't install a heater initially because my builder told me to try it first without a heater and then see if I thought I'd need one. I've had the pool for 5 or 6 years and I'm really glad I don't have a heater. In theory, you can extend your season, but in reality no one wants to swim outside of the season. Once school starts in late August/early September, I might as well shut the pool down because on one uses it. Maybe a quick dip here or there but that's it.

The only time I can see where a heater would be helpful might be in the summer when the temp is maybe 78 and I want to bump it up to 82 or something. Otherwise, I can't justify the cost.

I have no experience with salt water systems, but I've seen some comments on the cost of chlorine systems and I just don't understand that at all. My pool is so easy to maintain. I use maybe one bucket of chlorine tablets, a little PH adjustment, a few pounds of stabilizer and maybe 8 packets of shock per year. When I open the pool each year, it's crystal clear. I can have it ready to swim in 2-3 days tops.

Good luck.
 
That looks nice. The one thing I'll caution you on - the pavers look nice but over time, they are going to move around and settle. No matter what you do to make sure that doesn't happen, it will. Then, it's a PITA to fix it.
 
Consider including an “umbrella hole” in your tanning deck (a short piece of PVC or stainless steel pipe imbedded in the gunite).
 
We had a pool installed two years ago. I'll leave the comments to sections where there are similarities...

Pool shape: Personal preference. Wife wanted rectangular, but our yard was more trapezoidal, so we went with free form. It is great.

Tanning ledge: We have one. Umbrella stand in the middle of it. Gets lots of use by the women. Also great for little kids who can't swim. Get one and go big, like 100 square feet or more. You will want to have room for multiple chairs.

Depth: We have a diving board so hard to comment if you don't want one.

Heater: We have one since we have a spa. It runs on natural gas. I'm turning it on this weekend to warm up the pool. 75 degrees is nice, but 84 degrees is better. Will probably cost me about $36 for that increase. 1 hour per degree, $4 per hour. We didn't use it during the summer, but did in May and September/October. Some use it year round to maintain a steady temp.

Spa: Love it. Ours looks very similar to the one in your picture. Great for little kids year round and especially extending the "swim" season in April and October. Gets lots of use in the summer, particularly after sun goes down. It has a overflow waterfall into the pool. Gets more than the pool in all seasons.

Other things to think about.
  • Get more lighting than your PB recommends. At least one in each end and one in the spa.
  • Make sure you have non-swimming areas to hang out at, particularly in the shade. We had a cabana built at the same time. It gets more use than the pool, especially with the tv.
  • Take tons of pictures, especially of the underground pipes. You want to know where these are later on in case you want to dig.
  • Make sure you have storage for stuff. Pool chemicals (even for salt water) and supplies take up a decent amount of space. We have TONS of pool toys which fill a big portion of my walk-out basement.
  • Paver decking...just think how this holds up over time.
 
Solar covers don't heat the pool. Rather, it keeps heat from escaping when the air temperature is cooler. It also reduces heat loss due to evaporation.
 
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Everyone I've known who had a pool with a spa ended up using the spa section of the pool more than the pool itself. That includes myself and my friends when we were kids.

My parents currently have neighbors with a pool that contains a spa and that's the only part they ever see them use. That includes their now college age kids.

The spa was easy to keep warm and with the benches we hung out there all the time. This was in New Jersey where obviously the weather is colder so the same may not apply to North Carolina.

Even in Florida we use the spa almost as much as the pool.
 
What is the “average” cost of these projects? I have limited space at our beach house and have thought about it. If I wanted say 12 by 20 with a hot tub and maybe a small waterfall feature, how much we talking?
 
I have been a pool owner here in Texas for 15+ years. Actually, have owned two different pools. The first at our old home was a free-form, lower depth pool. We converted it to salt and it was a big mistake! Don't let people fool you about the merits! First, the salt water spray is HIGHLY corrosive! It will eat up patio furniture, it was literally crumbling the stone around our pool and it is very hard on the pool equipment. The salt cells also do not last!! I replaced ours twice and was going on a 3rd time when I went back to in-line chlorination. As far as the "soft skin" feel goes...there are products you can by to soften the water if that's important. Our 2nd pool at our new home is much larger. It is also a free-form pool but we have a diving board. I really like the deeper water pool. With older kids they will be jumping in and horsing around and I think you'd appreciate the deeper water. Another factor here in Texas is the intense Summer heat. Shallow pools turn out to be giant hot tubs because the water gets so warm! Finally, I know it's a lot of $$, but you will appreciate a raised spa! We use ours frequently in the cooler months. Doesn't cost much to heat a spa either. Good luck.
 
I have a large L shaped pool and two kids - 15 and 18 years old. I live in PA. I didn't install a heater initially because my builder told me to try it first without a heater and then see if I thought I'd need one. I've had the pool for 5 or 6 years and I'm really glad I don't have a heater. In theory, you can extend your season, but in reality no one wants to swim outside of the season. Once school starts in late August/early September, I might as well shut the pool down because on one uses it. Maybe a quick dip here or there but that's it.

The only time I can see where a heater would be helpful might be in the summer when the temp is maybe 78 and I want to bump it up to 82 or something. Otherwise, I can't justify the cost.

I have no experience with salt water systems, but I've seen some comments on the cost of chlorine systems and I just don't understand that at all. My pool is so easy to maintain. I use maybe one bucket of chlorine tablets, a little PH adjustment, a few pounds of stabilizer and maybe 8 packets of shock per year. When I open the pool each year, it's crystal clear. I can have it ready to swim in 2-3 days tops.

Good luck.
Thanks wilbury. Good advice on the pool heater. Another PB (who I decided not to use) said the same thing....wait a season and see if you really need one. Glad to hear your system is easy to maintain. I'm hoping mine will be the same.
 
That looks nice. The one thing I'll caution you on - the pavers look nice but over time, they are going to move around and settle. No matter what you do to make sure that doesn't happen, it will. Then, it's a PITA to fix it.
Exactly. Anything you put in is going to move. Pavers or concrete. It's just that pavers are more forgiving and can be relaid. Concrete will crack and must be torn up and re-poured. Thx.
 
We had a pool installed two years ago. I'll leave the comments to sections where there are similarities...

Pool shape: Personal preference. Wife wanted rectangular, but our yard was more trapezoidal, so we went with free form. It is great.

Tanning ledge: We have one. Umbrella stand in the middle of it. Gets lots of use by the women. Also great for little kids who can't swim. Get one and go big, like 100 square feet or more. You will want to have room for multiple chairs.

Depth: We have a diving board so hard to comment if you don't want one.

Heater: We have one since we have a spa. It runs on natural gas. I'm turning it on this weekend to warm up the pool. 75 degrees is nice, but 84 degrees is better. Will probably cost me about $36 for that increase. 1 hour per degree, $4 per hour. We didn't use it during the summer, but did in May and September/October. Some use it year round to maintain a steady temp.

Spa: Love it. Ours looks very similar to the one in your picture. Great for little kids year round and especially extending the "swim" season in April and October. Gets lots of use in the summer, particularly after sun goes down. It has a overflow waterfall into the pool. Gets more than the pool in all seasons.

Other things to think about.
  • Get more lighting than your PB recommends. At least one in each end and one in the spa.
  • Make sure you have non-swimming areas to hang out at, particularly in the shade. We had a cabana built at the same time. It gets more use than the pool, especially with the tv.
  • Take tons of pictures, especially of the underground pipes. You want to know where these are later on in case you want to dig.
  • Make sure you have storage for stuff. Pool chemicals (even for salt water) and supplies take up a decent amount of space. We have TONS of pool toys which fill a big portion of my walk-out basement.
  • Paver decking...just think how this holds up over time.
Thanks Lion2000. Good information. I think we will go with the tanning ledge. We are still undecided on rectangle vs free form. I really would love the spa, but this pool is already $70K and I'm not sure I want to spend another $15K, as much as I'd like a hot tub.
My PB recommended 5 LED lights, and the other PBs thought he was going overboard. I asked my PB why5? He said, because that is what I put in my pool. He said he hates seeing dark spots in the pool, and you need 5 to light it up right. We plan on doing a pool house/cabana as well as covered porch off the house. Good idea on taking pics of underground pipes and wires, thx.
Not sure what your point is on pavers for pool decking? Can you expand?
 
What is the “average” cost of these projects? I have limited space at our beach house and have thought about it. If I wanted say 12 by 20 with a hot tub and maybe a small waterfall feature, how much we talking?
Each pool is so different, but in my case, I'm looking at about $70K for 34x18 with about 850 square feet of decking.
 
I have been a pool owner here in Texas for 15+ years. Actually, have owned two different pools. The first at our old home was a free-form, lower depth pool. We converted it to salt and it was a big mistake! Don't let people fool you about the merits! First, the salt water spray is HIGHLY corrosive! It will eat up patio furniture, it was literally crumbling the stone around our pool and it is very hard on the pool equipment. The salt cells also do not last!! I replaced ours twice and was going on a 3rd time when I went back to in-line chlorination. As far as the "soft skin" feel goes...there are products you can by to soften the water if that's important. Our 2nd pool at our new home is much larger. It is also a free-form pool but we have a diving board. I really like the deeper water pool. With older kids they will be jumping in and horsing around and I think you'd appreciate the deeper water. Another factor here in Texas is the intense Summer heat. Shallow pools turn out to be giant hot tubs because the water gets so warm! Finally, I know it's a lot of $$, but you will appreciate a raised spa! We use ours frequently in the cooler months. Doesn't cost much to heat a spa either. Good luck.
Thanks Warrenton. Good info. I think we are leaning towards a deep end. What are your pool dimensions?
 
So my next question is - a pool house. In NC, should this be an open cabana design (with limited closed storage space) or more house-like where the entire structure can be closed off and “shut down”?
 
So my next question is - a pool house. In NC, should this be an open cabana design (with limited closed storage space) or more house-like where the entire structure can be closed off and “shut down”?
Can I come be your contractor? At some point you’re going to invest more in this “pool” than your house and lot are worth. That’s never a good thing..:)
 
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So my next question is - a pool house. In NC, should this be an open cabana design (with limited closed storage space) or more house-like where the entire structure can be closed off and “shut down”?

Not in NC but I think you can do open cabana if you consider a heating source-like a gas powered fireplace for example.

You might still need the house for toilet and shower in that case.
 
Can I come be your contractor? At some point you’re going to invest more in this “pool” than .......:)
Tell me about it. I didn’t even get to my attached garage that I’m putting on. But I have to build the pool before the garage, otherwise I can’t access my back yard with large equipment.
Also, a huge function of the pool house is to act as a wall between my neighbors house and my pool, as I am on someone of a curved corner lot and their house is angled in towards my backyard. Without a large structure, they’ll be staring into my pool all day long.
 
Tell me about it. I didn’t even get to my attached garage that I’m putting on. But I have to build the pool before the garage, otherwise I can’t access my back yard with large equipment.
Also, a huge function of the pool house is to act as a wall between my neighbors house and my pool, as I am on someone of a curved corner lot and their house is angled in towards my backyard. Without a large structure, they’ll be staring into my pool all day long.
I think I understand your dilemma, and I think I can solve it for far less than a “pool house”. Wife and I are headed out for a “function”, but I have a low cost solution that involves nothing other than wire and vines.

I’ll try to share photos tomorrow. The added benefit is that there aren’t , generally speaking, any specific HOA restrictions against said “Veggie wall”. :)
 
I think I understand your dilemma, and I think I can solve it for far less than a “pool house”. Wife and I are headed out for a “function”, but I have a low cost solution that involves nothing other than wire and vines.

I’ll try to share photos tomorrow. The added benefit is that there aren’t , generally speaking, any specific HOA restrictions against said “Veggie wall”. :)

Cool, I think I understand what you’re getting at. But along with visual blockage, I want to have a structure to block some sound as well. Not to mention that I still need a place to store the pool supplies/toys/etc.
But I’m absolutely interested to see what you’ve done as there are other parts of my yard that could use something like you are talking about. Thanks.
 
Wow, this is a fun thread! I look forward to reading this as it grows.

We just went through the process last year and had to make all the same decisions that you are making now. I understand that you want everything to be perfect as you are dropping a huge nut on this project. First word of advice, ....don't stress too much.....it'll turn out beautiful in the end and you are going to love it.

My thoughts on your questions, plus some words of advice:

1. I'll start with words of advice on a topic you didn't bring up. Your happiness is going to depend on the contractor you hire. Please, please, please make sure you do a ton of due diligence in selecting your contractor. This not only means interviewing them and asking them all the relevant questions, but also doing site tours of other pools they have constructed as well as investigating/interviewing prior customers (those with postive and negative opinions). All pool contractors have negative opinions out there. Find them, investigate them and make sure you can live with the bad that might come with your contractor and don't believe all of the glitz and glory that the salesperson tosses your way. Our contractor (a major pool building company), builds and built for us a fantastic product (no complaints whatsoever); however, their customer service and timeliness absolutely SUCKS! We knew that going in so we were prepared for it. Also, as an attorney how has litigated against bad egg pool builders, make sure you get a good contract and pay specific attention to warranties. Its amazing what some pool builders will attempt to allege is "an act of God".

2. Pool Shape: While this is all personal preference, I agree that free form pools give that "resort feel" and in my opinion give your oasis more character. We went with a free form pool and I do not regret it. We are about 43' x 25' free form at the widest spots.

3. Tanning Ledge: This is one of those items that we went back and forth on over about a month and a half. We ultimately decided not to go that way based on the fact that we decided to spend the funds that would have been used on it. In the research I did though, I did find a ton of suggestions that you should make sure you have returns/bubblers in the ledge as the water tends not to circulate well in them if you don't. Also, the water in the ledge tends to stay much water than in other parts of the pool...generally.

4. Pool Depth: Like you, we do not have a diving board. We considered going with a shallower sports pool (for volleyball, etc) but ultimately went with an 8' deep end. The reasoning, ... we have children much the same age as yours, the youngest being a boy. Our concerns were when my son brings friends over when he becomes a teenager and they are being typical teenaged idiots, we didn't want them diving into a shallow pool thereby risking injury. Fingers remained crossed even with a deep end.

5. Pool Heater: Plain and simple....DO IT! We live in PA and our pool has been open since the third week of April. My son has been swimming every other day. I'll personally wait a little longer..LOL

6. Spa: We didn't do one simply because we have a hot tub not far from the back door of our house. We tend to use it only in the winter and the pool is much further (80 feet from the house). In PA, its brutal getting out of the hot tub to get in the house with it sitting right next to the door.....going from the pool in would be brutal. NC may be a lot different. A ton of people have them and they are awesome.

7. Retaining Wall/Raised Beam: We had similar issues with our terrain. We went retaining wall and created a much bigger deck area between the wall and the pool. Its the primary gathering area around the pool. Works well and built heavy duty landscape lighting into the wall. Looks awesome. BTW, if you are looking for very high quality landscape lighting.....check out Volt (www.voltlighting.com). There stuff is awesome and very heavy duty. Did our entire lighting project thought them and could not be happier. You will pay for the quality though as the stuff has a pretty stiff price tag but we wanted something that wan't plastic that would last especially considering the money we've paid for the pool.

8. Inline/Salt Water: Salt water all the way. We went with the salt system when we put our in and it is the most user-friendly, low maintenance thing I've ever used and we have had multiple pools above and in-ground. Remember, a salt water pool is still a cholorine pool but the cholorine is just generated or added in a different way. The cool thing with the salt system is that the salt is broken down by the cell in the salt system which generates the chorine that sanitizes your pool. Once it does that, it reforms into salt and recycles. You have to add a bag or two of salt to your pool every year or, at most, a few times of year as a result of backwashing, etc but otherwise, you are not throwing harsh chemicals into your pool every other day. And, the water is so much softer. In my eyes, the salt system is a MUST over and above all of the other things above.

9. Another big tip: Before you lay your decking, spend a ton of time brainstorming. Think about all the things you may want around your pool (electric, water, speakers, etc, etc). Before any decking is laid, throw conduit (for electric, speaker wire, etc) or flexible water piping down so that it can be under the decking. That way, down the road you have a way to get utilities, etc to the opposite side of the pool. We laid conduit for a few outdoor GFI electrical outlets around the pool (two on our retaining wall. We laid conduit down for speaker wires to the four corners of our pool (so they are exposed just beyond the decking so that we could run a wired sound system (you may want to just go wireless or Bluetooth speaker or whatever as an alternative). Additionally, we poured a concrete pad as part of our decking big enough for a pool shed. In the shed I am partitioning off a section and adding a bathroom with a macerating toilet that pumps back into our septic system. We are trying to keep all of the water out of the house with our children and their friends. Next year, hoping to put up a pavilion with a stone fireplace and bar behind the pool. Hence the water line, etc. I guess my point is ................try as best as possible to envision now, what you might want to do later and get the underground stuff in. You'll thank yourself later.

Enjoy the process and don't be afraid to crack open a cold one as you feel the stress!
 
If not a diving board can you create another feature such as diving platforms? So if you have a free form pool and it has some stone or rock work - can you create some ledges at different heights to dive or jump into the deep end?
 
Thanks Lion2000. Good information. I think we will go with the tanning ledge. We are still undecided on rectangle vs free form. I really would love the spa, but this pool is already $70K and I'm not sure I want to spend another $15K, as much as I'd like a hot tub.
My PB recommended 5 LED lights, and the other PBs thought he was going overboard. I asked my PB why5? He said, because that is what I put in my pool. He said he hates seeing dark spots in the pool, and you need 5 to light it up right. We plan on doing a pool house/cabana as well as covered porch off the house. Good idea on taking pics of underground pipes and wires, thx.
Not sure what your point is on pavers for pool decking? Can you expand?

5 lights! That’s awesome!

As with any decision for a pool, it will be easier to do now than as a layer add on. My costs certainly escalated because I wanted to do it right the first time.

Pavers just seem like extra added maintenance to me. The ground moves around and the pavers shift alignment. Dirt gets in crevices which eventually leads to weeds. I prefer concrete.
 
5 lights! That’s awesome!

As with any decision for a pool, it will be easier to do now than as a layer add on. My costs certainly escalated because I wanted to do it right the first time.
5 lights seems to be real overkill unless building a huge pool. Here's a photo of mine with the lights on. One thing to consider with the lights is the direction you want them pointing. Ours are purposely pointed away from the house so that we see the nice lighting of the pool without seeing the light fixture as a hot spot in the water. Just a thought.

(BTW, ....how the hell do you imbed a photo on this site? I've tried placing a link to the photo on Dropbox and Drop.com into the imbed photo URL field but it just creates a broken photo link. Thanks for any advice.)
 
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Wow, this is a fun thread! I look forward to reading this as it grows.

We just went through the process last year and had to make all the same decisions that you are making now. I understand that you want everything to be perfect as you are dropping a huge nut on this project. First word of advice, ....don't stress too much.....it'll turn out beautiful in the end and you are going to love it.

My thoughts on your questions, plus some words of advice:

1. I'll start with words of advice on a topic you didn't bring up. Your happiness is going to depend on the contractor you hire. Please, please, please make sure you do a ton of due diligence in selecting your contractor. This not only means interviewing them and asking them all the relevant questions, but also doing site tours of other pools they have constructed as well as investigating/interviewing prior customers (those with postive and negative opinions). All pool contractors have negative opinions out there. Find them, investigate them and make sure you can live with the bad that might come with your contractor and don't believe all of the glitz and glory that the salesperson tosses your way. Our contractor (a major pool building company), builds and built for us a fantastic product (no complaints whatsoever); however, their customer service and timeliness absolutely SUCKS! We knew that going in so we were prepared for it. Also, as an attorney how has litigated against bad egg pool builders, make sure you get a good contract and pay specific attention to warranties. Its amazing what some pool builders will attempt to allege is "an act of God".

2. Pool Shape: While this is all personal preference, I agree that free form pools give that "resort feel" and in my opinion give your oasis more character. We went with a free form pool and I do not regret it. We are about 43' x 25' free form at the widest spots.

3. Tanning Ledge: This is one of those items that we went back and forth on over about a month and a half. We ultimately decided not to go that way based on the fact that we decided to spend the funds that would have been used on it. In the research I did though, I did find a ton of suggestions that you should make sure you have returns/bubblers in the ledge as the water tends not to circulate well in them if you don't. Also, the water in the ledge tends to stay much water than in other parts of the pool...generally.

4. Pool Depth: Like you, we do not have a diving board. We considered going with a shallower sports pool (for volleyball, etc) but ultimately went with an 8' deep end. The reasoning, ... we have children much the same age as yours, the youngest being a boy. Our concerns were when my son brings friends over when he becomes a teenager and they are being typical teenaged idiots, we didn't want them diving into a shallow pool thereby risking injury. Fingers remained crossed even with a deep end.

5. Pool Heater: Plain and simple....DO IT! We live in PA and our pool has been open since the third week of April. My son has been swimming every other day. I'll personally wait a little longer..LOL

6. Spa: We didn't do one simply because we have a hot tub not far from the back door of our house. We tend to use it only in the winter and the pool is much further (80 feet from the house). In PA, its brutal getting out of the hot tub to get in the house with it sitting right next to the door.....going from the pool in would be brutal. NC may be a lot different. A ton of people have them and they are awesome.

7. Retaining Wall/Raised Beam: We had similar issues with our terrain. We went retaining wall and created a much bigger deck area between the wall and the pool. Its the primary gathering area around the pool. Works well and built heavy duty landscape lighting into the wall. Looks awesome. BTW, if you are looking for very high quality landscape lighting.....check out Volt (www.voltlighting.com). There stuff is awesome and very heavy duty. Did our entire lighting project thought them and could not be happier. You will pay for the quality though as the stuff has a pretty stiff price tag but we wanted something that wan't plastic that would last especially considering the money we've paid for the pool.

8. Inline/Salt Water: Salt water all the way. We went with the salt system when we put our in and it is the most user-friendly, low maintenance thing I've ever used and we have had multiple pools above and in-ground. Remember, a salt water pool is still a cholorine pool but the cholorine is just generated or added in a different way. The cool thing with the salt system is that the salt is broken down by the cell in the salt system which generates the chorine that sanitizes your pool. Once it does that, it reforms into salt and recycles. You have to add a bag or two of salt to your pool every year or, at most, a few times of year as a result of backwashing, etc but otherwise, you are not throwing harsh chemicals into your pool every other day. And, the water is so much softer. In my eyes, the salt system is a MUST over and above all of the other things above.

9. Another big tip: Before you lay your decking, spend a ton of time brainstorming. Think about all the things you may want around your pool (electric, water, speakers, etc, etc). Before any decking is laid, throw conduit (for electric, speaker wire, etc) or flexible water piping down so that it can be under the decking. That way, down the road you have a way to get utilities, etc to the opposite side of the pool. We laid conduit for a few outdoor GFI electrical outlets around the pool (two on our retaining wall. We laid conduit down for speaker wires to the four corners of our pool (so they are exposed just beyond the decking so that we could run a wired sound system (you may want to just go wireless or Bluetooth speaker or whatever as an alternative). Additionally, we poured a concrete pad as part of our decking big enough for a pool shed. In the shed I am partitioning off a section and adding a bathroom with a macerating toilet that pumps back into our septic system. We are trying to keep all of the water out of the house with our children and their friends. Next year, hoping to put up a pavilion with a stone fireplace and bar behind the pool. Hence the water line, etc. I guess my point is ................try as best as possible to envision now, what you might want to do later and get the underground stuff in. You'll thank yourself later.

Enjoy the process and don't be afraid to crack open a cold one as you feel the stress!
Wow, great info LightHouse. Thanks!

I'm pretty happy with my PB, as he and I have known each other for the past 15 years.

43 x 25? Damn, that's a huge pool. Good for you!

Good info on the tanning ledge, I'll have to check with my PB to see what he says.

As much as we've been hearing about the sports pool, we are not getting one. We visited a friend who has a sports pool and the entire thing was sloped. The only flat part was in the 6.5' area, and what good does that do you?

I think we are leaning towards heat pump for pool heater option. The cost to run a gas line where I need it coupled with the chill factor of the heat pump makes it the right decision for us.

Thanks for tip on wall and landscaping lighting.

The salt/chlorine debate seems to be 50/50. People swear by the systems they have and bad mouth the other one. Not sure what to think here. My PB says the salt water system is his most warranted item.

Good tip on brainstorming. I plan on running conduit wherever I can for future wires, etc.

Thanks again!
 
If not a diving board can you create another feature such as diving platforms? So if you have a free form pool and it has some stone or rock work - can you create some ledges at different heights to dive or jump into the deep end?
Yes, my raised bond beam wall will be 2' high along the entire length of the pool. Kids can jump off it into the water.
 
5 lights! That’s awesome!

As with any decision for a pool, it will be easier to do now than as a layer add on. My costs certainly escalated because I wanted to do it right the first time.

Pavers just seem like extra added maintenance to me. The ground moves around and the pavers shift alignment. Dirt gets in crevices which eventually leads to weeds. I prefer concrete.

I completely get your concern with pavers. But pavers shift, concrete cracks. That's my concern with concrete. Thanks!
 
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