Everything You Need To Know About Building A Pool For Your House

When confronted with the prospect of a pool, most Americans immediately picture themselves swimming laps in chlorinated water. But very few people actually build pools. Most swimming pools are not built to professional standards; most people, if they are building a pool, use their own pool, or a friend’s pool, as the pattern for theirs.

So if you are going to build a pool, you need to think through what a pool is and ask yourself a few hard questions.

First: what is the purpose of your pool?

Most people build pools for the same reason they build houses. They want a place to entertain friends, and they want a place to cool off in the hot months. They want to exercise, and they want to swim laps.

The second question is: what is the purpose of your yard?

Pools require yards. If you have a pool, you are going to have to put it in a yard.

The third question is: how much space do you have?

Swimming pools come in four basic shapes: rectangle, square, oval, and round. The square pool is probably the most common. Rectangle and oval pools have sides parallel to the ground, and round pools have curved sides. Rectangular and square pools take up more space than oval and round pools. If you have a small backyard and want to fit a pool into it, you will need to choose between a round and an oval.

The fourth question is: do you want a lap pool or a diving pool?

Lap pools are for people who like to swim laps. They are designed for swimming the length of a swimming pool in the time it takes to swim the length of a football field. They are useful for people with certain physical limitations, like weak wrists, preventing them from backstroke.

A pool may be the ultimate outdoor accessory, and it’s certainly a luxury that not everybody has. But building a pool isn’t as simple as you think. First, there’s the matter of hiring a pool builder. (I should say that I speak only from anecdotal experience here, not from any actual research.)

It’s just like building a house

Building a pool is nothing like building a house. For example, in my house, the plumbing, electrical, and ventilation systems all had to be designed from scratch. In a pool, on the other hand, the plumbing, electrical, and ventilation systems all have to be modified, usually in unpredictable ways.

It seems obvious, but swimming pools are expensive. A swimming pool could cost you tens of thousands of dollars, even before you add a deck, fencing, landscaping, and all the other extras. So it’s important to know what you’re getting into.

The first step is to figure out whether you want to have a pool or spa. Spas are smaller, generally covered, and are only used for bathing. Pools, on the other hand, are larger and open so you can swim. Spas usually require less maintenance and are easier to install, but they cost about 50% more than pools.

Know your choices

Once you’ve decided whether to have a pool or spa, the choices are between Fiberglass and vinyl-lined pools. Both are low-maintenance, but the vinyl-lined pool has a lining of plastic or cloth that keeps your water cleaner and is easier to install. Fiberglass pools, on the other hand, are less expensive to install but cost more to maintain. Fiberglass pools won’t rust, but they require far more chemicals.

Once you’ve decided on a pool, you need to figure out how much space you have for a pool. Some pools require yards that are 16 feet deep, so you can’t put them in your yard. The size of your pool also depends on what kind of shape you want. Do you prefer a round or an oval pool, a square or a rectangle?

Find out the best builder 

Once you have considered your options and decided what kind of pool you want, it’s time to find a builder. My recommendation is Laguna Pools. A pool builder should be able to help you design your pool. Compare the bids you get. Ask to see samples of the pools the builder has built. Start by asking your friends and neighbors for recommendations.

Some people build pools, and some people build houses. But most people build homes and then discover that they also need pools. Swimming pools are no good unless you are near the beach. (And that assumes you have a swimming pool in the first place.)

But if you build a pool, you suddenly have to decide where to put the pool. A pool has to fit into your house somehow, preferably with as little disruption to the house as possible. Ideally, the pool would be invisible from outside the home. That, of course, is impossible. You can’t make a pool disappear. But pools can be made less obtrusive by surrounding them with fences and other landscaping.

The problem with pools is that, once they are built, they become a fact of life. You can’t get rid of them, at least not easily, so you might as well make the best of it. The same goes for houses. When you buy a home, you have no idea how you are going to use it., and it probably works out OK. And, of course, if you rent a house, you have even less control.