Are You Ready to Be a Pool Owner? Here's What You Should Consider.
AIf there was a single, most important question everyone should ask themselves before starting to build a swimming pool it is “Am I ready to be a pool owner?” In case your initial answer to this question is “I don’t know. What will it require of me?” then let us help by breaking this responsibility down into five key questions that will help you consider some important things.
How will you prepare non-swimmers to swim safely?
Pool safety is our top priority, as we’re sure it is yours. If you have young swimmers, or even adults who are not strong swimmers, it’s important to think about what steps you will take to prepare everyone who will be around your pool frequently to swim independently and safely. You may wish to sign children up for professional swim lessons early. Additionally, you should invest in life vests and life saving devices to have near the pool. Finally you should consider the many ways you can incorporate safety features and alarms around your home and pool to make sure children only have access to the pool when supervised.
Who will be responsible for pool maintenance?
The next big question is who will be responsible for pool maintenance. This includes everything from skimming out debris from the pool, emptying filters, keeping the pool area free of dirt and grass, and watching for any signs of wear and tear that may need to be addressed. Consistent maintenance, especially from the beginning, is essential for keeping your pool running at its optimal performance. This is also a great way to assign out some of these chores to family members to get everyone involved and feeling responsible for the pool!
Will you be diligent about monitoring and testing the water?
This question is an important one. Being diligent about monitoring and testing your pool water will prevent large problems from arising down the road. Not only will you enjoy clearer, better looking water when your water chemistry is correct, your pool’s finishes and filtration system will also last longer. It’s possible to do this on your own, with the right training from a professional pool company. Or you can hire a professional pool company to monitor, test and adjust your water chemistry for you for a reasonable monthly fee.
How will you establish “pool rules” for family and friends?
Next you should think through your family’s pool rules and how you will manage guests wanting to use your space. Rules are important, not only to maintain control over who visits and when, but also for ensuring safety. Will you allow guests to stop by and use the pool when you’re not home? What do they need to know about using your pool and pool equipment? Are neighborhood kids allowed to swim without a parent or guardian accompanying them? These may seem like minor details, but the earlier you can think through your pool policies, the better prepared you will be to handle these scenarios and help guests understand your preferences and expectations.
Who will close and open your pool each season?
A final and very important consideration is who will be responsible for closing and opening your pool each season. The reason it’s important to consider this is because it’s not typically an easy DIY project. In many cases, you are better off working with a professional pool company, like Blue Diamond Pool Service, who is experienced doing this and who can ensure it’s done properly each and every time. Additionally, depending upon the style and shape of your pool, a custom cover or closing/opening process may be needed. For these reasons, it’s important to get input from a professional pool company, and to also budget for whatever costs may be associated with opening and closing your pool each season.
Depending upon your answers to these questions, do you feel you’re ready to be a pool owner? Or do you have another question you’d like to ask a pool professional? Contact us today so we can begin to walk you through our process for building custom gunite swimming pools.
5 Unexpected Benefits of Having Your Own Swimming Pool
5When thinking about the many reasons for wanting to build your own swimming pool, a few easily rise to the top. You want an easy way to keep cool in the summer, it is great entertainment for kids (of all ages!), you enjoy being outside, you want to feel like you’re on vacation all season long – and the list goes on.
But have you considered some of the less obvious, maybe even unexpected benefits of owning a pool? Like how your whole family is more likely to stay active throughout the summer, or how your children will have the opportunity to become strong and safe swimmers? Once you add these following benefits to your full list of “pros,” you just might be ready to pull the trigger on building your custom gunite swimming pool sooner than later!
1. Convenience and Comfort
Many people underestimate just how convenient and comfortable it is to have your own swimming pool right in your backyard. Gone will be the days of packing up all the swim gear, snacks, drinks, your own lawn chairs and towels and trekking the whole family out to a crowded public pool or lake. You control the water temperature, style of lawn chairs, types of towels, and much more. And you can actually float on a raft in peace!
2. You’ll Entertain More
Having a pool, especially during those dog days of summer, will instantly make you the friend everyone wants to know. This will give you a reason to reach out to friends and family and invite them over, when maybe you might not have otherwise. A pool is also an easy form of entertainment for guests of all ages. Put out some snacks and you’re ready to go!
3. Opportunity to Develop Strong Swimming Skills
No matter your age, having strong swimming skills is extremely important. Children (and adults) who grow up with frequent access to swimming will develop these skills much sooner, and can continue to refine them. With your own swimming pool, your children will get to practice almost daily under safe supervision. You could even have a swim instructor come to your home to provide formal lessons. It doesn’t get much more convenient than that!
4. Easy Option for Exercise and Activity
When you have a pool right outside your door, glistening in the summer sun, it becomes a lot harder to find an excuse to stay inside. When you spend the majority of your free time in or near your pool, you’re going to get a lot more exercise and activity than watching TV, playing video games, or surfing through YouTube clips on the computer. This is particularly important for children who are home during the summer. Additionally, swimming is great exercise than you enjoy at any age or skill level. Just remember to always keep pool safety a top priority and monitor or assist those who are not strong swimmers.
5. Avoid the Hassle and Cost of Pool Memberships
Finally, you will be able to say goodbye to the hassle and cost of pool memberships. If you’ve ever had a country club membership to have access to their pool, you know just how quickly this adds up with initiation fees, membership dues, plus minimum monthly spends. Even public pool memberships can add up over time and be a hassle with the lines and fighting for a spot to put down a chair or towel. By eliminating this expense (and hassle), and investing it toward your own pool, it can help you make some wiggle room in your budget to further justify why building your own swimming pool is a smart, long-term investment.
Which one of these benefits would be enough reason for you to build a swimming pool? Or is there another benefit you’ve been considering that would make a pool project an easy “Yes!” for you? We encourage you to list these reasons out and really think about everything you could gain from investing in your own pool. Most pool owners’ only regret is not getting started sooner!
Ready to learn more? Let’s talk!
A Creative Way to Make an Infinity Edge Beautiful and Functional
You may think that the infinity edge feature is reserved for the pools you see sitting atop a fancy hotel in Los Angeles where the water appears to run right over the edge. Or maybe you’ve enjoyed a pool with this feature while on vacation where the infinity edge appeared to drop off into another body of water like a lake or the ocean. While these are all excellent uses for an infinity edge, it’s important to keep in mind that you’re not limited to using this feature only when you have a steep drop off near another body of water.
In this unique project, we want to showcase how we built a custom pool to include not only an infinity edge, but one that includes a second lower pool all its own. There were several reasons why this became the dream design for our client. Foremost, they wanted to find a way to work with a challenging slope in their backyard while enhancing the aesthetics of their pool. They also desired a separate pool space that felt more intimate and secluded. Finally, their property is along the Yellow Breeches, and they wanted to find a way to incorporate the sound of running water to reflect the sound of the creek.
Take a look at how we were able to accommodate all of these wishes by incorporating an infinity edge feature into their pool design.
Working with the grade of the landscape.
This particular project presented the challenge of a sloped landscape that would require some substantial excavation and regrading to make it level for a swimming pool. The property was known to have limestone underground, so there would be the risk of hitting rock if we did any major excavating. It would also add to the cost of the project, more so than starting on fairly level land.
The alternate option we recommended to this client was designing the pool with an infinity edge to work with the existing grade of the property as much as possible. The infinity edge accommodates a slope by allowing for an exposed wall and for the water to run over the edge into a catch basin. The end result is not just a solution to the grading challenge, it’s an outstanding feature that greatly enhances the aesthetics and wow factor of the pool.
Enhanced aesthetics.
To dive a little deeper into the enhance aesthetics of this pool, the infinity edge and the lower catch base, as well as various areas of exposed sides of the pool were all finished with natural limestone. We recommended using natural stone over a veneer to ensure that as water runs over the edge of the pool, deterioration or a buildup of salt residue would not be an issue. Natural stone is far better at holding up to this daily wear and tear.
The stone was selected to perfectly blend with the house’s existing stone finishes, and gave a nod back to the area that is known for its limestone. When standing at the lower end of the pool, you can see how the many layers of stone and hardscaping create a stunning backyard scape that certainly grabs your attention.
Filtration and Function.
Many people don’t fully understand how the hydraulics and filtration systems for these magnificent looking features work. And they shouldn’t really need to! It is the job of the pool professional to understand and design the system to meet all pool and spa codes along with meeting expectations from the client on how things look and will operate.
Keeping the correct amount of water moving and circulating between the main pool and the catch pool below can be tricky depending on what you are trying to accomplish. As the water from the “upper” pool spills over the edge to the “lower” catch pool, leaves and debris will spill over with it. A well designed hydraulic system will incorporate a pump and filter for this lower pool to ensure that it stays clean. In this particular job, we installed variable speed pumps, cartridge filters and tied the plumbing system into a pool heater so that the water is sanitized and crystal clear as well as heated! The water then returns to the main “upper” pool via fittings in the pool floor to create the overflowing edge. By returning the heated water to the floor of the pool we ensure efficient heating as well as a water surface that doesn’t show “ripples”, giving the glass like appearance that clients find desirable in vanishing edge designs.
Two separate and functional swimming areas.
What’s most unique about this particular pool is that the client wanted to make the lower basin, which is typically a slender catch basin, into a fully functional second swimming area. Because we custom design each and every one of our pools, we were happy to accommodate this special request. More than just an additional swimming area, the lower basin includes several jets to give it a spa-like feel. The end result was two pools in one, each with a very different feel and view. For a family with small children, this is an ideal setup where the kids can enjoy splashing in the upper pool while the adults enjoy calmer waters in the lower pool, along with the soothing sound of the infinity edge’s waterfall.
Have you ever envisioned building a swimming pool that includes an infinity edge feature? We can help you explore all the possibilities! Contact us today so we can start a conversation.