Pool Building Tips I Wish I Had (Listened to)... When I Built My Pool

Are you dreaming of having your own pool? A place where you can relax, cool off, or have your home be the party home where friends and family can gather for years to come? Here are some tips I used OR I wish I thought of (listened to) before I designed my own pool.

1. Determine your pool's use: Will you be using the pool for exercise, entertaining or relaxing? This will help you determine the size, shape, and features that will best suit your needs. I opted for a pool that could allow me to have all of the above. I designed an in-pool bar seating area at the shallow end of the pool near the TV away from the kids who jump and splash at the deep end. Works out great, right?

2. Choose the right size and shape: Many people don't take into account how much room (even a small play pool) takes up in the yard. I spent months figuring out how to maximize the shape and location to get the biggest pool into the corner of my yard, so that I could keep my grass lawn and mature trees. Early on in my journey, pool company salesmen tried to encourage me to get rid of my grass and trees, even after the first thing I said was, "I do not want to get rid of my grass and trees." Now you see why I did not hire them and built my own pool! Once you add depth, you are adding length and more space. If you have children like mine who will want to jump, dive or play volleyball-- you may opt for a deeper pool, if you have the yard space for it, then you can!

3. Select the best area for your pool: Think about you in your new completed pool, and just picture the sun glaring in your eyes. One of the most important things I tell my clients for pool and landscape is to consider where that hot Arizona sun will be in the afternoon and early evening when it’s the hottest. Let's build a pool that accounts and positions for that. We also want to typically build the pool steps closest to the home's door so that there is a seamless transition into and out of the pool to the home.

4. Incorporate features that reflect your style, budget and safety needs: Don't have the extra $20,000 for a spa? I didn’t, and opted for a 6-foot sheer descent water feature with custom upgraded tile. Love the idea of simplicity but want the convenience of automation? Then, opt for a simple pool but incorporate automation system which controls the temperature, waterfall, lights and cleaning system from your phone. With so many features available, its important to prioritize and spend the money on what is most important to you.

5. Budget but think about long term costs and let your pool work smarter (than you are): What I mean by this is, I underestimated the cost of a pool from day one. I splurged where I shouldn’t have and cut corners in the ways that were not exactly smart. The costs are not just the initial building costs, but there are yearly maintenance costs with electricity, water and chemicals.  Now, having the experience I do, I would have opted for In-Floor Cleaning instead of a vacuum cleaner which as my boyfriend/partner/pool cleaner says, "sucks". After a while and constantly buying pool shock and yellow out, and seeing my pump work so hard to clean my pool for almost 20 hours a day,