Every year in Victoria, nearly 7000 new in-ground pools are being added to either new or existing homes. Historically, concrete pools have always represented about 70% of the new pool market with fibreglass, vinyl liner and above aground pools making up the remainder. Concrete has always been the premium pool construction material due to its longevity and ability to be fully customisable to suit the specific needs of the client and to best utilise the available space.

Fibreglass pools are ever increasing in the market, due to lower installation costs and shorter construction time frames. This is especially so in rural areas where the lack of specialised trades needed to build a concrete pool make them more accessible. Similarly vinyl liner pools and above ground pools are popular within segments of the market where the cost of a new in-ground concrete pool is price prohibitive.

A typical fibreglass pool

 As general rule these alternative pools with similar features and functionality will cost approximately:

• Fibreglass – 85% of the price of a concrete pool
• Vinyl Liner – 60% of the price of a concrete pool
• Above Ground Pool – 35% of the price of a concrete pool

Concrete pools are superior to fibreglass, vinyl liner and above ground pools for the following reasons:

• They are fully customisable
• Their structural integrity – and can be built to be free standing, in-ground or out of the ground. The pool often forms part of the structural integrity of the surround structure
• They can be built to limitless sizes and configurations, and if you ever grow tired of your pools appearance you can simply update it by re-fixing many commonly available products such as tiles and render coatings
• The concrete – the principle component of a concrete pools structure. It can be fitted with a multitudinous array of coating and fixings not afforded by the polymer linings of both vinyl liner pools and fibreglass. That’s why concrete pools are specified by architects and designers. Fibreglass pools merely try to look like concrete pools!
• Every local government and commercial contractor specifies concrete as the construction material of choice for any new pool construction. This is because concrete is durable and proven in the market place.

Buying a pool is a big consideration, research widely and spend what you feel comfortable spending – it will be there for a long time; especially if you build a concrete pool.

Lifetime warranties offered by fibreglass pool companies are essentially meaningless as they are voided by either poor installations (the root cause of most problems with fibreglass pools) or poor service and maintenance by the client.

An example of the structure of a typical fibreglass pool

The failure of fibreglass pools as a result of installation problems is best highlighted in the above image. Note the surrounding wash stone infill which is stabilised with cement. When this layer of material is poorly installed, voids form around the pool walls, the buttressing is placed under additional loads which it is not designed to withstand. This can result in the pool deforming in shape and possible failure of the structure.

For more information and an alternative opinion, check out this article.

Momentum Pools can build or renovate all types of swimming pools from lap pools sitting atop apartment buildings to backyard pools filled with neighbourhood kids during a summer heatwave. We build in-ground pools from the perspective of the end user: people like you.

Whilst our “pool building egos” are stoked at the ideas of negative edges, wet decks and acrylic windows, the fundamentals of building a great outdoor space that integrates the pool remain the same:

• Consult with all relevant parties (client, house builder, landscaper, designer)
• The pool is to be built for the client
• Use the space efficiently
• Consistency of design
• Complimentary use of surface finishes
• Balance of hard and soft surfaces

The customer came up with the idea to add an acrylic viewing panel on his existing pool. To this he advised his architect, who renovated the home with the acrylic viewing window as the showpiece.

Maximising Space

Pool design is an extension of current building trends. Ever larger homes are being built on smaller blocks of land with ever appreciating market value. As a result the area available to build a swimming pool is increasingly compressed.  New planning regulations, and advances in technology and construction methods means pools can now be built along property and building boundaries to maximise the use of space. This is a long way removed from the pools of the 70’s and 80’s which often form the touchstone by which current pool purchases draw on. Everyone either had their own pool or a neighbours pool where they would congregate as kids (those were the days of ¼ acres blocks, 16m² homes and free-form pools built in the centre of the backyard with a full perimeter paving surround  – and oh yeah – no pool fence. Compare this to sub 600m² blocks, 40m² plus homes and full perimeter fencing.

New but old, this pool encapsulates the past style of building a pool in the middle of the backyard, complete with wrap around paving surround. Note the pool fence.

Hence much of our initial design advice is centred on positioning the pool and pool fence to make best use of the available area. This can be summarised as follows:

• Build the pool in an area that won’t section off a large area of your backyard.
• On small blocks, build against the property boundary – that means you can use existing boundary fence as part of pool fence detail.
• Reduce the size of the area within the pool fence as it’s not usable outside of summer and if your kids are using the area within the pool fence, you will always need an adult to supervise their activities.
• You don’t need full perimeter access to the pool. Single or double sided access to the pool is all that is required. This also applies to full perimeter paving surrounds.
• Build the pool in an area where it’s most visible from the living areas of the home so you can keep an eye on the kids or view it as a showpiece.

This pool captures the modern design brief, built on the property boundary as well as the residence boundary and in full view from all living areas it abuts. It’s a showstopper, which relies on a modern in-floor cleaning system to keep it clean, as it can only be accessed from a single paved entry side.

Pool Design Guidelines

In terms of the pool design, we try to guide the customers with the following advice (based on our experience):

• Nobody does laps in a lap pool.
• If you have kids, they will always use the pool (so build it with kids in mind).
• Domestic pools can’t be made safe to dive in – so don’t consider making the pool safe to dive in. Just discourage the practice.
• The most used areas in the pool will always be areas where you can sit or lie down below water level. So pay attention to step, beach and bench areas.
• Build areas like spas and steps so they are either built internally within the overall pool shape or half in/half out. It’s not fashionable to build these areas external to the pool form.
• There should be a logical progression so you can transition from the house to the pool – this means locate the exit point from the house, the pool fence gate and pool steps in a sequence that provides continuity for seamless use.

Note the extensive use of recreating areas within both the pool and spa. The steps and bench seat form a continuous seated area wrapping around the spa weir wall.

• The number one determinant of how often you will use the pool is water temperature. The bigger the pool you build the more expensive and harder it will be to heat the pool, irrespective of what method of pool heating you use. So consider the size of the pool carefully.
• Design the pool so it’s an extension of the architecture of your home. If your home is a modern recti-linear house, build your pool the same, with right angle corners and straight lines. Ditto for period homes – make use of sweeping radius corners and Roman ended pool shapes which give a classical look.
• Integrate the pool into the backyard. If you have a slope to the property, build the pool to take advantage of this. You could use an acrylic viewing window for a backyard and pool raised relative to the house, so you can look into the pool from the living area. Similarly if your block slopes away from the front to the back fit a horizon or negative edge. A retaining wall along a property boundary can be incorporated into the pool design through building a raised planters along pool edge. If you’re tight for space and need to build the pool close to the building boundary, build the house on the pool shell and fit floor to ceiling fixed windows – the effect can be a show stopper (see example below).

We designed this pool to fit into the angled property boundaries as well as work with the sloping block. Note the way the retaining wall is continued through the raised pool planter box that also showcases the raised spa and integrated water feature.

Material Selection and Pool Aesthetics

In terms of material selections for the surface finishes (pool paving surround, interior tiles, fencing, feature wall cladding, etc.), pay attention to the following ideas we try to employ when designing pools:

• Try to balance hard and soft finishes. For instance if you have a large 2-storey rendered home – use pot plants, planters and strip garden beds to break up the paving. Timber batons and decking will also help to soften the hard masonry surfaces. Course finishes to cladding on walls can help to add texture to otherwise smooth render and paved finishes. You don’t want your backyard to look like a stone tomb – so consider this aspect of your decision deeply.
• Current design trends lean towards large format type products with an overall minimalist feel in relation to the number of product selections.
• Think hard before you use light coloured paving products outside – as they readily stain and discolour. Darker finishes wear staining better. If you have to use a light coloured product, use something with colour mottling or a variegated appearance as it will be less likely to show staining than uniformly light coloured paving products.
• A good colour combo is a light coloured pool interior and dark coloured paving. This is especially so if you don’t have a lot of natural light over the pool. If you do have a lot of natural light cast over the pool you can probably get away with a dark pool interior.
• In terms of pool coping – look for large format products which have a large vertical cross section to the coping overhang.

This pool features a light coloured pool interior, timber batons and decking to soften and prevent a “closed in feeling” from it being hemmed in by the home and property boundaries, as well as large format bluestone paving on the near side and a polished concrete raised plinth and paved surround.

The final rule

The final rule is – it’s your pool. You are paying for it, so break the rules and do what you want  – just make sure you consider the above (from the pool builders perspective, it’s always better to build an ugly pool that clients love than a funky one they hate).

The rule breaker: a St Kilda residing California Bungalow home, with a super funky stone lined, graffiti mural backyard. The pool captures the essence of the Bohemian inner urban suburb – amidst the mid century suburban styling of the home. The effect is just: original.