Making the decision to custom build a swimming pool in your backyard is very exciting! Many people envision their children laughing and splashing in the water, their friends sitting around with cold beverages and neighbourhood BBQ’s with the pool being the main centerpiece. But building a pool is major construction and the vision sometimes gets lost with the noise of the yard being dug up and construction workers milling around. This article will help those future pool owners understand what’s really happening during the process and keep the vision of the finished product in their heads.

The first step is the fun part and that’s designing your swimming pool! A qualified team of contractors and designers will sit down with you to decide what type of pool you would like. They will take into consideration what your needs are and what will be most suitable to your yard. You will choose things such as the pool’s shape, the colour, and the different materials that will be used.

Before any excavation is begun, a representative of the company you have chosen will come to layout the new pool in your backyard. This layout will show where your pool area will be, where the deck area will be, and where the location of the pool equipment will be. This will all be based on the custom design you have chosen. After you approve the layout, building will begin!

The next step is the grading and excavation. The excavating equipment will be brought in and the digging will begin. It usually takes about one full day to dig out the pool area and remove the soil from your yard. If there are soil or rock issues to contend with, it may take longer than one day.

To protect the pool from ground forces, steel is brought in next. Steel-reinforcing rods, or rebar, are placed inside the pool area. These will travel along the bottom, up the sides, and around the perimeter. After this is done, the plumbing and electrical can be completed. Plumbing crews will install the proper piping to clean and purify your swimming pool. The electricians will also hook up to your main electricity service and connect the pool equipment and lighting. A concrete mixture called gunite is then applied. This is applied with a lot of pressure so it can bond tightly around the steel reinforcing rods. This reinforces the steel and gives it much more strength.

The swimming pool tile is installed next. This will be installed up to what will be the waterline in the pool. The coping, or the ‘lip’, of the pool may also be installed around the perimeter of the pool at this time. Tile and coping are available in a wide variety of colours, designs, and textures. You will have chosen these when you were designing your pool. The decking will be installed after the tile. This is an important part of the design as it frames and accents the pool. The materials can be concrete, brick, or stone.

The pool equipment set will then be placed on a concrete pad and be made operational. The pool will then be covered with a strong, waterproof finish that will seal the pool and provide the finishing touches. There will be different colours available that will affect the colour of the pool when reflecting the sun.

After that, your pool is finished! All it needs is some landscaping, some patio furniture, and voila! Your vision has finally arrived!

Choosing a contractor to build your pool isn’t that much unlike choosing a contractor to work on any other part of your house. You need to be wary, do your research, and be armed with a few key pieces of advice. Below are some bits of that very advice you need before choosing your pool contractor.

The first thing you want to do is get more than one quote. Three to five quotes are usually considered ideal. Going the extra mile on this step really is worth your time especially since any good contractor will provide a quote free of charge. Make sure you read the fine print and do a comparison of all the bids. Use all the same materials and the same design when talking to the contractor so that when they write out the quote, you can later compare the same things. Different quotes don’t do much good if they’re all for different things. Make sure the contractor comes to visit your home so they can see the site where the pool is to be built.

Ask the contractor for testimonials. There are fewer things that are as reassuring as hearing from others that the contractor is worth his salt. Ask others if they have ever heard of the contractors that you are considering. When speaking to the past customers, ask how the service was and how problems were handled. Also ask about how much time it took for the pool to be built. While you want the contractor to take the time to do a good job, you don’t want to start building a pool in April only to still have an empty hole in your backyard in December.

You absolutely must make sure that they are licensed and insured. In most states (if not all) pool contractors must have a license. And it only makes good business sense to make sure that they are insured if any unforeseen problems arise. Also check with the Better Business Bureau to see how they rank there.

Landscaping around your pool can be a lot of fun. Picking out just the right plants that you love and that will complement your pool really can be very exciting. But when choosing your pool landscaping, it’s important not to just be thinking about how the landscaping will look but also to think about what will ensure the safety of the swimmers and not be too hard for pool maintenance. Below are some simple steps to help you decide on some great pool landscaping.

A pool with plants and flowers planted all along its side can be very attractive. But remember that container plants or potted plants are easier to maintain, replace and rearrange. Another advantage is for plants that are sensitive to frost. These plants can be brought in for the winter and be moved outdoors again the next spring. And container plants really are beautiful as well.

To help with pool maintenance and safety, don’t plant flowers, plants, or shrubs that will hang over the pool. These are bound to drop something into the water whether it be pollen, stems, or petals. Also move the plants that tend to have a lot of droppings at least eight feet from the pool. Along these same lines, it’s wise to choose plants and shrubs that drop their leaves in a short period so you only have to do one cleanup.

Plants that have shorter leaves tend to be less likely to have their droppings blown away by the wind and blown right into the pool. Also avoid evergreens such as live oaks and pines. They may seem like a good choice but they drop needles, pine cones, flowers, and acorns for months.

Also make sure to take your privacy into consideration and set up a fence or a large trellis to block the view of passer-bys or your neighbor’s window.

And lastly, while you are deciding on your pool landscaping, talk to your local nursery about plants that tend to do well in your climate and soil. Be sure to tell that you are landscaping around a pool and ask how far away the plants should be. They are the professionals and should be able to offer some very good advice. Landscaping your pool doesn’t have to be a chore. In actuality, it should add to the beauty of your pool and make it that much more enjoyable!

For those that are lucky enough to have a pool, pool maintenance is part of the package. Pool maintenance is extremely important to promote cleanliness and good pool chemistry. But pool maintenance isn?t all bad. It just takes some attention to detail and some routine care to ensure a clear, clean pool.

Daily Care

- Test Pool Water for Sanitizer Level. This is to make sure that pH and alkaline are in good balance. A pool with an improper balance can affect water clarity, damage pool equipment, cause erosion and even affect pool chemistry.

- Add Chlorine or Bromine. This sanitizes your pool and kills any algae, bacteria, or other living things in the water.

- Check skimmer basket. Clear debris from skimmer basket to help keep water circulating and fresh.

Weekly Care

- Shock Pool Water. These are necessary to destroy combined chlorine compounds. Shocks work with chlorine to help clean the pool.

- Add Algaecide. This is to prevent and control algae. A good algaecide should not damage or stain the pool.

- Add Metal Out. All pools have tiny particles that the filter system does not catch. This weekly dosage will help eliminate metal particles.

- Add Clarifier. This prevents cloudy water and they also remove particles that are too small for the filter system to catch. Clarifying agents will make particles stick together so the large pieces can later be removed through vacuuming or filtration.

As Needed

- Vacuum pool.

- Leaf skim.

- Brush walls.

- Check filter/backwash.

These quick and easy steps will help ensure that you help preserve the life of your pool and also ensures a beautiful, clean pool for you to enjoy!