What’s the Best Pool Shape?
What’s the Best Pool Shape?
There are number of considerations you might use to determine what’s the best shape for your new, backyard swimming pool. Some of which you can decide based on your personal preference and others that will be determined based on where you live. Below are just a few of the more common influencers that can affect the style and shape of your new pool.
What’s Trending 20 years ago the trend for pool design was a lagoon style, free-form pool. Complete with boulders, flag or ledge stone and large rock waterfalls. Today, it’s all about straight lines and minimalistic design features.
How Much Room do You Have?
Another trend that has been directed by rising prices is the size of the backyards todays. Home developers trying to squeeze as many homes into a sub-division as possible has created smaller and smaller spaces for backyards and swimming pools. Squeezing in room for a pool, in some cases, has reduced swimming to nothing more than a plunge pool or spool design.
How Much Will it Cost?
Keeping things simple not only appeals to current designer trends it also has a direct impact on the cost of a pool. Minimal features and seating areas has reduced the price of pool construction down to its minimum.
Municipality and HOA Restrictions
In order to make pools safer and less intrusive to neighbor’s eyesight, cities and HOAs have begun to restrict the placement of pools and even the features such as decking and water features placement. A 5’ boarder in becoming a more common restriction combined with smaller backyards its making your design choices even more limited.
Features and Uses
Besides a pool what else would you like to see in your backyard? A place for a BBQ, fire pit or a seating area. How about a lawn or room for a play structure or an outdoor living space. In some pool designs, such as a diving pool, a certain size and length is required to make it diver safe. The best tip is to create a list of the features you would like to include in the yard along with your pool shape. So, after all of those considerations, what is the best shape for your new pool? It’s really up to you. There is no perfect shape, no architectural or geometrical design that is perfect for your backyard. It’s really about what works for you and one that considers the restrictions associated with your backyard.
Design Process
The first step in the design process is to lay out the backyard and then layer each of the required elements and structures (house, garages, barns, etc.) into the space available. From there design the pool you want including the features, options and backyard items. What you’ll find is that the shape will present itself. Sometimes it’s based on the design and lines of the house or a particular focal point in the yard. Sometimes that design is determined by a vantage point, such as a window or an entry way framed out by a door. Sometimes the pool is situated in a space that provides the best place for a fence to prevent young, non-swimmers from gaining access into the pool area. A good designer will work with you to help blend the requirements of you neighborhood and space with the features you want to include with your new pool. Whatever the final shape of the pool, remember a pool is a place to gather around with friends, family, and sometimes just you. A place to listen to the soft sounds of falling water or just a place to get away from it all – a vacation in your own backyard.