Adding a Swimming Pool

The main reason a family chooses one hotel over another is the pool. People love to be near water and children love to swim. Swimming pools are a great way to relax without having to leave your home. Your children have a playground right outside that will allow them to stay active, not to mention swimming is a great low-impact exercise that can repair sore muscles when it's too hot to do much else.

Swimming Pool Shapes
In the past, home pools were square or kidney-shaped. Sometimes a homeowner could get a larger square or larger kidney, but typically the shape options were arresting. Today, no matter how big your yard is or what shape you have designated for the pool, there are pools that can comfortably fit any shape yard. Be sure to consider the space that will be used by the hot tub and home sauna when thinking about the size and shape of your pool. Click on these links if you'd like to read more about home saunas or hot tubs.

Swimming Pool Decking
Another great design feature of the modern pool is the variety of decking options. Here, decking doesn't refer to a wood or composite deck (although it could if that's your preference), but rather the material immediately surrounding your pool. There is more available than just concrete. There are brick pavers, limestone, flagstone, materials that won't get hot to the touch, to name a few.

Some homeowners choose to save money by only using a requisite amount of decking, and just use their yard as a good launch pad to the pool. While this is a smart option for the budget-conscious homeowner, extending the decking is a great way to get creative and add outdoor living and entertaining space.

Your decking can stretch into a large patio that trails over to a gazebo or offers a nook for breakfast and outdoor dining. Many have installed brick hearths to warm themselves during the colder months, stationary outdoor grills, even brick ovens.

Of course the decking doesn't have to stretch from the pool to the house, although it does cut down on the amount you have to mow every week, but extending the decking is a nice, logical way to have continuity from the back door to the pool.

Swimming Pool Coping
coping is a smart way to add texture to your pool design. Pools have a lip about one foot deep that is the same material as the pool shell. Now, if you want the decking material to be continuous up to the edge of the pool, you definitely can. However, if you want to tie in other materials or just have a visual edge to the pool, using a different coping material can be a stylish choice.