Free form pool - worth the extra cost ?

[samsonpaul]

As the title suggests, at the end of the day does the shape really matter if the backyard space doesn't have a constraint?

The price diff sometimes is close to 10% or more

I was at a rectangular pool last weekend and didn't even think twice about the shape.

Like most of us, pool is for the kids, family friends and most probably will not be able to recoup the entire expense of building a pool

Did anybody here got a rectangular pool which they regret now? And vice versa ?

 

[YippeeSkippy]

I got a rectangular pool and love it. Its swimable, no bumping into curves, no nooks and crannies that harbor dirt or poor circulation. Its easy to set up volleyball games across it. It is classic looking, and in fact I think it mirrors the house and deck shape yet isn't "predictable". My autocover is a simple shape (less $) too.

I like the simple classics! Pics of my set up in signature line.

Maddie

 

[chiefwej]

We did a rectangular pool. As my wife said "it's a swimming pool, we aren't trying to make anyone believe it's some natural oasis in our backyard". Covers fit better, the entire pool area is usable and I really like the clean simple lines of geometric shaped pools. We built two rectangles joined corner to corner. Larger one is the pool, smaller is a sunshelf joined with a square spa. We set the spa at the same water level to provide a cool, still water look, and put a small fountain in the middle of the spa just in case we do want the sound of falling water.

I think the "free form pool" is played out and beginning to look just a bit dated. Everything old seems to come back into style. How many very large public pools are free form? Even the most luxurious resorts seem to lean toward geometric pools. I think free form pools became popular as a way to fit a pool into a relatively small backyard.

Rectangular pools are much more practical, that's why almost every commercial pool built is a rectangle.

 

[ryan-california]

Count me in for rectangular pools . Free form if you have to, otherwise I don't understand it. Then again I like clean lines and what not

 

[sham]

I prefer the look of rectangular pools too! Mine is free form but only because our yard shape is angled. I wish we could have figured out a straight line pool design that would have fit.

 

[Foxy]

I bought a house with a free form and I'd prefer a rectangular and feel it would have been a better fit for my yard. I do love the way some free forms look and also agree that they are best when the yard has restrictions on size and shape. I'm a pretty basic and plain person though and prefer straight lines in furnishings...

 

[crepemaster3000]

Tbh, there is something sexy about the perfect rectangular shape. Don't give it up if you don't have yard restrictions.

 

[GingerJay]

Guess I am the minority. I prefer the look of free form. Rectangular is a bit boring to me. To each their own. Cheers.

 

[Mr Bruce]

In NJ you will probably want to use a solar cover. They only last about 2 years, so with a funky shaped pool you will have to deal with that every 2 years. I think if you were "bending" the pool around a feature like a hot-tub or landscaping it would make sense, but not just for the sake of having a non-rectangular pool.

I never get tired of looking at my rectangular pool or think it looks "boring"

 

[PoolGate]

This is all personal preference. If you are getting a gunite pool, there isn't a price difference (at least around here). Our price was the same for whatever we wanted in a general 40x20 area. If you are getting fiberglass, then it is whatever shape they make it in. Really it isn't practical or aesthetically pleasing to get an auto-top in anything accept a rectangle so if you want that, the choices are few. We looked at what fit our space the best since this isn't just a place to cool off but part of a larger oasis.

 

[sd122]

My watering hole is freeform and it's only purpose is to get wet. I wish I had a rectangular pool so I could actually swim in. So you know what I am voting for.

 

[borjis]

Ya rectangle preferred here. putting / taking off the bubble cover is much easier to deal with for a big one.

 

[Qwijib0]

Count me in for rectangular pools . Free form if you have to, otherwise I don't understand it. Then again I like clean lines and what not

This--- It was actually kind of a struggle to get all my decking perfectly perpendicular cause the crew hadn't done a non-free form in a long while.

 

[samsonpaul]

Thanks for your responses, wife wanted the freeform but when I told her about what the price diff could be for a vinyl pool she wanted something that is functional and doesnt break the bank.

still torn, thinking this oval shape would be a reasonable compromise?

 

[Mcow]

I am currently building a freeform and ascetically it is what I like. I think rectangles are boring. That being said before we are even swimming in it I am seeing the advantage of a rectangle. My neighbor started building his rectangle pool about a month before us so he is in it now and I agree with what others have said there is more usable space in a rectangle. Both our pools take up the same amount of space and I of course have more decking but the freeform for sure limits some in the water.

 

[jimim]

I'm a free form fan. More natural in my opinion. Ever part of our free form is usable. It's how u design it. Our steps are a bump out so no space lost. Our curves flow well. Thinnest part of our pool is 18 feet. The other two areas are 23 and 20 wide plenty of room to swim laps. And u don't have to be in the middle to swim a lap. It's all on the design. I feel. Ours was no more cause gunite. I can see a vinyl being more cause of the curves and liner.

we almost went vinyl cause I couldn't find a gunite company I liked. If I went vinyl I was still going free form and deff the vinyl wrapped steps vs the traditional white. I know they drove price up too.

 

[sunsoul]

We were told just the opposite that, rectangular will cost more for same length gunite free form pool. For same square footage of a free-form, rectangular will look much smaller. I personally like free form so went with free-form. I do see more rectangular these days.

 

[wjr75]

I like rectangular pools and the auto pool cover we have is a dream. If you go with the rectangular pool use the 10% saved towards an auto cover. That's my 2cents..

 

[markuszoom5]

I have rectangular with 8 foot deep end and diving board. Most free forms are not that deep. I like how my solar cover cost $80 on sale cause it's so common. I like how easy it is to pull it over the pool. Also easier to vacuum and brush as it's straight lines. That's just me.

 

[chiefwej]

I don't know about the pool builder you are talking to, but when I built my pool primary factors in cost were the perimeter measurement, area and depth. Some used volume instead of area, but all used perimeter as one of the factors. That, of course means that for a given area, a long skinny rectangle would be the most expensive shape, and a circle the cheapest. Free form is cheaper than rectangle, since removing corners reduces perimeter. I know I paid extra. By planning two rectangles merging corner to corner we ended up with a lot of perimeter.