New Pool Questions - Tanning Ledge?

[techgirl]

We are in the process of putting a pool in our AZ house - we're using this as a vacation home for the next while (we're in our 40s) and then when we retire will split our time between AZ and our home in BC Canada.

We originally had a tanning ledge/ baja bench that was 8 by 8 then realized since we were paying on perimeter it didn't cost us anything more to have the ledge go the length of the pool. We didn't want steps going out into the middle of the pool (would need extra steps because it's 5 feet there) so we added a 2 by 8 bench on the ledge (it's 2 feet high). We will have infloor cleaning. We don't want a huge pool for heating purposes so the additional ledge space is not at the expense of swimming.

Do any of you experienced pool folks see anything wrong with this?

Water temp : How warm does the water on a tanning ledge get? We were thinking of bubblers but don't know if they're worth the cost (actually I don't know how expensive they are )
Lighting: We have intellibrite LEDs going into the pool and spa - I'm worried this ledge will look dark...
Colour: I know that water changes appearance with depth, will it look weird having a much lighter look to almost half the pool? Does anyone have experience with using different colours of pebbletec?
Depth: We were thinking about just going 6-9 inches - does anyone have advice on ideal depth? We want to use it for lounging in chairs, and just relaxing after golf with our feet in the water. The kids (teenagers) might actually lay in the water.

Any advice would be really appreciated.

 

[DJP1812]

Some thoughts:

I really like the design of the pool. Great 'sport' layout for volleyball, etc.
Since the tanning ledge is so large I would look into Crystal Foam Jets instead of regular floor jets. They lay flatter and you can also get them with LEDs (solve your light/dark issue).
Just an idea but built-in seating for the fireplace side might look good.

 

[techgirl]

Thanks for the feedback - I love the idea of a built in - does anyone have any idea on what a built in to mirror the hot tub might cost (I can't ask our PB about new things right now since we're trying to get this design in budget)? I'm wondering how comfortable that would be to sit for long periods? I'll also have to look into the costs of those jets - does anyone have a ballpark for the jets with LED?

We really like the design right now but may have to make some changes due to budget (the bench in the tanning ledge for example is $1100 - not sure it's worth that but it looks kind of cool and creates a definitiion for the ledge...) We could lose a few feet on the depth of the ledge, but it doesn't save a ton because the decking price increases.

 

[carolina pool]

You can put a slope on the tanning ledge of about 1 inch per ft which will give you a nice variety of water depth and decrease the transition depth into the pool. In some cases it will replace one step. It looks like your tanning ledge is about 10 ft so you could have water depths ranging from 5 to 15 inches.

 

[4knights]

Since your just planning now, have you considered plumbing a valved return line to come up in the middle of your bench? It could spill off all 4 sides and be surrounded with Color changing LEDs facing down (under the bench coping)
Just trying to spend more of your money

 

[bigdav160]

Your pool design doesn't look that different than mine :-D My wife doesn't like to swim much so the tanning ledge was a "must have".

You didn't say "where" in Arizona but since I once had a home (with a pool) in Oro Valley I give my two ¢

The evaporation rate of the pool water was so great, the water was always cool/cold.
I didn't have a spa so originally there was no heater. This Texas boy likes his water warm so I had to install solar heat and blanket to to use the pool.

I presume the infloor cleaner will be on the tanning ledge also? Our ledge seem to attract quite a bit of debris. Even with three bubblers to create water movement I have to sweep it often.

 

[techgirl]

bigdav160 your pool is GORGEOUS - ours will be simpler than yours (trying to stay on budget) - we added two bubblers to the tanning ledge - I was a little worried about the tanning ledge getting too warm in the summer so wanted a little more circulation.

I've given up on lighting the tanning ledge - our pool builder won't support LED bubblers (they've had lots of problems)

We are also adding blue glass to the firepit - it will be a linear gas firepit (two prongs along the length of the firepit).

We also shortened the wet deck / tanning ledge to 6 feet and added the extra two feet to the pool itself.

A few other things - we are doing the pavers right up to the pool (we don't like the look of the edging pavers) and we are doing the tile "offset" - so that the rows don't line up in the hopes of making the grout a little less noticeable. We have decided to do the blue tile along the waterline and on the sides of the spa and firepit.

4knights I love the idea of plumbing/lighting the table in the pool but unfortunately we're maxed on the budget - we are doing all of this including the decking, landscaping, irrigation and landscape lighting for under 50K all in so we can't add anything without taking something else out

Any suggestions (we are just excavating now) would be appreciated!

 

[4knights]

4knights I love the idea of plumbing/lighting the table in the pool but unfortunately we're maxed on the budget - we are doing all of this including the decking, landscaping, irrigation and landscape lighting for under 50K all in so we can't add anything without taking something else out

I understand the budget issues, that's why I did mine myself. Couldn't afford a pool otherwise.
Ask your builder what it would cost to just run the PVC and the CPVC(electric conduit) and cap them for now. This way you could add those features when money allows without tearing anything apart.
PVC & conduit are real cheap ($2-5 per 10ft section)

I added extra PVC and electric conduit runs at different locations around the pool for future expansion (slide, waterfall, landscape lighting) don't have the money for those things now but who knows what CL or a garage sale might turn up.

 

[techgirl]

Some thoughts:

I really like the design of the pool. Great 'sport' layout for volleyball, etc.
Since the tanning ledge is so large I would look into Crystal Foam Jets instead of regular floor jets. They lay flatter and you can also get them with LEDs (solve your light/dark issue).
Just an idea but built-in seating for the fireplace side might look good.

We ended up going with the lighted bubblers on the ledge centered with the stairs - thanks for the advice. Our builder charged a fortune but it's one of those things we would have trouble doing later.

 

[DJP1812]

Nice!! Looking forward to seeing the pictures!

 

[tl0tfp]

Since your just planning now, have you considered plumbing a valved return line to come up in the middle of your bench? It could spill off all 4 sides and be surrounded with Color changing LEDs facing down (under the bench coping)
Just trying to spend more of your money

What product would you use for the actual Color Changing LEDs face down under the bench coping? I imagine this would also work for normal pool coping that hangs over the pool 1" to 1-1/2"? Curious what the product is that could be used to place light on a large baja step / shelf area.

Thanks!

 

[Peanut1]

The only issues we have had if someone steps on the lights it can break the seal and water will short them out so we put the lounge chairs over them so it's impossible to step on them! At night time they are a focal point of the pool for sure!

 

[Peanut1]

Are you having it spill into the pool or just be shallow ? If its a part of the pool with no spill then I wouldn't do bubblers . And our is about 5-6 inches!

 

[4knights]

Since your just planning now, have you considered plumbing a valved return line to come up in the middle of your bench? It could spill off all 4 sides and be surrounded with Color changing LEDs facing down (under the bench coping)
Just trying to spend more of your money

What product would you use for the actual Color Changing LEDs face down under the bench coping? I imagine this would also work for normal pool coping that hangs over the pool 1" to 1-1/2"? Curious what the product is that could be used to place light on a large baja step / shelf area.

Thanks!

I was thinking of a fiber optic light(no specific brand) just making sure that the fiber was in the concrete before the pour. I sit out and look at my pool most very night and I wish I would have run a fiber light around the underside of the cantaliever.
My lights are plenty bright and colorful, just think it would look even better with some down lighting.

 

[pepperthorne]

This tread is over 2 years old and OP has not logged on in over a year ... you may not get a response to your question. jblizzle

What was the total cost of your pool?