New and want to build a bio fileter "natural pool" system

[aggiemae]

We bought a 12x24 doughboy for $100.00. Aside from needing a liner it came with everything including a high end one year old filter and newish gas heater. Even has a vacume a floating skimmer thingie, solar cover on a roller and a heavy duty winter cover. It's four years old and it appears that it was taken down very carefully and even rolled backinto the origional box. I even got two bags of sand for the filter. So basically we could install it, fill it and go BUT.... I really want to do a biological swimpond. Even though I found this: http://inhabitat.com/natural-swimming-p ... micals/and it sure looks like a AG pool, I have done enough research to before I bought the pool to know that (so far) no one advised this pool be dug into the grown in the ceneter of a giant hole and overfilled with water but I have found some natural pools where you build two pools one for the plants and gravel filter and another for swimming. I figure that if it doesn't work out I'll buy some fish for the pond and used a traditional system for the swimming pool.

What I was wonder is if anyone here has doen this or seen it done?

http://inspirationgreen.com/natural-poo ... ponds.html

Our house is built into a hillside so its one story in the front and two stories in the back. I plan to built the pool into a sloping hillside, the bottom of the pool will be on the lowest elviation of the yard which (conviently) is 50"-52" lower than the (future)middle terrace. This way we can access the pool from our deck (the middle terrace). I plan to put the bio pond on the (existing) upper terrace. The pool is 12'x24'x48". The biopond will be ~ 4'x 24" x? along the fence line.
I would love to hear any thoughts or concerns before we get started in March.

 

[zea3]

Re: New and want to build a bio fileter "natural pool" syste

Hi, welcome to TFP!
An above ground pool cannot be completely buried as required by the natural pool systems cited in your second link. The first link does not pull up the page you were looking at. Even doughboys which can be buried have to be 1 to 2 feet above the ground.

You will not find too many fans of the natural pool systems on this site. Bottom line is they are not proven to be safe as they do not kill bacteria quickly enough to prevent possible infection of swimmers. There are a few threads on natural pools you can read on TFP where the safety and sanitation issues are discussed in detail.

 

[aggiemae]

Re: New and want to build a bio fileter "natural pool" syste

Actually the plan is to have two connecting pools. The bio pool will be inground in the highest part of the yard. The swiming pool will be tucked into an into an area that is currently a steep and useless slope. I found seveal setups like this on the intenet.There will be a 30 foot long 38" high retaining wall holding back the earth on the high side and the pool itself will sit flush on the lowers level of the yard. We will at a 3walking deck along the two long sides of the pool and 10'x 12' on both short ends. Hopefully we can do this later in the summer after we get the hang of caring for the pool.