Making pool area "multi purpose"...looking for ideas

[linzjane88]

Hello all!

I am very grateful to all the help I have gotten lurking on this site over the last two years. What started as a 'hey, maybe we should get this clearance pool' two years ago is turning into an obsession

Our property only gives us two flat-ish spots for our outdoor fun. One is in the front yard :full sun, view of the river, minimal tree/leaf mess but fully visible when you pull into the house (I.E. total eyesore with a electric blue intex!). The other is in the backyard: right of the deck, concrete sidewalks surrounding, private, but virtually no sun and full of 50yr old maples...OMG the leaves!. The first two years we had the pool out back and the garden in the full sun spot in front.And yes, this really happened.... we DID take it down and level it correctly by the way. Ha!

Unfortunately it was just too shady and the massive maples right above it were a constant struggle. I am wanting to pull the trigger and swap the pool and garden spots this year but I am nervous! It represents a bigger commitment since it is so visible and I am concerned about tearing up one of the few usable (and cute) areas of our property to turn it into a forever pool spot, ya know?

Has anyone found a way to prep the pool area in such a way that it's not hideous should a pool ever not be there? I was thinking pavers so that we could have a nice area for outdoor seating and a little fire pit (the ones you buy) but further reading on here made me re-think that because it sounds like they can become a bit jagged and uneven underneath. What about the whole area pea gravel with a paver border so its at least not a big mud pit in the winter? I would then use the pink foam underneath for some cushion.

Long term goals are to upgrade our basic Intex 15'48" to a bigger Ultra Frame (or nicer if I can talk the hubs into it!). We live in the pacific northwest (between Portland and Seattle) so I don't know that our relatively short summers justify a more expensive pool. I guess we will see how this goes. Thanks for any advice.

Lindsey

 

[POPPA S]

I would worry codes,kids,and animals!

 

[laceygirl]

G'day from Australia..

Pavers will give you seams in your liner floor unless you place thick insulation between the liner and the pavers underneath... We have short summers here too and I tore our front yard up... We don't use the yard when its cold, so we figured we'd just put a pool there... You can check my thread... I've got no yard left after installing my pool.....

 

[linzjane88]

G'day from Australia..

Pavers will give you seams in your liner floor unless you place thick insulation between the liner and the pavers underneath... We have short summers here too and I tore our front yard up... We don't use the yard when its cold, so we figured we'd just put a pool there... You can check my thread... I've got no yard left after installing my pool.....

Good point! I think I just needed to voice my fears, lol! When you don't have a ton of property, taking up what prime real estate you do have is hard to do. BUT we don't do much outside when it's cold either and when it's summer we swim. It just makes sense. It also just makes sense to get a bigger pool I am secretly hoping our ol' blue intex will have rendered itself unusable over the winter. "But honey, we HAVE to get a new one." I wish I would have gone with my gut and bought when Target had them on clearance. We paid about $200 or $250 on clearance for our 15'48" metal frame. I haven't seen much in the way of sales since I have been looking.

 

[jblizzle]

I know there are some who poured a cement slab to set the pool on, when it is taken down, you would have a big patio.
Or they put a cement curb in a circle and packed the ground level on the inside, put some flowers around it and you have a nice sitting area (put a fire pit in the middle) when the pool is down.

 

[Mollyj]

I'm going to subscribe to this topic. This is my first year with an above ground pool and I'm looking for ideas on what to do with the ground when the pool is taken down and also how to make it better for next year.

I can so sympathise with the trees issue, there is nowhere in our garden that doesn't have trees near it or tree roots. I've put it nearest the ones that don't drop many leaves. Maybe you could consider using a cover to help with the leaves? I'm just testing out a net curtain type cover which keeps all the annoying bits of tree and leaf rubbish off the pool and helps block the sun a little bit - not enough to mess up the chemistry or make it too cool.

Another thing I'm doing is growing a few miniature citrus trees in a semi circle in front of the pool, it's going to make a really effective screen and will help hide the pool - I know what you mean about it being an eyesore - every time I look out of any window in the back of the house I can see it lol (and yes Laceygirl, I WILL take pictures later - been busy working this week )

 

[YippeeSkippy]

I would be very concerned about a pool in the front of my house. It could offend neighbors who consider it a hindrance to house values and safety. Perhaps taking a tree or two down in the backyard is the answer?

 

[linzjane88]

I would be very concerned about a pool in the front of my house. It could offend neighbors who consider it a hindrance to house values and safety. Perhaps taking a tree or two down in the backyard is the answer?

I see where your coming from but I think I might be more concerned about a tacky pool in my front yard than my sweet little neighbor lady. We are pretty lucky in that department. We live on a small offshoot of a main road so there's just our two houses. The location would be close to her fenceline and visible from her side yard (our home is placed sort of diagonally to hers). That being said part of this big jump into the new pool spot is that we intend to put a small chunk of $ into making not look like we have a leftover summer pool still in our front yard, lol.

Our intentions are to fence the area so it is less visible as well as doing some pretty involved landscaping work. What I think we will do is end up making a box and using the landscaping border around the perimeter and after putting down the pink foam insulation where the base of the pool will be and insetting the pavers then putting small river rock around the border. Then a cedar fence around at least the front. The a retaining wall to level out the yard. Oh, and upgrading to a bigger pool.....Oh my....

 

[linzjane88]

I'm going to subscribe to this topic. This is my first year with an above ground pool and I'm looking for ideas on what to do with the ground when the pool is taken down and also how to make it better for next year.

I can so sympathise with the trees issue, there is nowhere in our garden that doesn't have trees near it or tree roots. I've put it nearest the ones that don't drop many leaves. Maybe you could consider using a cover to help with the leaves? I'm just testing out a net curtain type cover which keeps all the annoying bits of tree and leaf rubbish off the pool and helps block the sun a little bit - not enough to mess up the chemistry or make it too cool.

Another thing I'm doing is growing a few miniature citrus trees in a semi circle in front of the pool, it's going to make a really effective screen and will help hide the pool - I know what you mean about it being an eyesore - every time I look out of any window in the back of the house I can see it lol (and yes Laceygirl, I WILL take pictures later - been busy working this week )

OMG the pool cover...we have SO many trees dumping leaves directly over and into our pool that they weighed down the cover and it fell in. I do intend to try the net kind this year to see if I like it better. If I suddenly became a millionaire I would drop every stinking tree that is next to our house! Those specific ones are going to be terribly difficult to get to and have to be taken down in chunks by someone very experienced ($$$).

 

[Mollyj]

I suppose we're kind of lucky in Australia, although some imported foreign trees do drop their leave sin Autumn, most of the trees in my yard are slow droppers, they only seem to drop a few leaves and they just blow right off the cover. Having said that, this year is the windiest we've ever know it, my other half doe model plane flying and he hasn't managed to fly in the garden for weeks because of the win. Last year he flew heaps - must be that weird weather effect as it's also been one of the coldest summers for years.

LOL at suddenly becoming a millionaire, wouldn't that be nice? If my lotto numbers ever come up it's only ever a few dollars - add a few more noughts and that wold be it - no work, backyard full of total fun and pool - along with a waterfall.