DIY Basement Pool - Overflow strategy

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Bluejean

In The Industry
Apr 22, 2024
3
Texas
I'm in the process of building a small plunge pool in a new construction basement. Instead of a grated overflow gutter, I would like to utilize a knife-edge or slot overflow. I have not found any practical solution available for a small scale application (only commercial pool solutions). I will cast a concrete gutter if I can't buy an off-the-shelf solution, but hoping to find something to simplify things.

~7'x18' surface area, cast concrete with tile. Surge tank in adjacent, lower level room.

Intend to install recessed getter on 2 sides (requiring a corner)

Any ideas? thank you!
 
What will the decking and surrounding walls be made of?

How will they be venting and dealing with the humidity?

I would almost think of making this in model form so you can see what will work. Just the act of someone jumping into a pool can and will displace a L.O.T. of water!!
 
The setup will be typical for a residential plunge pool - Tile on concrete for decking & walls. Normal dehumidification & HVAC etc. Even a short gutter can accommodate more water than will be instantly displaced by my entire family jumping in simultaneously (ignoring the rate at which the gutter empties). I've not built a gutter pool before, but am comfortable with the mechanics. I have not found an off-the-shelf gutter that I can buy for DIY purposes. It would be nice to be able to support tile decking on top (to cover most of the gutter opening, leaving only a slot drain for spill-over). This would be easier to accomplish with a stainless profile, but I suppose I can build with a two-pour concrete approach.
 
@setsailsoon described how the gutters were being formed with molds during gunite in this long thread. Maybe he can point you to the posts.

04 April 2024 Update - More Equipment, First Pass Raspberry PI, Piping

Folks, This is the start of a thread that I expect will take a year or so to complete. We're finally getting to build a new house and pool exactly the way we want to. I think a little context is in order up front here since it will drive a lot of the pool decisions. My job has been to manage...
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
ajw22 said:
@setsailsoon described how the gutters were being formed with molds during gunite in this long thread. Maybe he can point you to the posts.

04 April 2024 Update - More Equipment, First Pass Raspberry PI, Piping

Folks, This is the start of a thread that I expect will take a year or so to complete. We're finally getting to build a new house and pool exactly the way we want to. I think a little context is in order up front here since it will drive a lot of the pool decisions. My job has been to manage...
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
Click to expand...
Hi blue,

I have a 2-in wide by 3 in deep gutter around the entire outside of my pool on three sides. These were very easy to form during Gunite in two steps. First we shot the outer edge and the finishing crew formed it up and while they were forming we inserted architectural foam strips 1 in x 2 in. As soon as it was starting to firm up we shot the inside completing the beam after the concrete dried for a couple of days we pulled the strips out and have virtually perfect gutter all the way around. Worked like a charm. Corners are perfect inside corners and outside corners . Got the architectural foam from a shop that does all kinds of molds for architectural trim. It was pretty cheap too I think I got 90 ft for $160.

Chris
 
Below are a couple of photos. First is some of the architectural foam. Second is showing the gutter around the end of the pool with the sun deck. It shows an inside and an outside corner.

I hope this is helpful.

Chris


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This is very helpful - thank you! I've assumed a larger gutter profile as my linear gutter distance will be short, I need sufficient capacity to handle sudden displacement overflow. My surge tank will be a simple poured concrete box in a lower, adjacent cellar room. This is a bit of a on-the-fly DIY experiment in an excavated space within a basement I'm building. The margin for error is high for this little indoor plunge pool, so I can use lessons learned to build the larger exterior spillover pool in the future (which will require more precision).

Do you have any issues with the relatively small gutter profile of 6sq in?
thank you!
 
Can you please add photo's and drawings, would help a lot. I don't have any issues with flow rate but that's partly because I have a lot of linear feet. For a 2" drain with grated cover you should be able to move 15 gpm per linear foot of channel. Keep in mind that your sizing for the basin will most likely be driven by max number of people that enter the pool at once. Assume 22 gal per person and let's say five enter at once. Roughly 100 gal but it happens in seconds. So your surge tank need to have normal operating capacity for this which means minimum level and air space above can easily double or triple that size requirement.

Chris
 
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