Which shape? Mt.Pond or rectangle?

[Crickets]

We are trying to decide which shape to get. We are debating between a 22x36 Mountain Pond or a 18x36 Rectangle. The PB said the Mt pond will be a bit smaller than the rectangle as far as gallons. We are torn and love them both. Price is basically the same either way. Anyone with this size? Which do you have? Which do you prefer? We will be using it mostly for lounging around and parties my husband might swim laps but the rest of us will use it for play. Picture are alway appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Mr Bruce]

If you go with the rectangle, you have a standard size so covers/solar covers will be easier to come by. I also suspect a rectangle pool would be easier to brush, not sure though. Lots of asymmetrical pools look really nice so there is that.

 

[atttech-2]

From a design stand point most would say that rectangles are more formal, free form is more causal. The landscaping usually tends to complement the shape of the pool. If you have a lot of right angles in the yard might want to go with rectangle if you have sweeping lines or natural form to your shrubs and plants that can complement a free form. If you want to do laps or get an auto cover go rectangle, I would start combing through google images and see what strikes your fancy.

 

[Nectarologist]

I have a 16x32 rectangle. I highly recommend a bench in the deep end, that area will get a lot more use with it (see my roman shaped end in the pic). I have a friend with the free form shape. I love it but it would not have worked in my yard (would have left some dead space). I prefer the straight edges but it's just a preference, it doesn't impact your enjoyment of the pool.

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[sheree202]

We went back and forth between roman and free form for MONTHS. I like that geometric pools are more modern and it does seems like everyone is doing free form lately. However, I went with a free form shape because we are also putting a slide in and it made more sense. Search Pinterest and try to imagine what would make you the most happy to walk outside and see. Also think about which would compliment the style of your house or shape of your yard. Both of your choices sound like perfect size pools to me!!

 

[bmoreswim]

I have a rectangle and like it so therefore you should too!

We were doing an autocover and wanted the cleanest possible installation of one.

 

[poolnewbies5874]

We have a free-form. I love the shape but as others have mentioned, anything other than rectangular usually means custom, which = $$$. Safety covers, solar covers needing cut, ease of brushing, how much the robot climbs, etc. Are all things we didn't really consider when choosing our pool. I wouldn't change my choice, just would have saved more money before taking the plunge!

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[Crickets]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I didn't think about the solar covers being more expensive, or how the cleaners would work..those are for sure some things to think about.

 

[mgmoore7]

We have a rectangle with some greco/roman design features. It is more formal. Rectangle uses the space more efficiently for the pool. Freeform might enable better design for the deck and orientation to the house if those things apply.

 

[SGPlayer]

We chose a design that was called mountain lake.
That was over 25 years ago. Teal green was the popular tile color then. And cool deck over concrete was the deck of choice.
A lot of angles. No smooth sweeping curves.

Sorry about the poor image. Its a picture of an old picture... Hot tub / spa at one end with the entrance steps, swim out at the deep end.

We liked it so much that we gave it a facelift 25 years later so that we can enjoy it for another 25 years.
The teal tile had to go, pieces were cracked. Some were missing. The original deck had cracked in a few places.
We thought long and hard about changing a few things (everything) Like adding a sun deck, different entrance stairs and loosing the hot tub / spa.
But all we changed in the original design was loosing the glass block under the spillway of the hot tub.
The deck was redone with set & grouted travertine pavers in a French pattern.
But now, instead of all that teal tile being the focal point of the pool we mellowed the look with travertine around the pool and hot tub that matches the deck.

No matter what you choose, once its done, you'll love it.

Dave

 

[YippeeSkippy]

I personally feel that a rectangle pool is classic, elegant and provides the most usable space.

I often wonder how people with squirrly curvy pools ever do laps?? Not that I necessarily want to do laps, but I want the option there! Y'know??

 

[Crickets]

Yes, the swimming space a rectangle provides is hard to beat. Like you, I like the idea of swimming laps (but realistically I doubt I ever will.

So...I like the swimming layout of a rectangle the best, but I like the way the Mountain pond looks the best. It's a toss up for me. I keep googling pictures and they both appeal to me equally. I've been driving myself (and my husband) crazy....Our build doesn't start until July so I guess we have plenty of time to dwell on it and decide. haha.

 

[poolnewbies5874]

You would have to go straight down the middle (of ours anyway) but laps would be possible in our freeform ...

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[Kpag]

Post some pics of your house and yard and a layout of your yard space with rough measurements. Even a hand drawn sketch will work. Pools that are really well integrated into and "in tune" with their surroundings always look great. It's hard to tell which pool will be perfect for your yard without a little more info. You can use tinypic.com to upload pics for free without an account if needed.

 

[Crickets]

We weren't sure where to put the pool equipment so we plan on pouring a slab of concrete next to our hot tub to extend our exsisting patio. We'll move the hot tub onto it and away from the double doors....the idea we have right now is that we'll place the pool equipment between the hot tub and the fence (not in front of the gate but between the wall and hot tub). Also, if you can see the blue flags in the yard---that is where we plan on placing the pool. It's measured for the rectangle for now. We will also need a retaining wall in the back of our yard. We like the idea of a curved retaining wall rather than a straight one. We also plan on using a mixture of concrete and pavers. Brushed concrete decking around the pool for the slide and sunbathing area this year and next year doing pavers in the other areas. Excuse my poor sketches! LOL. I'm not an artist and it is not to scale...just my ideas. Any suggestions are welcome and appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Crickets]

Post some pics of your house and yard and a layout of your yard space with rough measurements. Even a hand drawn sketch will work. Pools that are really well integrated into and "in tune" with their surroundings always look great. It's hard to tell which pool will be perfect for your yard without a little more info. You can use tinypic.com to upload pics for free without an account if needed.

I don't have measurements of my yard but I added pictures of my house style and yard w/sketches. Didn't know I could use tinypic! I've never used that site before! Very handy! Thank you!

 

[Snap96]

We were in the same situation last year. We knew that an auto cover was a necessity for us so after going back and forth, we ended up going with a rectangle since it really gave us a more streamline look, which we wanted, with the auto cover. We have no regrets on the shape we went with.

A little pano picture of our setup.

 

[bmoreswim]

I don't have a specific recommendation for pool shape based on your yard shape. It seems it would accommodate either with ease from a design perspective. What you do around the pool regarding decking/landscaping will determine how well it all ties together.

I do however have an idea that you may not have thought about. Our backyard is also a continuous slope downward, though where our pool is, the slope looks steeper. You could consider having the retaining wall above the pool instead of below it, not far away from where your deck/hot tub area ends. A few benefits of this are as follows:

1. You get to see the beautiful retaining wall all the time from the pool area - creates nice ambience.
2. Your pool seating area has a nice backdrop to it, where your chairs/lounges will feel like they aren't sitting out in the open.
3. The lower side of your pool may be mostly at ground level so everything you play with in the pool, balls, etc. won't go over the retaining wall and have to be retrieved. They will stay closer at hand.
4. Your decking on the lower side of the pool will not be installed on back-filled material, which has a tendency to settle over time.
5. You will get massive amounts of extra seating free of charge.
6. Your seating area will be that much lower and therefore, out of sight of the neighbors prying eyes. We like our privacy as you can tell from the side landscaping. When you are seated out on the deck near your proposed retaining wall, you will feel as if you are on a stage for all to see.
7. The pool will feel more connected with the rest of your yard/play area behind.

Here is view of ours from the downhill side as a visual for the possibility. Our pool was still 2-3' out of the ground on the lower side, with the ground continuing downward as well. Our landscaped area below the pool slopes down massivly to account for that. I don't think you will have that nearly as much. Our shape too, as above, was a nod to practicality because we wanted an autocover.

Either way it will be beautiful, I just wanted to highlight a different option and the benefits of it.

IMG_1129 by Snowman 10, on Flickr

 

[Crickets]

We were in the same situation last year. We knew that an auto cover was a necessity for us so after going back and forth, we ended up going with a rectangle since it really gave us a more streamline look, which we wanted, with the auto cover. We have no regrets on the shape we went with.

A little pano picture of our setup.

/QUOTE]

Thanks for sharing! We don't plan on getting an auto cover but I love the clean lines of this. Looks great! I love your bar area too! How do you like your slide? Is that the typhoon?

 

[Crickets]

I don't have a specific recommendation for pool shape based on your yard shape. It seems it would accommodate either with ease from a design perspective. What you do around the pool regarding decking/landscaping will determine how well it all ties together.

I do however have an idea that you may not have thought about. Our backyard is also a continuous slope downward, though where our pool is, the slope looks steeper. You could consider having the retaining wall above the pool instead of below it, not far away from where your deck/hot tub area ends. A few benefits of this are as follows:

1. You get to see the beautiful retaining wall all the time from the pool area - creates nice ambience.
2. Your pool seating area has a nice backdrop to it, where your chairs/lounges will feel like they aren't sitting out in the open.
3. The lower side of your pool may be mostly at ground level so everything you play with in the pool, balls, etc. won't go over the retaining wall and have to be retrieved. They will stay closer at hand.
4. Your decking on the lower side of the pool will not be installed on back-filled material, which has a tendency to settle over time.
5. You will get massive amounts of extra seating free of charge.
6. Your seating area will be that much lower and therefore, out of sight of the neighbors prying eyes. We like our privacy as you can tell from the side landscaping. When you are seated out on the deck near your proposed retaining wall, you will feel as if you are on a stage for all to see.
7. The pool will feel more connected with the rest of your yard/play area behind.

Here is view of ours from the downhill side as a visual for the possibility. Our pool was still 2-3' out of the ground on the lower side, with the ground continuing downward as well. Our landscaped area below the pool slopes down massivly to account for that. I don't think you will have that nearly as much. Our shape too, as above, was a nod to practicality because we wanted an autocover.

Either way it will be beautiful, I just wanted to highlight a different option and the benefits of it.

Great tips! I never thought about putting the retaining wall on the side near the house. I like that setup much better. Thank you!