Planning a new pool...deep end design?

[Veccster]

Hi everyone....new guy here. I've read and read and read but thought I'd try a post here to see if there is anything else I should consider.

I'm in Southwestern Pennsylvania and recently built a house in a new development. We are putting in a 16x36 rectangle with a 3.6ft shallow and a 6' deep end (water height ends up being about 5.5ft). We want a 'usable' pool and are not interested in a diving board. We will be getting a slide though.

Our deign has corner steps with an 8' bench coming off in both directions. The pool will start to slope at the 9' mark - just past the end of the bench. So it will drop 2.5' over the next 25' (or about 1" per foot). We are doing a "wedge" shape in the deep end so the slope goes almost the entire way - then slopes up at the wall.

This is my question....are there any 'cons' to doing a wedge design? I suspect anything that sinks will all accumulate at one spot (in the wedge). But the slope is very gentle. We figure the longer slope and more gentle slope makes the pool more usable as your not standing on a steep slope.

Anything else I should consider?


Here is a wedge:



Here is the more traditional flat bottom:

 

[Veccster]

I just found the "Under Construction" forum. Perhaps my post is better suited there? Please move if needed.

 

[Mam262]

We just finished our pool and based upon what I experienced so far the gradual slope is much nicer. Will your pool have main drains? I would think that would be necessary if you have a wedge at the bottom, but there are many educated people on here who will be able to comment.

Good luck with your pool build!!

 

[harleysilo]

What type of pool surface will you have?

 

[atttech-2]

My standard recommendation is go a bit deeper on the shallow end it is more comfortable for adults to stand in 4' water vs 3.6'. That is our one regret our shallow end is 3.5' 6 inches does not sound like much but still wish we had done it. Often times people want shallower because of their kids but don't forget kids grow but the pool won't

 

[Veccster]

What type of pool surface will you have?

Its vinyl.


You're probably correct about the shallow end being too shallow. I thought 3'6" shallow was the industry standard?
I'm not sure I'll be able to sell the wife on changing that one. But that's part of the reason I wanted the wedge design the entire length - so the 3.5' will only be in the first 9' of the pool - then it starts dropping.

 

[ponygirl]

The option for 48 inch walls vs the 42 inch standard walls exist. We were quoted a $3,000 upcharge for our pool. Like you, we aren't doing a "deep" end and are happy with our decision. We ended up going with the standard depth shallow end, too. I float. Don't care if it is in 2 feet of water or 8 feet of water as long as I can see bottom.

 

[Isaac-1]

Industry standard and what people like most are not always the same thing, you will find that the pool industry is VERY slow to change about some things, and shallow end standard depth is one of them, and if you ask why you are likely to get an answer like because that is the way it has always been. As to the slope issue I feel a flat bottom area is fairly important, particularly if you have kids that are still learning to swim. Having said all that the traditional hopper design pool with shallow end is a compromise design (I have one that was built 36 years ago), it is sort of the mini-van of swimming pools, it is economic for its size and capacity, is efficient use of space and does an overall ok job, but not really great at any one thing... Having said all that, there are some really interesting designs that can be done with vinyl pools if you have the space, such as designs made from 3 overlapping rings, here is a build thread that comes to mind Update - Water In - Final pieces remain South Jersey Build it gives a good idea of what is possible in a vinyl pool.