What is a good size for a L shaped pool?

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Birdshot671

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Mar 27, 2013
33
North East, Maryland
We are getting a L shaped pool installed. 15 x 30 all around. I like the size of the shallow end, but fear that we will regret not making the deep end wider and longer. Any suggestions would be helpful. I think I would rather spend the extra money now so that we have no regrets later. Am I over thinking this? Shallow end will be 15x30 from 3 ft by steps to 4 1/2 ft, then it will slowly grade towards the deep end, from 4 1/2 ft to 8 ft. That portion will also be 15 wide by 30 length, I guess it's a "true" L.

I'm thinking of having the deep end possibly 18 ft wide and like 32 or 34 length. Will it make a noticeable difference?

Thanks
 
Do you have a drawing or computer view yet?

I'm going to vote for making your pool as large and as deep as you possibly can. Our last pool was our design, meant to maximize the yard, which was a L shape. We wanted 10 feet, but settled for 9, which was as deep as they could dig and still get the Cat out of the hole. The one caution is not to drop off into the deep end very suddenly, this is based on how long the pool is.

I know you will get a lot of different opinions, but for me, it's all about maximizing.
 
Bird Is there a specific reason for the L? Just wondering, usually when we have a customer ask about L they end up doing a 24 x 50 rectangle for less money and can put auto cover on for a reasonable cost compared to an L. I assume you are looking at vinyl lined. On our 50's we do three depths of water, you could do that on an L. From the entry steps to the corner one depth, corner to wall straight from steps another, then the hook would be all the diving well.
 
It will be concrete/gunite. I like the L shape due to the large shallow end. I figured no one was going to to the deep end and tread water for 2 hours, they would all end up hanging out in the shallow end.

I also liked the fact that we could make the pool area a large square and end up with a large rectangular pad/decking in the corner of the L (if that makes sense). We originally wanted a 20x40 liner, but to expand the decking are all the way up one side of the pool would get costly for the extra concrete. This way on the inside of the L we will have a large space and will require less concrete just due to the layout.

I am just wondering now if the deep end should be wider or longer? This is our first pool, our budget is a factor and we just want to make sure we make the right decision because its a huge investment for us. I appreciate all of the input, hopefully soon i will have my pool specs under my name!!
 
Birdshot671 said:
Hey Jumpin Jackie, did you like the L shape? Anything you would change about the size? I have a drawing, but i'm at work right now. I will try to get something i can post for you guys so you can see what I'm talking about, especially with the patio/decking layout.
Click to expand...

Yes, we did like it, because it gave us about 20% more pool in the deep end to play with, and our sons could dive across that end instead of just up toward the shallow end. And with the smallish lot we had, we used more of it and yet still had a wee bit of grass left over.

I think the pool builder may have asked us about the L shape but hubby designed it and we loved it. BUT, again, it fit our yard. Otherwise, we might not have done it that way.

The only change I would have made at the time was to go bigger if we'd had a bigger yard. Is your yard an L shape?
 
No, we are on an acre that is cleared. The lot is a blank canvas.

I just like that fact that our shallow end will be 30 x 15 which is where most people will hang out.

We don't really have any experience with pools other than a regular rectangle. We thought that it looked different, but still had clean lines.

I guess you had an L shape with a larger deep end and smaller shallow end? What dimensions would you recommend for us? Or, what shape would you guys recommend for us?
 
Birdshot671 said:
No, we are on an acre that is cleared. The lot is a blank canvas.

I just like that fact that our shallow end will be 30 x 15 which is where most people will hang out.

We don't really have any experience with pools other than a regular rectangle. We thought that it looked different, but still had clean lines.

I guess you had an L shape with a larger deep end and smaller shallow end? What dimensions would you recommend for us? Or, what shape would you guys recommend for us?
Click to expand...

Well, I still think an L has its practical uses. I think hubby saw the design in one of the pool books we bought and thought, "Hey, that'll work for us!" It was the only way we could get any usable deep end space on our lot. We did put a bench in each corner of the the L and I did quite a lot of "hanging out" in the deep end, sitting on the bench and watching the boys jump in. They played some with the torpedo in the shallow end, but most of their time was spent diving and jumping into the deep end (we swim about half the year down here, even without a heater, and they've been swimming since they were 3).

I'll go up and get my file and give you the dimensions and if I can find a few photos on this computer I'll post them up. We balanced it out so that the pool wouldn't look weird and wouldn't have a huge drop-off into the deep end (although it was still a steep slope, no avoiding that). But you wouldn't have that constraint of size.

If you really want more shallow end than deep, you could do a free-form with more width at the shallow end. You have so many possibilities if you're not limited by the lot.
 
Now that I look at the plans again, what we had was more like a boot shape, not a true L. The deep end was 23.5' across - the rest of the pool was 14.5'. Total length was 36.25'. From the 5' depth point, we had a little over 8' of deep end, the specs say 8' depth and we got a little over that, but probably not a full 9' depth as I remembered (but I'd have to check with hubby just to be sure). We had no spa - we don't find it necessary here and I wish our current pool didn't have one. It ends up being the dog's extra water bowl and her pool when it's hot.

If I can figure out how to scan onto this computer I'll put the plan up for you.
 

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15x30 for a shallow end sounds pretty ample to me. However, I don't know how many people will be using your pool or how big a pool you're looking for.

For some comparisons, alot of the pools we saw when we were house shopping a few years ago were in the 16x32-36 ish range. Your shallow end will be nearly as big as those whole pools and those pools never struck me as being too small, at least for me and my family (I have t2o teenaged boys, then there is me an my wife). I have an L shaped pool. The shallow end is about 10x26. The length is fine, however I wish it was wider, 10ft really isn't that much, especially when my boys start roughhousing, an extra 5-6 feet would really be nice. The rest of the pool is about 16 x 34 (or 16x24 if you don't count the shallow part of that leg). I didn't think we'd use the deep end much either, but my wife and I really enjoy floating around in a papasan or recliner. As a result we can spend hours in the deep end. Oh one last thing about the shallow end. Its only 3 1/2feet deep. At first we liked it, however now it just seems really shallow especially for 2 teenagers.

I hope that helps.
 
That's good to hear. I think if we stick with the depth at 8 feet(water depth, not floor to coping) but maybe bump it out to like 34 length and 18 wide it will give us more deep end room and minimize the slope to the deep end over the extra 4 ft.

They said our shallow end would be 3 ft and I had them keep it at that near the steps, then grade it to 4
1/2 ft to the corner of the L and go down to 8 ft. This way grown ups and bigger kids can still be in the shallow end but have a decent depth. I am 6'2" so the 3ft area won't even come up to my waste.
 
Great to see someone else build an L shaped pool. We are having a L shaped pool built ( shotcrete) and should start digging in about 3 weeks. We went with one leg of the L at 45 foot length and 20 foot wide and nine foot deep tapering to 3 1/2 feet and the other leg, 36 feet by 18 wide with 3 1/2 ft to 4 foot depth. Deep zone (45 x 20) will have a diving board and slide and shallow zone (36 x 18) for games ( volleyball,basketball etc). The 45 foot leg will gives us a smooth angle from the 9 foot depth to the 3 1/2 foot zone. We went with a little wider width in the deeper area for diving off the edges of the pool. Anything under 18 foot width seemed to me a little narrow. Just my perspective. What really helped us in getting a perspective of the shape of the pool was going out in the back yard and lay string out, stepping back and taking a look. If you haven't done this do it, it will help immensely. Good luck with your pool.
 
We built an L shaped pool because we love the classic design. We built it as a play pool that is 14x28 feet with an 8x8 L that is a tanning shelf. The play pool is 3.5 to 5.5 to 4 foot in depth. If I had added a deep end I would have extended it another 12 to 14 foot for the deep end and left the L on the shallow end as a rec area at about 3 foot depth. You should consult with your insurance company about a diving end and inform them if you plan to install a diving board or slide. Our insurance company informed us they would cancel our insurance if either was installed. This did not factor into our decision as we wanted a play pool but it was informative as to what an insurance company will allow on your property. Good luck on your build! Please post pictures.
 
Calling insurance is a good thing to do. We did that and they have no problem with the pool depth, slide or diving board. No increase in premiums. But we went and added an umbrella policy for couple hundred dollars a year. It covers far more then potential claims with the pool but any other aspects of your life. Inexpensive coverage for a better piece of mind.
 
Good point DC1. I should have mentioned that we added additional coverage for our play pool to cover potential damage and personal liability. It only cost us about $120.00 extra per year but the coverage it added was worth the peace of mind.

I have noticed that it seems that insurance coverage varies by geographical location as it relates to diving boards and slides. In southern Louisiana it seems that they are frowned upon. A friend of mine just purchased an older home with a slide. The pool is about forty years old. His insurance company gave him 30 days to remove the slide. None of my neighbors have a diving board or slide. I plan to ask them over for a pool party and ask them, Why?
 
ComputerGuyInNOLA said:
Good point DC1. I should have mentioned that we added additional coverage for our play pool to cover potential damage and personal liability. It only cost us about $120.00 extra per year but the coverage it added was worth the peace of mind.

I have noticed that it seems that insurance coverage varies by geographical location as it relates to diving boards and slides. In southern Louisiana it seems that they are frowned upon. A friend of mine just purchased an older home with a slide. The pool is about forty years old. His insurance company gave him 30 days to remove the slide. None of my neighbors have a diving board or slide. I plan to ask them over for a pool party and ask them, Why?
Click to expand...

One word answer: Lawsuits. It only takes one big payout and all the diving boards are being ripped out for fear of being sued. Too many lawyers and this crazy mentality that if an accident happens, someone has to pay.
 
All great points. I'm going to our agent in the morning to go over everything with him. My buddy mentioned the umbrella policy too so I will definitely look in to it.

Good idea about laying it out with string. My wife and I just came in from the back yard after doing that. It appears small, but when we walked around inside the area, it felt fine. If anything, I think we will try to extend the patio area. But yeah I like the large shallow area for games. I am buying an in ground mounted volley ball net the has pipe to install when they pour the concrete. Then the poles for the net will be easy to put up and take down. It will cross the middle of the shallow end. Should make for some good family fun.

I like the dimensions of your L, I wish we could afford to get ours that big.
 
Thanks, The string idea was my wife's, we did white color for the pool, we did hot pink for the decking and black for the fencing. It really showed bottlenecks and problems. I was glad we did it. Even though I my have rolled my eyes at may wife's suggestion> (LOL) I'm glad she talked me into it. We made several changes to the pool, decking and fencing because of this. It was fun walking around and inside the pool , walking round our deck to see how traffic flow might go. We even created cardboard cutouts of the diving board and slide and placed them in their proper spots which immediately showed deficiencies in my deck design around those areas. It turned out to be very informative and a lot of fun! Good luck with your pool.
 

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