24 or 28 ft round AGP - deep end questions

[pigeon]

First post (lots of lurking)!

We are researching the purchase of an above ground pool for our family. We have priced both 24 ft and 28 ft round (Autumn Breeze) Doughboy pools (also had someone from doughboy come out take a sketch/measurements of our property). We will be extending an existing deck off the house for an entrance into the pool.

My question is about having a deep end added to a round pool (oval would be nice, but we don't want to remove too many trees from our yard and there is the extra cost of the pool). We have 3 boys (ages 9, 6 and 4). I think the kids would enjoy a deep end when they are older, but the person who came to check out our pool location suggested that a flat bottom would be more fun for the types of games you might want to play in an above ground pool.

So my question is this - to deep end or not to deep end?

- if you have a round pool with a deep end, do you enjoy it? (If you have pics, I'd love to see them!)
- is there enough room in the shallow end to enjoy it?
- if you have kids, how do they primarily use the pool?
- safety concerns with young children?

Any input is much appreciated!

Thanks

 

[Frank Raff]

I have a 28' Doughboy Silver Lake model and we put in the deep end. The installer indicated we could go as deep as 7' but the shallow end would be fairly small. We opted for a larger shallow end and that equated to an approximate 6' depth on the deep end - 4' shallow. The shallow end is about 1/3 the area of the pool and is plenty big enough for us. With mine, they installer put in a 'shelf' around the inside perimeter of the pool - it's just a shallow depth ledge about 18" wide. The kids love to jump into the deep end - feet first of course, do canon balls and the deep end provides the option for me to add a slide if I want later on. Also fun for the kids to swim to the bottom to pick up rings and other toys as they play games. The adults like the deep end as well and the depth provides for most of the taller adults to stand in the deep end without having to tread water. My daughter is able to swim but she has a few friends that can't. For those that can't swim, we purchased some life jackets. Anytime they are in the pool, with an adult in the pool or not they have to wear one.

I had 24' and 28' circles in my yard last spring as I was debating between the two. I recommend going with the 28' round. 4' ft doesn't sound like much but once you're in it you'll be glad you went with the larger size. I also had the installer put in two returns. He didn't think I needed them but I figured with everything else whats a few more dollars; I figured the extra circulation would be good, especially since we were going with a wedding cake style step. Here's a picture of mine before we put the deck on. Unfortunately, I can't find a pic from on top of the deck looking into the pool. If I can find it, I'll post it.

Good luck and have fun with your new pool!!!!

 

[Wiggledog]

We have the pool dished out in the center of a 30 foot round pool. Kids and adults really spend more time in the deep part then in the shallow and I use the shallow ring around the outside for water running. I would never go back to a flat bottom pool after this.

 

[Metallica]

Do you need a custom made liner to have a deep end?

 

[Frank Raff]

I wouldn't say the liner needed is 'custom made'. All the Doughboy liners are expandable. When I was investigating pools before buying mine last year, I looked at Pool Supply World and some other sites. They all had, if my recollection serves, the option to add an expandable liner to their pool packages. While I'm sure you could add a deep-end to any pool, I imagine that it would entail quite a bit of work. Once you make the decision to have a deep-end or not, you're pretty much set in that configuration.

 

[pigeon]

Thanks for the input! Deep end seems to be the way to go, probably 6ft with the ledge around the edge (I like that idea of the water running!).