POLL: Depth Question - Need Fast Advice - 16x33 - If It Were You?????

Jump to latest Follow Reply
R

RedSoxFan

0
Jun 6, 2015
27
Boston/MA
I know much has been written on this topic by doing some TF searches. That said, we're still on the fence and need some advice. We are planning a 16x33 kidney pool. (We cannot go wider or longer due to some restrictions).

If it were you, would you go with a 7 or 8 foot depth? If we go with an 8 foot depth, it really only gives us a 8ft radius in the shallow end and we're concerned about that.

Some considerations:
  • We're not a "diving" family. There will be no diving board.
  • We do have a 10 yr. old. There will be kids over.
  • When we stay at hotels with pools, we all tend to hang out in the shallow end.

We don't really play sports in the pool but might consider a basketball hoop - as we loved that at a resort we visited. Some people say - you need a deep end. Others say you don't. We have no idea.
 
I went with 7.5 foot deep and I can say I wish we went with 8.5. We have a jump rock and I get nervous with kids being kids and diving even though we say "NO DIVING".....

7.5 technically is deep enough to dive off a small rock/platform but we don't allow it and it makes me very very nervous......
 
We too have 7.5ft with jumping rocks. I can easily hit my bum on the bottom when I do a cannonball. Wish it were 9ft but, like you, we have lot size restrictions so the pool was built the way it is. If you like sports, then you might consider a shallower depth like what's found in sport pools. But then you definitely have to enforce the no-jumping policy.

Good luck, hope the pool build goes smoothly.
 
With kids using the pool, I'd say go at least 8ft. You can certainly tell them no diving, but did we always do what we were told when we were kids? I know I didn't.... ;)
 
We thought of going with a deeper pool (8 or 9 ft) in a 35 X 16 rectangle. But, after talking to friends, we decided on a 3 to 5 ft pool. Like you, we do not dive and always have seen groups of folk congregate on the shallow end. at 35 ft it will be OK for kids to do laps, but they don't have to try to keep afloat at the deep end and tire. If they want to dive, maybe we will head out to our friend's 10' deep pool ;)
 
From what you mention, it sounds like the play/sports pool would be the way to go. I'm wondering why you are considering 7' or 8' if your family isn't into diving. If I'm missing something, and you want one or the other, then I would definitely go with 7'. But only if you've decided you need a deep end.

Are you considering a deep end because others say you should have a deep end? I've read too many threads on pool forums from people who love their more shallow pools or sports/play pools. Also, consider the heights or possible future heights of your family members. You need to do what's right for you guys!

Our pool is 4' to 7'. I will use the pool for lounging and physical therapy exercises. All I needed was a 6' depth somewhere, so I could comfortably tread water. My sons (adults - one lives at home) wanted a 4' shallow end to do flip turns while swimming laps. They both wanted 7' for shallow diving for laps. We don't play sports, but if it weren't for the boys wanting a deep end, I would have been good with a 4-6-4.5 pool - or something similar. I'm about 5'7" and both my boys are over 6'.

It would be so much easier for you if we would just tell you what to do, but we can't. Every family has different needs. Good luck and take care! Suz.
 
SuzfromTexas said:
From what you mention, it sounds like the play/sports pool would be the way to go. I'm wondering why you are considering 7' or 8' if your family isn't into diving. If I'm missing something, and you want one or the other, then I would definitely go with 7'. But only if you've decided you need a deep end.
Click to expand...

I would answer this by saying "Because it feeeeeels good to be sitting on a pool noodle or in a tube letting your legs drop down straight below you and hang out floating if I'm not diving or swimming. Deeper is better in my book"
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
I like the 8 foot depth. Have you considered solving the dilemma in a different way. Any chance you can pay to upgrade your pool walls so that the shallow end is 4 feet deep and not 3 foot deep. This would allow the deep end, and give you a bigger shallow end. This would also work with going with a 3.5 foot shallow end. Of the two, as I am typing, I would prefer the 3.5 depth over 4 foot depth, because in the pool, I am either treading water, floating on a noodle, or sitting in the shallow end. 4 foot might be too deep to just sit in, although I am sure I could make it work.
 
We don't dive, either, and worried about "losing" or "wasting" space in a deep end. We went with 3.5-4-6' bc we also always seem to stay in the shallow end of any pool. However, we do not have young children. We do have a teenager and expect there to be some teenagers here. We thought in the long term - getting the most use out of most of the pool.

I would seriously ask myself things like, What will we mainly use the pool for? Who will mainly be in it? How will that change over the long term? And then get out a tape measure and measure different depths against yourself/husband. (That's what we did - no one wants to get in a pool that hits you & stops at crotch level.) We planned our pool for mainly adult use - floats and drinks in hand while some tunes play. Depth is subjective and different for every family.
 
Your pool build looks amazing. Thanks for sharing all of the photos. Cool to see.

I know the depth question is subjective but for everyone that says go with a shallow pool as you don't dive, there's another person who says go with an 8ft. deep end as you have a 10 yr. old with friends. Another person with a sport pool says that they have trouble always warning kids not to dive and they are nervous wrecks. All this said, I'm really grateful for this site and to everyone for sharing their opinion (and so quickly), it does help to get different opinions from people that have or are building pools. We will have a deep end bench on the inside part of the kidney- so at least if we go in that direction, there's that.
 
What really sold me, was thinking about what "we" do when we are in a pool. We never dive. Hubby might cannonball. We typically float & hangout around the edge. So I knew I wanted mostly 5' & under. But when I realized how much space it takes to go 8' I just felt like it was wasted space. Good luck with your decision & let us know what you decide!!!
 
Thanks all! PB keeps saying that a play pool "sounds great" and you say that your 10 yr. old doesn't dive now but they will want to dive later as will all of the kids that come over. Good advice has been shared here. We have to think about long term use of pool but a big reason is for our child too. That is the conundrum. Will definitely share the decision and build photos. We are the signing the P&S agreement stage now.
 
I will offer one other idea why i like having a deep end. While I dont dive in the Olympic since, trying to do fancy twists and flips, etc. I do prefer to enter the pool by just diving flat into the deep end and swimming across the pool. I think that is much better than just walking into the pool off of the stairs. I also think that the idea of diving flat and trying to go underwater across the pool is appealing to people who dont think of themselves as divers.

But as I said in another post, there is no wrong decision. Both styles have pros and cons. Decide, and don't let your self regret that decision. Your family will love your pool and adapt to its strengths no matter what. No one is going to say "This pool is stupid, you picked the wrong floor style for the pool". When I built my pool, I struggled with some options and whether to get them or not. The things that I ended up not buying, not once have I ever hated my pool because those things were missing.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply