Building a 25-yard pool?

[drylo]

Hi all, recently found this forum and want to give kudos to the pool vets who so generously share their wisdom here.

We’ve never had a pool, but looking to potentially build one in the next year or so. We would primarily build for our (currently young) kids and to take advantage of our outdoor space (we have a very nice suburban home on a 1.5+ acre lot), but if building a pool, we would ideally be able to use for fitness swimming also. I was a pretty serious (i.e. D1) swimmer, so “fitness swimming” for us means swimming at a pretty good pace, etc., and would really need a pretty good size pool — and of course the longer the (planned) pool gets, the harder it is to stop at anything short of 25 yards.

We wouldn’t be looking at including a spa, and probably not bubblers or anything like that, but would probably add a 9-12” tanning shelf.

So my question for all the pool gurus out there is- how ridiculous would it be to build a pool that was 17’x75’ (mostly 3.5-5’ deep, but with about 20-25’ of length that deepens enough for a diving board; approx 50k gallons in total)… or even wider (18’ or 19’)? By that, I mean, would those dimensions make sense for a pool mainly built to entertain/host kids, or would it just look like a lap pool? But also, would this pool be outrageously expensive (compared to, say, a 20’x40’ pool — can’t see us going any smaller)?

Another option could be 75’ long, but possibly a little narrower in the deep end (e.g. 15’) and a little wider in the shallow end (e.g. 21’). (Same questions about ridiculousness apply.)

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

 

[JohnT]

Welcome to TFP!

People sometimes build a conventional pool with a finger-like extension for lap swimming. Just a section added that is wide enough for swimming.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

I prefer to see wider pools (for play, games) with a longer lap lane. We've had a few here and if I can find the pics I'll post them.

Another option is a more humble sized pool (not lap length) with a Fastlane device built in.

Fastlane Pro | Backyard Lazy River | Lazy River Pool

Power up your pool! Endless Pools Fastlane Pro delivers our signature current for swimming, relaxing or your own lazy river for the whole family.

www.endlesspools.com

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

Be aware that when your pool gets beyond 35,000 - 40,000 gallons you get beyond the capacity of residential SWGs and heaters. There are ways of handling larger pools and they add more equipment and complexity to your system.

And larger gallon pools require more chemicals and cost more to heat.

A long pool with shallow swimming area can keep things workable. But a long pool with a deep diving area will add complexity and expense to your household.

 

[drylo]

Welcome to TFP.

Be aware that when your pool gets beyond 35,000 - 40,000 gallons you get beyond the capacity of residential SWGs and heaters. There are ways of handling larger pools and they add more equipment and complexity to your system.

And larger gallon pools require more chemicals and cost more to heat.

A long pool with shallow swimming area can keep things workable. But a long pool with a deep diving area will add complexity and expense to your household.

Thank you. I am generally aware of that from reading on this forum, but I admittedly don’t have a great sense of scale as far as the increased cost to build (e.g. materials and equipment) and maintain (e.g. electric and chemicals). Marginal cost savings won’t dictate the big picture here, but of course cost will be relevant to our analysis. I would definitely be interested in anybody’s thoughts or experience re: costs for a large pool like I described vs. a more typical (but still large) 20’x40’ type pool with a deep/diving end.

 

[drylo]

I prefer to see wider pools (for play, games) with a longer lap lane. We've had a few here and if I can find the pics I'll post them.

Another option is a more humble sized pool (not lap length) with a Fastlane device built in.

Fastlane Pro | Backyard Lazy River | Lazy River Pool

Power up your pool! Endless Pools Fastlane Pro delivers our signature current for swimming, relaxing or your own lazy river for the whole family.

www.endlesspools.com

Thank you. Pics of what others have done would be appreciated for inspiration.

I don’t think Fastlane is the solution for us unfortunately. The idea of a swimming treadmill just doesn’t really do it for me — but on that too, I’d be open to hearing from those who have done it.

 

[Bperry]

Thank you. I am generally aware of that from reading on this forum, but I admittedly don’t have a great sense of scale as far as the increased cost to build (e.g. materials and equipment) and maintain (e.g. electric and chemicals). Marginal cost savings won’t dictate the big picture here, but of course cost will be relevant to our analysis. I would definitely be interested in anybody’s thoughts or experience re: costs for a large pool like I described vs. a more typical (but still large) 20’x40’ type pool with a deep/diving end.

I assume you are planning an inground shotcrete/gunite pool rather than a liner or fiberglass (if they even make them that large)?

For reference cost, we had a builder come out to look at replastering our 27k gallon pool and he spitballed a cost of +$100k to build the pool again. This was before 2020 and so I’d expect the cost to be significantly higher now.

Only other questions would be figuring out how to chlorinate 50k gallons of water since the residential saltwater chlorinators top out at ~40k gallons of actual water. You want to make sure the device is rated for roughly twice the gallons you have to overcome the marketing hype. Probably can look up commercial units to get an idea of cost. But that’s still probably the most economical chlorinating option.

If you chlorinate using liquid chlorine, you’de like average about 2 gallons per day. It’s about $5/gallon if you pour it in yourself every day, more if you pay someone.

If you use trichlor pucks you’ll need about 2lbs per day in the summer and those are around $6/lb on Amazon. Maybe can find them cheaper, but prices have gone nuts. You’ll also be replacing the water every few years to get rid of excess CYA/stabilizer. Don’t know what 50k gallons of water costs over that way but should be able to find out easy enough. We get lots of rain so maybe will need less.

Hope that helps give you an idea of what you’re in for. I was also a competitive swimmer as a younger man and have a couple friends that just got a YMCA membership to do that kinda swimming. It’s an option to consider as well.

 

[Newdude]

Pics of what others have done would be appreciated for inspiration.

@TampaKathy built an 11x52 stunner that is kinda the happy medium to your 40 to 70 ft long range. She's been around lately and will stop by to add thoughts I'm sure, always happy to help. Here's her build.

First pool Tampa area - Plumbing question

Hello all! Been reading a lot on this site...still a lot more to learn...below is what is proposed with the PB that I'm leaning towards. 54' long; 8'-11' wide (will be 15' wide at sunshelf) 3.5' - 6' deep (may change to 4' - 6') about 20k gallons by my calc (need to confirm) (2) Pentair 3HP VS...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[JoyfulNoise]

My suggestion, and sorry to be a curmudgeon about it, is to build a normal sized small pool for you and your family to enjoy and you go do you exercise/laps at the local YMCA.

The pool you are envisioning is easily going to be twice the cost of standard residential pool and so it would not shock me at all for quotes to be in the $200k range. You’re also going to need all commercial grade equipment along with a chlorine injection system (forget about SWGs) and a pH control system likely based on CO2 injection. Those systems will make the cost of the build higher and increase the total cost of ownership of the pool. Also, long term, consider the future value of your home if you had to sell it - could you really imagine selling a home with gigantic lap pool attached to it? That alone will scare off a lot of future buyers.

I understand your desire to build something that appeals to your interests especially in the area of health and fitness. But residential pools, by and large, are designed for “family fun” not Olympic sports.

Just my grouchy old man opinion … good luck to you.

 

[drylo]

Thank you all —appreciate any and all thoughts/opinions from this group of pool aficionados (including curmudgeonly ones!).

I wrestle with “just go to the Y” myself, and that may very well win the day, but this is highly likely to be my home for decades to come (definitely would be if I built a 25-yard pool ), so I am trying to think about optimizing for my long-term enjoyment more than for resale (which goes against my nature, by the way!).

Either way, don’t be bashful about discouraging me from building a 75’ pool — I’m not just looking for people to tell me how great of an idea it is. However, if anyone has done it or seen it (or something similar), I would definitely be interested to hear/see how it turned out. I’ve also thought about 60’ as a compromise (but as mentioned before, the longer it gets, the more tempted I am to just go for the 75’ — it’s the one shot I will have to build a pool that we would hopefully use for decades).

 

[ajw22]

I think you keep your pool under 35,000 gallons or build your dream pool and pay the price. There is no reason to go halfway.

We see big pools here of 50,000+ gallons. And they are usually here to discuss their equipment problems, how to reduce costs, and manage that size pool.

We also see folks who bought a house with a big pool and want to refurbish It reducing the depth or dimensions.

 

[TimZ]

There are some celebrities who have guitar-shaped pools. If you did something like that where the neck is just wide/deep enough for a lap lane and the body of the guitar isn't too terribly big you could potentially achieve this with a reasonable volume of water. I shudder to think of the cost, though. There are probably a lot of circulation nuances to consider as well.

Is your yard nice and flat? A little bit of slope makes a big height difference over 75'.

 

[HermanTX]

So my question for all the pool gurus out there is- how ridiculous would it be to build a pool that was 17’x75’ (mostly 3.5-5’ deep, but with about 20-25’ of length that deepens enough for a diving board; approx 50k gallons in total)… or even wider (18’ or 19’)?

I did some calculations to arrive at nearly 55,000 gals considering that 25 ft of the length is a minimum of 8.0ft which is the minimum for diving. This section was 25k gals. Your local area may have different rules. The remaining 50ft had an average depth of 4.75 ft for about 30k gals. if you go wider to 18ft or 19ft then it just continues to increase in volume to over 60k gals.

Plumbing design for circulation and water sanitation are 2 biggest concerns I would tackle with any potential PB to see how they would approach it.

You may get some PBs that do not want to tackle a big project, or you may get more attention because your project is so big. Be interesting to hear the feedback from potential PB in your area.

 

[Newdude]

Along with the maintenance costs, consoder the replastering cost in 12-15 years. Many don't want to spend $12k on a much smaller pool. The big pool may be 3X that.

 

[drylo]

There are some celebrities who have guitar-shaped pools. If you did something like that where the neck is just wide/deep enough for a lap lane and the body of the guitar isn't too terribly big you could potentially achieve this with a reasonable volume of water. I shudder to think of the cost, though. There are probably a lot of circulation nuances to consider as well.

Is your yard nice and flat? A little bit of slope makes a big height difference over 75'.

Yes, it is pretty flat, but from a survey I see about 1-2’ of elevation change (in a roughly diagonal direction) over the area that would be used for the full 75’ length.

 

[kimkats]

You said kids and swimming laps so I want to talk to you about my all time fav pool set up-L shaped!! See the "foot" will be 4' deep with the steps being at the toes. That will be the Watermelon ball play area (look it up if you have not already seen it). The 4' depth is great for "swimming" as well. Then the leg can be your main swim lane with the end being the diving area if you want to add on. You can slope off from the 4' foot or do a drop off to the leg area. Many ways to do it.

 

[TampaKathy]

As mentioned by Newdude, my pool is 52 feet long. I would have preferred to go longer but the budget didn't allow. It is sufficient for me but I'm not a former D1 swimmer, lol. I am a triathlete so I only swim 2-3 days a week...I would expect you will be disappointed with anything less than 75 feet. My pool is 8 feet wide at one end, 11 feet wide at the other (16 feet wide in the middle-ish where sunshelf is)...8 feet wide is a bit narrow...11 is better. I would think 12-15 feet wide range would be good but I'm the only one using my pool so easy for me to say Since my pool is fairly narrow, it's only 21k gallons. I have water features, plants and the sunshelf, don't have lines on the bottom of the pool or markings on the walls...so I *think* it doesn't look too lap-pool-y...not that I mind either way but something to keep in mind if you do care.

 

[flynwill]

Not having space for anything close to a 25 yard pool, we went with a quite small pool (9'x16' swimming area) with a Riverflow swim current. For me the Riverflow works great. It is not the same as swimming in a lane of a full-size pool, there is still a bit of turbulence and it take a bit of practice to stay in the center of the flow. Keeping track of how far/long you've gone is also harder that just counting laps. I have a Fitbit watch that attempts to count laps, but it isn't very good at ti.

Such a system will likely add $25-30k to the cost of the pool, but you will likely save most of that in construction cost with a more typical pool size.

 

[AQUA~HOLICS]

Constructed a pool at 60’ X 16’ with the deep being the entire length of the pool so the customer could flip/change direction at each end.

 

[drylo]

Constructed a pool at 60’ X 16’ with the deep being the entire length of the pool so the customer could flip/change direction at each end.

Have any pictures? How narrow does a pool like that look?