Coping vs No-Coping

[cubaboymatt1316]

I'm preparing for my pool build on January 18th by watching hundreds of time-lapse builds on YouTube and reading every thread possible on TFP over the last 4 months. I noticed a lot of pools tend to have no coping at all...just the decking around it instead. Mine will be brushed concrete decking and a travertine coping around a FG pool.

Is the coping necessary? Wouldn't it protect against cracks from a concrete decking spreading to reach the pool shell? What are the true benefits of the coping? My PB never mentioned eliminating the coping as an option, but I see more without it entirely than I do with it.

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

What you think is no coping is likely cantilevered coping integrated with the deck. Read Expansion Joints and Coping - Further Reading

 

[Dirk]

Hey Matt!

My concrete deck and flagstone coping are currently the two biggest problems with my pool. I think a complete redo might be in my future, so I'm looking at that cantilevered coping as a possible solution. Just following along with ya...

And welcome to TFP! Glad you found us... Stick around and we'll help you all we can, before, during and after your build! Congrat's on that, by the way.

 

[Nikilyn]

We're going to have a cantilevered deck. That's how they all were here when I was growing up. When we built our first pool in '06 I learned what coping was. I had never seen it before. It's just a pool deck to me. I like the cost and the safety aspect of cool deck.

 

[Bperry]

One disadvantage of the cantilevered deck is that any settlement of the decking around the pool can cause an issue at the edge of the pool. Our deck has sank and lifted up the decking around the bond beam. So getting it replaced means finding someone who can do the cantilever work as well as the normal concrete work, which seems to add to the cost. Just beware of that. If the material under your decking is already well compacted, it may not be an issue for you.

 

[keithw]

I also have a fiberglass pool and initially did mine without coping but always felt that it looked kind of bathtub-ish so I ended up doing a cantilevered flagstone deck around mine and am much happier with that look. If you do a cantilever and then also a tile line, you can caulk them together to give your pool and deck a nice seal as well.

New pool proj.Flagstoning around (and on) my fiberglass pool

Hello all. It is pool project time for me again. I installed a fiberglass pool a few years ago and built a raised cement deck I around half of it and a wood deck around the other half. keithw-s-pool-pics-t166.html?hilit=keithw It has served me well over the past few years but I have been...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Dirk]

Keith, checked out your pics. You did some amazing things with pool and yard. Congrat's!