Forgo Ladder - Good Idea or Bad Idea?

[phishphan]

Pool under contract will be 18x30 and 7 feet deep. For purely aesthetic reasons I'd like to go without the deep end ladder. Given the small size of the pool and the sloping deep end walls I don't feel like it's all that necessary plus there's also a built-in bench in the hump that could serve as a step. Thoughts? Our blueprint and brochure picture below for reference. Thanks!

 

[Newdude]

The bench is your ladder equivalent and the kids will climb out with the sloped walls. You'll do it once and choose to never scrape up your knees again, but the kids will do it all day long. Anybody over 20 will use the bench.

 

[Mdragger88]

Every one i know that has a ladder has removed it. Maybe make them put all the cups in so u have a choice if u decide u need one?

 

[phishphan]

The bench is your ladder equivalent and the kids will climb out with the sloped walls. You'll do it once and choose to never scrape up your knees again, but the kids will do it all day long. Anybody over 20 will use the bench.

Agree. The sloping walls are a little weird to me. I didn't realize they did them like this. Seem dangerous if you don't expect them to be there and jump in close to the edge. I'll have to give all of our pool guests a heads-up or maybe I'll just add it to the fine print on the waiver.

Every one i know that has a ladder has removed it. Maybe make them put all the cups in so u have a choice if u decide u need one?

Good idea but I've gotta go all or nothing. Even if they were capped, it would drive me nuts to look at the cups all the time.

 

[SchubeyDew]

I think the ladders are a thing of the past. The bench or swim out is what has replaced it to provide safety and aesthetics.

 

[Newdude]

The sloping walls are a little weird to me. I didn't realize they did them like this. Seem dangerous if you don't expect them to be there and jump in close to the edge. I'll have to give all of our pool guests a heads-up or maybe I'll just add it to the fine print on the waiver.

They are steeper than you think and just 'jumping in' puts you out 2.5 ft in 7 ft of water.

 

[phishphan]

They are steeper than you think and just 'jumping in' puts you out 2.5 ft in 7 ft of water.

Good to know and glad to hear. All the pictures I've seen online it's hard to tell.

I think the ladders are a thing of the past. The bench or swim out is what has replaced it to provide safety and aesthetics.

I agree. They just kill the flow and it's like putting a license plate on the front of a sports car.

 

[Dirk]

It's interesting that in an otherwise contemporary looking pool a ladder makes it look like it's from the 60s!

I have a bench in my deep end that I use. I like to sit out there, especially when the shallow end is full of kids. I can use it to get out, when I don't want to swim all the way back to my steps, but it's not a comfortable height to the coping. A step on the bench would have been useful for this ol' guy. Just saying: you might regret not being able to sit at that end, or get out at that end (but a ladder is not the solution).

 

[Headbanger783]

We are going with a ladder because our kids are young and my 5 year old although swimming is used to having a ladder in the deep end if he needs it. So for us it’s more of a safety thing. It can always be removed later.

 

[Newdude]

We are going with a ladder because our kids are young and my 5 year old although swimming is used to having a ladder in the deep end if he needs it. So for us it’s more of a safety thing. It can always be removed later

I feel ya. My kids were little when we built and it was a target to jump from the diving board. (And fall way short bless their little hearts). As they and their friends all morphed into teens, that ladder had a lot more stress put on it with the never ending line of big kids climbing out to jump again. My next build (we moved) will have the 2-for-1 bench now that they won’t need the ladder and I trust their aim better.