How Much Does Pool Size Affect Cost?

[srfdntchk]

Hi All,

We're considering an IG pool for our backyard and I was wondering how much pool size or volume affects the build cost? For example, is a 15,000 gal pool significantly less than a 20,000 gallon pool? Or would the difference be minimal? I'd love to hear some examples just to get an idea.

Additional Edit -

I figured that it might help to say that we're probably looking at a 3.5' or 4' to 6' depth profile. Or maybe a 3.5' to 6' to 3.5'.

Thanks!

 

[Gorilla83]

I met with a builder last night and for him the depth did not drive any price difference. In terms of square footage, they charged 1500 for any adjustment +/- of 50 sq feet in surface area.

 

[CaptainCannonball]

The company we used charged $125 per extra foot of perimeter and $10 per extra square foot of surface area. It was $350 for an extra foot of depth.

Of of course it was all "discounted" another 25%

 

[Sseaman]

The cost difference would vary depending on vinyl vs. gunite, the biggest add would be if the peremiter gets bigger resulting in more coping, larger deck, etc.

 

[jeffchap]

Depth can make a difference if they hit bedrock during the dig. It happened to a friend of mine and added $10k to his build overnight.

Incidentally, this is the pool that I now own. Nice to know that it's never going to settle.

 

[spoonman]

To generalize, size isn't a significant cost factor. For example, doubling the size of a pool would not double the price. Rather, changes in size incrementally increase the price by relatively modest amounts. The reason for this is that many of the costs of a pool are fixed (1 heater, 1 filter, etc.). There are also minimums that the builder pays the subs for excavation, etc. The costs over the minimums are usually incremental as the crew is already on site. Where you would have large jumps in price is if you create a size the requires multiples of things (2 filters, pumps, lights, etc.)

Personally I was originally going to build a very small in-ground "spool", but quickly realized that a full size pool was about $2-3k more. Very nominal in the overall scope of the project. In a 14x28 pool, it was a couple hundred dollars extra for each extra foot.

I will say that not all changes in size are equal. Going deeper than 5 ft (at least in AZ) requires a lot of additional rebar for added strength. So going from 5-6ft costed more than going from 4-5ft.

One item that I found very tricky was concrete decking. The cost can get out of hand very quickly and it can sometimes be difficult to really know how much space you'll need (usually more than you think).

 

[Brianf60]

If they need to dig up more dirt and dispose of it the cost will go up. Most importantly the larger the perimeter the higher the cost. More cement and more back fill.

 

[srfdntchk]

Hi All,

Thanks for the replies and helpful info. I'm glad to hear that relatively speaking, the cost to increase the overall size of the pool isn't a huge deal given the total spend for the project. That's question one out of the way. Now on to a few thousand more....