Sports Pools vs Deep/Shallow End Pools

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Dirk said:
I didn't notice that drop off. That is a very interesting design! No slope, no "waste!" Did you mark the edge in some way, like you would for a step or bench? Is there any concern someone won't see it, and dive or jump too close to that edge? Has it happened?

The deepest part of my pool is, like, 1' square. My deep end is a bowl, so while I can claim 7.5', it's only in that one tiny spot. I like the idea of a flatter bottom in the deep end, to maximize what real estate is actually deep. No fun to brush a 9.5' deep corner, though, I suppose. My bowl is pretty easy to brush.
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the reason for the drop off was exactly that, “no wasted space” in my mind at least lol. There are tile markers all along that drop off coming out of the river and the main pool identifying the drop off. It’s clearly visible due to the plaster color we choose and keeping the water clear of course :). The pic I posted was before we balanced the water so it looks a little cloudy. We were only able to use it a couple months and in that time no incidents at all. There is plenty of space for one to just stand in the main pool and hot tub. Brushing doesntake time but with the deck around the spa it’s pretty easy to get the entire bowl brushed along with the lazy river.
 
spoonman said:
Funny you mentioned brushing, Dirk. I find that it is SIGNIFICANTLY more work to brush my 6'-ish deep end as opposed to areas that are 4.5' or less. I can only imagine how it is for people with much deeper and larger pools. Sounds like yours isn't too bad...maybe you are super buff or something...haha
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I think it's important to understand how depth and bottom shape affect maintenance, not just play. Oh, and it hasn't been mentioned yet, the deeper the pool and the less "bowl-like" the shape (the flatter the bottom), the more water you have to manage and pay for: more in filling and refilling, more chemicals, more pump runtime, more heating expenses, larger more expensive filtering and heating equipment, etc.
 
My PB also had an extra surcharge for going deeper than 5'. Besides the extra work, they added a lot of extra rebar reinforcement in the "hopper" area. This may just be an Arizona thing though as we have "expansive soil".
 
Tx-C said:
the reason for the drop off was exactly that, “no wasted space” in my mind at least lol. There are tile markers all along that drop off coming out of the river and the main pool identifying the drop off. It’s clearly visible due to the plaster color we choose and keeping the water clear of course :). The pic I posted was before we balanced the water so it looks a little cloudy. We were only able to use it a couple months and in that time no incidents at all. There is plenty of space for one to just stand in the main pool and hot tub. Brushing doesntake time but with the deck around the spa it’s pretty easy to get the entire bowl brushed along with the lazy river.
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I had asked my PB about doing a drop like that and was told it could not be done due to code violation. Must not be a issue for you free folk in TX ;)
 
Rich D said:
I had asked my PB about doing a drop like that and was told it could not be done due to code violation. Must not be a issue for you free folk in TX ;)
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Just as a general "warning," not specific to pool depth profiles: we've read here how some PBs will fabricate (or at best, misunderstand) this "code violation" excuse to dissuade pool owners from getting their way in favor of the PB getting his, so he can build the pool he wants to, knows how to. For example, I can imagine building a cliff for a deep end drop off would be much harder to dig than a gradual slope. I'm not saying that's what happened to Rich, a building code for that potentially dangerous edge would be very plausible. What I'm suggesting is that pool owners confirm the validity of these "code violations" for themselves, directly with the local planning dept. We read here one instance, for example, of a PB who insisted on installing main drains, when the PO did not want any. He cited local code as his reasoning. It turned out that the local code governed specifically how main drains must be configured, but not that drains were actually required. The PB was misinterpreting the code.
 
Rich D said:
I had asked my PB about doing a drop like that and was told it could not be done due to code violation. Must not be a issue for you free folk in TX ;)
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lol, no code violation, plans were approved by city. City Inspector came 3 times during the build before plaster and all is fine. I know my Pb originally suggested the slope and no drop off but we insisted this is how we wanted our pool built and he had no problem. :)
 
Dirk said:
Just as a general "warning," not specific to pool depth profiles: we've read here how some PBs will fabricate (or at best, misunderstand) this "code violation" excuse to dissuade pool owners from getting their way in favor of the PB getting his, so he can build the pool he wants to, knows how to.
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Good tip..
I guess that could be a possiblity. I never thought to check as it certainly sounds like something my 'nanny' state would want to protect me from. :(
 
Tx-C said:
no slope at all, it’s a drop to 9.5ft lol. You can see the depth drops on the pic I posted. We have had 20 people in that pool at one time and plenty of room to hang out as well as kids jumping in the deep end. So glad we did not slope our pool or we would have lost some shallow space. Our builder did recommend a slope for diving but with the slide falling in and the jumping rock kids are fine. They usually just want to do cannon balls or use the slide.
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Wow! How does the cleaner handle that profile? Isn't it just stuck in the deep end the whole time?
 
We have a traditional layout with shallow side and then brief slope to a deep end. About 75% of our pool is 4' and then in one corner it slopes down into a 6' deep bowl. It's not a real deep at only 6', but plenty sufficient for the kids to jump in, do cannonballs, go down for diving rings, etc. We have slightly raised edge around there which acts as a small jumping off platform. We really liked how it turned out after our first swim season just ended. It's still deep enough for the kids (and dad) to jump in and have fun while most of the pool is just right for most grown-ups to stand in.
 
I’m curious if anyone on TFP has made their pool deeper. I’ve seen a few threads where owners have filled in their deep end to make the pool more shallow.

Any cases of owners deepening their pools? More costly but could be worth it for some.
 

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This thread describes how a PO deepened their gunite pool. Though not for preference, the PB got it wrong during the initial excavation. So it's doable, apparently, though I have to wonder how well it will hold up to earthly stresses. This was new construction, so it's not clear if this could be done to an older pool.

Pool not dug deep enough? New construction

The PB had to make it right. Otherwise, I suspect you'd be hard-pressed to find a PB willing to punch a hole into an existing gunite shell. That'd be a lot of liability for him to take on. PBs tend to do what they know, and there can't be many that have experience doing that, so not many (not any?) will want to...
 
Deep end for me. 8-9 is my preference. I have a diving board.
 
I personally think the deeper a pool is the safer it is. Our pool spans from 3.5 feet to 10 feet at the diving board. It is a simple gradual slope plane bottom. The sports pools are pretty and probably are appealing to guests but for the long term, why have a pool if you can’t swim in it or jump into it or dive with out fearing breaking something?
 
OrangeAndBlue said:
Wow! How does the cleaner handle that profile? Isn't it just stuck in the deep end the whole time?
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The cleaner actually has had no issues getting out of the bowl, it will clean the deep bowl, main shallow pool, and how about 10ft into the river. PB installed 5 floor jets in the river to help keep that area clean and it was worked pretty well. I still have to brush it but the debris is not bad and I have big trees with a lot of leaves near the pool. I also had 2 outlets installed near each end of the pool in case I get a robot at some point.
 
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Our vote is sport/play pool too. Ours is 3.5-5-4 foot depth. We have a sun shelf and spa. We love the sport pool and would not consider a deep end pool. A sport pool allows us to play volleyball or just relax with family/friend at gatherings without everyone crammed in the shallow end. No small kids so might change pool type but kids grow and also seem to grow out of driving.

Agree with an earlier poster: only change we would make (if we had it to do again) would be make it a 4-5-4 depth. The 3.5 foot end seems just a bit too shallow.
 

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