poolnerd

Have you ever been in a pool that made your eyes so bloodshot that you looked like a refugee from a Cheech & Chong movie? Or took a dip in a spa that overwhelmed you with a chlorine odor? A lot of pool owners want to cut down on chlorine usage to avoid some of these issues.

In both of the above examples, though, excess chlorine is not the problem. Let’s take those two common assumptions about chlorine and toss them aside. “Just the facts, ma’am,” as Joe Friday would say.

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If you’re thinking of tackling the job of building your own pool and/or spa, you need as much good, accurate info as you can get: if you know what you’re doing, you can save a lot of money, but if you don’t it can cost you big time later. I’ll cover a few of the highlights of pool design, and, hopefully you’ll uncover some valuable ideas along the way.

The design basics I’ll lay out here will come with some explanation. I’ll try not to just assert my own views as fact. For example, I’ll tell you not to locate your pool light in the shallow end of the pool, and I’ll follow that with an explanation of why it’s not a good idea. Hopefully, you’ll see the sense in what I’m saying. My views usually come from years of experience: I’ve put a light or two in the shallow end, so you can gain from my mistakes.

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