3 Mistakes To Avoid When Constructing A Swimming Pool
Posted on: 12 September 2022
Constructing a swimming pool on your property provides various benefits to your home, such as improving your property's value.
But constructing a pool is not a walk in the park. Property owners often make several mistakes during pool construction that result in tragedy. Hence, it is wise to learn from the mistakes of others so that you can avoid making the same mistakes when constructing your pool.
Thus, here are three mistakes you should avoid when constructing your swimming pool.
1. Failing To Consult the Building Code
The building code is a set of regulations that govern how and where you can construct anything on your property, even a swimming pool.
For instance, if utility lines run across your property, the building code will direct the appropriate distance from the utility lines you can construct a pool. Additionally, if you live in an area with a high water table, the building code might restrict how deep your swimming pool can go. Or, the building code may bar the construction of in-ground pools due to the high water table.
Failing to consult the building code can lead to severe issues. For instance, you might get fined for breaking the building code regulations. Or, you might also have to deconstruct your swimming pool and move it.
Hence, to avoid the above issues, consult your local area building code before you begin the pool construction.
2. Failing to Construct the Pool on Virgin Soil
A critical factor that can affect your swimming pool is leveling. Leveling ensures it doesn't buckle or collapse due to the weight of the water in it. As a result, it is advisable to excavate a pool site on virgin soil.
Virgin soil tends to be more compact and capable of withstanding the weight of the pool without settling. However, if you construct it on fill soil, the fill soil will start to settle when the weight of the pool gets exerted on it. As a result, the settling will cause the pool to lose its leveling, resulting in the pool incurring damages or collapsing.
Thus, to avoid the above scenario, ensure you are constructing your pool on virgin soil.
3. Using Dirt for Back Filling
Pool installers leave a space between the container and the excavation site to give the pool room to expand and contract. As a result, the material used to fill the gap should expand and contract with the pool while supporting the exterior pool walls.
However, if you backfill with dirt, the aerated soil compresses when the pool expands. And when the pool contracts, the dirt pulls away from the pool walls leaving them unsupported. Hence, the pool walls become susceptible to buckling or cracking due to the lack of exterior support.
If you don't want to risk your pool collapsing, don't use excavated dirt as a backfill. Instead, opt for non-compactable filling materials such as grits or aggregates.
For more information, contact a local pool builder.
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