Award winning outdoor XL Trainer Pool
The Brief
For this pool, our client had already employed a top garden designer to help them achieve the beautiful landscape that they wanted. Working closely with the designer, it was decided that a conventional liner swimming pool would not fit with the garden’s overall aesthetic.
An in-ground pool submerged at deck-level – or at least one that looked like it was – would be preferable, if it could be done for a competitive price. Plus, the client and designer ideally wanted to avoid the artificial “swimming pool blue” and find a more natural colour to blend with the rest of the landscaping.
The Design
The pool installation we went for was an XL Trainer pool (11m x 4m x 1.1m > 1.8m) with a granite finish. To give the appearance of a deck-level pool, we used stainless steel beams to suspend a granite ‘beach’ and patio area around the water’s edge – a first in one-piece pool construction. Not only did this create a high-end appearance for a relatively low cost, but it also provided the family with space for the children to play, adults to sunbathe and guests to be entertained near to the water.
The high water-level was achieved by using a weir skimmer, engineered from laser cut stainless steel. Our team also installed:
• A 19Kw heat pump
• A hidden solar safety cover with beachline
• Bespoke coping stones made from limestone
• Full pool insulation
• Pipework Insulation
The swimming pool design was framed by beautiful cypress trees, giving the garden a relaxing, Mediterranean feel with carefully designed gabions that retain the land bank on one side.
The Challenges
Having a client with such a high attention to detail meant that our team were pushed to come up with an attractive design without a limitless budget. This is exactly the kind of brief we enjoy though, and provides an opportunity for our ceramic one-piece pools to come into their own.
The area designated for the pool was originally on a steep slope. This required excavation into the bank and the installation of gabions to create stability and ensure the rest of the garden was still safely useable.
The innovative solution of suspending a granite ‘deck’ saved the client a considerable sum while still achieving a luxury look, while choosing an alternative colour finish in the pool itself avoided the ‘artificial’ blue colour the client didn’t want.
The Outcome
For this project, our team spent a great deal of time with the client, the project designer and the landscaper, helping us to create a pool that met every expectation and achieved the stylish, understated aesthetic they were hoping to achieve.
By being brought onto the project at an early stage, the installation process was simplified. The swimming pool was built before the garden was completely terraced the garden (therefore causing minimal disruption), then we were off-site until the plant room had been built and the coping stones could be fitted.
Overall, the customer was delighted, offering to provide a reference to anyone considering their own outdoor pool installation and telling us:
“It has been a fabulous year for swimming……once again we have used and enjoyed your pool SO much!”
The pool and garden have since won a gold award at the UK Pool and Spa Awards for outdoor pools.
