Is designing a pool part of the overall landscape design process?
Does a landscape designer design pools? The answer is yes.
Although some landscape designers and landscaper architects may work slightly differently, this is the way we work when it comes to pools. If you want a pool in the garden this will form part of your initial brief to a landscape designer.
There may be a guide to size depending on what you hope to use the pool for re: laps etc. This is dependent on the size of the garden you have. It is good to remember here that there is a flow on effects from the pool size. For example, a landing within the pool zone (fenced area) should ideally be able to accommodate sun lounges and chairs and generous enough to easily navigate around these. We can also get ballpark costs for different sizes at this stage and balance up the costs and benefits of all this initially.
Does there need to be screening planting or planting within the pool zone? This will soften things a lot but it does take space. The minimum garden bed depth for screening would be approximately 1.2m so this all adds up. We would set the best place for the pool which best suits your needs, budget, and the broader garden design. We will also need to think about exposure and shelter from the sun when positioning the pool initially. We then go ahead and design the rest of the garden around the location of the pool.
The major benefit of designing the pool while designing the garden is that the broader landscape design is integrated as part of this process. I do sometimes get called to design gardens when the pool has already been poured. It is too late at this stage and where the pool has been located may not be optimal for the design of the garden. If you have an existing pool that needs to be incorporated into the new garden design there is no option. Ideally, the location and design of the pool are part of the broader garden design. So this is also another reason to get a landscape designer involved in the process early so the best results can be achieved. We incorporate the design of the pool at this stage so once we have gone through the process of designing the new garden and everyone is happy and excited to cost and build it, we can get in touch with the pool company
Typically we then take the approved landscape design to landscape contractors here (see working with the right landscape construction partner here) we also take this to the pool company. A pool company will engineer and detail the design of the pool for construction based on the approved landscape design. They will cost the installation of the pool so it can be carried out as part of the building of the new garden. Note that this usually needs to be poured before landscapers start work.
The pool equipment location and detail will be designed by a landscape designer. The plumbing side will be done by the pool contractor. Any additional structural elements such as pool fence, paving, and storage related to this will be done by the landscape construction contractor.
