Top Five Pool Options Every Inground Swimming Pool Buyer Should Consider

The market for inground swimming pool options is enormous and can be overwhelming, but there are only a handful that every inground pool owner should consider. Here are some important swimming pool options that you should consider and why. We have also included some budget saving tips.

1. Automatic Pool Covers. Automatic pool covers do more than protect your loved ones and pets; they make owning your own pool easy. Automatic safety covers protect your inground pool from water evaporation loss which aids in keeping heat and chemicals in; helping you keep pool chemicals and heating costs down. They also aid in keeping debris out allowing you more time for fun and frolicking rather than vacuuming or skimming leaves. For those folks who winterize their pool, it can double as your winter cover which allows you to avoid the hassle of dragging out the water tubes and tarp or strapping down your safety cover. Who doesn’t want to avoid that hassle? As a side note, most pool companies charge less for winterization when pool owners have an automatic safety cover.
   Pool Budget Saving Tip: Adding on an automatic safety cover when purchasing your inground pool options is a large expense and often is not in the budget. In lieu of a complete purchase, ask your pool builder about prepping for a future automatic safety cover install. Many times pool builders can set the box and tracks laying the groundwork for a future install that will be easy and more cost effective than a retrofit.
2. Heater. For those of us that don’t live in the sunbelt, we are always looking for ways to extend our swim season. A heater is a great way to do that. Yes, they can be costly to run especially gas heaters, but you likely will only run the heater in early spring and late fall. Electric heat pumps are more efficient and less expensive to operate, but they are slower to heat and have a higher initial cost. If you decide to go with a heat pump, they offer a chiller option that you might consider.
   Pool Budget Saving Tip: Heaters are easy pool options to add on later and don’t necessarily have to be installed at the time of your inground pool purchase. Just be sure that you leave enough room in your equipment area. The heater must be a minimum of 8 feet away from a window so plan ahead.
3. Inground pool lighting. Inground pool lighting can elevate the entire mood of your backyard patio area and provide safety for late night swimmers. This is one of those inground pool options that if you are considering it, now would be the time to opt for it. In-pool lighting is difficult to add on to an inground pool later and will cost you a lot more after the fact.
4. Water Features. The sound of moving water is mesmerizing and provides health benefits such as stress relief and relaxation. The best part about adding a water feature as one of your pool options is it allows you to enjoy the pool without even being in it. Adding a water feature to your inground pool can be as simple as a deck jet or as elaborate as a custom waterfall. Water features that circulate the pool water are not easily added on later and should be planned for during the construction phase of your project.
   Pool Budget Saving Tip: If it isn’t in your initial “pool options budget” to add a water feature, ask your pool builder about pre-plumbing and stubbing up for a future water feature addition.
5. Slides and Sports. Slides and water sports can bring out the competitive spirit in any family and raise the fun level. The options for inground pool slides have grown tremendously over the last decade. Extreme slides such as SR Smith’s Turbo Twister® or Inter-fab’s X-Stream® are some popular pool slide choices. Because all pool slides operate using a water line installed during construction, they are not easily retrofitted to existing pools. There are a lot of options for on deck applications for inground pool sports like volleyball and basketball; the best most unobtrusive pool options require an anchor socket to be installed in the deck during construction.
   Pool Budget Saving Tip: You can pre-plumb your pool with a water line for a slide to add later on but it does take some planning. You will want to decide what slide you will want in the future and make sure that you have the footprint large enough on your patio area to accommodate it along with the proper size plumbing line. You will also want to make sure that it meets the slides safety requirements for depth and entry.  You can hold off on purchasing the basketball and volleyball units, but I would strongly recommend at least having the deck anchors installed.