FOUNTAINS & SWIMMING POOLS - 2
When building costs decline, the cost
of constructing pools also
goes down. Furthermore, with more and
more homeowners in-
stalling private pools, contractors will
work out simpler methods for
their construction. Even when all of
these factors are taken into
account, however, it is not highly probably
that the average price of
private swimming pools will, in the near
future, come as low as the
average price of a good car. Nor is there
much chance that prices of
pools will become standardized as car
prices are standardized. The
cost of building a pool on your particular
site will continue to be
largely a matter of negotiation between
you and your contractor;
and such factors as soil conditions on
the site, the dimensions of the
pool, the accessories you desire, and
the contractor's past experiences
with pool construction will influence
the final cost in such ways that
you may pay a good deal more or a good
deal less for your pool than
some neighbor paid for his.
A major proportion of private swimming
pools are constructed
of poured concrete. Some pools have been
made of plain concrete, that is,
concrete without steel reinforcement
embedded in it, but the massive
walls which are required in this method
of construction consume
prohibitive quantities of cement and
aggregrates.
Concrete is an excellent material for
pools. If due attention is
paid to proportioning the ingredients,
including the water, mixing
and placing them and to thorough damp-curing,
a high-strength
concrete which will last practically
indefinitely can be produced. A
smooth finish which greatly facilitates
cleaning of the pool can be
given to the inner walls by using dressed
lumber or, better still,
plywood to face the forms in which the
concrete is poured. Expansion
joints, gutters, and drains are easily
made by proper shaping
of the forms. The natural color of ordinary
concrete is not un-
pleasant in a pool, but if desired, the
pool walls can readily be fin-
ished with whitewash which imparts a
pleasant blue color to the
water. Next to concrete, the chief material
for swimming pools is steel.
However, the number of concrete pools
built greatly exceeds the
number of steel pools. Steel pools are
made of fairly heavy steel
plates which are shaped at the factory
or at a steel fabricating works
before they are shipped to the site.
The pool is put together by
assembling the plates in the excavation
which has been made for
the pool. Some steel pools are formed
with riveted joints but most
of them are now made with welded joints.
Even in thickly popu-
lated regions steel pools are usually
offered by only a few contractors,
and the ones built are constructed only
by these firms. General con-
tractors will not undertake them and
they are quite beyond the
capabilities of amateur builders. A steel
pool is never cracked by
frost heaving, although it is theoretically
possible for the bottom of
such a pool to be severely bulged if
water should accumulate under
it and then freeze. The weakness of steel
pools is their susceptibility
to rust, especially at the water line
where air and water meet. Steel
pools are usually painted with asphalt
paint to retard rusting. It is
important to see that this coat of paint
is well maintained at the
water line and also at joints.
Successful pools have been made by a
variety of other methods
and with numerous other materials. The
most important variation
to date is in the method of placing the
concrete. Instead of pouring
it in forms, some builders line the excavation
with a suitable network
of reinforcing steel, then apply the
concrete with a pneumatic
gun. The concrete mix must be specially
proportioned for the process,
and, of course, special equipment is
required for its application.
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