Creating a Swimming Pool Plan

The first step to buying or building a pool or hot tub is to decide where it's going to go. If you're going to build outdoors, you might want to consider locating the pool close to the house since it will likely become the central attraction, and the deck makes a nice area for hosting parties. The entry point should be easily accessible to the whole household (probably a kitchen or family room rather than a bedroom), unless you wish to install a cozy private spa. There are further points to consider.

You may want to draw a bird's eye sketch of the existing property. It should have the location of everything, including the house, driveway, any shrubs or trees, gardens, etc. Now, draw in where you want to locate the pool. Also consider any decks or landscaping you may wish to add with the pool.

Before you finalize anything, you'll want to check the zoning laws to find out if there is a minimum distance the pool must be placed from the property line. Also, you need to find out if there are any buried utilities such as gas, sewer,
or water, near your proposed location. You'll want to observe sun and wind patterns. You don't want the whole pool to be in the shade (don't forget shade patterns changes not
only with time of day, but also with the season), and if you live in a hot climate, you may wish to take advantage of
any prevailing breezes.

Also check the slope of the land and the consistency of the soil. Sandy ground can make excavation difficult. Ideally, runoff water should flow away from the pool.

Make sure there won't be any overhead electrical lines crossing the pool. In order to power the pumps, filters, lights, etc. you'll need to have dedicated lines run to the pool area. You will need to be able to fill your pool, as well, so you'll want a hose to reach from your outdoor faucet to the pool.

Figure access for building equipment into your plan. If you are building an underground pool, trucks carrying heavy equipment will need to be able to get into your yard.

Once you have everything drawn and verified, you're ready to go.