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Small Changes That Will Transform Your Inground Pool

Is your inground pool feeling a bit ‘blah’ and in need of a makeover? If you want to spruce things up a bit but are unsure of what exactly to do, we’ve compiled our recommendations for amazing pool upgrades that will make your backyard feel like a 5-star resort and result in less maintenance for you. Check them out below.

The Value that Inground Pools Add to Your House

If you are looking at eventually selling your home down the road, an inground pool is an amazing investment. An inground pool will increase the value of your home, and potentially increase the listing price by 5 to 8 percent.

However, pools offer so much more value that isn’t monetary. They make for amazing experiences and help you create memories that last a lifetime.

Pool Upgrades that Are Worth the Time and Effort

Whether you love to entertain or are spending more time at home than usual, you might find yourself itching to upgrade your indoor pool.

The following ideas are all amazing options that will transform how you use your swimming pool.

Robotic Pool Cleaner

It’s no secret that cleaning your pool can be a total pain. Fortunately, technological advancements have given us some pretty amazing inventions, such as robotic pool cleaners.

With a robotic cleaner, all you need to do is drop it into your pool and it will vacuum all areas of your pool without using your filtration system.

New Pool Liner

If your pool liner is looking cracked, ripped, discoloured, wrinkled, or stretched, or is leaking, it may be time to invest in a new one. As a rule of thumb, pool liners should be replaced every five to nine years, depending on the condition.

Variable Speed Pumps

A Variable Speed Pump is a pool pump that can be adjusted to operate at different speeds.

While not an exciting upgrade, going with a Variable Speed Pump offers numerous benefits. For instance, having one means less energy is used, leading to often significant cost savings for you. This also means more effective filtration and improved pool turnover, amongst other benefits.

Automation Systems

Imagine being able to monitor your pool’s chemical levels or turn its lights on remotely with just the tap of a finger. With a pool automation system, it’s possible.

Smart pool automation systems use an internet connection to automate pool maintenance through an app on your smartphone or tablet. This means you can control certain functions of your pool from a distance using your phone. This is helpful if you go on vacation and forget something or simply don’t feel like walking outside to do things manually.

Functions you can control using automation include:

  • Chemical sensors

  • Lights

  • Alarms

  • Sound systems

  • Smart outlets and switches

  • Automatic pool covers

  • Water leak sensors

  • And more

Automatic Pool Covers

Let’s face it, covering up your pool can be a chore. With automated pool covers, this task is taken care of for you.

Automatic pool covers use a motor to roll out and retract your pool cover with the click of a button.

Not only does this save you time and effort, but they help make your pool safer, prevent water loss due to evaporation, and keep your pool warm.

Quality Lighting

The right lighting can make a huge difference to your overall pool experience. Not only do you get to use your pool on a warm summer night, but LED/Halogen lights will reflect off the surface of the water and light up the pool, creating an amazing ambiance.

Some great lighting options include:

  • Underwater lights mounted to the floor of your pool

  • Underwater lights mounted on the side of the pool

  • Lights around the decking

  • Floodlighting

  • Water feature lighting

  • Floating lights

Fencing

Fencing around your pool is mandatory in most municipalities, so why not have it look amazing?

Rather than a boring chain-link fence, upgrade your fencing to something more modern and elegant, such as:

  • Rod iron

  • Glass

  • Mesh

  • Raw or painted wood

  • Lattice wood

  • Bamboo

  • Stone

  • Hedges

Water Features

If you’re looking for luxury, then consider some amazing new water features.

Water features make your pool look more like a resort, transforming it into a true focal point in your yard. Some examples of luxury water features include:

  • Waterfalls

  • Jets

  • Water curtain

  • Bubblers

  • Spouts

  • Grotto

Upgrades You Can Usually Skip

While once super trendy, these upgrades aren’t super functional and can be difficult to maintain. So, unless you have your heart set on one of these, we’d recommend skipping them.

Diving Boards

Have you noticed that newer pools don’t typically have diving boards? There are several reasons for this.

While not always the case, having a pool with a diving board can sometimes increase your homeowner’s insurance rate.

Another downside is that they aren’t that safe. In fact, in order to make diving boards safer, most manufacturers nowadays are making diving boards stiffer, which, as a result, makes them less springy and effective.

Slides

Slides are another pool feature that has been gradually phased out due to safety concerns. Another issue is that they take up space on your deck and are a lot of work to maintain.

Spillover Spa

While spillover spas add a luxurious touch, they are not practical and are difficult to maintain, especially during the wintertime.

Some additional downsides include:

  • Increased construction costs and more complex installation

  • Difficulty using during the winter months

  • Spa water can get into the pool and vice versa

  • Attached spa pumps are typically not as powerful

  • Attached spas require more energy to run and are more costly to operate

Instead, we recommend a detached hot tub or spa.

Whether you decide to keep it simple with maintenance upgrades or go all out with water features, we hope that you learned something new about all of the options available to you. When you decide you are ready to take the plunge, make sure you do your homework and work with pool upgrade experts, like the team we have here at Poolarama. For pool services in the Ottawa area, you can put your trust in Poolarama.