How to make a pool in the country with your own hands (cheap)

In the hot season, everyone enjoys spending time in the cool clear water. But going out into nature (to a river or other body of water) is not always possible. In this case, the ideal option would be to make a pool in the country with your own hands or in a suburban area. You will always have your own reservoir at hand, where you can relax with your children.

In the article we will talk about how you can build a private pool in the country, and cheaply.

Structural varieties

Before answering the question of how to build a pool in the country with your own hands, you definitely need to decide on the type of construction itself. The choice of materials and working technology will depend on this.

As an option, we can offer the following types of pools:

1. Frame — these types of structures can be purchased ready-made. A frame-type pool is a metal structure with a stretched canvas (usually a PVC film). The kit may include a cleaning system, a ladder, a pumping station and other structures installed for the season. The pool is already equipped with waterproofing, it will be enough just to assemble the structure and pump water into it.
2. Plastic products — a similar option is a bowl that is made of polymeric materials. It is possible to buy a ready-made container or order it from a special company. Such models, as well as the previous version, must be installed for the season. Do not leave a plastic container for the winter.
3. Stationary — this type can be considered a real pool. Naturally, its creation will require large financial and physical investments from you, but as a result, a huge reservoir will appear in the country house or a plot near the estate where you can swim.

As one of the options, we suggest considering inflatable structures. But these pools are not so comfortable because of their size. And the quality of inflatable structures is often lame. When pumping up the pool in the evening, you may find in the morning that it is just a piece of rubberized matter that lies helplessly on the ground.

Details

Choosing the ideal location and optimal size

Since it is stationary pools that can be considered “real”, the future will talk about this option. If you decide on the type, then you should think about the place of installation and the dimensions of the artificial type of reservoir itself. The selection of places for installation for the most part depends on the wishes of the owner. Most people install a pool near the recreation area. But when choosing places, it is important to take into account certain factors, or rather:

1. Land — a lot will depend on its quality. First, you should make a choice in favor of clay soil. In this case, you will receive additional natural-type waterproofing. In addition, when creating a stationary pool, you will need to dig a foundation pit. If there is rocky land on the selected site, then the work can be quite complicated, time-consuming, especially if you do all the work yourself.
2. The prevailing wind direction is due to the fact that the pool will be located in an open area, that is, there is a high probability of all kinds of debris getting into it. So that when bathing you do not encounter debris in the form of paper scraps or dry leaves, it is better that artificial-type reservoirs be protected from the prevailing wind direction.
3. The presence of all kinds of vegetation nearby — it is better that there are no bushes near the reservoir, and even more so trees. Plants constantly reach for moisture, and their roots are strong enough to easily break through a concrete pool bowl.

If we are talking about the size of an artificial type of reservoir, then there are no special requirements. Everything will fully depend on the availability of free land and your preferences. For example, for swimming in one lane, a width of 2.5 meters and a length of 5 meters is ideal. If there are two lanes, the width will be increased to 4 meters. The optimal depth is 1.4 meters. But even here it will largely depend on the purposes for which you are building a reservoir. If you have small children and the main task of the pool is to entertain them, and therefore you should not make it very deep. And vice versa, if you love to jump from the tower, then the depth will play an extremely important role.

Stages of building a pool

In general, building a pool in the country with your own hands (we are talking about stationary structures) can be divided into the following stages:

• Selection of a variety of a reservoir and drafting a project. A suitable site for the construction process is selected at the same time.
• Marking on the site — earthworks.
• Production of formwork and pouring of the thicket from the pool.
• Applying a waterproofing layer on the surface and finishing the bowl.
• Equipping the pool with lighting and equipment.

As you can see, there is a lot of work. At the same time, all stages are extremely important, because not only the appearance of the building and the duration of operation will depend on this.

Ground work and bowl production

After that, you can proceed to consider the question itself — how to make a pool with your own hands. When you have time to decide on the dimensions and installation site, you can start earthworks. The first step is to make sure to mark the surface of the site, and for this you can use pegs, as well as a stretched rope. After that, you need to move on to earthworks — this is one of the most time-consuming construction stages. You need to dig a pit of the required depth and size. At the same time, it is extremely important to take into account that the length, width and depth are required to do this by approximately 0.5 meters more. If the dimensions of the pool you have planned are large enough, then you should consider the features of attracting specialized equipment.

After the foundation pit, you can start creating a bowl for the future pool:

1. The walls and bottom of the pit must be carefully compacted.
2. After that, a sand cushion is made, and for this it is required to fill the bottom with a layer of material, in which the thickness is from 0.2 to 0.3 meters and carefully tamp.
3. A layer of waterproofing is applied over the sand cushion at the bottom and along the common surface of the walls. At the moment, in the construction market, you can find many materials that will be an excellent barrier to water. The most budgetary can be considered the use of bituminous mass and roofing material. A layer of roofing material is laid over the common surface (on the walls and bottom, and the latter must be covered with material up to the very top with a margin). After that, apply several (ideally 3 to 4 layers) bituminous mastic.
4. A new stage will be the installation of a drain system, and this must be done before the installation of the formwork. How many drain holes to make and where to place them will depend on the dimensions, as well as the shape of the pool bowl.
5. After that, you need to install formwork, which can be made from improvised materials. After installing the formwork, proceed to pouring the concrete mix. In this case, it is imperative to use reinforcement. In order for the bowl to serve as long as possible, it is required to use concrete of the desired brand with specialized additives.

After the concrete mass hardens, the formwork can be removed. After that, it is required to treat all surfaces of the resulting bowls with a solution of water and concrete or to iron. At this point, the main stages for creating a pool can be considered complete. After that, finishing and structural equipment are produced.

Lighting and decoration

After that, it is important to finish the pool bowl. It is quite possible to build a pool cheaply in the country with your own hands, but before finishing, apply an additional waterproofing layer. It is extremely important to seal each crack so that the water does not damage the bowl. To do this, we recommend using impregnating materials, mastic or film. After the waterproofing stage, finishing work can begin. Ceramic tiles are usually used to cover the pool bowl, this material can easily withstand prolonged exposure to water, they can be easily washed and have a beautiful appearance.

In addition to ceramic tiles, even modern materials can be used, for example, PVC film. Modern manufacturing companies produce a huge range of the required material. It will be durable and strong. And if we talk about drawings and colors, then there will always be plenty to choose from.

You can finish the finishing work yourself, but it is better to equip the pool with additional equipment. This kit usually contains:

• Water purification device — such a device is capable of including a circulation pump, a filtration tank, a multi-way valve and filter elements. With such equipment, water changes inside the reservoir can be carried out much less frequently.
• Flow type heater — when installed, you can swim even in the cold season.
• Lighting Equipment — Lighting inside the pool will look very beautiful.

Do not forget to equip the area around the new artificial type of reservoir. Usually it is covered with ceramic tiles. But here it is extremely important to choose an option with an anti-slip coating, and in this case you reduce the risk of injury.

Conclusion

The swimming pool at their summer cottage is a great place to relax on hot summer days. And making it yourself is not so difficult. You can build an artificial reservoir from improvised means, but it will be much more reliable and better to make it from concrete. Make calculations, markup, dig a pit, completely fill the bowl and make a finish. These are the main working steps. With a little financial investment and effort, you will have a great vacation spot for the family.