The Swimming Pool Book: Everything You Need to Know to Design, Build, and Landscape the Perfect Pool

The ultimate resource for prospective and current pool owners alike, this beautifully illustrated, comprehensive yet accessible volume examines the wide variety of pools available today. Written by Tom Griffiths, a well-known expert in pool and safety issues, The Swimming Pool offers invaluable detailed advice on a complete range of relevant topics such as the essentials of designing and constructing a pool, appropriate plantings and landscaping, proper filtration, water chemistry, and safety tips. Also included is a chapter exploring numerous case studies covering a range of budgets and uses, so that you can consider the many available options, make informed decisions, and choose the right pool for you. Part one of The Swimming Pool is devoted to helping you select an appropriate pool for your needs, budget, and available space. Chapter one provides a step-by-step plan for selecting the proper site, and includes considerations such as local zoning restrictions, slope, soil drainage, location of underground utilities, shade, wind, privacy, and the surrounding landscape. Chapters two and three discuss the full range of swimming pools, hot tubs, and spas in today's market, whether you wish to install a relatively inexpensive aboveground pool, an indoor hot tub for therapeutic purposes, an intricately tiled kidney-shaped pool with an ample deck for entertaining, a lap pool, or a vanishing-edge pool that highlights a spectacular view. Chapter four presents fully illustrated case studies that enable you to examine a range of pool plans -- from the simple to the ornate. Filled with creative ideas and practical advice, this chapter lays out a variety of options so that you can evaluate and prioritize your needs, then select the pool that meets them beautifully and affordably. Part two of The Swimming Pool is every pool owner's dream come true: an easy-to-use handbook that takes all the worry out of pool upkeep. Chapter five focuses on the importance of good water circulation, chemistry, and maintenance, making these concepts readily understandable, demonstrating how to achieve clear, clean water, and providing charts and sidebars that offer important safety tips and troubleshooting advice. Also included is a discussion of essential pool-keeping equipment and daily and weekly maintenance chores that will help protect your investment. Chapter six demonstrates the importance of barriers for safety, privacy, and aesthetics, and describes the many types of fencing available. Chapter seven contains vital information that will assist in ensuring pool safety, giving a complete list of "pool rules" and necessary safety and rescue equipment, plus tips on supervising children and adults, teaching youngsters to swim, and much more. The Swimming Pool concludes with an extensive list of pool plantings, and a listing of pool publications worldwide. Filled with expert advice, helpful ideas, charts, sidebars, pool plans, and gorgeous and inspiring color photographs, The Swimming Pool is the ideal sourcebook, as it contains everything you'll need to know, from planning to maintenance.

Tom Griffiths, Ed.D., is the director of aquatics and the safety officer for the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics at Penn State University. He has served as a swimming pool and safety consultant for more than twenty years, and currently oversees five large pools and a fitness center and teaches a certified pool operator's course worldwide. The author of Sport Scuba Diving, In-Depth, and The Complete Swimming Pool Reference, he lives in State College, Pennsylvania, with his wife and two daughters.