[Sthawkins]

We are building a Bridgeport with a pool in St. Catherine’s along with water (about 20’ x 60’ rectangle for the backyard) and have an appt scheduled with T&D on Monday. Since this will be our first pool, we are looking for advice.
Dos and Do Nots
Wish you did
Wish you didn’t
Pool shower?
Lighting?

We enjoy grilling on the Green Egg so we are also trying to decide how and where to put the grill area and bar area. Grill for him and bar for me Any suggestions/photos would be fantastic.


Thanks in advance

[GNXGuy]

What lot # in St Catherian’s? We bought a lot In there 2 weeks ago!!!! We are planning on a pool as well.

[tophcfa]

Originally Posted by Sthawkins

We are building a Bridgeport with a pool in St. Catherine’s along with water (about 20’ x 60’ rectangle for the backyard) and have an appt scheduled with T&D on Monday. Since this will be our first pool, we are looking for advice.
Dos and Do Nots
Wish you did
Wish you didn’t
Pool shower?
Lighting?

We enjoy grilling on the Green Egg so we are also trying to decide how and where to put the grill area and bar area. Grill for him and bar for me Any suggestions/photos would be fantastic.


Thanks in advice

Wow, that’s a big backyard pool. If I was building that I would go all in, if space allows it, and go to 75 feet long, then you will have a regulation length lap swimming pool. That is something unfortunately I can only dream about. The two things we wish we had in our pool/birdcage would be a pool shower and an open outdoor area with a roof, so we could spend more time out there on rainy days.

[cj1040]

Measure out 20 x 60..that is crazy big for a home pool for 2 people and occasional guests....we are building 12 x 25 and that is plenty for water aerobics and floating around. By the time you add all the extras...cage, roll up cover, pump etc you are looking at $$$. Decide what you really need first in size. Kitchen is only a few steps away so we did not feel an outdoor one worth the cost. Each to his own...

[Sthawkins]

Sorry, I missed typed... to stay within the setback, our entire building area for the backyard is about 20’ deep x 60’ wide. We need to fit our pool, bar, grill and decking area within that space. We are thinking about an approximate 12’ x 26’ pool with a small shelf for 2 chairs and a small water feature.

[Tblue]

We did a 15x30 TD pool a few months ago. I really like the shelf or sitting area to place 3 chairs with an attachment for an umbrella in the water. Also in the deep end a shelf about a foot underwater that comes out maybe 18 inches and 5 feet long, a nice area to just sit. We also have a water spigot and a 110 outlet placed on an outside wall. I have purchased a battery powered power washer form WORX and it works great, just place the hose attachment into the pool and very easy to walk around and clean the decking or bird cage. Lights in the pool are very nice, our living area opens to the pool area. TD placed the lights such that the light actual bulb is facing away from our living room, thus we are not looking at the bright light itself but can see the lighted pool water change color. My wife “upgraded” the screen on the bird cage to something called “20/20” not much difference than regular screen but a smaller weave and it keeps out the tiny bugs that seem to come right thru regular screen. Something else to consider is where to place the pump and filter, although it is very quiet when running ours is very close to our neighbors bedroom window, so we have it programmed to come on at 10 am and runs during the day. Also it’s very nice to sit in the living room and listen to the water fall which you can program to come on when you desire. TD was our choice because as I understand it they have all the needed people working for them, they don’t really contract out portions of the work. The guys who dig the hole, do the plumping, place the re-bar, set the tile, paint, solar system, and birdcage all work for TD, thus for us a seem less process. TD also will let you pay for it all on your credit card. I jumped on that idea with my cash back rewards and was able to purchase all the pool furniture. When buying pool furniture make sure not to get anything that is s going to rust. When placing scrubs around your bird cage, keep in mind they will grow and you want them far enough away from the screen when they do mature. The guys placing the sprinkler heads were well aware to position the sprinkler heads so the are not to close to the screen. It only been a few months but all in all we are very happy with our pool.

[Rga20]

Don't forget your furniture. The space will get used pretty quickly. We just finished a 12.5 x 24 pool with 1000sf of birdcage plus our lanai and it fills up quickly. You're welcome to come and take a look if you like.

[Chi-Town]

Build as large of a birdcage that you can. Think about different seating areas perhaps partially on an upper level. A spa can waterfall into the pool. A pool bath is another option to consider along with a storage closet. You don't want to look back and think of what you should have done. Have fun.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Sthawkins

We are building a Bridgeport with a pool in St. Catherine’s along with water (about 20’ x 60’ rectangle for the backyard) and have an appt scheduled with T&D on Monday. Since this will be our first pool, we are looking for advice.
Dos and Do Nots
Wish you did
Wish you didn’t
Pool shower?
Lighting?

We enjoy grilling on the Green Egg so we are also trying to decide how and where to put the grill area and bar area. Grill for him and bar for me Any suggestions/photos would be fantastic.


Thanks in advance

We added both a pool bath with a nice walk in shower and a shower for the outside of the bath too. Vera, the head designer and sales person at T&D added a small slab outside the screened area in a corner near the lanai for our grill. We had heard stories of animals clawing at the screen when they detected grease. We use a grill cover and keep it clean and no animals.

[John_W]

If I had a checkbook that big and was building a 60' pool I would go with Lucas Lagoons, they're down around Venice Florida, but they go all over the USA. They have the TV show Insane Pools Off the Deep End on HGTV. I think his basic pools are about $250K and up to a $million.



Lucas Lagoons Insane Pools: Off The Deep End

Back to the real world, this is a 16' x 32' pool 4' to 8' deep I had built in Pensacola a few years ago. It was just a little small for my taste. I sold that home and had a 18' x 36' the next home, I found that was a perfect size. I did add underwater lights, a diving board and more decking which this pool didn't have.

In Pensacola they do not use birdcages, they're not popular there, a fence around your yard is all the law requires. Here in TV you have birdcages because fences are not allowed and the law requires it. There was white coping around the edge because this was a vinyl pool, very popular in the panhandle of Florida. There is a plastic liner with foam padding underneath along the sides behind the liner. Makes it softer on the knees and feet. Vinyl pools are so much cheaper I don't know why in Central Florida they don't offer them, they probably can make more profit off concrete pools.

[Schneil]

Congratulations on your decision to build your own pool. T&D is the way to go, they will help you design the pool that will fit your area. If you are adding a ledge inside pool for 2 chairs, consider painting it a different color to look like a "beach" and the rest of the pool a deeper blue. If you are tall, consider the shallow area at 4'. If you are using pol for water sports consider shallower at both ends and deeper in the middle. Again, T&D will advise. If you are going to use umbrella's, have the holes drilled into the deck so you're not tripping over umbrella stands (watch direction of the sun/shade for optimal umbrella placement. Add electrical outlets to the outer corners of the birdcage, you'll use these for seasonal decorations, lighting for seating, music, grill lights, Rotisserie, etc. If you plan on having a few potted plants on lanai, consider having "chase line's installed/connected into your irrigation system, then you can easily run "drip line's" into your plants. If you want an "outdoor" summer kitchen you can easily make your own and save tons of money. Added height to the birdcage gives the illusion of "larger". Enjoy your tropical paradise.

[Toymeister]

We have a Bridgeport with pool. I would get a spa with the pool. Much easier to heat on cooler days. We also have plumbed, timed drip irrigation for pots in the birdcage. That is supplied with potable water, that's the rule for it to be legal.

I would make sure that you have adequate faucet taps. We have six, a bit too many.

We are plumbed for an outdoor kitchen. We had the Lanai pushed out 6 feet, plenty of room for my komodo grill. I have an outdoor rated fridge and natural gas two Burner stovetop although I have got to the kitchen yet

I would add a backdoor behind the GC garage and a small half wall brick off of that backdoor. Ostensibly for a grill but really for the trashcan

You can come by and see if you want, we're close to you.

[JCTJ18]

Hi,would you mind telling ,how much that size pool would cost I’m thinking about a pool but have limited space.