How to build a DIY concrete block pool
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- čas přidán 16. 08. 2024
- We are amateur home renovators who watched #NicoleMichaelDIY #howtobuildapool CZcams videos a thousand times and taught ourselves how to build a pool. It was a great project to keep us busy through Covid. We started building in May 2020. We finished the pool by Oct 2020 and then landscaped the summer of 2021. The total cost was $10,000 for the pool and another $5000 for the deck & patio (because we live in Canada and the prices are ridiculous!)
The cost breakdown was as follows: concrete blocks $2400 / dirt removal bins: $1800 / mini digger rental $300 / concrete for slab pour: $800 / plaster, mortar, waterproofing: $1600 / pump, skimmer, light & filter : $1800 / concrete mixer, tools & supplies: $1200 It was an expensive time to build as the costs soared during Covid and supply was scarce. We did however hear of a friend who had a quote of over $75,000 for the same size pool which seems crazy but it was a lot of work!
#diypool #plungepool #cinderblockpool #concreteblockpool #diyingroundpool #diyplungepool #smallpoolconstruction #diyswimmingpool #diysolarwaterheaters #solarwaterheater #pooldeck #diypoolcoping - Jak na to + styl
I really think the pool turned out absolutely amazing. How awesome to see that I was your inspiration. Enjoy! Greetings from the Netherlands from Nicole!
Oh wow! Hi Nicole. We are huge fans! We can’t thank you enough. We have used our pool almost every day for the last three summers. It is life changing in the heat. What an excellent idea. We never would have been foolish enough to do this on our own but SO worth all the effort 🥰
I built one about ten years ago. Only leak was a very slight one around the skimmer. Ours is half in/ half above ground. The above ground part is covered in limestone. I used plenty of rebar and filled all of the block with concrete. I applied Quik Crete Quick Wall inside and out before backfilling. We coated the inside with swimming pool epoxy. It is 8' X 12' and serves it's purpose perfectly. Something to jump in during the blazing summers in South Texas. And it all started with a giant hole caused by losing a big oak tree during Hurricane Dolly.
I'm gonna build a small one like that, great story. Thanks
That sounds awesome. Sounds like you made something lovely from a bad situation.
I'm planning on building one next year
I like your plan. I gotta make mine 4 times the size.
I’ve been watching your video and Nicole’s. 2024 here I come with a in ground pool.
That's great !
Hey Brian, awesome job. I’d love to recreate your success in my backyard. Maybe you could do an update video with little more details? It might be very helpful to those of us crazy enough to attempt this.
Thank you.
Thx, I will see if I can figure out any other tips to video.
This is awesome!
Thank you !
Im in Canada as well, but in Ontario. How was the process of getting permits to build?
Beautiful bathtubs
LOL. Yes kinda. Just big enough to cool off
Lovely grate job ❤😊
Thanks
I want to build a pool like this in my backyard in south west Florida. How did you handle building permits?
well… that’s up to what the rules are where you live
Hi there - we live in Alberta - cold winters - how cold does it get where you are and how is the pool holding up? Looking at starting this project..... ;)
Hi, we are in BC and only have a few really cold weeks a year. I have done some research about emptying concrete pools vs leaving them full & emptying the pipes only but I'm not really sure what people in Alberta do. We leave ours full of water all winter & just insulate our pump & filter with pipe insulation & silver bubble wrap & hard foam insulation. Then when it drops below zero, we just let the pump run to keep the water moving. Last year we had minus 13 overnight for several days and the water was fine. That is cold for BC but I know that's nothing for Alberta! I would talk to a local pool maintenance company for advice. Find a place that does pool water testing, they are usually very knowledgeable. They will know what is the best way to winterize also whether it is ok to leave a plaster pool empty or better to paint it. Good luck with your build!
Nice work, I believe I’m about to start digging a hole soon too. Any tips for buying the filter and pump?
Bravo. Best of luck to you. You need to calculate the size to get the volume of water. With a small plunge pool the challenge is finding a pump small enough that isn’t for an above ground pool. I ordered a Hayward .75 hp from Pool Supplies Canada
How did the white concrete coping turn out? Were you able to get them smooth or did they have a rough concrete texture? How did you make the forms?
We wanted it to be as smooth and white as possible so we used white sand instead of any aggregate. The colour is nice but a little inconsistent because we made it in batches. The smoothness also means it's a bit soft and can chip easily. We made the moulds with white laminated boards used for building shelves or cabinets and put a small bead of silicone in the corners smoothed with a popsicle stick to give it a rounded edge. That was really the hardest part of building the forms because it was so messy & hard to get the excess cleaned out of the mould. We jiggled each one when it was poured and gently knocked with a hammer to get out bubbles. They aren't perfect but way cheaper than custom cut stone! Some people say you can polish them after they come out of the mould but we tried one and it just brought out the aggregate so it looked less even toned and we had to remake that one. The other hard part of course is the math. Make sure you measure all sides. Even though our pool is small, one side is 1.5" longer than the other so we had to add a tiny amount more to each to make it look consistent. - Best of luck!
@@jeffthecat8437 Thanks a bunch for your input. I've been testing different methods and the Melamine board you used seems to be the best.
How did you get the water out of the pool after you used it to cure the plaster?
We actually just filled it & left the water in and just added chemicals. It takes so long to apply the plaster that it is pretty much dry to the touch on the surface so it doesn't come off in the water. We emptied it a couple of months later when we realized there was a leak & refinished it with the new type of plaster. We have a blue hose attached to the pool pump that pumps out water when we vacuum it. It can suck out most of the water and then we have a small sump pump that we attach to a garden hose to pump it out into a drain if we need to empty it completely. We have only drained it one other time when the pool turned green from algae this summer. It was a last ditch effort. We had to empty it & scrub the whole pool & make sure we filled it back up asap so the plaster didn't dry up. We leave the pool full of water all winter as well and just run the pump when the air temperature goes below freezing. Depends where you live on how to winterize. If your pool is much bigger, you may want to install a drain. I didn't but it means that when it drains everything goes through the sand filter. Apparently the filter needs to be emptied & refilled with new sand every 3-5 years as well. This is stuff I'm still learning... it's always something! Best of luck, just keep watching lots of videos!
What water proofing did you use?
We painted the block with a waterproof sealant before we plastered. Then we added a waterproofing agent into the plaster mix. Both were ones recommended by the brick wholesaler that we bought the concrete from. The green waterproofing was a third type that we got from a paint company just to seal the top of the blocks under the coping.
The real key to waterproofing when using a concrete plaster is to get it as smooth as possible. We had a hell of a time and had some leaks at first. We discovered the roll on Sidercrete plaster. What a great product. It rolls on the it squeegees smooth. Make sure you order the special squeegees from them as well. Very easy and fixed the problems except where the worst leak was. We didn’t let it dry enough so the water was bubbling back in. We had to then dry and replaster those 2 small spots!
Looks great! Cost?
Thanks.
The total for the pool was $10,000 CAN$. There’s a complete price breakdown in the description.
What did the drainage hose do? (roughly 3:00) Thanks!
Its a good idea to put a perforated hose & gravel behind a retaining wall to allow ground water to move around so it doesn't build up in one spot. It's like the drain tile around the perimeter of a house. I figured it made sense to do it around the pool.
hello .its 2mx5m? x1,5m deep?
Hi, it is roughly those dimensions
@@jeffthecat8437 2m is not too narrow? 2.20 was better no?
@@phigio1319 Yes, it is very narrow. Bigger would be better of course but we were up against a wall of hard clay that was exhausting to chisel out with a jackhammer. We honestly couldn't go another foot wider. Part of the problem is that the hole needs to be another 3' wider and 2' deeper than the finished pool to allow for the concrete block & drainage gravel & pipes. Also every little bit bigger also adds to the cost in blocks and dirt removal. Aesthetically we wanted it to be a long narrow rectangle and not too square. It's small, I can almost touch both side walls but it's enough to cool down in the summer & do a few strokes. If you have the space then go bigger!
It's so small.