Pebble surface for Beach Entry?

Hi all,

We're in the process of designing a pool and are trying to decide on whether or not to include a beach entry feature.

We've already decided to go with a pebble (not PebbleTec) finish, and our chosen pool builder suggested that since we've already decided to go with pebble, that a beach entry becomes cost-effective because the pebble finish doesn't have the same problems regular plaster does in being out of the water, i.e., we can cover the beach entry with pebble all the way to the surface of the water.

Any pros/cons with this idea?

Thanks,

Joel

Locally the prevailing feeling is that pebble-tec is good in and out of water, but pebble-sheen (finers, smoother pebbles embedded in plaster) is not OK.

Several local pool companies suggested we not do a beach entry because it becomes a bird bath and the by-products of birds introduce a lot of bio-stuff for the sanitizer to deal with.

One local public pool has a beach entry made from the rubberized stuff they use on playgrounds. It is AWESOME, soft on the feet and little ones don't get hurt when they fall. Only time will tell if it hold up. I have no idea what it cost.

I am in the process of having a pool built and we opted for the beach entry feature with Pebble Tec. We will actually have more of a tanning ledge than a true beach entry, it will only go from 0" to 12" of water. We were also considering the use of Pebble Sheen on the beach entry for a smoother finish. My local Pebble Tec installer (A&B Plaster) said that pebble sheen is no good for out of water application. I just could not believe it and called the Pebble Tec headquarters to get to the bottom of it.

It turns out that there were several people who did a Pebble Sheen beach entry and were very dissatisfied with the aesthetic look of the Pebble Sheen out of the water, it looks like concrete. To warn about this possible disappointment Pebble Tec HQ sent out a memo to all installers about it. The Pebble Sheen material has no mechanical or physical limitation of being out of water, it's simply an aesthetic thing, but as urban lenegds spread now people are told that Pebble Sheen cannot be used out of water. It's not that it can't, it's just that it is discouraged due to some people being unhappy with the finished look.

Bottom line, I will have Pebble Tec on my beach entry not Pebble Sheen. I will also have the beach entry done in a different color than the rest of the pool.

I have also heard the rumors about birds using it as a bath, I guess I'll just have to live with it. Wifey really wants the beach entry, so we're getting one. The only other option that was offered for us as far as finish on the beach entry was flagstone. It is $$$ and I am affraid that it would be too slippery. I am sure the Pebble Tec will be great. Now if only they would start digging.....

Thanks for the replies!

GT - have you by chance asked to see any previous work by your installer of beach entry with Pebble Sheen? I'm really curious about this now, and will probably ask my pool builder if I can go see some references.

My pool was recently finished (1st swim 10 days ago) with a Pebble-Tec beach entry. The beach entry is Sandy Beach and the pool is Tropical Breeze.

It's actually a hybrid entry, because we wanted a coping line as opposed to the jagged, irregular line created by the rendom action of the water.

We have noticed no bird activity in the beach entry, but our dogs do seem to lap the water occasionally. Also, this is an SWG pool.

We are very happy with the aesthetics and the feel of the Pebble-Tec in the Beach entry. It is very comfortable to lie on and I feel we will make frequent use of the area as a wet sun shelf.

I'll try to post pictures this evening.

Hi Laguna Joe - Thanks for the reply. I'd be VERY interested to see pictures of your beach entry. Right now, I'm have trouble imagining how this would look, and I'm wondering if I should have the builder put coping (we're using Oklahoma Flagstone) at the "entrance" to the beach entry, or if we should have pebble all the way out of the water.

Looking forward to your pics!

I haven't seen any actual beach entry build by my builder, but I am sure they have done it before.

Tropical Breeze is a great color, we were considering that one too. My builder charges $500 extra for the separate beach color and $600 extra for the Creme De Menthe (It would be $1200 for the Tropical Breeze). I tihnk we are settled on Creme de Menthe for the pool and Soft White for the beach entry area. How much did yours cost Laguna Joe?

I left my digital camera at the house this morning, but I'll go by at lunch and get the pictures.

We also used Oklahoma Wister Flagstone around the pool (in tandem with oval areas of stamped overlay concrete to break up the flagstone look) and the beach entry coping line is flagstone. The interior wall of the beach entry uses flagstone as the tile down to the water line. The coping looks really nice because the builder put a chiseled profile on the exposed flagstone edge.

I checked my contract and the Pebble-Tec cost was not itemized, but I've already contacted my builder to get the cost and whether the transition between the two colors cost extra.

You won't see the coping line in this schematic, but it will give you an idea of our pool until I post the pictures. The large oval areas that don't look like flagstone are the textured, stamped concrete overlay areas.

Here are the pics associated with the Pebble-Tec hybrid beach entry:

Thanks for the pics, Laguna Joe! Your pool looks great, and I think using a different pebble color for the beach entry works really well. It's hard for me to tell from the pictures - how much does the entry slope from start to the end of the entry?

Also, how deep is that end of the pool?

Thanks so much for posting those pics. These help a great deal!

The beach entry slopes from 0" to 12" over a 10 foot width. Due to the coping line, there is still a 3" step down from the deck to the surface of the beach entry.

Bubblers were installed near the shallow end (6" water depth) to prevent stagnant water in the beach entry area.

The pool depth opposite the beach entry is 4-1/2 - 5 feet.

You would be well advised to add a light in the wall of the beach entry. My builder did not suggest it, but I ran across the recommendation in the old forum, and I can tell you now, we could not live without it. The pool light simply cannnot illuminate the beach entry.