Quote Originally Posted by PoolDoc View Post
...100% of the pools over $100,000 (what a pool like your would cost here) have SERIOUS mechanical / structural problems. .... But they have serious operational problems from the get-go.

...SERIOUS errors -- in many cases, I have those errors marked with Post-its.

... California has much stricter structural requirements,

... Most engineering firms lack a clear, practical understanding of how to design a pool. Any concept or method not shared with other, more conventional, construction, they get wrong.

... Pool buyers -- like yourself -- tend to recoil at the idea that a pool they will like in 10 years will cost them perhaps 10% more than a pool they will hate in 2 years. To be fair, I think few pool companies try to SELL superior functional or operational design -- in any case, many companies probably lack the ability to deliver such designs. But if there's no seller 'push' for better functional design, there's no buyer 'pull', either. All the money goes for flash and show . . . and then when the glitz is gone, it's time to sell the property.

Good luck!
If I do a good job, luck will only play a small part in the outcome. it's why I'm asking questions now, instead of after the deck is in place.

When you say 'operational problems' do you mean structural failures? Or design failures like inadequate sizing of catchment basins or aspects of water flow?

I have a lot of questions from your post above, and I imagine some of them should be carried out offline. I will also search the site for answers to questions like, "why would a 20x30 pool with no spa and no retaining walls cost $100K to build?" With regard to structural requirements, the structural engineering was done by a firm that specializes in pool calcs in seismic design areas, and the geotech reports were done by one of the top 2 firms in northern California. The good news is, the soil couldn't be better for a pool: no expansive soils, construction on rock that will support 4000+ psf loads, and no retaining. The only thing that requires some extra work is that the pool site has a 7% pitch and will need a hefty downslope footing. There is, of course, always the potential for differential settlement - I've heard that's a particular challenge with negative edge 'infinity' pools - and I guess I'll have to plan to deal with that later if it occurs in spite of the engineering prescriptions.

I am here to learn how to spend my limited budget wisely, so I don't end up in the "90% of consumers" camp you call out. I don't have any plans to 'bling' this pool; the goal is elegance through simple, clean lines that let the site and the view speak for themselves. My question about pipes is really a generic design concern: I will create a pipe trough on the east and south sides of the pool that let me make changes right up to the time when the pool gets poured, and I may even be able to hold off on the part of the deck that the pipes have to run below. I have seen pictures of pools with dozens of pipes, and others with just a handful, and I would think this one would be on the "fewer" side. But I haven't built a pool before so what do I know?

...I can help you. But that help won't be via the forum for the most part, and won't be free. But, you gotta ask yourself: do you want that kind of help? Nothing I could do for you will make a guest, who's walked out onto your pool deck, go "Oh, wow!". It will just help prevent some from saying, under their breath, "Oh, yuck!".

....Oh, yeah. To do your pipes right, you pretty much have to design your hydraulic system now. By putting in extra, you can possibly leave yourself some flex room. But without seeing site drawings and layout plans, I can't say how much flex you can leave.
I always expect to pay for professional services... and I will definitely be paying for both pool design and mechanical engineering services. When it's time to get serious about building this pool, I'll reach out directly.