The design team went to stake out the pool and conduct a final site meeting with the homeowners in early spring, but by this time they had five months to visualize how they would want to use the new space. The unknown challenge was the covered porch on one side of the home, which was also the main exit and entry point for the backyard. The initial design had been laid out with this in mind, but after staring out the large windows in the centre of the house for months, the homeowners decided that spot would make a grand entrance to the extravagant new backyard. French doors opening to the pool stretched out before them became the new vision.
A week before digging, the design was rotated to run perpendicular to the house. Changing gears quickly in an unforgiving market is not easy. The pool’s circulation had to be changed to accommodate the new water feature placement, the feature wall with three sheer descents moved to the end of the pool, the spa moved, and additional plumbing was required. The original plan to keep the existing patio had to be updated and expanded to more than 158 m2 (1,700 sf). A new entrance had to be formed off the house, where the proposed French doors would be installed.
Thankfully, there was no change to the permit; the size of the property, which was more than a hectare (acre), combined with the town of Uxbridge not having a limitation on hardscaping, meant no required plan adjustment.
Five days after the changes were made, the team had the design, material, elevation, and digs updated in time to meet the scheduled start date.
The building process
The construction process was seamless. Trenching, gas, electrical, and plumbing went as scheduled. A few trees needed to be removed to accommodate the new layout, but nothing extensive had to be done that would hold up the job.
However, vinyl availability in 2022 was an issue. There was often an eight-week long delay in production. Best practices include installing the liner as the last item and typically, this includes the completion of all landscaping as well. In some cases, this meant backyards were completed first and homeowners had to keep waiting for the liner to use their pool. For this project, the turnaround time on the updated patio extended the landscape timeline, but ultimately, it lined up perfectly with the vinyl delivery.
The final product is a 4 x 10 m (16 x 36 ft) rectangle pool—which is now the focal point of the backyard, perfectly framed off the main room of the house.
The pool boasts a 2-m (7-ft) custom steel sun-ledge/step combination, complete with a bubbler. It was designed for in-pool loungers, and as a play area for kids. The vinyl liner selection provides a muted blue water colour, which calmly complements the surroundings.
