By Jason Cramp
A homeowner in Winnipeg, Man., looking to make the most of their existing home by building the ultimate entertainment centre, called upon Aqua-Tech Pools Ltd., to equip their recreation room with a swimming pool and hot tub.
The client didn’t want the typical recreation room with a big-screen TV and pool table; they wanted the area to have a resort-like feel with enough space to spend time with family and entertain several guests while remaining comfortable.
To create the resort atmosphere, Aqua-Tech’s Virginia Stewart designed a free-form swimming pool equipped with several elements, including a Rico Rock water feature, Firefly jets and fibre-optic lighting. Rock features flank the outside pool edge with plants and shrubs used to create visual interest in other areas of the design. Strategically placed perimeter lighting in the pool area casts a variety of shadows on the ceiling and enhances the room’s intriguing appeal.
A Sundance Cameo portable hot tub was included in the design and was partly recessed into a composite deck. The hot tub seats five to six people and includes a full-body lounger, deep-jetted footwall and cool-down seat. It also features 37 jets, an Aqua Terrace waterfall, light-emitting diode (LED) lighting and a stereo.
Aqua-Tech also designed a unique, tinted-mirrored ceiling, which suspends strands of fibre-optic lighting above the hot tub to mimic stars, further enhancing the room’s outdoor-like setting. The hot tub area includes an in-wall gas fireplace and has its own seating area separate from the pool deck. The hot tub overlooks the pool and offers a view of the entire room.
Aqua-Tech also installed a Dry-a-tron unit to heat the pool and keep the room’s humidity levels low, while an architectural concrete floor, equipped with an in-floor heating system, completes the room.
