Everything on a pool options list sounds good in a showroom. Here is how those choices tend to play out after a couple of seasons in a Wisconsin backyard.
Gets used constantly
The tanning ledge
The single most used square footage in most pools. It is where small kids play, where adults sit with a drink, and where you end up on a hot day when you do not actually want to swim. If it is molded into the shell, you are not paying extra for it later.
An automatic cover
It reduces evaporation and heat loss, keeps debris out, and adds a safety layer. In a climate where heating costs real money, the daily convenience is the point.
Lighting
Color LED lighting extends the pool into the evening and changes how the whole yard reads after dark. Low cost relative to its effect.
Worth it for the right household
- Spillover spa — genuinely extends your season if you will use it in October. If it is aspirational, skip it.
- Heater — the difference between a July pool and a May-through-September pool. Pair it with a cover or you are heating the sky.
- Automation — worth it if you would rather not think about your pool. Less compelling if you enjoy the routine.
- Saltwater sanitation — softer water feel and less handling of chemicals; still a chlorine pool, just generated on site.
Nice, but not first
Sheer descent waterfalls, deck jets, and bubblers look excellent in photos and are pleasant in person. They are also the features most often turned off because of noise or because nobody wanted the extra pump running. If the budget is finite, put it in the ledge, the cover, the heater, and the deck around the pool.
Spend on the things you touch every swim before the things you photograph once.
Browse the pool models we install, or call 920-949-6892.
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