Swimming Pool Construction Changes Aren’t Trivial

Posted on December 17, 2009 | Category: Swimming Pool Trivia

Many of the improvements in swimming pool design and construction have been made by a single organization, Paddock. Paddock Pools is known throughout the industry as a leader in swimming pool design and construction.

Before the 1930’s, most swimming pools were constructed using pour in concrete. Pour in concrete was not very durable, and expanded greatly after it dried. This type of pool construction was unable to produce many of the free formed shaped pools you see today. Paddock developed a pool construction technique that used concrete mixed with sand aggregate. Gunite is the official term for this sand and cement mixture. During pool construction, gunite is applied through a hose under pressure. Gunite pools are more resistant to stress and last longer before commercial swimming pool renovation is needed.

Before Paddock revolutionized pool water sanitation, floating debris was a common problem. In order to remove floating leaves, pollen, and bugs, pool operators would have to manually clean the water using a net. Otherwise, the only way to clean water was to release the surface water to waste. In 1942, Paddock developed the recirculating overflow, which used the pools existing filtration system to remove debris from surface water.

The recirculating overflow system revolutionized surface water cleaning, but the technique required the installation of piping around the perimeter of the pool. This piping would brake down over time. It was also expensive and labor intensive to replace. To eliminate the drawbacks of this system, Paddock developed the pipeless perimeter system. The new system used gutters made of stainless steel to carry water from the pool to filtration.

The pipeless perimeter was a huge improvement over the traditional surface recirculating system, but it required large water storage tanks to work properly. To eliminate the need for these tanks, Paddock developed a technique to achieve in pool surge capacity. This new technology allowed for a pipeless perimeter without the need for large sand expensive storage tanks.

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2 Responses to “Swimming Pool Construction Changes Aren’t Trivial”

1. Andrew A. Sailer Says:
   December 26th, 2009 at 11:52 am

   I’ve been reading a few posts and really and enjoy your writing. I’m just starting up my own blog and only hope that I can write as well and give the reader so much insight.

2. Issac Maez Says:
   December 29th, 2009 at 9:02 pm

   Thanks for the very informative post. I ahve bookmarked the site as i usually do when its related to concrete.

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