Browse Forums Pools & Spas 1 Nov 25, 2020 4:39 pm Hi folks, We are looking at buying a house and will put in an inground pool. What sort of things do we need to watch out for? - Can we still put in a pool near established trees? - Will the trees survive if we put a pool nearby? - How far does the pool need to be from other things? Fence? House? Pool fence? Other questions - How long does it take to put in a pool? - Are there any specific laws in QLD about new pools? Thanks!! Dom Re: General advice for a new pool - what do I need to know? 2Nov 29, 2020 8:42 pm dome Hi folks, We are looking at buying a house and will put in an inground pool. What sort of things do we need to watch out for? - Can we still put in a pool near established trees? - Will the trees survive if we put a pool nearby? - How far does the pool need to be from other things? Fence? House? Pool fence? Other questions - How long does it take to put in a pool? - Are there any specific laws in QLD about new pools? Thanks!! Dom Some info and links in here: Pool laws and standards | Homes and housing | Queensland Government (www.qld.gov.au) One of the big things to look out for is ease of excavation. Because pools often don't need soil/rock info to meet council requirements, they are often overlooked. You can run into extra expense where rock is encountered and sadly there are a few pool installers who (intentionally or not) make it less than obvious about high excavation costs in rock or minimum charges if rock is encountered and a good few people get stung. It may not need a proper soil investigation but make sure you know beforehand if rock is present within the pool excavation depth-mine digger, hand tools or some steel rods would probably do the job. Another consideration is distance from boundaries and any services which may be present. Steer clear if you have the space to do so and it may safe money. For example a pool 2m deep 1.5m from boundary may trigger the requirement for a soil report. Assuming no rock is present that report may say support is required before excavation to protect neighboring boundaries or service lines, both of which will incur costs. It may be preferable to move the pool one meter so the clearance is 2.5m and perhaps not incur the additional costs. The requirements should be in the local council control policies or maybe linked somewhere in the above. If trees are present you will need to check if any protection zones apply from council first. Even if they don't exist caution is needed where say clay soils or the potential for destabilizing trees exists. An arborist and a geotech. would be the people to ask to prevent any unpleasantries down the track. Be a shame to cut a nearby tree down so it wasn't a hazard only to find tree roots and dry soil needed to be removed and replaced as well. More annoying would be moving the pool out of harms way and putting a nice tile surround/patio down only to find that the tiles protected clay soil from drying out and rehydration lifted the new tiles... I imagine a mature tree near a pool would look good so may be worth the expense to do it right. How long to build? Suppose it depends on manpower, whether conditions, excavation conditions, support required, size and location, access, existing trees/services etc. soooo....I have a piece of string in front of me now and what I'd like you to do is tell me...… Pools seem to be one of those things that are sometimes better fitted to site conditions/restrictions rather than a having a rigid notion of pool depths/location. Re: General advice for a new pool - what do I need to know? 3Nov 29, 2020 9:23 pm The most important thing to know is that swimming pools are children's drowning risk, even when well designed, well protected and well maintained, more so when not. As pre purchase property inspector I have come across hundreds of dangerous pools 1 glass door remained open for minutes due to wind tunnel effect even though it was fitted with self closing device 2 Pool gate did not shut because bush grew in few days to foul locking mechanism 3 Furniture or other objects against safety fence 4 trees and shrubs against safety fence 5 pool and entertaining area enclosed by the same fence ( where people drink) When you have a pool you will have no peace, don't under estimate children, they can get around things when you are not looking. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog You should check your detail drawings, it may show downpipe within brick pier. 14 14120 XCEM Alpha flooring seems to relatively new and I could not found any reviews. Have you or someone you know have used it and would recommend over other subfloor options?… 2 7597 The last home I lived in didn't have a pool and when i went to sell it the agents were not happy, even telling me to put one in to sell the place. The agents weren't happy… 2 4255 |