Owning a swimming pool is a great feeling. It gives you hours of entertainment, healthy exercise to your body, relaxation to your mind and quality time to spend with your dear ones. Hence, houses always included swimming pools as an important feature. Pool-side parties were always popular giving pleasure to generations.
However, modern life has put many constraints in the structure of houses, resulting in situations where constructing a swimming pool is not an option. In such cases, people need to settle for a common swimming pool shared by many.
Another modern invention helps in getting the best of both. Now you can have a swimming pool, without compromising too much on the building space. This is possible through above ground swimming pools, which are nothing but movable pools which can be fixed temporarily or permanently even if the available space is limited.
What are the differences between the in-ground swimming pools and above ground swimming pools?
1. Time of construction
An in-ground swimming pool has to be constructed during the time of building construction itself. Means, it has to be planned well in advance. Once it is constructed, making changes to it will be very difficult.
You can construct an in-ground swimming pool even in an existing building. But this process will be very long, complex and dishing to those living there.
Compared to this, above ground swimming pools are very flexible. You can plan them whenever you need and wherever you need. Many types of above ground swimming pools are available to sit your expectations. Just buy the right one and install it where you want.
2. Location
In-ground swimming pools are built in fixed locations. So, if you want to plan any activity around it, you are limited by the choices. A pool party far away from the kitchen? Tough luck!
Above ground swimming pools don't have this issue at all. You can take them wherever the action is happening. For example, if you want to enjoy sun, take it to your lawn. If it rains, take it indoors. As long as the space exists, your pool will reach the place you want!
3. Price
As the construction is permanent in nature and involves many processes, in-ground swimming pools are expensive to build. Not many can afford them.
Above ground swimming pools are available at a fraction of the cost you need to spend for building an in-ground swimming pool. They can be installed at a cheaper cost too.
4. Size and shape
In-ground swimming pools are constructed at the time of building construction. This means, you have a great flexibility in terms of what size and shape your swimming pool can be. People make them in a shape that they prefer.
However, above ground swimming pools are pre-constructed in a factory. This means, their sizes and shapes are fixed. You may have to choose from the given set of options instead of going for something unique. In few cases, you may be able to order a specific size and shape from your manufacturer. But that is going to take time and additional cost.
5. Maintenance
An in-ground swimming pool is constructed with number of filter and cleaning mechanisms which makes the maintenance easy. There are number of tools you can buy to clean them.
Above ground swimming pools are large tanks which allow swimming. Any other cleaning mechanism has to be attached to it as necessary. As per the material used to build the swimming pool, the maintenance method would vary.
6. Rigidity
As the materials used for conducting an in-ground swimming pool are similar to the ones used for the building, it is relatively rigid. Users of the swimming pool need not take any special precautions, except those mandated by the size and depth of the swimming pool.
Above ground swimming pools are made with light and durable materials to support the flexibility. However, they are to be used with respective instructions provided by the manufacturer to ensure the usage doesn't spoil the swimming pool. Users are to be instructed about this to ensure the swimming pool is in right order.
7. Lifetime
In-ground swimming pools are made to order. Hence their lifetime purely depends on the materials used and how it is maintained. No warranty can be given to them because there is no manufacturer who can assure certain years of use and a replacement if something goes wrong. Any maintenance has to be dealt as a unique problem.
Above ground swimming pools are manufactured in a factory. Hence, the manufacturer is able to provide you a guarantee of certain years. If abutting goes wrong, some manufacturers just replace the swimming pool. They also have a great maintenance network to handle any possible issues.
8. Reconstruction
If an in-ground swimming pool has a problem and needs to be reconstructed, it is as good as building a new one. Small problems can be fixed easily, but large changes with respect to size and shape will require considerable time and resources.
Compared to this, above ground swimming pools are very flexible. As they are assembled from many parts, reconstruction may just mean changing some parts. Even if the whole pool needs to be reconstructed, it may be possible to use certain common parts.
9. Safety
Authorities have given clear norms in terms of ensuring safety in in-ground swimming pools. Ask the people using these pools need to follow these practices to ensure they take care of their own and others' lives.
Above ground swimming pools are competitively safer. As their properties such as depth, amount of water are smaller, risk is also reduced. However, there are certain safety rules that need to be followed in any kind of swimming pool.
10. Accessories
In-ground swimming pools have a set of accessories to improve the swimming experience. For example, you can add lounging chairs, umbrellas and other decorations.
Above ground swimming pools also have their own set of accessories. For example, LED lights fixed on their side give a great look.
Understanding these differences will help you make a good decision on which type of swimming pool to build.