Is your swimming pool area looking dated or rundown? Has the pool area become unsafe? If so, let Exterior Worlds do your pool deck remodeling project.

First, a quick primer on swimming pool construction terminology and the finishes involved. The interior shell of a pool is covered with plaster. It hardens like concrete which seals the inside of the pool. Popular upgrades include quartz finishes in a wide range of colors and textures.

Next, you have the pool coping, which is the area that immediately surrounds the pool. It locks in the pool plaster on one side and seals the deck on the other. Preferable choices are tile, stone or brick because you want to ensure a non-slippery surface in the immediate wet area.

Finally you get to the pool decking, usually made of some kind of masonry, that encircles your luxury swimming pool. It connects the pool to the rest of the spaces. It also fashions a special dimension within your landscape design, creating usable, safe spaces that are pleasing to the eye.

With a pool deck remodeling project, you have a marvelous range of materials to choose from. Our clients’ choices include tinted and stamped concrete, stone and brick. An example of a design conscious choice would be to use a rich dark grout with a lighter stone color or darker stone with a light grout.

A pool deck remodel project gives you the opportunity to coordinate material choices in your landscape, something that can get out of balance in older homes that have undergone a series of home projects. You want the tones used in the house and landscape to be complementary.

Before Construction:

If you have a flagstone patio or wood deck attached to the house, you can use your pool decking choices to coordinate or contrast with those material choices. In general, you don’t want a really dark color for your pool deck because it will absorb heat. Likewise, you don’t want it too light because of the higher maintenance.

Some of our clients have discovered that once they start a pool renovation project, such as pool deck remodeling, they find additional problems beneath the deck that need to be updated, such as the plumbing, the pool lighting and the general electrical system. With the decking ripped out, you have an opportunity to address those issues, too. It usually saves money in the long run.

All choices about a pool should factor in safety.  A pool remodeling project may be a good time to think about putting in a fence around your swimming pool. You may want to highlight the fence by using custom ornamental iron fencing. Conversely, you may prefer to make it unobtrusive by weaving bushes around its perimeter. Exterior Worlds will be happy to discuss different options.

Some final thoughts on landscape design: be mindful of how a swimming pool adds texture to an otherwise blank and flat yard. Have small yard? A pool turns it into an oasis. Make the background part of the pool. Integrate your swimming pool design into its surroundings by creating smooth transitions between the pool, yard and background sceneries.

Call the professionals at Exterior Worlds for your landscape remodeling needs. Serving the greater Houston area since 1987. 713-827-2255.