Residential swimming pools provide a respite from summer heat and allow you to exercise in your back yard, but allergies from pool chemicals might prevent you from enjoying the aquatic benefits. Natural swimming pools keep the water safe without harmful chemicals. Proper design and installation of natural swimming pools is critical, and flaws result in algae or bacteria-laden swamps.
Basics
Imagine swimming in a clear pool with aquatic plants surrounding the perimeter. Natural swimming pools put aquatic plants to work in clarifying the water. Plants provide oxygen to the water, filter out contaminants via the healthy bacteria that thrives on aquatic plants' roots, and also provide shelter for birds and frogs amongst the stems and leaves. Maintaining a permanent aquatic-plant buffer around the pool eliminates the need for chlorine and other chemicals. You excavate a pool cavity and separate the plant area from the swimming area with a barrier that keeps the plant materials out but allows water to pass over it from one zone to the other. Natural pools are chemical free, as opposed to salt-water pools that merely generate chemicals on site in the pool. The bottom of a natural pool typically is clay, stone and gravel rather than concrete or fiberglass.
Layout
Natural swimming pools take up almost twice as much space as conventional ones. You plan the area you use for swimming and then plan the plant-filled area that continuously filters the water and keeps it healthy. Your plant zone can be at one end of the swimming area, or surround it, but it must be at least 50 percent of the total pool area. Remember that a 50-yard long cavity ends up only having half the length available for swimming. Natural pools do not have the steel, concrete or fiberglass needed to maintain vertical pool walls, so your natural pool will have sloped walls. You can install a protruding pool deck for easy entry.
Circulation
Water quality quickly deteriorates when it remains stagnant, so natural pool designs must include some way to keep water circulating. Aboveground fountains are an option, but they can be costly and energy intensive. Installation of underground tubing along with a pump lets the water circulate up from the bottom of the pool cavity, but make sure licensed electricians and professionals design and install the system.
Considerations
The cost to install a natural pool depends on your site conditions and on the installer. Unless you are willing to do extensive research and manual labor, hiring a professional is wise. Natural pools are not for you if want clean lines and concrete surrounding your pool. A natural pool is not a lifeless environment, so you might need to do simple maintenance scooping out algae during the year. Although plants do most of the work cleaning up the water, the root systems that maintain natural pools take time to establish. Finally, you must be comfortable sharing your swimming space with the occasional frog that visits the swim area.
References
- Mother Earth News: How to Build a Natural Swimming Pool
- U.S. Masters Swimming: The Healthy Swimmer -- Readers Ask
- "Introduction to Environmental Engineering"; P. Aarne Vesilind, Susan M. Morgan, Lauren G. Heine; 2009
- "The New York Times"; From Europe, a No-Chlorine Backyard Pool; Steven Kurutz; April 5, 2007
Member Comments