A typical swimming pool needs seven major components:

1. Basin   •   2. Motorized Pump   •  3. Water filter  •  4. Chemical Source   •   5. Drains   •   6. Returns   •  7. Plumbing Lines

Vinyl-lined in-ground pools are the most common residential pool in the Midwest. The installation process works like this:— Our construction crew digs a hole the shape of the pool and assembles the Elite Polymer wall around the hole's perimeter. —A liner pad is glued to the inside of the Elite wall. —The crew hand trowels a smooth vermiculite on the bottom, hangs the linerl, and fills the pool with water. —The plumbing lines are then installed and connected to the equipment . —All of this takes approximately one week. —The last thing to finish is the deck and landscaping. —The overall process may take as little as a month and as long as two months depending on weather and customer's desires for complex installation. These pools are ;ess expensive than other in-ground designs, but not as durable. Typically, the liner needs to be replaced every 10 years or so.

Fiberglass pools are made from fiberglass-reinforced plastic, which has been molded into a basin shape. To install the pool, a construction crew digs an appropriately sized hole, lays the necessary plumbing, adds some sand filler and lowers the preformed pool structure into the hole. Then they level the pool, hook up all the plumbing and backfill in the area around the pool. This process can take as little as two days. The finishing touches in decking and ladscape can take as long as one month. Usually, the pool is surrounded by a concrete deck structure.

Concrete pools are the most popular design in much of the United States. To build one of these pools, the construction crew digs a hole, puts the plumbing in place and assembles a framework grid with 1/2 and 3/8-inch steel reinforcing rods (rebar). The rebar rods are spaced about 8-12 inches apart, and secured together with wire. When the grid is in place, the crew sprays a heavy coating of concrete, a mixture of cement and sand, around the rebar. The most popular finish is plaster. Concrete pools are highly durable, and they can be built in any shape or size.

Above-ground pools are the cheapest construction option, as well as the easiest to build. Most above-ground pools are made from prefabricated kits, which even an amateur can put together (though most people go with professional installers). First, the installers level off the ground to form a flat building surface. Then they assemble a perimeter track, which supports the outer wall (made of metal, plastic or wood). Next, they spread sand in the pool area and lay the plumbing. Finally, they secure the vinyl liner over the pool walls, fill the pool with water, smooth the liner and fasten it into place. As soon as they hook up the pump and filtering system, the pool is ready to go. The main disadvantage of this sort of pool is that it's less durable than other designs, and generally less attractive. It's also less permanent, which can be a good thing -- it's relatively easy to disassemble the pool and move it to a new location.