Thinking of starting a swimming pool project for your Brookville, NY, backyard? The wide choice of construction materials and techniques for backyard swimming pools can often be quite bewildering. However, many professional pool builders consider gunite as the go-to material for constructing swimming pools as it ticks all the right boxes for an exceptional final product.
Gunite Swimming Pool Construction
Gunite is a mixture of cement, sand, and water that can be sprayed pneumatically onto a surface. It is widely used in the construction industry for structural reinforcement in tunnels and buildings. For gunite pool builders, the mixture is generally sprayed over a strong mesh structure of steel reinforced rods (or rebar). The wet gunite is then shaped and leveled and allowed to consolidate and dry for at least a week before a surface finish such as plaster is applied.
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The Advantages of Gunite
Gunite swimming pools are among the most popular due to a range of advantages. For starters, the combination of the steel-reinforced framework and mortar is extremely strong and produces a final product that is highly durable. The mesh framework does a much better job of dispersing the pressure of the soil on the sides of the pool more evenly while still allowing for some flexibility, which helps prevent the gunite from cracking under stress.
In addition to strength, gunite swimming pools are considered unmatched in terms of their design versatility. The rebar framework can be created in any shape and form quite easily, making it possible to create the perfect shape that fits your vision without compromise.
The gunite can then be simply sprayed on and leveled to give it the perfect shape. This is an invaluable asset especially for smaller backyards where space is scarce and designers have to get creative with how the pool is shaped. Moreover, it is also more convenient than poured concrete swimming pools where a wooden framework is required to hold and shape the concrete.
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The design flexibility also extends to the final phase of the pool construction, which is choosing the surface finish. Gunite is often covered with a plaster finish to provide a smooth contact surface, but you can also choose to go with tiles, fiberglass, and pebble inlays. You can also retain the rough surface finish of the gunite, which can be quite comfortable given the generally small aggregate size used in the mixture.
How to Choose a Pool Builder
Experience is an important consideration when choosing a pool builder for your new project. For starters, the excavation involved can be extensive especially for larger pools. With excavation comes the risk of cave-ins, which can be avoided with the right bracing, equipment, and training.
Moreover, pool construction is a precise science that takes into account a huge variety of factors, such as the shape and size of the pool as well as the soil type. These factors and more have to be taken into account when the rebar framework is designed. The gunite mixture also has to be adapted to provide just the right mixture of flexibility and strength. As a result, a professional contractor specializing in gunite swimming pools can deliver a product that is superior in terms of durability and fit and finish.