In
my pond the fish all school,
I think they know its really a pool.
By Charles Lewis
I built a koi pond that can be converted to a swimming pool. The reasons were economics and practicality. This made the project affordable and made the construction easier and quicker.
I can sell my house, if I need to, with a pool or a pond, which ever the buyer wants. The cost for a pool or a large koi pond was near $20,000.00. Making a home improvement that added equity to my house and helps the resale value made it affordable. Here in South Florida having a swimming pool is more important to more people than a koi pond. Having a pool increased the value of my home. Having a pond may not and may also make it harder to sell. The plans and permits call my koi pond a swimming pool. My pond passed all final inspections as a swimming pool with the fish in it! My pond is a swimming pool.
Most municipal codes allow you to build very nice garden ponds under 250 sq. ft. and less than 18 inches deep. A deeper and larger pond is better for koi. If your proposed pond is deeper or larger than the municipality's current codes mandate, you are building a swimming pool. Getting a permit for a swimming pool is complicated enough. The first step was sending a certified letter to all my neighbors to ask permission. Joyce Glen wrote an editorial in KOIUSA about problems she had with inspections on a new pond. She discovered difficulty trying to make a pond fit codes that are set up for swimming pools, and convincing local officials to make changes. Charles L. Ruby wrote an article on how to get permits or if needed, a variance for a pond. You may have to lobby local bureaucrats to get your pond approved. That is why I went with a pool company to build my pond as a pool. Knowing all the current codes and getting plans approved for a swimming pool is what they do and it still took them 10 weeks to expedite all the permits.
There are national regulations that ensure swimming pool construction and safety is consistent throughout the US. Municipalities have the option of relying on these national minimum standards or mandating more stringent codes. Where I live it is becoming stricter. I support conforming to safety requirements. A pond would still need to meet most of these requirements, like the electrical code, fencing and minimum setbacks. Steps and a swim out are a few pool features I can over look in a pond. My Koi pond conforms to all the safety and construction requirements of a swimming pool by being one. Steps are fine because sometimes you need to get in there anyway. They are perfect for potted plants and the smaller fish like the shallow. Code also requires a swim out shelf in the deep end. This is a great place for hand feeding and viewing. Why try for a variance or exemption from these requirements and not get approved. What is wrong with a formal pond or a Show pond? It can conform to the latest codes be aesthetic, yet permits as a pool easily.
You can build a very nice or very fancy pond and still be a pool. You can be artistic. It does not have to be square or blue. You may go deep, as deep as you like. Waterfalls and rockwork found in ponds are common in fancy swimming pools. 10,000 gallons is an average pool, but is a large pond. Most people would love a pond that size. My pond is a natural looking show pond. Some people think it is too nice for fish but, since it is a pool, they can go for a swim, with the fish. I could have had rocks or plants right over the edge but decided planters outside a walkway look nice. A non-slip concrete apron six inches above grade is code and makes for good drainage away from the pond and helps if there is flooding. The paver deck is built so you can walk all the way around the pond.
I am using two 12x12 industrial pool drains on 4" pipe, two Hayward pool skimmers on separate 2 pipes, a 3/4hp performances pump thru two Ultima filter, and five returns and a 2 pipe over the top for a waterfall. Two separate air pumps are piped into the pond /pool with 1/2 pipe and feed separate air stones on tubing. The well also is piped into the pool just under the coping where the water sprays up and out to aerate it. A 4 overflow is connected to a dry well. I can run a totally closed or open system. Black paint. Black tiles and a light. It works as a pond quite well and looks like a pond.
All this passed as a backyard pool. It passed all the final inspections from zoning to public works with fish in it! I could have added vortex filters in the original plans. As long as the plans meet the code requirements and are drawn correctly they get approved. If the pool is built to the plans it will pass the inspections. Who swims in it is up to choice. Some things like the second filter were added after the final inspection. I may add a UV light or a bio fall. I also gave myself the option of adding a vortex or chamber filter if needed. However, I think it is working fine the way it is.
The process of pleading your case to the zoning board for a variance worried me. If anything went wrong at a zoning or variance hearing, the pond may not have gotten approved or needed some redesign. I needed it built fast my fish were in a lake, five miles away. I did not need a pond contractor. In fact I was having problems finding one. I was able to use a pool company. They got it done fast and professionally for a set competitive price.
It is a pond that meets all local and national codes. It is a pond that is built quickly, affordably by a large number of companies. It is a pond that is an investment. It is a pond that is worry free to build. It is a pond that has beauty, unmatched water quality, and easy maintenance. It is a pond built as a pool.