Sedona fiberglass pool being craned into placeIf you live or have a second home in Sedona and are thinking of getting a pool, your choices are basically concrete, fiberglass or vinyl. Depending on which part of the country you are from, you may be used to vinyl or fiberglass. People who come from cold climates are very concerned about concrete pools because of freeze and thaw soil conditions. Fiberglass and vinyl liner pools will not crack and so theoretically may be better suited for the colder climates. But if you have never owned a pool before, you may be confused as whether a fiberglass pool is the best choice for Sedona.

Research performed on the internet will reveal a huge debate between concrete/gunite pools vs. fiberglass. Much of the information is being put out by the fiberglass pool industry in defense of the misconceptions and myths about the downsides of fiberglass pools. So be careful as you educate yourself as the information is very biased when they are making side by side comparisons.

If you search for “sedona fiberglass pool” you will not find any local builder. There are only a couple of builders who claim to be able to install fiberglass pools, but it is not their mainstay. Most Sedona pool builders install concrete pools. So even if you have made the decision to go fiberglass, you may have to find a fiberglass pool builder located in the Phoenix area willing to come to Sedona to install your pool. This limits your selection process from whom to solicit proposals. Each builder may be able to install any of the top fiberglass pool manufactures, but may focus on only one because of issues of delivery, shipping and manufacturer warranties.

Things to consider for a Sedona fiberglass pool:

1) Maintenance

The long term maintenance cost savings of a fiberglass pool is persuasive for pool buyers who want less maintenance and less monthly cost. Because the fiberglass shell is impervious to water and chemicals, water chemistry is less likely to get out of balance compared to a concrete shell.

2) Initial Cost vs. Long Term Costs

It would be in your best interest to compare the cost of a concrete pool to that of a comparable fiberglass pool in terms of the initial cost of installation. Generally speaking, fiberglass will cost more and you will have to take that added cost and see how many years it will take to offset it due to the lower maintenance costs.

3) Design Considerations

The major advantage of a concrete pool is the endless shapes and styles that can be designed. There are no limitations. You are not limited to a number of cookie cutter shapes as in a fiberglass pool.

sedona fiberglass pools are typically uninspiringFiberglass pools also tend to be variations of a basic rectangle and are made from molds or templates. Fiberglass pools are not made to order, you have to choose from among what they have to offer.

4) Aesthetics

Fiberglass pools are not very imaginative due to the manufacturing process. You will not see many negative edge fiberglass pools, nor will you see boulders set into the edge of the coping nor inside the pool itself as you will with concrete pools. Spas that come with a fiberglass pool combination tend to be simple square extensions of the pool and not very innovative in design options.

Vanishing edge concrete pool designed by JSL Exteriors  Landscape Design Build

Innovative site design like this is not possible with fiberglass pools

You cannot have beach entries or place umbrella sleeves inside the pool. A fiberglass pool must be embellished by the decking and surrounding elements since the shape itself may be on the simple side.

5) Value

Pools do not add actual market value to the home, nor does the overall landscaping for that matter. What it does however, is make the home more marketable, but only for those buyers who are looking for a house with a pool. Some people see pools as a maintenance headache and safety issue, but everybody is different. A fiberglass pool may have a perceived value of being less desirable than a concrete pool because of the stigma due to decades of being criticized in the industry as being a “plastic facsimile” of the real thing. Some may have heard stories about fiberglass pools being prone to floating out of the ground.

Conclusion

If your criteria is primarily based on simplicity of design and lower maintenance costs and you plan on living with the pool for the next 10 years, then a fiberglass pool should be considered. But if your primary consideration is innovative, unique design that is well integrated with the surrounding landscape elements, a concrete pool will be the better choice.

In either case, I am familiar designing with either fiberglass pools or custom designed concrete pools. From a design standpoint, I prefer to not have to work around a pre-designed shape, because it is often difficult to find a shape that fits the design criteria. I do find it a fun challenge however, to take a simple fiberglass shape and design around it to make the overall landscape design innovative and unique.

So if you are still in the market for a Sedona fiberglass pool, I can help you with the whole process, from design to installation with my network of contacts and years of experience both in Phoenix and Sedona.