With several backbreaking days of pick and shovel work behind me, I think I can finally call the excavation complete. Things went mostly according to plan, with the exception of a possible miscalculation of the pool wall to wall width…

It was always likely that the unpropped excavated wall at the rear of the pool deck would collapse if it got significantly wet. We were intent on avoiding this by ensuring that it was well protected from the weather.

Mostly. There is still plenty of shovel work remaining to get the footing trenches exact, and there’s a substantial amount of manual digging to do in the areas pipes were discovered during the dig, but the rough (read machine) excavation is complete.

I’ve just completed two full days excavating and the site is taking shape. 1.7 tonne excavator

Alrighty, it’s excavation time. To prepare for the dig I made the dig plan below: Dig plan showing the elevation of each area to be excavated

Before we can begin building the pool, a certain amount of destruction is required. Specifically, we need to: Demolish the red brick paving above the pool area. Remove the sleeper retaining walls currently in the pool area. Transplant all of the vegetation to other areas of the garden. I’m not a big fan of the red bricks and especially so given that the other side of the house has wooden decking. Wooden deck + travertine paving + red brick is one too many materials.

Fiberglass pool shells come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but are broadly similar in their construction. They generally consist of a number of layers of fiberglass and other materials and a final “gelcoat” finishing layer that is the finished surface of the pool.

Fiberglass pool or concrete pool? Concrete pools are built directly in the ground onsite. Concrete (or more often shotcrete) is set on a framework of steel reinforcement and then plastered or tiled. Concrete pools are endlessly customizable and can be built to suit any site.

So I’m building a pool. More precisely, I’m building a pool, a deck, supporting retaining walls, storage cupboards, privacy shield, garden beds, and lighting,