Much like the latest trends in fashion, car design and the flavor of
the month at the coffee shop, pool design trends are constantly
changing. But it's a little funny how it works: Trends often develop out
of a need to stray from a common theme. However, when someone comes up
with an innovative idea, it's only a matter of time until
everyone jumps onboard. And once again, the cycle continues as we look for what's new and different in the world.
With
this in mind, we can take a look at what was up and coming in 2012 to
see where the industry is headed in 2013. Based on my experience working
with clients, this is what I think will make a splash in 2013's pool
design.
Fire
Fire has been a source of wonder and amazement for the human spirit
for thousands and thousands of years. We naturally gravitate towards its
warmth and love the mood that its subtle glow offers in the evening.
Over the last few years, companies like Grand Effects and Bobe have
developed fire bowls that make fire features affordable and easy to
operate with a simple push of a button. Burners can now be set among
rock groupings or on pedestals around the pool — away from foot traffic,
of course.
When juxtaposed with water, a fire feature provides a beautiful
contrast, not to mention a beautiful reflection after dark. And until
only recently, fire features haven’t been widely used as a common design
element; they were seen as unaffordable to the average consumer; a
hassle to operate with frequent blowouts in windy conditions and costly,
as those blowouts led to hundreds of dollars in wasted gas. Thanks to
the new technology found on most manufactured units these days, you get
automatic relights after a detected blowout, making worries of wasted
gas and possible accidental detonation a thing of the past.
Visually, fire offers the consumer a feature you won’t find on the
average pool and can be attractively utilized on a freeform or a
geometric pool. Expect to see a lot of it next year.
Geometry
The era of the pond is over for us here in Texas. Don’t get me wrong:
We still do quite a few freeform or “lagoon pools,” but the numbers
have dropped drastically in favor of a more detail-oriented geometric
pool. Over the last 15 years, seven out of 10 pools were freeform in
shape and customers were interested in stone waterfalls and other
natural-looking water features. But as the years passed and everyone
started getting freeform pools, waterfalls and exposed aggregate
decking, things have veered in a new direction.
I’ve noticed in my meetings with prospective clients that people are
going back to a geometric design platform. There are many reasons for
this shift (designer influence, perhaps?) but ultimately, people want
what is different — and the lagoon pool is no longer different.
However, while we’ll see clean lines and classic elegance of
geometric pools, the difference lies in an emphasis on material
selection diversity. A well-designed geometric pool usually complements
the architecture of the house and requires an attention to detail to
really bring everything together. House corners and pool angle alignment
are essential in creating that clean, well-planned architectural
element desired in most custom pool builds.
Light it Up
When people think about swimming pools, they think about laying out
under golden rays of sunshine. For years, the idea of evening use rarely
crossed a customer’s mind. However, the fact is that in most homes, the
pool is often used as much in the evening as it is during the daytime.
While people used to accept the standard 500 watt white light that
came standard on swimming pools, the advent and efficieny of LED
technology opened a new world of lighting possibilities to clients, and
now more than ever, clients are considering the impact of lighting in
the sum of the landscape/pool design.
Whether it’s single standard niche LED unit or a system of multiple
lights — such as the Fiberstar Pal Trio units, which can be
strategically placed around the pool to maximize light coverage and add
emphasis to water features — you can continue to see sales tick
upward. Based on the number of LED units my company has utilized on jobs
over the last two years, figuring in a differential and applying it to
2013, I project we will be using LED lighting options on almost 90
percent of our projects.
When looking at the pros and cons of upgrading to LED technology, I
believe the decision is clear and there is an option to fit almost any
budget. So make sure to include lighting into your designs and don’t
leave your homeowners in the dark when building their poolscape.
Automatic for the People
Remember that time last winter when you had to walk out to your spa
heater in your wet bathing suit in 32 degree weather? Wasn’t that
awesome? Yeah, I didn’t think so — and your customer wouldn’t enjoy it
either. Thankfully, we have some wonderfully innovative people in our
industry working to make pool/spa automation as convenient and easy as
possible. These “computers” are capable of performing a complex series
of events within the pool system with just the push of a button,
allowing the user to turn on his spa, pool lights, pation lights, water
features and more, all from the comfort of his couch. No parka needed.
We include full swimming pool automation on every single pool/spa
combo we build. Very rarely does the consumer opt to pull this unit out
of the project. In fact, just over the last year and a half, the
introduction of the network protocol adapter has led to a huge surge in
demand for pool automation via cellular technology. With the development
of the protocol adapter, you have full control of your backyard from
your iPhone or iPad from anywhere in the world — you can even set up
live camera feeds of the swimming pool area. Pool automation has been a
big seller for the last ten years but the last two years have involved
incredible leaps and bounds in these system capabilities, which will
prove to be a catalyst in overall market sales over the next year.
There are always new and unique innovations coming and going in our
industry, but it truly takes a product or idea of unique convenience and
innovation to carve a lasting market niche.
We are in an
exciting time of innovative advancements in our industry, and technology
will be the fuel that powers the charge of product and design trends
over the next year.
What trends do you think will make it big in 2013? Share your ideas below.
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