Important Terms You’ll Need to Know When Working with a Pool Designer to Design Your Own Backyard Staycation

These days, the array of options available for enhancing your pool and backyard area can be overwhelming. With so many choices, it’s easy for homeowners to feel a bit bewildered. To simplify things, we’ve compiled a glossary that covers a wide range of features and products available for enhancing residential pools and backyard areas. This guide aims to make you a quick expert in a swimming pool and
outdoor living features, so let’s dive in and explore how you can transform your backyard into a haven of relaxation and enjoyment:

• Coping: The material that surrounds the perimeter of your swimming pool and/or spa. On a gunite pool, the coping is typically about 12-16 inches wide, and usually made from brick, paving stones, natural stone, or a precast cement material.
• Pavers: Flat, durable pieces of material used to create outdoor flooring, usually made from concrete, natural stone or brick that are placed on top of a foundation of compacted sand. They are known for their versatility, low maintenance and ease of repair. 
• Spray Deck:  Textured concrete overlay commonly used on pool decks to create a cooler, slip-resistant surface. It’s ideal for hot climates because it reflects heat, keeping it comfortable under bare feet. 
• Travertine: Limestone that has unique textures and colors, and is popular for coping and pavers decking.
• Water Features:  The finishing touch that can transform a standard swimming pool into a dynamic and personalized oasis. From waterfalls to scuppers, sheer descents and bubblers, water features enhance both the look and feel of your pool. Beyond visual appeal, water features also add movement to your pool, which can help with circulation and cooling. 
• Weeping Walls: Gentle water trickling down over natural rocks, ledgestone or stacked travertine placed on raised walls, creating a serene ambiance.
• Sheer Descents: Smooth, linear curtains of water often mounted overhead or inside of raised walls, creating a flat line of arched water going into the pool.
• Scuppers: Decorative water features that protrude from a raised wall that drain into the pool, often made of natural stone or stainless steel. Some have ornate designs.
• Bubblers: Soft, bubbly streams of water set in benches or tanning shelves, providing a “fountain” effect.
• Pencil Jets: Arching streams of water, set under coping.
• Water Bowls:  Elegant features that combine fire and water or stand alone as decorative flowing elements around the pool. Typically mounted on columns or raised walls, they are available in materials like copper, concrete, or stone.
• Beach Entry: Gradual slope from the deck into the water. 
• Tanning Shelf: Shallow area for lounging and sunbathing, often with a water depth of about 7 inches.
• Grotto:  A stunning and luxurious water feature often built into a swimming pool. Inspired by natural caves, a grotto typically consists of a rock or stone structure that creates a shaded, cave-like space—often behind a waterfall. 
• Jump Rock: Large, flat rock positioned for safe jumping into the pool.
• Fire Features:  Stunning design elements that add warmth, ambiance, and visual contrast to your outdoor space. From fire bowls and fire pits to fireplaces and torches, they create a cozy, resort-style atmosphere.
• Aggregate Interior: Includes exposed pebbles polished for durability and aesthetic variety.
• Pergolas: Wooden structures providing shade and ambiance with open roof structures.
• Palapa: Thatched roof structures for a tropical feel, commonly seen in Caribbean settings.
• Cabana: A semi-open structure with amenities like bars or seating enhances poolside relaxation.
• Bathhouse: A fully enclosed structure provides a restroom and changing facilities near the pool.
• Zero Edge: Also known as a "Perimeter Overflow Pool"  is a pool where the water flows over the edges, creating the illusion that the pool extends endlessly into the surrounding environment. This is achieved by a hidden catch basin that collects the overflowing water and recirculates it back into the pool.  The pool water level and the deck are at the same height.
• Vanishing Edge: A pool with a visual effect that makes the water seem to disappear into the horizon (also known as an infinity edge). The coping and deck are removed, allowing the water to flow over the edge and into a catch basin that pumps it back into the pool.  

Understanding these common pool design terms can make the planning process smoother, more exciting, and a lot less overwhelming. With a better grasp of the features and options available, you'll be able to communicate your vision clearly and make confident decisions as you work with your designer to create the perfect backyard retreat!