What to consider when buying an above ground pool

Buying an above ground pool is a great idea for improving your health and livening up your garden, but before you rush out and buy one on impulse, consider a few factors first.

The quality of above ground pools has improved dramatically over the years, so you now have more sizes and shapes to choose from than ever before but the choice can be bewildering so how do you choose?

Cost is a deciding factor for a lot of people. Obviously the cost of the pool will be affected by the choice of brand, size, extras such as decks, materials and construction but many families can aspire to having a pool in their garden.

Basically, the wider the top rails and up rights, the more sturdy and expensive a pool is. Steel is usually the base material, but some people prefer resin framed above ground pools because they are more corrosion resistant and cooler and smoother to the touch. Above ground pools with soft sides are generally less expensive.

The top manufacturers are Woodland, Heritage and Legacy. Equinox, Regatta, Gardipool and Plastica models are also good buys.

Woodland manufacture the very best quality pools and are really easy to set up. With liquid vinyl coatings and multilayer protection, sturdy resin or steel frames and quality liners, you can’t beat them. Heritage offer a great line of affordable pools in solid stainless steel, resin or aluminum with corrosion free coatings and tough galvanized steel frames.

Legacy are simply the best soft sided portable pools available. With a 40 x 40 embedded scrim in their durable polyvinyl liner it is nearly impervious to tears and punctures. Chois, Alberca, Doughboy and Quick Pools are also good choices of soft sided pools. This type of pool can be set up in minutes and will provide swimming pleasure for years and years.

Above ground pools need to sit on a level surface. Prepping the ground may be a bit of a hassle and can add to costs but most kits are pretty easy to install and come with everything you need such as pool pumps and pool ladders. If you enlist the help of friends and family, your pool can be erected in a matter of hours without additional cost that comes with hiring a professional. However, don’t worry of you do need to get someone in as UK builders are generally very good.

Whilst the aesthetic value of above ground pools can be a problem for some people, they are a great option for those on tighter budgets and will give hours of fun. The pools are readily available from places such as PoolStore and are, I think, a good investment.