To Add Or Not To Add A Tanning Shelf To Your Pool - That Is The Question!
The winter in Queensland has been mild this year, so it won't be long before the family is clamouring to get back into the pool again. Before you get the water back to swimming quality though, now is the perfect time to make changes to the pool design because builders are not as busy now as they are during the spring and summer months. As someone who is considering adding a tanning shelf to your pool, you may have trepidation that the loss of pool area will impact on the family's swimming enjoyment. These are the pros and cons of adding a tanning shelf to your family pool.
The Benefits
There are benefits to all ages when adding a tanning shelf in the pool, and these include:
- the opportunity for parents to stay cool sitting in the pool while watching children swim
- a place for very young children to splash in the water while parents sit close by
- a place for elderly family members to cool off without the struggle of steps or ladders
- a spot for the family dog to sit and cool off on a hot day
- a place to get a tan while staying close to the rest of the family
Of course, to make an informed decision, there needs to be a list of the negatives as well.
The Negatives
There are two main negatives with adding a tanning shelf to your existing pool. Firstly, it does reduce the length of your pool as tanning shelves are normally wide enough to fit two sun loungers on side by side. This will not be popular with pool users who use the pool to do laps and stay fit.
Secondly, in areas where there are a lot of wildlife birds, a tanning shelf could be mistaken by the birds as being a large birdbath custom built for their bathing pleasure. An increase in bird poop in your pool is going to upset both swimmers and your pool filter.
If the benefits far outweigh the negatives for you, contact your pool builder to inspect your pool so they can design a tanning ledge that suits you. The tanning ledge will take a couple of weeks to install as the pool needs to be drained, the concrete poured and allowed to set before the pool is refilled.
As a final tip, while the pool builder is drawing up the design plans, make sure they include a sun umbrella holder on the edge of the ledge so you can make sure you get some shade while you're outside enjoying your redesigned pool area.
