What is a grotto in a pool?

Asked by: Cathy Gordon

Many pool owners, or those who want to add a pool to their home, consider adding a grotto. A grotto is a waterfall feature that includes a cave that you can swim or sit in. There are a few things to be aware of when deciding whether or not to add a grotto to a pool.

What is the purpose of a grotto?

grotto, natural or artificial cave used as a decorative feature in 18th-century European gardens. Grottoes derived from natural caves were regarded in antiquity as dwelling places of divinities.

What is a water grotto?

A grotto is a natural or artificial cave used by humans in both modern times and antiquity, and historically or prehistorically. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or liable to flood at high tide. Sometimes, artificial grottoes are used as garden features.

What is an indoor grotto?

A grotto is typically a waterfall entrance to a space. However, other grotto designs exist, such as underwater entrances to spa rooms or small caves without waterfalls that can be used for a variety of purposes.

What is the thing around the pool called?

The hardscape area around your swimming pool is called a surround, deck, or decking, even though it isn’t always made of wood or composite, like traditional outdoor decks with which we most often associate the words. Traditionally, most in-ground swimming pool decks are made of concrete.

What do grottos look like?

A grotto typically is defined as a large rock waterfall with a nook or cavern-like space beneath it that’s large enough to swim into. Depending on the size, style, and configuration, a grotto can contain features like seating areas, lighting, or a therapy spa.

How many grottos are there?

Locations. As of 2021, Grotto Pizza has 23 locations in Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.

Can you swim in a grotto?

Visitors are not allowed to swim into the grotto or dive from rowboats to swim inside the cavern. Many visitors wait until after 5:30 p.m. when the rowboats leave and the ticket office closes to swim inside. This is illegal and dangerous, as the high waves can slam swimmers against the stone of the low cave mouth.

How do you make a grotto for a pool?

What we do is we just drill holes right in the bottom of the pool. Believe it or not those red dots are. And I kind of move it around once I start drilling I go wherever I want.

Can you add a grotto to an existing pool?

Adding a grotto to an existing swimming pool can be a fun and unique way to improve your backyard. A grotto is a small cave or cavern that can be added to a pool, and often includes features like waterfalls and rock formations.

What is the pool edge called?

coping

If an in-ground swimming pool is constructed of concrete, it will need coping, which is a cap for the edge of the pool. Coping surrounds the shell of the swimming pool and protects it.

What is the shallow part of a pool called?

Whatever name you decide to call it, a sun shelf is a flat, shallow area in your pool, before the deep end of the swimming pool. Pool owners usually incorporate this feature into their pool for several reasons.

What is pool edge coping?

WHAT IS POOL COPING? Coping is the term used to identify the material used to cap the pool edge or shell wall. Options available are poured-in-place concrete, precast concrete, tile, and natural stone (pavers, flagstone, etc.).

What is the best coping to put around a pool?

Among natural materials, travertine is a favorite because it stays cooler in the sun, and is naturally slip-resistant. Some natural stone can be very durable as pool coping, able to withstand ongoing exposure to chlorine, while some types of stone are less durable, and require more maintenance in a pool environment.

Can you have a pool without coping?

Coping protects the pool’s bond beam and any protruding tips of rebar (steel bars). The mounted material creates a barrier that prevents water from intruding behind the pool wall—a common cause of structural damage. Because coping does the job of topping off the pool bond beam, no deck is needed for this function.

What goes between pool coping and pavers?

That is referred to as your perimeter expansion joint. The expansion joint between the coping and the deck is typically caulked or filled with elastomeric sealant approximately 30 days after the concrete was originally poured. This gives the concrete time to settle and assume its permanent structure.

How big should the gap be between a pool and a deck?

3/4 inch

The maximum gap between the decking and the pool coping is generally 3/4 inch. Slip resistance, gaps between boards and slope of the deck may also be regulated depending on the local codes. These design requirements should also be considered for any deck adjacent swimming pools or hot tubs, whether in or above ground.

How far should pool coping overhang?

1.5″ is standard overhang for most pools with this style of coping. As much as 3″ is used for pools that are not built to square (to hide the lines) or pools that have an automatic pool cover with rails mounted on the underside of your coping.

Should you install concrete under pavers around a pool?

A concrete deck is your best choice for a smooth surface that will maintain its original character far longer than pavers ever will, especially around in-ground swimming pools. Just ask your pool store or pool builder: Concrete slabs can bridge minor ground movements underneath the deck much better than pavers.

Is it better to have pavers or concrete around a pool?

That said, pavers great advantage over concrete is in its safety. Because they are not slick, Pavers help reduce the chances of falling on wet pool decks. Solid in All Temperatures — Pavers work very well in midwestern climates with multiple freeze and thaw cycles.

Why do my pavers keep sinking?

If pavers are sinking, it might be an issue of improper compaction of the base material. If it loosens over time, the pavers can begin to sink. Or, it’s also possible that not enough gravel was used in the first place.

How much does it cost to put pavers around a pool?

$8 to $25 per square foot

Around Pool



Adding pavers around a backyard pool costs $8 to $25 per square foot.

What lasts longer concrete or pavers?

concrete driveway, concrete is the more durable of the two.) Pavers are also easier and cheaper to repair and replace than concrete. If an individual brick or stone is loose or damaged, you can easily replace it without affecting the rest of the bunch.

Is it cheaper to lay concrete or pavers?

As far as installation costs and concrete costs go, poured concrete is technically the most affordable per square foot. However, even though the upfront cost of pavers is higher, concrete pavers offer greater value and durability than poured concrete and stamped concrete.

What’s cheaper stamped concrete or pavers?

In terms of upfront cost, poured and stamped concrete tends to be the cheaper option. Concrete is fairly inexpensive, and you can cover a large plot of the land fairly quickly. Pavers are more expensive since each tile needs to be purchased individually. You will also pay more in labor costs for installation.

Is stamped concrete slippery around a pool?

As a decorative surface of faux stonework, stamped concrete does not have the usual roughness of concrete. This means — though more affordable than the real stone — stamped concrete has the potential to be somewhat slippery in weather-prone, exterior settings like a pool.

How much does it cost to pour a 24×24 slab of concrete?

A typical 24×24 garage slab costs between $3,057 and $5,944 with prices ranging from $5.31 to $8.31 per square foot for a 4” reinforced slab of concrete, and $6.83 to $10.32 per square foot for a 6” slab of reinforced concrete.