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When the royal family of Abu Dhabi calls in for a multi-million-dollar rooftop pool design, extravagant details are bound to be part of the plan. “That was a once-in-a-lifetime project,” says John Kenyon, sales manager and design consultant at Gib-San Pools Ltd., the Toronto-based firm contracted to design the pool and surrounding spa areas on the 67th floor of the Landmark hotel and condo in Dubai.

And while Kenyon has seen an increase in Canadian clients investing in pool installation since the start of the pandemic, the prevailing design sensibility couldn’t be different from the one his firm brought to the Landmark – an amorphous, organic structure with underlighting that gives guests the illusion of floating in space while night swimming.

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It’s an observation shared by other pool installers. “We maybe do one curvy pool for every 80 that we design annually,” says Marc Luff, co-owner of the Whitchurch-Stouffville-based Betz Pools Ltd. “Customers generally want modern minimalism,” he explains, and that generally means a rectangle.

Even as demand for pools in Canada has grown – up 33 percent in Ontario in 2021 compared to the previous year, according to the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC), which logged 9,000 swimming pool permits issued last year – their design has remained restrained. “Everyone wants that white patio, light colours, and just white cement slabs with a touch of artificial grass between them,” he says.

In short: subdued luxury. “Ever since COVID hit, Canadians began turning their backyards into resorts. They want that feeling they get when going on vacation,” explains Kenyon, which lately means he gets a lot of requests for special features that amplify the holiday effect.

“Even the smallest yard can be worked with,” says Kenyon, describing a recent designed for a 10 ft. wide by 30 ft. deep Rosedale backyard. “Somehow we managed to fit in a small swim pool, a water feature wall, a raised barbecue/lounge area and a round spa” – a hot tub integrated with the pool.

“Hot tubs have really skyrocketed. We tripled our sales (of them) during the pandemic,” Kenyon says.

“The automation has improved so much,” adds Luff. “To activate the hot tub component of your pool, you just hit a button on your phone and set your temperature. When you’re finished, hit another button and the hot tub can release the water back into the larger pool.” He says that about 60 per cent of his clients now request an integrated hot tub feature.

“There’s been a lot of changes to hot tubs’ chemistry as well,” notes Luff. “You no longer get that foamy water. It’s crystal-clear. People love it because it’s like an underwater couch.”

For those who don’t want separate hot tub features, Luff says he will often install a bench off to one side of the pool where there is an additional heater and a few spa jets.

Another option, says Luff, is built-in tanning shelves that allow people to enjoy three-quarter inches or a foot of shallow water around the border of the pool. “It’s for small kids to play on or where people can set up lounge chairs,” he says. “They should be at least six feet wide to allow for people to get by.”

Yet another way to accommodate young children is to have two shallow ends with the deep end in the middle. “Gone are the days of the 10-foot deep end,” says Kenyon. He notes that in a typical pool now, 30 percent of the area is devoted to the shallow end, where “most people congregate anyways.”

“A lot of people will even have a one-level pool out of concern for safety. But increasingly the double shallow end is popular,” Luff agrees. “Cannon-balling is still possible, but it happens at the centre of the pool.”

As for lighting, gimmicky is out, though most pools come with an LED colour-changing option. “Most people keep the blue light on,” laughs Luff. “That is, unless the kids want to play around in red water because it’s fun.” Given the lower energy consumption of LED lighting, pool companies will often install multiple ambient lighting features and then extend the effect beyond the pool, pinpointing special garden concepts throughout the landscape design.

Fire features are another way to maximize reflections. “With a fire bowl or other fire feature built alongside the pool, you get a nice flickering effect of orange flames on the water,” says Luff. “It’s for ambience, not heat, but the effect can be really beautiful at night.” Flames can also be positioned to strategically reflect off surrounding structures, including trees, foliage and the walls of the house.

And the special effects need not be restricted to one season only. The four-season pool has become ever more popular with insulated pool shells, floor jets and the use of long-lasting concrete. “If the weather gets bad, you can just click the automatic cover,” says Kenyon. “Unless you want to swim while it’s snowing.”

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