phykell

Thanks - I'll see what the structural engineer comes back with. I believe the initial plan just shows one huge concrete raft though.

The whole build will be ICF including at least the back wall of the pool - possibly concrete for the other three walls. I was planning on SIPs but preferred ICF due to being more substantial (we get winds from adjoining field), water (housing a pool) and better thermal mass (reduce temperature fluctuations). A couple of items that might interest you in particular is that the ICF pool will require an extra chamber to house the in-ground pool cover. There's not much room around the pool so the cover will be underground - not much of an issue for an outdoor one but it also looks a lot better than the above-ground covers. The other item is that we're looking at an undercroft using block/beam to give access to the pipework/lighting, rather than just embedding it all in the floor.

Understood 😎 Yes, it's the ~28m one that I had to take to appeal. The pool is approximately 11m x 4m with the rest for plant, changing area, and three-bay garage. One day I'll update this place with the completed project, one fine day 👍

For just the additional report on the ground composition, etc. it's just over £4k. From the comments here and some "pseudo-research" on AI, it's not something I can or should avoid having done so looks like I just have to bite the bullet.

Hi, I'm having an indoor pool built to replace an existing outdoor pool and while I think it should be a relatively straight-forward project, the structural engineer seems to disagree. In addition to the cost of calculations for the roof and steels they want to drill several 5m boreholes to test ground conditions, in-situ geo-technical testing and soil samples for chemical testing. I've recently had a water borehole dug out to 50m with a basic report (soil/ground type, water found, etc.) issued - I gave them a copy and they still said they wanted the above work done. I accept that they need to cover all bases due to professional liability, etc. but I've been through the mill with the LPA and all of their "required" reports, investigations and mitigations. Am I now just being cynical or does that all sound reasonable? Thanks for any advice/opinions offered.

Will do 👍

Thanks for the detailed and very useful reply 😎 The house dates back to the mid 1700s with visible sandstone, brick and white render with an oak porch and black windows. The outbuilding is perhaps 25m away from the house so it doesn't need to look identical but the design is for what looks like a timber-clad (either natural or stained black) with an oak frame structure (natural finish) with oak garage doors, black glazing and a slate roof with (integrated/in-roof) solar panels. The aim was to "shrink" its apparent size by muting the colours (to black) and to still look rustic rather than super-modern so it wouldn't clash with the main house. The garage part will serve as both storage and workshop (and to host the solar PV and battery equipment) but I want to keep a distinct barrier between the garage section and the rest of the outbuilding. It'd be nice to have the garage underfloor heated but there's no practical need for it - insulating the slab should be enough and I have tons of firewood for an additional log burner. The rest of the outbuilding will be heavily insulated and air-tight - I'll insulate the garage too but there's no need (pointless) for an air-tight seal around the doors, etc. We do have a very heavy clay ground but with excellent topsoil and, further down, it's all red sandstone according to various, nearby water abstraction surveys (lots of farmers sourcing groundwater). The water table is high but the property is on a slope so it drains really well and we have no flooding issues or anything like that. Hopefully, you'll agree that I have a fair idea of what's needed but I definitely need a Structural Engineer to rationalise/normalise all of this into a cogent design that the builder and/or pool builder can rely on. I've already approached a couple of pool specialists but I'll probably prefer one that can "supply" an SE that he trusts unless the architect I choose has any other ideas. The problem remains though, that I need to pull a number of specialists together to get this off the ground and I know (from experience in a completely different industy) that the old cooks in the kitchen adage often applies. I'd prefer to keep it as simple as possible and start off by finding an architect that has experience with pool construction/design. Great point about the longevity and maintenance costs, etc. We'll be in this house for at least the next ten years and hopefully, many beyond that but I'd like to think that the next owner, perhaps a younger family, will love the pool.

I'm working on the basis that a domestic pool's chlorine levels don't have to be anywhere near that required for a public pool and, typically, only two people will be using it regularly. I'm told that an auto-dosing systems will monitor the water and only introduce as much chlorine as necessary. Option for chlorine to be reduced still further using a hybrid systems and there's even a mineral water alternative (with other issues).

I've been watching a series of YouTube videos by a guy doing an outside pool using ICF. And then there's Robin Clevett's channel and his garden room, incorporating an indoor pool. I'd be interested in seeing comparisons between the various methods but I'll probably have to choose the judgement of the pool company I end up using. As it stands, there's already an 11m x 5m pool which is built in concrete with, I presume, zero insulation. I had thought I could possibly utilise part of it as the new pool but I'm not so sure now - insulation is going to be key to having a reasonable running cost, even with a ton of solar panels forming the roof. I see a lot of remarks about standard MVHRs not being up to the task as you suggest so that RecoTherm does sound interesting - no pricing on their website though and I couldn't find anything regarding sizing either. Next, I have to consider the building construction method - SIPs, timber frame or brick/block, but I'm leaning towards timber frame at the moment and stil trying to work out which would be more suitable to house a pool and a garage. I'm just hoping everything will be done this time next year. No Ferrari - not really into cars, prefer motorcycles 😎

Admittedly big, but single-storey and mostly just a roof and four walls around an 11m x 5m pool with a three-bay garage and plant room in-between. Every square centimetre has been accounted for 😎 I certainly didn't kick a ball around so I'm hoping to do it all for a reasonable cost. Yes, HVAC is a must and I intend to use a heat pump as the heat source - had great results with a heat pump on my house renovation. There will be a plant room and shower/changing room between the pool room and the garage section plus I expect the garage to not be exactly air-tight. Noted. Funny thing is that the existing outdoor pool was probably constructed in the early 70s, as far as we can tell, and the structure is still in perfect condition - it doesn't seem to leak at all. Let's hope I can find contractors who can achieve much the same!

Thanks - I agree with all of that. The size is approximately 29m x 7m. It would have been even bigger if I'd been able to build over the existing external swimming pool but it's too close to the neighbour's boundary so the pool has to be reduced in width. My original belief was that it was a very simple construction, just a long box with a dwarf wall, and timber-clad block with a traditional slate roof and guttering. I've had some large extensions built previously so I'm familiar with basic construction methods and I didn't think this would be that much different. However, over the 2+ years since the original design, I've now realised that I can't just let a builder do what he wants and that it would be impossible to find one who would be able to pull all the components together such as the pool renovation/reconstruction, plant room build, solar panel installation and roof truss calculations to allow for a vaulted ceiling rather than a flat, plastered ceiling. That and the fact that I won't be working with the builder whose (employed) architect did the initial (general) design.

I fully agree and I like that quote - I must remember it 😎 All are welcome 👍

Sorry, missed this. I'm comparing to a traditional brick/block construction. SIPs, at least in the form of two thin OSB sheets separated by expanded polystyrene, seem very easy to get through with a recip saw, etc. and I plan to have all of my tools and garden machinery in there. I've read claims that this is not the case but I'm struggling to see how SIPs can measure up to a brick/block construction. However, I guess it's also the case that trying to get through a SIP wall would be extremely noisy and messy so it's unlikely that would be a preferred entry method for a burglar.

Yes, that's a good point - I'd meant to mention Building Control as they need to be involved due to the scale of the outbuilding.

Hi, I've just had a Lawful Development Certificate granted on appeal and I'm now looking at building an outbuilding which will contain a swimming pool and function as a garage. I do have a very general design for the outbuilding but it's more about size/layout and appearance. It doesn't consider alternative building materials or any specifics such as how to support the roof over the swimming pool. I have a very general brief - the building needs to function as a secure garage and it needs to be well-insulated to reduce heat loss from the pool which will be used all year round. I'd like the outbuilding's appearance to be that of a oak-framed structure, with a brick dwarf wall and timber cladding but the oak-frame detail only needs to be visible from the front elevation. I have wondered about it being a proper oak-frame with SIP panels for speed and insulation benefits but I'm a bit worried about security. I think the most cost-effective construction method would be cavity walls, using cheap block/concrete blocks because it's going to be clad in timber anyway. The question is, where do I go from here? Can I just approach a builder with all of the above or do I need an architect to write it all up into a building specification (with a structural engineer's input)? Do I approach an oak-frame supplier at this point? Thanks for looking and apologies in advance for such asking such an open-ended question.