Pool Wall Panel Height vs Pool Water Depth

Pool Wall Panel Height vs Pool Water Depth

Customers always ask why the finished pool floor dimension in the shallow end only 40″ but the pool wall panel is 42″ tall? In this Pool Wall Panel Height vs Pool Water Depth blog post, we will tackle that question but first, we need to understand the two-panel sizes we offer. Pool Warehouse sells a forty-two inch (42”) and forty-eight inch (48”) tall steel wall or polymer wall pool kits.

When installing a forty-eight inch (48”) wall pool kit, excavation for the pool kit will be forty-eight inches (48”) deep for the pool shelf. The swimming pool shelf must be graded to forty-eight inches (48”) from the string line or from your benchmark. The pool shelf is the area around the entire perimeter of the pool where the panels sit. The shallow end is typically the same depth as the pool shelf. This will be two inches (2″) below the finish dimensions in the Panel Layout and Dig Dimension Drawing. The finished dimension with a two-inch (2″) layer of MASON sand and cement (in a 5-to-1 ratio) or a suitable pool base material will be forty-six inches (46”). Pool Warehouse recommends a product called Pool Base sometimes called Pool Krete. *The dimensions supplied on your dig sheets are based on the FINAL depth of your pool floor, including the pool base material.

48” tall wall panels will have a finished pool depth of 46”

Typical water depth is 42”

42” tall wall panels will have a finished pool depth of 40”

Typical water depth is 36”

Pool Kit Excavation Tips

*String the inside dimensions. Drive stakes at all corners of the pool. Run strings low on the stakes, close to the ground, marking where the foot of the walls will be.
*After staking out the shape of the pool, measure from each corner to make sure the pool is square. The diagonal cross dimensions need to measure the exact same.
*Measure from the shallow end corner the length of the shallow end or “Play Area” of the pool kit. Place a stake at this measurement. This is where the “break”, “slope”, or “ramp” will begin. Be sure to do this on both sides of the shallow end.
*Run a string line from each stake across the swimming pool. This marks the shallow end.
*Measure from the shallow end/slope line stake the distance of the slope. Place a stake at this dimension. This is referred to as the Slope/Hopper breakline. Do this for each side and run a sting across to the other stake.
*Measure from the Slope/Hopper breakline the distance of the hopper. Place a stake at this point and do this for each side. Run a string across to the other stake.
*The remaining area should equal the dimension of the backwall or back slope.
*Now across the deep end of the swimming pool, from the sides, measure in the dimension of the sidewalls or side slopes. Place stakes at these dimensions and run strings across to each. This should give you a square shape for the deep end hopper floor. Take a diagonal measurement of the hopper to make sure it is also square.
*Dig down to the shallow end depth throughout the entire pool kit making sure the entire area is level before digging the rest of the swimming pool.

Importance Of Proper Water Level

The water level on your swimming pool should be about halfway up on the skimmer.  When your pool kit is in operation, the skimmer will be most efficient when the water level is at the midpoint on the skimmer. This will allow any debris that is on the top of the water to be sucked into the skimmer. If you fill your pool kit too full, the debris will go by the skimmer without being sucked in. If you fill your swimming pool too low, air will be sucked into the pump. This will cause your pump to lose prime and run dry. If it runs dry for an extended amount of time, it can lead to the pump overheating and can melt the pump housing.

The skimmer cutout is only 1″ from the top of the panel.

Pool Wall Panel Height vs Pool Water Depth Questions?

If you have questions about Pool Wall Panel Height vs Pool Water Depth please feel free to give us a call at 1-800-515-1747 or send us an email, [email protected].

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