A

Acid Wash
Procedure using an acid solution to clean the interior surface of a swimming pool.

Air Blowers
A mechanical device that forces air through holes in the floor of a spa to produce bubbles.

Angle of Repose
The maximum slope or angle at which a material, such as soil or loose rock, remains stable without falling or sliding.

B

Backfill
The repositioning of the soil after construction of a pool, refilling an excavated area.

Back Form
Shoring required below ground level when the soil caves in.

Backwash
The process of thoroughly cleaning a sand filter by reversing the flow of water through the filter to flush out any dirt.

Beam
Usually constructed of concrete and reinforced with steel rods, the beam is the lip located around the top of the swimming pool shell to support the pool coping.

Booster Pumps
A water pump added to a spa circulation system to increase pressure to the jets. Also used for some automatic pool cleaners.

Building Surveyor
An individual or company responsible for making sure a building is safe and that it complies with current Building Regulations. Surveyors evaluate and assess plans, conduct inspections and issue building permits, as well as checking that building practitioners are registered and carry appropriate insurance.

C

Cartridge Filter
A swimming pool and spa filter that uses a replaceable porous element made of paper or polyester to remove even the finest particles without embedding them in the filter.

Commissioning
To start up the pool once construction is completed and the pool has been filled with water. This involves adding chemicals to adjust the water balance and turning on the pool equipment.

Concrete Pools
A swimming pool constructed of concrete and reinforced with steel.

Coping
The walkway immediately surrounding the swimming pool or spa that provides a finished edge between the pool structure and the surrounds, also known as capping. Some popular finishes include terra-cotta, clay bricks, sandstone or bluestone type pavers, and timber decking.

Courtyard Pools
A smaller sized swimming pool that can be located in more diminutive spaces.

D

Datum Point
A point used to establish the finish level of the swimming pool, usually something existing on site i.e. house floor level, surveyed RL etc.

Dosing System
A liquid chlorine feeder that is designed to automatically inject chlorine into the swimming pool at regular intervals throughout the filter cycle.

E

Exposed Aggregate
A pebble-type interior finish made from a blend of ingredients including white cement, quartz sand, metallic oxides and coated aggregate. Exposed aggregate provides a smooth surface and is available in a range of colours.

F

Finish Concrete Level (FCL)
The level of the finished pool structure.

Formwork
Generally built on-site out of timber and plywood, the formwork provides a solid surface for the concrete to be sprayed against. Once the concrete has set (or cured), the formwork is stripped away (removed) to expose the finished shape of the concrete swimming pool.

Filtration
The process of passing pool water through the filter medium to remove dirt and debris particles.

G

Geometric Pools
A geometric pool has even lines and features. Usually built in a rectangular shape, this pool is considered the “traditional” swimming pool style.

Grout
A thin, coarse mortar used to seal joints like those between tiles. Grout is generally composed of a mixture of water, cement, sand and sometimes colour tint which is applied as a thick liquid and hardens over time.

Gutter
An overflow trough at the edge of the swimming pool through which water and debris flow. A gutter is needed when a pool has a wet-edge design.

H

Hair and Lint Pot
Used to trap finer particles that manage to pass through the skimmer box basket. This section of the circulating pump contains the secondary strainer basket for the filtration system. It requires regular cleaning.

Handover
A meeting between pool builder and owner upon completion of the project to discuss the operation of the swimming pool, and to review equipment procedures and correct chemical balances.

Hydrostatic Relief Valve
A spring loaded plug situated in the main-drain bowl designed to open if the water pressure under the pool is greater than the water pressure within the pool. A relief valve reduces the possibility of an empty pool lifting out of the ground.

I

Indoor Pools
A swimming pool located inside a house or other dedicated structure.

In-floor Cleaning System
A programmed in-floor cleaning and circulation system that cleans a swimming pool automatically. Pop-up nozzles built into the floor of the swimming pool use high pressure streams of water to push dirt, sand, leaves and debris from every corner toward the MDX drain, where it is removed into a collection basket or canister for ease of disposal.

L

Leaf Basket
A strainer basket situated in the skimmer box to trap large leaves and debris before they enter the hair and lint pot.

Letter of Appointment
A document required by the building surveyor to confirm that a swimming pool construction company is applying for a building permit on behalf of the property owner. This is also called an ‘owners consent form’.

Lap Pools
Lap pools are built so that people can swim laps for health and fitness. They tend to be long and narrow, usually over 15 metres long.

Licensed Electrical and Plumbing
Electrical and plumbing connections are not usually included in a swimming pool contract because they require work by licensed tradesmen. An electrician will be needed to install switch wires for pool lights and fountains etc. A plumber will need to make connections for the backwash, cold water supply and gas (if applicable).

Load Bearing
A load-bearing wall is one in which the wall of a structure bears the weight and force resting upon it. Swimming pool walls can be load bearing if a planter box, for example, is being supported by part of the concrete shell.

M

Main Drain
This term usually refers to a plumbing fitting installed at the deepest part of the pool. It is not a drain, such as a drain on a kitchen sink, but usually connects to the pump for circulation and filtration.

P

Plunge Pools
A plunge pool is small in size, but deep.

Preliminary Works Agreement
A preliminary contract document that allows the pool builder to start administration work on the project before all the details have been finalised in the SPASA contract.

Primary Plumbing
The pipe work that makes up the internal circulation system of the pool. These pipes are laid out and configured prior to the concrete pour.

Pump
A mechanical device, usually powered by an electrical motor, which circulates water from the swimming pool where water is drawn into the filtration system.

Property Protection Works
This usually involves underpinning or some other form of foundation works to protect the neighbouring property from being undermined.

PVC Pipe
A type of pressure pipe for water distribution manufactured from poly vinyl chloride compound used to plumb swimming pools and spas.

R

Re-bar
Reinforcement bar, used to add strength to concrete. After excavation of an in-ground pool a steel cage is formed out of re-bar, and the concrete shell is sprayed over and surrounding it.

Render
A mixture of cement and sand used on the interior of a pool or spa to smooth out the surface before tiles or exposed aggregate (pebble) are applied.

Return Inlets
Part of the plumbing circulation system to return filtered water back to the swimming pool.

S

Salt Chlorinator
A unit which manufactures chlorine through the electrolytic conversion of salt. A saltwater pool is not actually chlorine-free; it simply utilises a chlorine generator instead of direct addition of chlorine.

Sand Filter
A filter that operates on the basis of “depth filtration”; dirt is driven through the sand bed and trapped in minute spaces between the particles of sand.

Screenings
Crushed rock which acts as a drainage layer between the ground and the swimming pool shell.

Secondary Plumbing
The system of PVC pipes that run underground from the swimming pool structure to the designated equipment location.

Set Out
The swimming pool is marked out on the property to show the exact location and shape in preparation for the excavation.

Site Cut
Also known as ‘overburden’, the site cut is the removal of excess soil above the pool level that needs to be disposed of before excavation can begin.

Skimmer
A box-like device installed through the wall of the swimming pool or spa connected to the suction line of the pump that draws water and floating debris into the skimmer from the surface. Usually located to one side / end of the pool and used as the main suction point for manual vacuuming and / or skimming of leaves.

Skimmer Basket
A removable, slotted basket or strainer located in the skimmer box which is designed to trap floating debris in the water flow from the surface without causing much flow restriction.

Skimmer Weir
Part of the skimmer that adjusts automatically to small changes in water level to assure a continuous flow of water to the skimmer. It looks like a small floating ‘door’ on the side of the skimmer that faces the water. The weir also prevents debris from floating back into the pool when the pump shuts off.

Spoil
The term used for the soil, dirt and rubble that results from an excavation and is discarded off-site.

Steel Fix
The fastening of steel reinforcing bars so that they stay in the correct place to form the skeletal structure of the swimming pool.

Swim-Out
A recessed area outside the general perimeter of a swimming pool, also known as an underwater seat. Swim-outs are designed to allow ease of entry and exit from the pool.

T

Temporary Fencing
A safety barrier that is set up during the construction period. A permanent fence that complies with the Australian Standards must be installed before the swimming pool can be filled with water.

Town Planning Permit
A Planning Permit is a legal document issued by the local council giving permission to develop or use a piece of land for a specific purpose. A permit may also contain written conditions and endorsed plans showing the proposed development or use of land. Not all building projects require a Town Planning Permit; examples of planning controls include Heritage or Vegetation Overlays.

U

Underwater Light
A fixture designed to illuminate a pool or spa from beneath the water’s surface.

V

Vacuum
This term can be used to define any number of devices that use suction to collect dirt from the bottom and sides of a pool or spa . Most common is a vacuum head with wheels that attaches to a pole and is connected to the suction line, usually via the opening in the skimmer. It must be moved about by a person, and debris is collected in the skimmer basket and filter.

Vacuum Head
Attached to the hose and telescopic pole, and used to vacuum dirt from the floor of the pool.

W

Wet Seal
A waterproofing system for protecting internal and external wet areas.

Waterline
The height to which the water is filled in a swimming pool or spa . This is usually in the middle of the skimmer opening.

Wet-edge Pools
A wet-edge pool is a swimming pool which produces a visual effect of water extending to the horizon, vanishing, or extending to infinity. Often the water appears to fall into an ocean, lake, or other similar body of water. Also known as ‘infinity pool’, ‘negative edge pool’ or ‘vanishing edge pool’.