The floating solar rings are easy to remove and apply to your pool, and they can raise your pool’s temperature by three to four degrees Fahrenheit per week. Instead of having to store a large pool cover, wouldn’t you rather store these rings?

Not only do these rings heat up your pool, they also slow the evaporation of water and those costly chemicals. You can inflate the rings without a pump, and they have low-strength magnets, which help them stay together. Now there’s not a need for that electrical heater that increases your electricity bill every month.

If your neighbors or friends have incredible pool designs, ask them about their contractor. Find out if the person or company completed the job on the agreed-upon price and if it was done in a timely fashion. Basically, you want to know if your neighbor or friend would hire the contractor again.

You also need to play it smart when it comes to the pool or spa dealer. A pool requires regular maintenance, especially with the chemicals, so if you have never owned one before it wouldn’t hurt to find a dealer that could also service it when necessary. Then you can contact the company for advice or hands-on assistance when problems arise.

ETA’s solar powered pool pumping kits are easy to setup and require little maintenance. Depending on what state you live in, you might even be qualified to receive a tax credit for installing this device. An added plus is that the solar pump uses half of the energy that a conventional pump consumes.

So how does it work? The kit comes with everything you need to pump a 16,000 to 25,000 gallon pool. The solar panels capture free energy from the sun, which is then directly used by the high-efficiency DC pump motor. If you’re worried about capturing enough sunlight, you can get the optional tracker mounting positions, which enable the solar panels to follow the sun.

Some necessary elements of your pool that should be built right away include pumps, filters, ladders/handrails, steps, covers, safety items and maintenance equipment and/or maintenance contract. Optional features include diving boards, slides, fill lines, lights and sound system.

Elements that you can hold off on include heaters, automatic cleaners, decks and patios, landscaping, automatic controls, time clocks, shade structures and chemical feeders. However, if you decide to build an indoor pool, some of these features are not necessary.

When building a pool, sometimes it’s best to take care of the most important parts first, because you can always add on later. Waiting for the extras will give you time to figure out exactly what you want and need.

Barefoot Spas’ Body Lounger 57BL is a small-model spa, which is perfect if you don’t have a large patio or deck. Plus, if you have a small family, this is a way to get luxury without paying the high price.

This spa’s dimension are 84’’x60’’x34’’ so it seats three people. There are a 32 jets and one body lounger, so you can lay back, relax and enjoy the hydrotherapeutic massage. It requires 200 gallons of water, and it has a 4.1 kw heater. Plus, it has the Barefoot Spa’s Dream Collar feature, which provides neck and shoulder therapy. If you have tense muscle from sitting at a computer or doing manual labor, the custom-designed head rest and three powerful jets can help them relax.

EcoSmarte uses it to clean pools and spas:

“The ECOsmarte oxygen electrodes deliver a non-chemical shock to your water when the water passes through your pressure line. Once per week you test your pH and copper levels. You will switch the button on your Electronic Control Unit and ionize for 4 – 8 hours depending on your pool size and bather load. This will put copper in your pool which is a great algaecide and deadly to viruses.” (And it doesn’t have that strong chlorine smell either.)

According to the company’s FAQ, copper is completely safe for humans and is better for the environment than typical swimming pool chemicals. Of course you’ll want to do your own independent research before committing to something like this, but it sounds like it maybe be worth checking out. The EcoSmarte sanitation system can also be used with hot tubs and ponds.

“This battery-operated pool toy illuminates the water wherever it swims with vibrant, multicolored lights that shine in all directions.”

The light-up fish has three settings that let you select motion, lights, or both at the same time, and the fins are supposed to give the aquatic critter a “realistic swimming motion.” (We’ll let you be the judge of that.)

It runs on batteries, so no fancy remodeling required to add this type of lighting to your pool.

$35 from Frontgate.

You can stay simple with a pergola (maybe with some latticed walls to add privacy), but if you really want a feeling of seclusion, a full-fledged spa enclosure might make sense.

This 10′ x 10′ red cedar hot tub enclosure has screened windows all around, so you’ve got that privacy, but you can also enjoy the view out onto the yard too.

It comes as a kit with penalized pieces for easy assembly, and the cedar roof shingles come already attached.

$5,000 at Total Backyard

While we hope you have a thorough pool filtration system and these would be purely decorative, they can add a bit of whimsy to the backyard swimming hole.

They can also be nice if you’re going for the natural look, with a pool that includes waterfalls, fountains, stone grottos, and other “natural” features.  The ripples created on the water can make it feel like you’re lounging by a stream rather than a regular old swimming pool.

The bubblers here are part of a pool installation that was done by Aquatic Creations in North Carolina.  If you’re looking for swimming pool design ideas, they have a gallery full of pictures up on their site.

Wood? Concrete? Brick? An aggregate?

You might dig the classic look these paving stones can offer to a pool deck.

According to Pacific PavingStone, pavers like these out-perform mortar-set stones and brick in durability, flexibility, and strength. The stones are available in a variety of colors and when property installed, they shouldn’t crack, sag, shift, or seperate. Also… they’re nice and smooth for walking barefoot upon.

All in all, a nice option for a swimming pool deck.