Decking

Wifey has just bought a 10foot circular paddling.swimming pool. Its 36 inches deep but gets filled to 30inches. As you can imagine, thats a lot of water. The problem is we have decking attached to the back of the house and she wants this pool at the bottom of the garden but placed on an 11foot square deck, so it looks like the old decking. The decking she wants is over grass so I'm presuming that the four corner posts would be bedded in concrete, however I am concerned over the sheer weight of the water. I suppose I could place the four corner posts and put an extra one down each length (three in all on each side) and one in the center to help support it but even with that I am still concerned that it wont be strong enough. Looking in BleedinQueue (B&Q) their decking framework are 4"*2", would this be strong enough for a support? I could just place the decking on the floor but wifey wants it raised slightly, only by a couple of inches but raised anyway. Any ideas, thoughts, good divorce solictors or one way tickets to Oz?

Reply to
LetterBee
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If my calculations are correct, that would take 5.3 cubic meters of water, or 5.3 ton + people jumping about!

For that sort of weight I'd make my own deck, using 9 legs to spread the weight

Reply to
Dave Jones

Might placing the pool on the ground (or 2" of sand/weak concrete) and then placing decking round it, with a circular 'plinth' round the edge of the pool work?

Reply to
Ian Stirling

Let's do the numbers, rather than imagining. 10ft = 3m, NADI. Call the

30ins 0.8m (NADI, again). Area of your circle is pi * 1.5 * 1.5 (that's pi-rsquare, r being half of d), or 3.2 * 2.25 = 7sqm NADI. 7sqm * 0.8m gives us 5.6 cubic metres, and (since a cubic metre of water weighs a ton - or tonne, with the precision we're working to) that's between 5 and 6 tons of water.

Now, wood's pretty strong, especially in compression; but I wouldn't want to support 5+ tons of fun on "four corner posts". Since you only want to raise the decking a few measly inches, I'd be looking to construct a base of tannalised (preservative-impregnated) timbers of the right thickness - maybe sthg as crude and widely-available as 4x4 fenceposts would do? - resting either straight on the ground, or on paving slabs bedded into a small depth of concrete, with a couple of ground fixings to encourage the whole thing to stay in one place (not that it's going to go far, when filled). As the attraction of an unheated, uncovered, cracking-after-a-season-or-two paddling pool will fade after a season or two, I wouldn't aim for a structure of great permanance...

Reply to
Stefek Zaba

I was looking at supporting it with 9 4*4 posts, three foot in length, buried two feet in concrete, that should hopefully give it a firm and steady base to work on. I was then going to place the joists at 12" intervals (in effect causing just 10" gaps if using 4*2). The cross supports on the joists would also have been placed at 12" intervals. The decking would be 6" wide. Just for my own peace of mind I'd have probably jammed bricks every couple of feet underneath the decking as well but this would still have the effect of a raised area. Even with the calculations given I'm not sure it would be strong enough. Opinions? Onto the attraction side of it. You obviously dont know my wife lol. Its a solar heated, covered and totally flexible pool (only the best for her and the worst for my wallet) and the kids are at the age where a pool is unlikely to be a novelty for now. As an upshot, the wife has decided that if the decking is 11ft square then when its too cold for the pool and its been stored away the decking could be covered by this 10foot square gazebo she just happened to see in town. Ooh look, somewhere to sit and have a barbecue with the neighbours. You sure you dont know any good divorce lawyers instead?

Reply to
LetterBee

Hi LetterBee

OK so the water will weigh 5 - 6 tonnes, but how much does a concrete tile roof weigh? That lot is only held up by 4 x 2 timber, more or less. If 4 x 2 is strong enough for that, follow the same spacing rules & you should be OK.

Your wife must be related to mine I reckon!!

Dave

Reply to
Magician

Reply to
LetterBee

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