How To Make A Backyard "Chemical-Free" Swimming Hole

How To Make A Backyard "Chemical-Free" Swimming Hole FARM HOME Miscellaneous 32-3-25 If you ever wanted a backyard swimming hole - as opposed to a swimming pool - you should talk to Chris Coutre. He started making decorative garden pools but has branched out into "natural" backyard swimming holes with no chlorine added. "I had a couple of clients who wanted larger pools to swim in," says Coutre. He soon began making specialty pools big enough to swim in, but without the concrete and added chemicals of traditional swimming pools. His pools are more like swimming holes, with opportunities for snorkeling for frogs and turtles or even perhaps a little fishing. "With the plants, filtration and aeration, you get real clean water like with a spring fed pond," he says. "It takes a couple of years to get a pool in balance, but by the second or third year, you can have a good ecosystem of plants and fish with water so clear, you can see a dime at a 9-ft. depth." Coutre digs down to the desired depth and leaves nearly vertical sides. He says this helps ensure that leaves and other trash will land on a flat surface where it can more easily be removed. Pools are lined with rubber butyl. Coutre also recommends a vacuum system be installed to minimize maintenance since leaves and trash can clog the filter. Coutre also installs his own oversized, water filtration systems. "When I started out, I bought pre-built filters, but they weren't adequate for the bigger volume," he says. Now he has people contacting him for his filters to put in existing ponds. By the time plants have been in a pool for a second year, they also begin to contribute to clarity by removing nutrients. Within a couple of years, he says they can often be split and reestablished. "People usually need to buy additives the first year or two to starve out the algae, but with each year's plant growth, they need less," he says. "Initially, the maintenance is about like a standard swimming pool, but over time that also decreases." Another key to long-term clarity and pond health is aeration. Here too, Coutre likes to oversize for swimming pools. The water is pumped through the filter and back into the pool via waterfalls and streams. "Any break in the surface adds oxygen," he explains. Unfortunately, a Coulee Country swimming hole doesn't come cheap. The liners, filter systems, pumps and excavation add up. A few pools have run well over $100,000. Less elaborate ones more commonly run in the $30,000 to 40,000 range. Pools big enough for kids to swim in and adults to sit and relax in can be built for $20,000 or less. While he usually works only in Wisconsin, Coutre says he would be happy to consult by phone in other areas. He also sells his filtration systems and other supplies for building and maintaining backyard "swimming holes." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Coulee Country Landscape Design, 1901 Carver St., Madison, Wis. 53713 (ph 608 251-2227; www.coulee-country.com).

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