Poolside Panache

Among all the ways there are to achieve great looks with backyard poolscapes, says Keith Monk, there’s one approach that probably deserves more attention than it gets: artificial rockwork. Here’s a look at why he thinks it’s one of the overlooked keys to turning ordinary pools into extraordinary watershapes.

When a backyard has a swimming pool, homeowners generally want their watershape to be a key visual component in the overall composition. Too often, however – and this is particularly true of many of the older ones I see – the pool is unexciting both on its own and as part of the landscape.

That’s definitely not the style these days. Homeowners either want to make a statement by having a pool that is a visual knockout complete with big rocks and grottos and waterfalls; or they want it to play a more understated role but be a major part of a composition in which the pool is stylistically integrated with the home and its surrounding landscape and hardscape features.

If you’re given a blank slate as a watershape designer (along with an adequate budget), the sky’s literally the limit. With most mid-range projects, however, the designer needs to find options that approximate the clients’ desires – alternatives that will serve their needs just as well on a budget as they might on a grander scale.

This is the place where you start thinking less about wrangling real stones and boulders and more about the potential of artificial rock to make project statements. These faux features can easily be worked into new installations, and with their relatively light weight, they’re ideal for remodeling projects where they don’t add a significant surcharge to an existing pool’s shell. In addition, they’re versatile enough that they can be used with any pool type – concrete, vinyl-liner or fiberglass.

ROCKING OPTIONS

Not all artificial rocks are created equal. In fact, they’re made from a number of materials, including fiberglass, concrete, glass-fiber-reinforced concrete (GFRC) or polyurea/foam combinations. They come in a range of shapes and sizes to fit any project and fill the spectrum from basic edge or ornamental details up to full-scale waterfalls and even waterfall-topped grottos with integrated slides.

Artificial rock features tend to be easy to work with and install because they are typically modular, durable and generally lightweight. In some cases, they can simply be taken out of a box, plumbed into the system and anchored into place. They’re available in a range of shapes, colors, finishes and textures to suit just about any imaginable need.

It’s often said that working with real rocks and boulders is an improvisational art because no two rocks are alike and piecing them together on site can be an effort of many days or weeks. That’s not the case with most artificial rockwork: The client knows ahead of time how things will look based on catalog images, and the various combinations of molded panels are engineered to come together easily and quickly on site.

As is true of any approach involving large landscape elements, setting the context is important in making a good impression with artificial rock. Left alone at the edge of a pool (left), a rock-waterfall unit looks awkward and forlorn. But when additional rocks (real or artificial) are added to the background (middle) and then the whole area is planted (right), a rich, varied scene emerges that’s easy on the eye.

In addition, it’s always possible to mix real rock into the overall composition, starting with lightweight, molded rockwork on a pool’s wall, for example, then moving back into the landscape with boulders that are visually compatible with the poolside construction.

Of course, there are wide variations in the quality of the “look” of artificial rock, ranging from appearances so naturalistic that even Mother Nature might be fooled to looks that seem far less natural. Again, it’s a matter of budget and the clients’ tastes, and the good news is that there’s something that will work at just about every project level.

The important thing from the designer/contractor perspective is to work with systems or packages that are engineered and manufactured in such a way that they perform as expected. You want the water to flow in the right spots and in aesthetically (and sonically) pleasing ways, for example, and you definitely want a system that’s well-engineered, watertight and leak-free!

A COMPLETE FIT

In working in a given setting, you’ll typically also want the artificial rock structures to fit into the context of the home and its style.

If the house is on the rustic side, for example, large, rough-textured faux rockwork will fill the bill in creating a rugged waterfall. For a more formal setting, there are artificial stacked-stone looks – structures that are clearly “artificial” but that fit in seamlessly with the setting’s overall style. And if the home has a contemporary sensibility, there are a number of hand-crafted rock options (including some rock-mounted bowl-style fountains) that make the grade. That’s the key with artificial rockwork: In working with it, you have the ability to apply it in just about any backyard.

Artificial rock doesn’t always take the form of boulders and large, rough-hewn structures. As seen here, artificial ledger-stone structures bring lightweight stone details up to the water’s edge both as skirts for diving boards and as fountains (left and middle). Artificial rocks also serve as plinths for pool- or spa-side fountain bowls (right).

Once you have determined the style, it’s important to consider scale: A rock feature that is too small or visually unimposing will look wrong, and it’s just as ridiculous on the other side if the feature is too large and overwhelms its surroundings. You also need to consider context and how the poolside features fit into the backyard scheme. If the need is for a more natural look, for example, adding landscape boulders (real or artificial) that carry the look out of and away from pool can make a huge difference in the impression the composition makes.

Think about the decking as well and the relationship between it and the rockwork. Also consider what’s behind the structure: The design may change dramatically if it backs up against a wall or fence – or is contained within a screened enclosure. Finally, think about the shape of the pool: You have options available for working atop straight walls or radiused ones, but the visually effective choices are more limited the more complex the pool’s contours become.

ON-SITE SIMPLICITY

The best thing about artificial rockwork is the fact that it’s been in use long enough that installation has become much more systematized and therefore much simpler. Most units can be anchored to existing decks, but it’s also possible to set up new footings – which is usually the path taken with new pools.

With new construction, it’s common to look at a waterfall or spillway or fountain feature as part of the return system and plumb it accordingly. Depending on location (but even where freezing weather isn’t a concern), it’s also a good idea to include a valve that will cut off the flow to the waterfall for servicing or winterizing. Depending on the pump used in the system, it may also be advantageous to use this valve to “tune” the flow of the waterfall as needed, from grand cascade to gentle trickle.

With retrofits, it’s generally easy to stub up an extension of the return line to feed a waterfall within the area covered by the new structure. In this case, however, you need to consider the system’s revised hydraulics and the effect pushing various amounts of water to the head of the waterfall or spillway might have on the system’s overall performance. If that’s an issue and water quality could be compromised, it might be necessary to resize and replace the pump.

When used appropriately and set in a well-considered visual context, artificial rock structures can help bring a plain-looking poolscape to life, bringing sound and motion to the setting along while offering focal points that tie the watershape more directly to its overall setting.

Before you finalize the plumbing arrangements, it’s a good idea to take care of fitting the rockwork into place – that is, by trimming it as needed to fit around existing coping and/or dealing with any unevenness around the structure’s base. You want everything to be in its final position – including a perfectly level spillway weir – before you make the ultimate plumbing connections.

Once those connections are made, it’s time to test the system and make certain the water flows as directly as it should into the pool. You want to avoid excessive splash out – and especially any flow off the back side of the structure that may harm the landscaping and will cause the pool to lose undesirable amounts of water.

GETTING IT RIGHT

Installation of an artificial-rock structure is only phase one of what should definitely be a two-phase process: Once a pre-formed waterfall or spillway or fountain feature is added to the side of a swimming pool, you must do what it takes to soften its visual edges and the transitions from rock structures to decks and the landscape.

Plants are generally the best option here: By incorporating natural elements including potted plants or planting pockets around the new structures, you bring contrast to the setting and knock the harder edges off the new structures. You can also install low walls or large, flat-sided rocks to provide much-wanted seating near the waterfeature.

It’s a truism in the landscape trades that layering is important, and that’s as much the case around artificial-rock structures as it is elsewhere in the backyard. Tall, medium and short plants should come into play, and various leaf types and colors go even farther in easing the eye into the setting. Just be careful when you’re very close to the edge: You don’t want to select plants that will drop large quantities of leaves into the water.

If you look at rock structures as another component in a larger backyard composition that might include pool, a spa, shrubs, trees, groundcovers, beautiful decking and seating areas, it’s much easier to find ways to use them in taking ho-hum settings and transforming them into fun visual statements. And with artificial rock in the mix, it’s possible to do so on a budget!

Keith Monk is national sales director for Inter-Fab, a Tucson, Ariz.-based manufacturer of pool accessories. A 27-year industry veteran, he has worked in everything from retail and distribution to manufacturing and has been with Inter-Fab for the past 15 years.