Add Title

A Brief History of Above-Ground Pools

Giving credit where credit is due.

I have been involved with above-ground pools for fifty-years. I started as an installer in 1974, collaborating with my brother in New Jersey. Eventually, I settled in the Cincinnati area and built above-ground pools sold by Eastgate Pools in their early years. After this, I moved inside and became a scheduler, problem solver, and salesperson. I knew above-grounds backwards and forwards, but I never really thought about their history. Recently, I found a lost gem in an old magazine. Much of the information mentioned in this writing is from an article in Pool & Spa News. This is one of our industry’s premier professional publications and has been around for over a half century. The issue cited is dated January 1, 2012. The article was written by Margi Millunzi. It revived a lot of old memories I had from my days in the industry. I thought a little might be interesting to our readers, especially those who own above-ground pools, so here we go!

In the beginning…

Above ground pool concepts date back approximately 100 years, to the late 1920’s and early 1930’s. Early prototypes were nothing like the stellar models found today in the Eastgate Pools pool lot. More importantly, found in the thousands and thousands of yards where people enjoy our pools. Okay…that was a self-serving plug, but hey, this is the Eastgate Pools website after all. In those developmental years, pools were much shorter, little more than wading pools. But some were a little deeper, with 36-inch-high walls. I call that a deep wading pool! They were primarily heavy-duty round canvas tubs and weren’t very big either. Most were no bigger than 12-feet in diameter and held about two-thousand gallons or less. Fortunately, some very smart people saw the possibilities for back yard fun and recreation, and they got to work.

The 1940’s brought innovation in framing via the introduction of steel and aluminum. These pools were much sturdier. Add in a new synthetic fiber liner and you had the basis for a real industry changer.

One big problem existed though. There was no filtration system. Pools were drained and refilled as needed. Imagine having the neighborhood kids over for a party and imagine further how the water would look afterwards. Drain and refill, as needed! No doubt many tried to conserve water that was sometimes in short supply. Cisterns and wells had limited capacity and not everyone was on a water system with nearly unlimited supply.

A BIG innovation.

The introduction of circulation and filtration systems in the mid-1950’s solved the problem. No longer did pool owners need to stretch the dirty, stagnant water’s life before giving in and pumping it out. Sand and gravel filters did a good job of trapping dirt and unwanted particulates. A floating surface skimmer collected debris and water was pumped over the wall to the filter. Once cycled through the filter, it was returned in a separate line, over the wall, to the pool. Chemicals could now be used more efficiently to kill bacteria and algae. Water stayed clearer. People were happier. The floating skimmer occasionally got broken by overly rambunctious kids (and adults), but that was just part of the program. Owners were happier still when, in the late-1950’s, thru-wall skimmers became the preferred option. Nothing hung out into the swimming area so there was nothing to bang into by accident.

Size does matter.

Filtration meant it was no longer necessary to drain the pool. As such, pools started to grow. Round pools went from being 36-inches to 48-inches-tall, and the diameter sizes grew likewise. People were no longer restricted to a little wading pool. They could get a 4-foot-deep pool in big diameter sizes, up to 28-feet across! However, stronger frames were now required, and the small 2-inch top-rail soon edged up to 6-inches, and beyond. Some eventually became a foot wide. Better framing also allowed for the inevitable development of oval pools. Round pools were, and still are, engineeringly simple. If your pool is level and correctly built, truly round within acceptable margin, it will be sturdy. There is even water pressure all around. But an oval is different. There is intense pressure on the sides so extra support is needed or the pool will fail. External buttress supports eliminated the problem and the oval pool was born.

Do it yourself!

By the time the 60’s rolled around, above-ground pools were a hit. But there were few actual specialty stores that just sold pool and pool supplies. Most above-ground purchases were made at stores where they were one of thousands of unrelated products. Many toy stores and even flower shops added pools to their offerings.

Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s continued their sales rivalry and offered above-ground pools. So did Sears and Roebuck, via their famous catalog program. Early pool manufacturers hired salespeople and sent them door-to-door. And I bet you thought traveling salespeople only hawked encyclopedias, vacuum cleaners, and knife sets. And while there was a burgeoning need for professional installers, most people built their own.

Entering my time.

When I first starting building pools, there were some awful looking walls. But they were on the way out. Faux painted barn siding and flowery vines soon became part of pool history, replaced by nicer designs. Geometric patterns and classy neutral colors designed to blend into the backyard décor became the rage. That was the aesthetic change that pushed sales even greater, but more important was what was happening underneath the finish. Simply stated, the more layers of protection put over the steel core, the longer the pool will last. Start with an acid wash to eliminate impurities. Better pools are then hot dipped in a zinc galvanization process. This coating protects the steel core. Then layer on a myriad of other finishes and you have something far from those early prototypes. When I first started building pools in 1974, many of our installs were replacement pools. The preceding pool had simply rusted out. With quality modern pools that have been well maintained, that’s pretty much a thing of the past.

While I have shrunk a little as I age, above-ground pools have gotten taller. 48-inch-tall walls gave way to 52-inch walls in the mid-1980’s. This created a unique problem of sorts. Liners now needed to be made with more sidewall material. Plus, ladders had to be made to accommodate the extra height. Done. Problem solved! At least until the 1990’s when 54-inch-high walls were introduced. Now about those liners and ladders…

The 2000’s.

There have been further innovation in pool technology. However, much centers on automated vacuuming and robotics systems and water chemistry technological advancements. Still, three other improvements have been huge. Regarding oval pools, the problem was always those side buttresses. They extended out from the pool wall approximately 3-feet, per side. A buttressless option eliminated most of that extra side space. A pressure plate system underneath the swim area, tied into the bands running from side to side, works. Buttresses have been reduced to just a few inches on each side. The pool requires less total width, and most people agree that looks nicer.

A BIG change, literally and figuratively, was the introduction of the 33-foot round pool. A pool with a 52-inch wall and flat bottom contains approximately 27,500 gallons. By comparison, an 18 x 36 in-ground pool with an 8-foot-deep end and 3.5-foot shallow end holds approximately 24,000-gallons. And that’s a big in-ground pool. Want a smaller pool? Eastgate Pools has many different round and oval sizes, including several 30-foot diameter models that hold only 21,000-gallons. Yep, that’s another plug.

The last major innovation is a doozie. It is the evolution of a standard above-ground pool to a hybrid pool. A completely different structure and concept, the hybrid pool can go on top of the ground like a traditional above-ground. The uniqueness is that it can also go virtually all the way in the ground, or anywhere in between. Eastgate Pools sells the Sensation Pool, from Wilbar International, located in Hauppauge New York. It would take an entire writing to fully explain it, so to learn more, please click on the link.

Wrapping it up.

People have been enjoying above-ground pools for a long time. Judging from the continued interest our customers have shown, this trend will continue. Perhaps a hundred years from now, someone will write about the next century, still to come.