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SPN APR 2011 One-piecePools
www.swimmingpoolnews.co.uk ONE-PIECE CONFIDENCE
Fibreglass one-piece pools continue to offer the industry a win-win situation. Their speed and ease of installation makes them popular with pool installers and consumers appreciate they come with everything installed and offer impressive, trouble- free warranties
By Alan Lewis T
he one-piece pool market was always going to end in a success.
Pool owners looking for a swimming pool which can be installed quickly with the minimum of fuss and delivered on site with everything from plumbing to pool covers ready, were likely to be impressed. Add to that the engineering strength of the fibreglass construction and the impressive warranties available, and then the popularity long term was to be expected.
It may, however, have taken slightly longer for their popularity to grow. Pricing in the market
The companies involved in one-piece pools in the UK now see there is steady growth with people now very comfortable with the concept.
UNIQUE ‘COREMAT’ CONSTRUCTION ADDS STRENGTH TO SUNDANCE POOLS Jeremy West started Sundance Pools UK 14 years ago.
“It has been interesting to see how the market has slowly become more comfortable with the option of fibreglass pools. Coming at the principle from an engineering point of view,
“
...fibreglass makes a lot of sense, not least for the ease of installation but also from the point of view of the longevity of the product”
can be confusing but now there’s some real efforts to offer more value in a price range which traditionally covers £6,000 for the cheapest pool up to the largest pools at £20,000 and over.
One downside which seems to be a particular problem in the UK is access and getting a ready - made pool delivered into a tight, difficult access has meant suppliers turning to cranes, boats and even helicopters to deliver.
In some countries, one-piece pools claim as much as 75% of the new home-pool build market.
RIGHT: Lateral thinking when it comes to accessing a site – Sundance Pools delivers a one piece pool up the Thames by boat
fibreglass makes a lot of sense, not least for the ease of installation but also from the point of view of the longevity of the product. “It clearly is a growing market and something which people like. In Australia and South Africa 75% of the domestic market in terms of pool
building is now one-piece. That many people can’t be wrong.”
It isn’t necessarily the thickness of the fiberglass which is a critical factor in the one- piece unit – it’s what goes into it, says Jeremy. Sundance Pools uses only superior resins and a unique ‘coremat’ sandwich construction which adds 40% to the strength.
“Throughout every stage of production each pool is subject to stringent quality control in a climatically regulated environment. The ‘Isophthalic’ gelcoat is applied by hand ensuring the luxurious, smooth finish which is the hallmark of all Sundance pools. The structure is second to none.” It allows, he says, for confidence that nothing is going to go wrong. You can be confident, for example, that a dog’s claws are not going to damage it – as might be the case with a liner pool. The quality of production gives a one-piece pool an impressive longevity. Sundance pool shells come with a ten year guarantee against manufacturing faults.
The fact is a one-piece pool should last 50 years. There is an issue which seems unique to the UK which has caused Jeremy and his business to be innovative. It is the question of access in installing the pool.
“Access in the UK is a problem – there’s no doubt about it. It has to be one of the first things we look at when it comes to a prospective client – how is the access to the site going to be managed. We’ve however never failed to get a pool in. We’ve used a helicopter to fly one in and
Sundance Pools use superior resins and a unique ‘coremat’ sandwich construction which adds 40% to the strength of their pools
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