Natural pools require far less maintenance than a conventional pool, there are no chemicals to add and manage and unlike swimming pools the water shouldn’t need to be drained for cleaning and repairs. The wonders of nature carries out most of the cleaning but it is still a living and growing part of the garden and it needs looking after in a similar way.

The key to managing time spent on maintenance is ensuring the pond receives a small amount of regular attention (like any part of the garden). This amounts primarily to regular natural pool “gardening”, clearing out any water weeds, appropriately cutting back aquatic plants & removing leaves & debris.

We can also offer a natural pool maintenance service, as a minimum we generally recommend that our maintenance team visits at least once a year to check on the pond’s development and its equipment.

Absolutely not. The whole concept of the natural pool relies on a careful balance of plants, water aeration and microscopic life to maintain clear and purified water.

Of course this varies project to project but the build costs of a natural pool can be more, natural pools tend to be larger than conventional swimming pools because the plantation zone will often be at least the size of the swimming zone. It’s worth remembering though that there are significant cost savings verses a conventional pool as the ongoing maintenance (remember, no expensive chemical costs) is much lower.

Absolutely NOT. One of the main aims of the natural pool is to keep the swimming zone as clear as possible. Fish will stir up any sediment that forms on the floor of the swimming area, thus creating cloudy water. In addition, their excrement is high in nutrients and in order for a natural pool to function well nutrient levels need to be kept as low as possible.

There is a lot that can be done. A favourite of ours is to add a “jetty” to your natural pool, these look great and enable the brave to jump straight in! (very popular with the kids). Carefully positioned boulders or stepping stones can also look great and can offer a natural route across the plantation zone to the swimming zone. One other “must” for us is the introductions of outdoor lighting, this can be placed amongst the aquatic plants and also under the water (very eye-catching!).

Of course the more hardy amongst us will swim in it all year round (trust me, there are plenty that do)! If that appeal is only there when the sun is shining don’t worry, a Natural Pool looks beautiful all year round, changing its characteristics and encouraging wildlife throughout the seasons……..a natural pool with careful design will be a stunning garden feature for 12 months of the year.