Category Archives: Pool Construction

State of the Industry: The 2012 season was an impressive year for pool construction

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Compiled by Jason Cramp

In terms of major urban centres with increased building permit registration between 2011 and 2012, Montreal led the way with an additional 1,127 permits issued.

Not only did the Canadian swimming pool industry expand for the third consecutive season, the total number of swimming pool building permit registrations issued in 2012 was the highest year-end total in the past decade. Despite the uncertainties with respect to the U.S. economy and longevity of the European recession, Canada’s economic and financial market remained relatively stable. Although disposable income is not as readily available to some households as it once was, unlike 2011, the 2012 swimming pool building season started strong with 339 more pool building permits being issued in the first quarter alone.
This only continued throughout the year as permit registrations increased in the second, third, and fourth quarters, representing an overall increase of 16 per cent, from 10,803 permits in 2011 to 12,517 in 2012. Permit registrations in census metropolitan areas (CMAs) increased by 15 per cent, representing a total of 1,225 more registered permits than in 2011.

Read the full article: Market Report

Building Swimming Pools: General Steps In Designing A Singly Reinforced Concrete Beam (Or Wall)

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By John Petrocelli

1. Perform structural analysis on the beam to determine the internal stresses (due to the loading factors).
2. Specify the compression strength of the beam.
3. Specify the tensile strength of the steel reinforcement.
4. Determine the cross-sectional dimensions of the beam.
5. Calculate the area of steel required (to resist the internal stresses).
6. Select the area of steel provided (combination of rebar sizes from the charts).
7. Calculate the area of the compression block (section of beam in compression).
8. Specify the positioning of the steel in the cross-section and specify the minimum concrete cover 40 to 50 mm (1.5 to 2 in.) to prevent spalling, etc.
9. Calculate the nominal moment strength of the beam (resistance to bending stresses).
10. Compare to the moments (bending stresses) determined by structural analysis (Step 1) and ensure moment strength (Step 8) is larger.
11. Sketch the beam for fabrication.

Read the full article: Expert Advice

Building Swimming Pools: Analysis And Design

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By John Petrocelli

Before an engineer can design a reinforced concrete member, they must know the forces that will be present in the structure/member. This is a function of the structure’s overall design, how the members are connected (i.e. ridged joints, pins, etc.), and the loading for which it is being designed.
Assuming the overall appearance and connection details are known, the forces are determined by using static equilibrium, applied mechanics, and free body diagrams to determine the internal forces. Static equilibrium implies that for a structure to be stable (at rest), the sum of all forces acting on it (actions and reactions) must be zero. Applied mechanics is considered the backbone of all structural engineering. It deals with the basic concepts of force, moment (force x distance), and its effects on the bodies. It helps to understand how different bodies behave under the application of different types of loads. Applied mechanics provides the basis for structural analysis, which is required for structural design.

Read the full article: Expert Advice

Building Swimming Pools: Rebar Sizes And Grades

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By John Petrocelli

Once the architect or designer comes up with the structure’s overall ‘look,’ engineers use structural analysis and building codes to determine the loads the structure will be subjected to and the internal stresses that will result from this loading and configuration.
Each member of a reinforced structure must be designed based on the following primary parameters: concrete cross-section size (i.e. length and width) of the member, and the location and amount of reinforcing steel.
The size and number of bars specified will be dictated by the size of the load (stresses) to be resisted and the size of the member (cross-section). The primary calculation is to determine the total cross-sectional area of steel required to safely resist the design loading. An engineer will specify the location, size, and number of bars required in the cross-section.

Read the full article: Expert Advice

Building Swimming Pools: Reinforcing Bar (Rebar)

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Reinforced concrete pool walls are typically 1.2 to 1.5 m (4 to 5 ft) in height and 203 mm (8 in.) thick. Photo courtesy Spider Tie Canada

By John Petrocelli

Reinforcing steel (rebar) is made from carbon steel and is the primary type of structural steel used in creating reinforced concrete structural members. Rebar is normally round in cross-section and is ridged (deformed) along its length. These ridges are responsible for transferring loads (stresses) from the concrete to the steel via mechanical bond.
It is normally placed into plastic concrete (the stage at which fresh concrete can be moulded), or plastic concrete is poured around the rebar cage. The concrete flows around and completely covers the rebar. Once hardened, the rebar and concrete essentially move and respond to loading conditions as one. Hence, reinforced concrete is formed.

Read the full article: Expert Advice

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