Best pool builders near Hudson and Aurora

Two things stand out. First, both cities have pool rules that go beyond the basic fence. Hudson asks for screening. Aurora asks for a setback between the water and the enclosure, a temporary fence during the dig and care about where pool water is drained. A builder who designs pools only as a shape in the ground can miss those. Second, projects here tend to be whole backyards. Many lots are large, wooded and part of subdivisions with their own rules, and people often want a patio, an outdoor kitchen, lighting and landscaping planned with the pool.

So the criteria below lean toward design, planning and detail. They apply to any builder you talk to in Hudson, Aurora or the neighboring towns, including us.

Hudson's Codified Ordinances, Section 1206.03(f), require a fence or wall at least 4 feet high completely around the pool, installed before the pool is filled with water. The same section requires screening, planting or fencing dense enough to screen the pool from view of neighboring homes and streets.

That screening requirement changes the design. It affects where the pool goes on the lot, what kind of fence you choose, and how much landscaping is part of the project. A good builder will talk about it at the first meeting, show it on the plan and tell you whether it is in the price or a separate line. Screening is a real cost that many people do not budget for, so ask early.

Hudson has its own permitting and zoning processes. Confirm current requirements with the City of Hudson for your address before the design is final. A builder who handles permits should do this for you. We handle permits on every pool we build.

Aurora's rules sit in Section 1153.05 of its Codified Ordinances, on accessory uses and structures. Among the points that shape a pool project:

• The enclosure can be a fence, a wall, an accessory building wall or a combination, and it must completely surround the pool.
• The pool side of the enclosure must be at least 24 inches from the water's edge.
• The fence can have no handholds or footholds on the outside, horizontal members go on the pool side, and chain link mesh can be no more than 1 3/4 inches.
• Gates must accept a locking device, the latch must be at least 42 inches above grade or otherwise out of a small child's reach, and gates are to be kept locked when the pool is not in use.
• A temporary fence at least 42 inches high must enclose the excavation for an inground pool until the permanent enclosure is complete.
• Pools are to be drained into the sanitary sewer where possible, and cannot be drained to a storm sewer, ditch or channel without the Zoning Inspector's approval.

Aurora handles its own permits. The Portage County Building Department directs residents of Aurora, Kent, Ravenna and Streetsboro to contact their cities directly. Ask a builder how they plan the temporary fence, how the 24 inch clearance fits the deck design, and how the pool will be drained if it ever needs to be. Their answers show whether they have built in Aurora before.

Because the rules and the lots both push toward a designed backyard rather than a pool dropped into a lawn. Screening, setbacks, deck space, trees, grade and the view from the house all have to work together. You should see the pool, the deck, the barrier, the screening and the equipment pad drawn on your actual lot before you commit.

We design every pool in 3D on the lot before anything is dug. It lets you walk around the plan, check the view from the kitchen window and see how much of the yard is left for lawn. It is also the drawing that goes to the HOA and the city.

A good builder should be able to argue for more than one. Fiberglass suits most families: the shell goes in quickly, which helps when HOA review and screening have already used up part of the season, and there is no liner to replace or plaster to resurface. Shade from mature trees keeps a pool cooler, so a heater and a good cover are worth planning in either way.

When the design calls for a shape or size no mold offers, or the pool needs to sit in a specific spot between trees, an ICF concrete pool is worth a look. Its insulated walls hold heat and stretch the swim season, and it can be built to almost any shape. A builder who only sells one type will not raise that option, which is a good reason to ask.

Many subdivisions in this part of Summit and Portage counties have homeowners associations with rules about fences, materials, colors and where accessory structures can go. HOA approval is separate from the city's permit and can take weeks. It also can change the fence style you are allowed to use, which then has to satisfy both the HOA and the city code.

Ask each builder whether they prepare the drawings and paperwork for HOA review, and whether their schedule allows for it. Read your deed restrictions before you meet builders, so you know what you are working within.

Longer than people expect, so start early. A typical sequence runs design, HOA review if you have one, zoning and building permits, then the build. Screening plans and fence choices can go back and forth with the HOA before the city ever sees them. A builder who has done this before will build that time into the schedule and prepare the drawings once, in a form both the HOA and the city can use. If you want to swim by early summer, the design conversation belongs in fall or winter.

Many lots in both cities are wooded, and much of the area sits on the same slow-draining glacial silt loams found across Northeast Ohio. The USDA describes soils like the Canfield series as holding a perched water table 10 to 21 inches below the surface from November to April in normal years. That brings three practical questions for a builder:

• How will you keep the excavation dry and relieve groundwater pressure under the pool?
• Which trees need to come out, which roots will be cut, and how will you protect the trees that stay?
• Where will surface water go after a storm, and how will the deck and patio slope to send it away from the pool and the house?

Leaves are the other consideration. A pool under mature oaks and maples means more skimming, more filter cleaning and possibly an automatic cover. A good builder will point that out when siting the pool, not after.

It helps if they can. When one company designs the pool, deck, patio, walls and drainage together, the grades line up and the water goes where it should. If a pool builder sets the pool and a separate contractor pours the patio later, the joints between the two are where problems start.

Ask to see finished whole-backyard projects, not only pools. Ask about base preparation and compaction under patios, because Northeast Ohio's freeze-thaw cycles find any weakness in a slab or paver base.

Expect the builder to walk the whole yard, well beyond the spot you picked. They should ask about how you want to use the space, look at the view from the house, note the trees and the wet spots, check access for equipment and ask whether you have an HOA. They should raise Hudson's screening rule or Aurora's setback and temporary fence rule without being prompted. If a builder spends the first meeting on shell brochures and price sheets without looking at the lot, that tells you how the design stage will go.

We are Ohio State Pools, a veteran-owned builder based in Ravenna. Hudson and Aurora are among our core areas. We build fiberglass pools with Liberty Composites shells, ICF concrete pools, gunite on request and vinyl liner pools with Latham liners. We also build patios, pool decks, outdoor kitchens, pergolas, pavilions, fire pits, fireplaces, retaining walls, drainage and landscape integration, so the pool and the backyard can be one plan.

Our lead designer, Mike, has more than 40 years designing and building pools and was featured on HGTV's Pool Kings. Our owner, Todd Stump, has more than 13 years in high-end construction, including custom pools and complex structural projects. We design in 3D, handle permits and draw the barrier and screening into the plans.

Our fiberglass packages start at $68,400 installed and run to $103,900, including Pentair equipment, a 4 ft concrete wrap deck and startup. Screening, fencing, extra patio and outdoor living elements are priced from the design. Outdoor living projects start around $15,000 on their own. Randy W., one of our customers, wrote that we were "very helpful with the design process," which is the part that matters most in these two towns.