How big should a pool deck be?

You need enough room to walk around the whole pool without stepping in the grass, to skim and brush from every side, and to reach the cover. For most residential pools that works out to about 4 feet. Every fiberglass package we sell, from $68,400 installed, includes a 4 ft concrete wrap deck for that reason.

On a 12 by 26 foot pool like the Liberty Hero, a 4 ft wrap adds up to roughly 370 square feet of concrete. On a 14 by 30 like the Anthem it is a little over 400. That is plenty to walk on, and not much to sit on. A single lounge chair with room to get into it takes most of the width of a 4 ft strip.

So the 4 ft wrap is a starting line. The real question is where to add more, and how much.

Measure the furniture you actually own or plan to buy, then add the clearance around it. These are the numbers designers and pool builders commonly work from.

Houzz's furniture guide puts a typical chaise at about 80 inches by 24 inches and suggests 24 inches of access on one side at a minimum, 36 inches for comfort. River Pools' planning numbers cover the chaise, grill, walkway and pool-edge figures above, and Fronheiser Pools gives the 10 by 10 and 12 by 12 foot dining areas. Add them up for your family and you usually land well past the 4 ft wrap. River Pools puts the typical pool patio at roughly 600 to 900 square feet.

Not evenly around the pool. A deck that is 8 feet wide on all four sides wastes concrete on the side nobody walks to and still feels tight where everyone gathers. Put the width where people will actually be.

• Between the house and the pool. Trace the path from the back door to the water. That route and the area around it get the most traffic, and it is where the table, grill and cooler end up.
• On the north side of the pool. In Ohio the sun sits to the south, so a lounge area on the north side of the pool faces the sun and gets it for most of the day. A deck on the south side, near a fence or a line of trees, spends more time in shade.
• At the shallow end and the steps. This is where people get in, where kids stand, and where parents sit close to watch.
• Less on the back side. If the far side of the pool backs up to a slope, a retaining wall or landscaping, 4 feet is often enough there.

Our 3D design shows the pool and the deck to scale on your actual lot, with the furniture drawn in. That is the easiest way to see whether a 10 ft patio off the kitchen is enough or whether you want 14.

An automatic cover. Most new-pool automatic covers roll up at one end of the pool. Latham explains that the drive mechanism on an under-track or recessed system sits below grade in a covered box, with a lid set into the deck. That end of the pool needs enough deck to hold the lid and still leave a walkway.

The fence and gate. Your pool barrier has to go somewhere, and it often sits at the edge of the deck or just past it. The International Swimming Pool and Spa Code also says pool equipment such as pumps, filters and heaters located outside the barrier must be at least 36 inches from the outside of it, so nothing can be used to climb the fence. Plan the equipment pad and the fence line together.

A spa, fire pit or outdoor kitchen. Built-ins take more space than people expect, and they are far easier to fit before the concrete is poured. Decide on them early, even if you build them in a later phase.

Winter. Think about the months the pool is closed, too. If the patio sits on the route between the back door and the garage or a detached shed, it will get shoveled, and the snow has to be piled somewhere other than on top of the pool cover or against the fence. A strip of lawn or a planting bed beside the busiest section gives you a place to throw it. It also helps to keep any salted walk separate from the pool deck, so salt is not tracked onto concrete or coping around the water.

Steps and grade changes. On a sloped lot, a lower patio connected by steps can give you more usable space than one large flat deck that needs a tall retaining wall.

Size and drainage go together. A bigger deck collects more rain and snowmelt, and all of it has to go somewhere other than the pool, the house foundation or the neighbor's yard.

The International Swimming Pool and Spa Code sets a performance test for residential pool decks: they must be sloped so standing water is no deeper than 1/8 inch 20 minutes after water stops being added. In practice that means the deck pitches away from the pool edge toward the lawn, a swale or deck drains.

On the slow-draining clay soils common in much of Northeast Ohio, water that runs off a large patio does not soak in quickly. A wide deck may need a drain line, a dry well or a regraded swale to carry that water away. It is part of the design, not an afterthought, and it is one reason two decks of the same size can cost different amounts.

Yes. More concrete means more cost, more runoff, more surface for the sun to heat under bare feet, and more to maintain. It can also run into zoning. Setbacks and other limits vary by town, and we check them with your building department as part of the permit work we handle on every pool.

A deck that is too large for the yard also shrinks the lawn the kids play on and the planting that makes a pool look settled into the landscape. A few beds or low plantings against the fence can do more for the space than another 100 square feet of stamped concrete.

We would rather see a family build the deck they will use, then add a patio or path in a later season if they find they want more. Concrete poured and never sat on is money that could have gone toward a cover or a spa, which in Ohio get used every spring and fall.

Extra decking beyond the 4 ft wrap is priced on top of the pool package, based on square footage, finish and site conditions. Broom-finished concrete is the most economical. Stamped concrete, exposed aggregate, pavers and natural stone each cost more per square foot. Steps, retaining walls, drainage and a base built properly for frost are part of the number too.

If you plan the patio as its own phase, our outdoor living projects start from about $15,000. We work with lenders to find a rate that suits you, and the pool and patio can be financed together so the backyard is finished in one go.

1. List how you will use it: lounging, dining, grilling, watching kids, parties.
2. Count the people on a normal day and on your biggest day.
3. Pick or measure the furniture and add the clearances above.
4. Mark the pool and deck outline on the lawn with paint or string and walk it with a chair or two.
5. Put the extra width on the house side and the sunny side, and keep the back side lean.

Then bring it to the consultation. We will put your list into the 3D design, show you the square footage, and adjust it until it fits the yard and the budget.