Inground pools in Brecksville, Ohio

Brecksville was founded in 1811 and covers about 19.5 square miles on the southern edge of Cuyahoga County. The city says about a third of that is parkland: Cleveland Metroparks' Brecksville Reservation, which is 3,026 acres with Chippewa Creek running through it, and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park next door. Many neighborhoods back right onto the woods.

Living next to a forest is lovely until you own a pool. Leaves and seed pods land in the water from spring to November, and the tree line throws long shade across a yard by late afternoon. We angle the pool for sun where the lot allows, and we talk to almost every Brecksville client about an automatic cover, mostly because it keeps the leaves out. The tree line is also usually where the lot starts to fall away. Big roots near the dig can be cut, but a tree that close to a new pool rarely does well afterward, and we would rather tell you that during design than during excavation.

Lot sizes vary a lot. The zoning code sets minimum lots from 60,000 square feet in the R-60 district down to 8,000 in R-8 and R-8A, with R-40, R-30, R-20 and R-16 in between. A one-acre lot and a lot of a fifth of an acre call for very different pools, and the setbacks below apply to both.

We pulled USDA soil survey data for points across the city. On the flatter ground, Mahoning silt loam shows up, a somewhat poorly drained soil formed in glacial till. Near the ravines the map turns to Ellsworth silt loam on slopes that the survey lists anywhere from 6 to 70 percent, and to Cardinal-Mentor silt loams on 25 to 75 percent slopes along the gorges.

Ellsworth is the one we watch most. The USDA describes it as moderately well drained, with a perched water table 11 to 24 inches down from November to May in most years and slow permeability in the till underneath. Some Ellsworth ground also sits on shale or sandstone 40 to 60 inches below the surface. What that means in practice: a spring dig may take on water, rock can turn up at the bottom of a deep end, and a yard on a grade needs retaining walls and drainage designed with the pool, not added later. Frost matters too. The city's residential code table lists a 38 inch frost line, and its fence handout calls for post holes at least 38 inches deep, so every footing, wall and gate post around the pool is set to that depth.

For most Brecksville yards we start with fiberglass. A Liberty shell arrives in one piece with a smooth, nonporous finish, which makes leaf season easier to deal with, and the install is fast. That matters when the only way into a backyard is a side yard with a slope. On sloped lots we usually terrace the site: the pool sits on a level bench, with a retaining wall on the low side and a surface drain above it so rain coming off the hill goes around the pool rather than into it.

When a family wants a shape no mold makes, or a pool dug partly into a hillside, we build ICF concrete. The insulated walls hold heat, which helps on a shaded lot where the water warms more slowly. Latham vinyl liner pools are the other option for a custom size at a lower starting cost. We model all three in 3D on your actual lot before anyone commits.

On budget, it helps to plan with real numbers. Our fiberglass packages start at $68,400 installed, and that price covers the shell, Pentair pump, filter and LED lights, and a 4 foot concrete deck. The code-required barrier, more decking, hauling spoils, pumping out groundwater and the electrical run from your panel to the equipment pad are extras. In Brecksville, the walls and drainage for a sloped yard often add more than anything else. We price it all before you sign, and we work with lenders if you would rather finance.

The Brecksville Building Department issues the permit. The city's Residential Pool Regulations handout sets out the zoning and construction rules:

• Pools, and the decks and walkways that go with them, may be in the rear or side yard and must be at least 10 feet from the property lines. In the R-8 district the side setback drops to 5 feet, with 10 feet at the rear.
• Every pool needs a barrier at least 4 feet high with openings under 4 inches.
• Barrier height can rise 6 inches for every 10 feet it sits off the property line. The city's diagram shows a 4 foot maximum near the line, 5 feet farther in and 6 feet at the deepest point.
• Gates must be self-closing and self-latching and must be locked when the pool is not in use. If the latch release is lower than 54 inches, it goes on the pool side of the gate.
• Pools must be grounded and bonded under Article 680 of the National Electrical Code.

The zoning code adds one more requirement in Section 1151.06(h): a private pool needs a buffer to all adjacent property, either a compact hedge or similar planting at least 5 feet tall, or fencing that meets the city's building code. Ordinary residential fences in Brecksville top out at 4 feet, so the pool-barrier height rules above are the exception. A row of evergreens can meet the buffer rule and give you privacy at the same time.

The application goes in person with two sets of drawings: a scaled site plan with the pool's distance to the side and rear lines, the equipment location, the barrier type and height, the drainage method, and the lighting, electrical and heating details. Separate fees apply for the pool, electrical, plumbing, heating and fence. Only contractors registered with the city can pull permits. The handout also tells owners to check their deed, since some subdivisions restrict pools.

Brecksville posts certain permit applications and holds them for a 10-day waiting period, and pools are on that list. The clock starts once the drawings are in, the fees are paid and the application is complete, so a missing drainage detail costs you days. After that, inspections have to be booked 24 hours ahead. The building department checks pool bonding, underground plumbing, electrical and the concrete before the pour, then does a final. Nothing gets buried before the inspector sees it.

We build that into the schedule. Most of the delay in Brecksville comes from the ground, not the paperwork: wet Ellsworth soil in April, a wall that has to cure before we backfill behind it, a ravine lot where trucks can only reach from one side. We would rather start a few weeks later on dry ground than fight mud.

Route 82 crosses the Cuyahoga Valley straight into Brecksville, so it is an easy run for our crews from Ravenna. We also build in Broadview Heights, Richfield, Macedonia, Bath and Twinsburg, and each of those cities writes its own pool rules. That is why we check the code for your address before we draw anything.