Robert and Fiona Smith had been considering investing in an indoor swimming pool for quite some time before finally taking the plunge. Having lived abroad for parts of their lives, the Smiths had grown accustomed to using outdoor pools but were aware of the challenges of having one in a colder climate.
“We always toyed with the idea of having a swimming pool but we know that outdoor pools are much better suited to sunnier climates and we didn’t want any restrictions on the amount of time we could swim comfortably throughout the year. After much discussion, we landed on the idea of an indoor swimming pool although it did take a bit of convincing on my part!”
"I’ve got two new knees and a new hip and knew that having a swimming pool at home would allow me to exercise safely and take advantage of the health benefits that swimming has to offer. As my wife is an ex-physiotherapist, it was easy to convince her that having an indoor pool would aid my ongoing recovery."
“A friend had recommended Origin to us and after doing some of our own research we found that Origin ‘do it all’. This was a no-brainer for us as we were aware this project might not be straightforward and we wanted a company that knew exactly what they were doing from the start. Origin have in-house professionals who manage the planning process and listed building consent, this was imperative for us as our house is grade II star listed.”
The Smiths had a clear idea of what they wanted out of their indoor pool, however, when it came to deciding where the best location for the pool to be built would be, there were several challenges which Origin needed to take into account.
“We had a couple of challenges in terms of planning but Origin and their architects were fantastic with their creative problem-solving. Getting planning permission for the pool house was initially challenging due to us being in a listed/conservation area and because it fell outside of the settlement boundary of the house, however, there’s a stretch of patio between an existing outbuilding and where the indoor pool is now. Calvin, the architect, impressively noted that this stretch of patio would count as a continuation of the boundary and therefore planning permission was granted. There was also an important archaeological condition to clear prior to starting and again Origin handled this without any issues. Origin had the expertise to help us through all of the planning hurdles and keep things on track.”
“Access to the working area wasn’t possible alongside the house so Origin was very adaptable and helped with managing and forming access via the paddock area and a very small private lane. Our project was even interrupted by the pandemic but Origin adapted and met the new challenges this created head-on.”
An original Georgian wall lined the Smith's garden, separating the main house from the outbuildings. This wall played an important part in the heritage of the Smith’s home and both Robert and Fiona wanted to find a way of incorporating the wall into their indoor swimming pool. Origin proposed a solution, by changing the design of the pool house and including a large window and uplighting on the back wall, the Smiths would be able to swim alongside the wall every day.
“We also wanted to match the pool house to the wall as well as we could. Origin added a stone accent section along the walls of the pool house, which helped it blend in with the garden and its surroundings. This way you view the pool house as a continuation of the house, existing outbuildings and the Georgian wall, it all ties together seamlessly. We also chose to have the main entrance to the pool house made up completely of glass with bi-fold doors the whole way around the side which when open, allow a clear view out onto the tennis court and garden again helping everything blend together.”
In order for the whole family to take advantage of the new indoor pool, Origin adapted the original design from a rectangle to an ‘L’ shape and lengthened the pool by a couple of metres. “We love swimming lengths and there’s more than enough room on one-half of the pool for us to do this, however, we also have two very young grandchildren and they love to use the pool as well. The square section at the end is great for them and Origin were very accommodating when it came to changing the design and creating a safe area for them to be able to enjoy the pool all the while providing a section where lengths were a possibility for the adults as well.”
“We had the pool handover on Christmas Eve and our first swim on Christmas Day which was just the best gift, the whole family could enjoy it. Lots of things were added on throughout the build that we hadn’t considered before, we decided to add a changing room and WC into the pool house design for the ease of having a self-contained space. We also added a swim jet which we had planned to use for strength training however, our two grandchildren love it so much that it’s mainly used to create waves and ripples for them to ride in rubber rings!”
“We decided to power the pool with LPG gas as our house runs on this as well, it just made sense for us. So far, we’ve been pleasantly surprised at the efficiency of running costs and the best thing about LPG gas is that it can be converted to bio-LPG gas in the future to help with renewable energy.”
“The service we received from Origin was fantastic, the after-service has been great too and we’re now getting to a point where we’re beginning to learn how to look after the pool ourselves as well. This whole process has been a big learning curve for us and we’re thankful to have worked with a company that led with expertise and professionalism. The whole team was great, there was an open line of communication throughout the process and the team would always come to us first if there were any problems or challenges throughout the build which just helped keep us in the loop throughout and alleviated any stress or worries we had. Origin do as they say - they do it all!”
