Infinity & Vanishing-Edge Pools

How does an infinity pool work?

Water flows over a precisely level weir wall into a concealed catch basin below, and a dedicated pump returns it to the pool — the sheeting water is what makes the edge disappear against the view.

Three things have to be right. The weir has to be dead level, or you get a dry spot and a wet spot. The basin has to hold enough surge for a full bather load plus evaporation, or the pump sucks air. And the return pump has to be sized to the weir length, or the sheet breaks up into strings.

Why do vanishing edges cost more?

The catch basin is effectively a second pool structure, the shell requires tighter tolerances, and these pools almost always sit on slopes that need caissons, retaining and a soils report.

• A second poured structure (the basin) plus its own plumbing and pump
• Higher steel and shell tolerances on the weir wall
• Geotechnical report and engineered foundations on sloped lots
• Crane, conveyor or pump-truck access on many hillside sites
• Finish tile that runs the full face of the edge wall

Is my lot right for an infinity pool?

Vanishing edges work where there is a downslope or an open view on at least one side — on a flat lot with a fence at the property line, the effect has nothing to disappear into.

On flat lots we usually propose a perimeter-overflow or slot-edge detail instead, which gives the same mirror-still water surface without depending on a view beyond it.