The budget
What does a project like this cost?
The short answer: more than you'd think. Here's the long answer – the honest accounts from our own pool project, broken down so you can see where the money went.
The budget
The short answer: more than you'd think. Here's the long answer – the honest accounts from our own pool project, broken down so you can see where the money went.
Total cost of the whole project
The price covers everything: the pool and the technics, the groundworks, concrete, electrical work, assembly, wooden deck and new planting around the pool. All amounts are in Danish kroner (DKK).
The line items
A sunken pool project is many trades that have to work together. Here are the biggest items, grouped by type of work.
| Item | What it covers | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| The pool, technics & salt-water unit | Fibreglass pool, filter, pump and chlorinator from a German supplier | 112,700 kr |
| Freight & crane lift | Delivery from Germany plus crane on delivery day | 13,500 kr |
| Pool assembly | Lowering and installing the pool on the foundation | 39,800 kr |
| Excavation & soil removal | Excavator plus several truckloads of soil carted away | 40,100 kr |
| Foundation & concrete | Casting the concrete foundation in the bottom of the hole | 53,900 kr |
| Electrical work | New electrical panel plus power to pump and pool lights | 18,900 kr |
| Wooden deck | A multi-level deck all the way around the pool | 85,000 kr |
| Planting around the pool | Felling the hedge, moving plants and new planting | 19,500 kr |
| Equipment & accessories | Pool robot, net, salt and pH control | 4,800 kr |
| Grand total | ~388,200 kr | |
About the numbers: The amounts are gathered from our own project accounts and rounded, so they give a realistic overview rather than hitting the last krone. Some items were in euros and have been converted to kroner. On top of this came a fair amount of pure garden work not directly pool-related – e.g. a new spirea hedge and extra trees – for somewhere around 40,000 kr.
Overview
Good to know
Excavation and especially removing the soil take up a surprising share of the budget. Several truckloads were carted away.
The pool must rest perfectly level and stable. Foundation and concrete became one of the largest single items in the whole project.
Pump, unit and lights all draw power. In our case there wasn't enough capacity, so a new electrical panel was needed.
A handsome wooden deck around the pool cost almost as much as the groundworks – but it ties the whole thing together.
The photos tell the rest of the story – from muddy building site to clear, blue, swim-ready water.