Variable-speed pump
A Pentair or Jandy variable-speed pump costs more up front than a single-speed. Long Beach year-round swim season pays it back in two to three years on electricity.
custom pool design long beach
Your backyard, designed around the way your family actually lives. Custom pool design in Long Beach for families ready to picture every detail first.
A custom pool design that looks right for one summer can cost you for twenty. Adam's Pool and Spa Service runs custom pool design in Long Beach with equipment, surface, plumbing, and automation specified before the first concrete pour. Gunite shells, Pentair controls, NPT plaster, and pool-spa combos get planned as one system.
What's Involved in Custom Pool Design?
Custom pool design is a 3 to 6 week process that turns your yard into an engineered build plan. Shape, depth, equipment pad, surface, and automation all get specified together, not in stages.
Most Long Beach builders draw a pretty shape and call it custom. We walk your yard, price the real options, and show you how each decision affects long-term maintenance. Adam explained every piece of equipment to one reviewer in plain English. That's the whole method.
You leave the design phase with a stamped engineering plan and a line-item cost sheet. You also get a clear answer on what your pool costs to own, not just to build.
How Does Design Affect Future Maintenance Costs?
Design decisions lock in 20 years of energy, chemistry, and repair costs. Six choices we make together at the design stage save real money later.
Surface finish choice
Standard plaster lasts 7 to 10 years. Quartz or pebble with an NPT lifetime warranty lasts twenty plus. The upgrade at build is half the cost of a later resurface.
Automation and smart controls
Pentair or Jandy automation lets you dose chemistry and run equipment from an app. One reviewer replaced an old wall unit with a Pentair app and ran everything from their phone.
Plumbing loop design
Correct pipe sizing and return placement cut pump run hours by 30 to 50 percent. Undersized loops burn energy and wear seals faster on Long Beach coastal pads.
Equipment pad layout
Pads shaded from afternoon sun run cooler and quieter. Corrosion-rated housings near Belmont Shore or Naples Island extend service life by years.
Heater and salt system sizing
Correct heater BTU and salt cell amperage for your shell volume keep chemistry stable through pollen season and marine-layer temperature swings.
Long Beach Conditions That Change Your Design
Four local factors shape every design decision we make:
Lot size pushes compact Belmont Shore and Naples Island yards toward plunge or geometric shapes.
Coastal zone setbacks trigger extra City of Long Beach review on oceanfront lots.
Hillside grading on Signal Hill and Bluff Park requires structural engineering.
Older soil conditions in Bixby Knolls and California Heights need deeper footing.
Our Collaborative Design Process
Yard walkthrough
Adam walks your lot, checks access, measures the space, and talks through what you actually use a pool for.
Equipment and surface options
We lay out Pentair or Jandy pump, heater, and automation options. Plaster, quartz, or pebble finishes get compared side by side.
Draft design and cost sheet
You see a sketch, a feature list, and line-item pricing. No hidden upgrade categories.
Revise together
You push back on anything. Shape, depth, spa spillover, Baja shelf, decking material all get locked in jointly.
Engineered plan and permit
Final stamp, structural drawings, and City of Long Beach permit submittal close out the design phase.
What Pool Features Matter for Long Beach Backyards?
Six features show up most on Long Beach custom designs. We spec them at design so the plumbing and wiring support them from day one.
Spillover spa
A heated spa built into the pool shell. Used year-round, especially on cool coastal evenings. See in-ground spa installation.
Baja shelf
A shallow tanning ledge, 8 to 12 inches deep. Popular on larger lots for loungers, kids, and umbrella sleeves.
Water features
Sheer descents, spillways, grottos. Designed into the shell, not bolted on later. Quieter pumps with dedicated plumbing loops.
LED color lighting
Pentair or Jandy LED fixtures change color from the app. Low energy draw compared to older incandescent fixtures.
Automation integration
Smart controls for pump, heater, cleaner, lights, and chemistry. One app, not five switches on the equipment pad wall.
Decking material
Travertine, salt-finish concrete, wood composite. Each tradeoff hits cost, heat retention, and maintenance differently in Long Beach sun.
Who Designs Your Pool
Adam owns Adam's Pool and Spa Service and holds CA LIC# 1077901, a C-53 Swimming Pool Contractor license. He walks every design consultation personally, not a sales rep.
Fifteen years in Long Beach means Adam knows how coastal lots, older tracts, and hillside grades actually behave once excavation starts. Design drawings get checked against that real experience, not a catalog template.
One reviewer wrote that Adam "explained every piece of equipment" in a way they could understand. That's what our design consultation feels like. Read more about our team.
Verified Google Reviews
Homeowners on Working With Us
"Adam’s Pool and Spa service was communicative, competitively priced, timely, and professional at every step of my pool filter and salt water chlorinator install. Adam explained every piece of equipment and how to maintain it in a way that I could understand, which I appreciated."
"Adam performed a pool control system upgrade for us - replacing our old wall unit with Pentair app for our phones. The app is easy to use and can turn lights, heater and water features on with a single click. Adam was very responsive when we needed a couple extra features installed."
"We have used Adam’ Pool and Spa since we built our pool 7 years ago. The service has been great and the pool is always clean and sparkling throughout the year."
"Best pool service in California. Great team, communication and full service from cleaning to complete new system. Highly recommend this professional group. 10 out of 10 highly recommend"
"adam and his crew just cleaned our pool at the new house after it had been neglected and it looks brand new. so blue and clear water. gave us a bunch of knowledge on how to help take care of it in between cleanings."
"It's hard to find a company you can fully trust, but Adam and his team give you real peace of mind."
Service area
Where We Design Custom Pools in Long Beach
Adam's Pool and Spa Service designs and builds custom pools across Long Beach and LA County. Every design walkthrough is in person, not over video. Our radius runs roughly 25 miles from 910 E 72nd Street.
Coastal lots in Belmont Shore, Naples Island, and Alamitos Beach need corrosion-rated equipment and tighter coastal-zone review. Inland lots in Bixby Knolls, California Heights, and Lakewood Village often support larger shells and full decking packages.
Primary design areas: Long Beach · Belmont Shore · Naples Island · Bixby Knolls · Alamitos Beach · Signal Hill · Bluff Park
Extended design areas: Bellflower · Lakewood · Downey · Cypress · Rossmoor · Seal Beach · Los Alamitos
FAQ
Custom Pool Design FAQ
How much does custom pool design cost in Long Beach?
The design fee itself is credited toward the build on most projects. Expect a completed Long Beach custom build to run $90,000 to $180,000 depending on shell size, finish, equipment, and spa integration. We publish tiered cost ranges on our pool construction page and break every quote into line items.
How long does the design process take before construction?
Most designs close in 3 to 6 weeks. That covers the yard walkthrough, equipment and surface selection, draft revisions, engineering, and permit submittal to City of Long Beach Building & Safety. Coastal zone lots and hillside builds can add 2 to 4 weeks for extra review.
Can I add a spa to a custom pool design?
Yes. A pool-spa combo is our most-requested design. Spillover spas share filtration and plumbing with the pool, so they cost less at design than added later. One automation panel, one heater, one permit. See our in-ground spa installation page for the build detail.
What happens if I want to change something mid-build?
Change orders happen on most builds. We price and schedule changes before anything gets cut or re-poured. No mid-build surprises. Designing the right equipment and plumbing up front is what keeps change orders small instead of expensive.
What equipment brands do you spec at the design stage?
Jandy or Pentair, depending on your priorities. Both brands carry strong automation, variable-speed pumps, and multi-year warranties. We're a Jandy Certified installer and a Pentair Expert Installer, so we can warranty and service whatever we design into the plan.
How do you handle permits for a custom design in Long Beach?
We pull every permit through City of Long Beach Building & Safety. Structural, electrical, plumbing, and gas. Coastal zone lots trigger extra setback review. Our plans are drafted to Long Beach code so the first submittal usually clears without major revisions.
What warranty comes with the pool surface?
Interior plaster, quartz, or pebble surfaces are backed by an NPT Lifetime Warranty when specified and installed per NPT spec. The warranty is third-party, not self-backed. Equipment packages carry a separate 5-year warranty on qualifying complete installations.
Ready to Design Your Long Beach Pool?
Call Adam's Pool and Spa Service to walk your yard, price a custom design, or review options with Adam directly. We answer Monday through Saturday, 7 AM to 5 PM.
Custom Pool Design Reference
Concepts behind every custom Long Beach build
Shell, finish, heating, and the city we're building in.
- Shotcrete
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Concrete pneumatically projected at high velocity onto a steel rebar cage. Forms the structural shell of every gunite pool and is the construction method we use on new Long Beach builds.
- Plaster
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The interior finish coat on a gunite pool, traditionally white marble plaster. Modern variants include color quartz and pebble aggregate. Lifespan is 8 to 15 years before replastering is needed.
- Heat pump
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An electric pool heater that moves heat from the air into pool water. Lower operating cost than gas in mild Long Beach winters; longer warm-up time than gas.
- Long Beach
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The Pacific-coastal Los Angeles County city where Adams Pool & Spa is based. Long Beach pools share salt-air corrosion patterns, hard-water scaling, and a year-round swim season that drives weekly chemistry cadence.