Pool Project Guide
Yes, Altavera handles pool site planning, drainage, hardscape, and utilities, and coordinates the paver work directly with your pool builder. We don't build the pool shell itself, so your pool builder handles the pool while we handle everything around it.
This page explains who does what, the order the work happens in, and why drainage comes first around a pool. Use the Pool Builder Coordination Checklist to gather what both teams need.
Who Does What
A pool project goes smoothly when each side knows exactly where its work starts and stops.
Your pool builder handles the pool itself: excavation for the shell, the shell, and the pool's own systems. Altavera handles the site around it: grading, drainage, utility routes to the equipment pad, the paver or concrete deck, retaining walls, and the landscaping that finishes the yard. On Meridian pool projects and across the valley, we coordinate directly with your pool builder so the handoffs are planned, not improvised.
Sequencing is the whole point. If pavers go in before the pool builder is done with heavy equipment, they can be cracked or shifted. If grading and drainage wait until after, water can end up running toward the pool or the house. We set the order up front and confirm it with your pool builder before work starts.
Many pool yards also need a retaining wall to manage a slope, especially in the foothills. Altavera manages the whole project and coordinates every trade (for example concrete, electrical, and gas) under one contract and one point of contact, with licensed trades where required.
Key Takeaway
Bring Altavera in before the pool goes in. Grading, drainage, and utility routes are easier to plan around an open site than to retrofit around a finished pool.
What Drives Cost
01
The size of the deck, how far it extends from the pool edge, and how many curves, steps, or level changes it has all affect labor and material. A simple rectangular surround and a multi-level deck with seat walls are very different scopes.
02
Pavers, concrete, and other surfaces differ in material cost, base preparation, and how they handle summer heat and freeze-thaw winters. Your estimator can walk through how each option suits a pool deck in the Treasure Valley climate.
03
Pool decks shed a lot of water from splashing, rain, and snowmelt. Slopes, deck drains, and grading that moves water away from the pool and the house add scope, and lots with clay or caliche soils may need more work to drain well.
04
Once the pool is in, the path for equipment and materials often gets narrower. Tight side yards, fences, and finished areas can mean smaller equipment or more hand work, which affects cost. Planning access before the pool builder starts helps.
05
Pool pumps, heaters, and lighting need power, and a gas heater needs a gas line. The distance from your house to the equipment pad and the route those lines take under the deck are real cost factors.
06
Retaining walls, fencing, and grade changes add scope, and pool yards often involve HOA architectural review. Altavera pulls the permit when a project needs one and coordinates HOA review. For the full list, see outdoor project cost factors.
Honest Comparison
You can bring a hardscape contractor in at any point, but the timing changes what is possible. Here is how the two approaches compare.
| Aspect | Coordinated From the Start | Hardscape Added After the Pool |
|---|---|---|
| Grading and drainage | Set before the pool goes in, routing water away from pool and house | Must work around a finished pool, with fewer options |
| Utility routes | Conduit and gas lines placed before the deck is built | Lines may need trenching around or under finished work |
| Equipment pad location | Chosen with deck layout, access, and noise in mind | Already set, so the deck design works around it |
| Base under the deck | Backfill and base compaction planned with the pool builder | Backfill conditions inherited and may need extra preparation |
| Access | Planned before the yard closes in | Often tighter, which can mean more hand work |
| Coordination | One plan shared by both teams | Two separate plans that have to be reconciled |
Who This Is For
You are still planning the pool or have just signed with a pool builder. You get the most say over grading, drainage, deck layout, and utility routes, and both teams work from one sequence. This is the approach we recommend whenever it is possible.
Your pool is already under construction or finished and you need the deck, walls, and landscaping done. We can still do the work well. We start with a careful look at drainage, access, and existing utilities before designing the surround.
Our Process
After you book a free phone consult and we confirm fit, we review the pool builder's plans, mark the pool, equipment pad, deck edges, and walls, and confirm access routes for both teams.
Grades are set so surface water moves away from the pool and the house. Drainage lines and any retaining walls that support the pool area are planned while the site is still open.
Electrical and gas routes to the equipment pad are planned and coordinated with licensed trades where required, along with irrigation sleeves for the planting beds that will finish the yard.
Your pool builder excavates and builds the pool. We stay in contact through this stage so the backfill and site conditions around the pool are ready for the deck base.
Once the pool builder's heavy work is done, we build the compacted base, install the pavers or deck, and finish with landscaping. See our Boise paver patio page for deck options.
Free Planning Tool
Print it or keep it on your phone and bring it to your consult. Having these details ready helps us sequence the work with your pool builder.
Your estimator confirms the sequence and scope with your pool builder, and the written proposal lays out what Altavera handles.
Keep Planning
These pages cover the rest of your pool yard, from walls and drainage to getting an estimate.
Altavera serves Boise, Meridian, Eagle, Star, Kuna, Nampa, Caldwell, Middleton, Garden City, Emmett and nearby communities in Ada, Canyon and Gem counties.
FAQ
Yes. Altavera handles pool site planning, drainage, hardscape, and utilities, and coordinates directly with your pool installer on the order of work. Grading, drainage, and utility routes come first, the pool builder completes the pool, and the pavers and finish go in after the heavy work around the pool is done.
No, we don't build the pool shell. Your pool builder handles the pool itself, and Altavera handles everything around it: site planning, grading, drainage, utilities, the deck, retaining walls, and landscaping. We coordinate with your pool builder so both scopes fit together.
As early as possible, ideally before the pool builder starts excavation. That is when grading, drainage, equipment pad location, and utility routes are easiest to plan. If your pool is already in, we can still build the surround. We start by assessing drainage, access, and existing utilities.
Pool decks collect water from splashing, rain, and snowmelt, and Boise area soils, including clay and caliche, do not always drain well. If the deck and surrounding grades do not move water away, it can collect against the pool, the deck base, or your foundation. That is why we set grading and drainage before anything else.
Yes. Many pool yards in Meridian, Eagle, and Kuna need a retaining wall to level the area, a concrete pad, or a paver deck with a rock border. Altavera manages the whole project and coordinates every trade under one contract and one point of contact, and we sequence each piece with your pool builder.
Altavera pulls the permit when a project needs one and coordinates HOA review for the work around the pool. For the pool itself, confirm permits with your pool builder. We share plans with your pool builder so both submissions describe the same layout.
Start Your Project
Request a quote or book a free phone consult, and bring your pool builder's plans. We will map out the sequence around them.
Prefer to talk? Call 208-314-9967 or book a free phone consult.
Licensed & Insured · Idaho Contractor License #6971895 · Serving Boise & the Treasure Valley
We elevate outdoor spaces with professional planning, expert execution, and quality craftsmanship — because your outdoor space is an extension of your home, not an afterthought.
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Idaho Contractor License ID #6971895 · Women-Owned Business
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3313 W Cherry Lane Suite 1053 Meridian, ID 83642