Camberwell Project - Small Space Modern Pool Design Ideas

Modern Plunge Pool In Camberwell

This project in Camberwell was all about squeezing as much style and usability out of a smaller backyard. The homeowners had this courtyard space to work with - hardly sprawling, and they weren't keen on any sort of fencing that would eat up more precious real estate. So, we had to get a bit creative. We realised we needed to come up with a design that felt fresh and contemporary, but would also maximise what little space there was.

We hit on the idea of building a concrete pool that sits out of the ground - sort of its own architectural feature. We kept the dimensions fairly snug at 5 metres long and 3.9 metres wide. Big enough for a proper swim, but still compact enough for a small courtyard. Once we'd sorted out the size, it was all about getting the materials and detailing just right.

We decided to do a wet-edge deck and tile the entire pool with bluestone. That colour and stone texture looks absolutely at home in an inner-city courtyard, but still has this almost Zen calm about it. Bluestone went in for the pool coping as well, which made the space feel a bit more cohesive and pulled the whole thing together with the rest of the courtyard.

Because it's Melbourne (and the weather can be a bit all over the place), we wanted this pool to be enjoyable year-round. We put in a Paramount in-floor cleaning system and hooked it up to a sand filter, so things stay nice and crystal clear whenever you want to go for a paddle - plus, there's far less time spent scrubbing or fiddling with chemicals. Solar heating keeps things toasty on bright days (it really is surprising how well that works even in mid-autumn) and we set all the kit on timers, so it's not running overtime when nobody's around.

The finishing touch - and this is probably our favourite little detail - is the underwater lighting. Two Spa Electrics LED lights set into the pool walls just make the water shimmer at night. It ends up looking quite dramatic, even through a rainy Melbourne evening.

We ended up pretty happy with how this courtyard pool turned out. The clients were rapt, especially that we’d managed to give them something that ticks so many boxes in such a small space. It doesn’t look like your average plunge pool but, for us, that's part of the fun.