Infinity and deck-level pools at home
The infinity edge is photography's favorite pool trick — and at home, its quieter sibling, the deck-level pool, is the one most gardens should actually build.
5 min read
How the vanishing act works
An infinity (vanishing-edge) pool lowers one wall to a precise weir; water sheets over it into a catch basin below and is pumped back. Stand at the right spot and the pool surface merges with the sea, lake or sky behind it. The effect needs something behind it — a view, a drop — which is why it belongs to sloping sites.
Deck-level: the everyday infinity
On flat gardens, the deck-level overflow pool delivers the same magic horizontally: water flush with the terrace, spilling into a slot or grate around the perimeter. It reads as a mirror set into the deck, and it's buildable anywhere. This is the edge our overflow mode models, complete with slot or grate gutters.
What it demands
Both systems need a balance tank, precise leveling (millimetres matter along a weir), and disciplined waterproofing — the premium over a skimmer pool is real. In return: the best water quality a pool can have and the strongest visual of any edge. Decide before structural design starts.
Frequently asked questions
- Does an infinity pool waste water?
- No — the overflowing water is caught and recirculated. Evaporation is slightly higher than a covered skimmer pool, mainly from the moving sheet.
- Can a small pool be deck-level?
- Beautifully — a deck-level plunge pool is the strongest small-garden statement there is. The channel cost scales with perimeter, which is small on a small pool.
- Infinity edge without a view?
- Then choose deck-level all around instead: the mirror effect works everywhere, the vanishing edge only where there's something to vanish into.