This was a typical 40 year old pool with an overlay that covers the deck and coping that gives the apperance that the pool is structurally sound. Upon further inspection, we found the coping to be loose in most areas and pulling away from the surface. The deck was cracked and had lifted, and it needed to be removed.

The homeowners own an independent Land Rover repair shop, and I immediately thought of incorporating their love of Land Rover into their back yard. When I first suggested a design featuring an actual Series vehicle, my clients thought I was crazy. After I explained the whole picture, their eyes lit up and they decided to go ahead with the design.

The vision of the design came to me right away. We would build an artificial rock waterfall and create a scene of a driver traversing the Amazon jungle as he approached this large body of water. He tried to manuveur over the rocks ("rock crawling" as it's called by off-road enthusiasts) to the point he could go no further. He's abandoned his vehicle at the base of the water fall for the jungle to claim. Water flows from above, down to a small basin where it runs under the Series and on into the pool.

Creating this illusion was a task that involved the help of many of my clients' closests friends and family. The Land Rover was drained of all the fluids and stripped of all the mechanics, leaving a body and frame. Next, we needed to get the Land Rover to the back yard. Luckily, the neighbors allowed us to bring the vehicle through their back yard. We hoisted it up a 4 foot retaining wall with the help of another Land Rover and a winch. This is truly a Rover family's pool.

Artificial rock around the perimeter of the pool and spa adds to the "Amazon" look. The pool was finished in a custom blend of 3M color quartz and light grey plaster with the addition of Aqua Glow, a glow-in-the-dark aggregate. The Aqua Glow emits a bluish phosphorescence at night.

The pool was landscaped with the jungle in mind -- banana trees, bamboo, and other troical plants take you to another place. The plumbing and electrical were replaced and upgraded to include new pool light locations. A depth converison made the pool shallower. Deep heat was added to return the warm water to the bottom of the pool, providing consistent warm water. The pool features a complete Jandy sytem with 3 pumps: a filter pump, waterfall pump, and a jet pump; a Jandy heater and salt system; and an Aqualink RS unit. We were even able to hook up the wiring in the Land Rover so the headlights can be turned on by the Aqualink. With a low voltage transformer, we were able to give low power to the lights, creating the illusion of a dying battery. The shimmering light dances through the bamboo leaves into the dark night.

This pool was featured in the September 2005 issue of Land Rover Monthly and was mentioned in the Early Spring 2006 issue of Living in Style for over-the-top pool remodel.