Freestanding Fibreglass Pools

A pool that sits entirely above the ground instead of in a hole. Bayside designs and manufactures pools that are entirely above ground, engineered and built without the need for any backfill — so no retaining walls are involved.

It solves the sites a dig cannot. There are no retaining walls to build and no backfill, so the work is set and finished rather than excavated and trucked away. That makes it the practical answer for tight access, steep or rocky ground, a high water table, or a backyard the machinery cannot reach. If you cannot have an in-ground pool, you are not limited to one shape either — every pool in the range can be converted.

All of our pools can be converted into freestanding pools. The most common freestanding pool is The Plunge at 5.5 × 2.8 m, and the same pool is available at 4 × 2.4 m.

One depth, the whole way: 1.45 m. Bayside publishes depth as shell height — measured on the shell itself, from the top of the shell down to the base, as dimensioned on the engineering drawing — not the modelled water level, so the figure matches your specification sheet exactly. There is no shallow end and no deep end, which means you can stand anywhere in the pool.

The Plunge holds 16,150 litres and the Pause roughly 9,300 litres. Both sit well below the 35,000 litre line that triggers a building consent.

Fencing consent is required for every pool installation, whatever size it is — that is Building Code clause F9 and it does not change because the pool sits above ground. Whether the pool needs building consent comes down to volume: under 35,000 litres is exempt work under Schedule 1 of the Building Act, which covers both the Plunge and the Pause. Choose a larger shell in the range and it goes over the line, so building consent applies — and Bayside manages that for you.

Delivery and placement depend on your site. The shell arrives on the back of a large truck and is delivered to the bottom of your driveway; if your site needs a crane or a hiab to place it, that is arranged at quoting rather than improvised on the day. Tell us about access when you enquire and we will work it through with your local installer.

There is no long and disruptive construction process: a freestanding pool is set and finished rather than excavated and backfilled, so you are in the water sooner than a comparable in-ground build. Access is planned before the job starts — where the truck stops, where the shell gets placed and how it is lifted into position — and your local installer runs the installation and commission.

The freestanding pool shell, the standard filtration system, a new tri-chlor feeder (upgrade to a sanitizer if you prefer), and concrete pool copings at 550 × 220 mm bonded with epoxy and silicone sealed to the pool edge. Pool lighting, heating, covers and rollers are available as options.

Yes — but a freestanding pool is mounted differently from an in-ground pool, so we will talk through how you want the cover mounted before you commit. Covers and rollers are an option on every pool we install.

Yes — the pools are heat pump compatible, and the volume is on your side. The Plunge at 16,150 litres is the sort of body of water a heat pump brings up to temperature and then holds without straining. What a full system costs to run depends on your region, the equipment you fit and how reliably the cover goes back on, so heating is priced by your local installer for your property rather than by us.

Q360 in-floor cleaning can be added to compatible Bayside models, and it is the option most owners ask about because it removes the vacuuming from the weekly routine. Ask your local installer to confirm compatibility and what it adds to your install.

The smooth polished gel coat finish means there are no joins or crevices for algae and dirt to cling to, and copings protect the pool edge. The routine is skimming, checking the sanitiser and keeping the filter clear. An optional in-floor cleaning system keeps the water clear without manual vacuuming.

Shells are manufactured to AS 1838 / NZS AS 1838 — swimming pools: premoulded fibre-reinforced plastics, design and fabrication — and installed to AS 1839 / NZS AS 1839, its installation companion. Every shell is built in our Whakatāne factory rather than shipped in, and is inspected and signed off at each stage: lay-up, curing, gelcoat and finish.

It varies by location, deliberately. Walls, floor, steps and corners each carry different loads, so each is laminated to suit. As a guide, wall laminates run around 7–9 mm while corners and steps run 12–15 mm, because that is where the loads concentrate.