Swimming Pool Construction in Al-Ahsa – Rest-House Pools Among the Palms & Separate Kids’ Pools

Swimming pool construction in Al-Ahsa usually means a pool for a rest house or a farm set among palm groves, and sometimes a pool in a villa yard in Hofuf or Mubarraz. For that work, Aemar Al-Maryam General Contracting sends its own people to build the entire concrete pool: setting out the site with pegs and levels, excavation, the reinforced shell, waterproofing, tiling and the buried pipework, plus a separate shallow children’s pool finished in anti-slip tiles for clients who want one. Our lowest figures are SAR 12,900 for a compact basin, SAR 19,400 for 3×6 m and SAR 38,800 for the roughly 5.5×10.5 m size most rest houses settle on, and like every price here they hold as estimates until inspection and agreement. You can reach us by call or WhatsApp at 0547879578.

Al-Ahsa is roughly 160 km by road from our base in Dammam, so we plan the work there as scheduled visits: a first site inspection to measure the land and fix the pool position, then crews who come for clearly defined stages. We cost the driving and the crew’s lodging once we have walked the plot and know how big the job is. Bundle more into one programme, say the main pool plus a kids’ basin, the deck and perhaps a majlis, and each item ends up carrying less of that travel.

Pool construction company in Al-Ahsa: our share of the work, and the specialist’s

As a pool construction company in Al-Ahsa, we take on everything structural in the pool and leave the electromechanical equipment to a specialist supplier we work alongside. The reason is practical. The shell, the waterproofing and the buried pipes are built once and then sit under water for years; a mistake there is expensive and can only be fixed by breaking concrete. The pump and filter, on the other hand, are chosen to suit the volume and the way the pool is used, and can be changed later. So we focus on a sound structure, prepare the plant room, its pipework and its power supply, and then the supplier fits the equipment and we commission it together.

Cleaning rounds, monthly service plans and electronic leak-finding are not part of what we sell. If you have an existing pool that you think is leaking, we inspect it visually, show you the simple bucket test, and carry out whatever structural renovation is needed: waterproofing, tiles and edges.

Rest-house pools among the palm farms of Al-Ahsa

A rest-house pool in Al-Ahsa should be designed around how it will be used before anyone talks about size. A large group swims in the evenings and at weekends, then the pool sits unused for days, and children are in the water at the same time as adults. That is why we usually suggest a medium or large main pool, a separate children’s pool next to it, a deck wide enough for seating, and a considered distance between the pool, the outdoor majlis and the washrooms.

Where should the pool go on a rest-house plot?

Four things decide the position of a pool on a rest-house plot before any question of looks: its distance from the palms, its distance from the boundary wall and its footing, its relationship with the majlis, and the way water drains around it. A palm close to the pool drops fronds, dates and pollen into the water, and its roots and irrigation water creep towards the pool walls. So we keep the pool in an open, sunny area and keep the excavation clear of trunks and irrigation lines. A pool tight against the rest-house wall loads the wall footing and makes digging awkward, so we keep a working gap that lets the excavator in and leaves room to cast the walls.

• ✓Sun and shade: a sunny part warms the water in winter, while shade for seating should not shed leaves onto the water.
• ✓The majlis: close enough to watch the children, far enough that splashes do not reach the seating.
• ✓The plant room: in a corner where the pump cannot be heard from the majlis, yet close enough to keep pipe runs short.
• ✓Deck drainage: falls on the surrounding paving carry swimmers’ water and rain away from the pool and the majlis foundations.
• ✓Machine access: the rest-house gate has to take the excavator and the concrete truck or pump.

A family rest house or one that is rented out?

A family rest-house pool is well served by a skimmer system and a medium size. A rest house rented to large groups needs stronger circulation and a bigger filter, enough skimmers for the water surface, a wider deck, an outdoor shower before entry and good lighting for night swimming. Where a rest house is licensed to trade, the owner should confirm that activity’s own requirements with the relevant authorities before we start. Planning a new majlis or annex at the same time? Our annex and majlis builder in Al-Ahsa page explains how the two jobs can share one schedule.

Pool setting out and excavation in Al-Ahsa: pegs and levels before the first dig

Setting out the pool is the first working day on an Al-Ahsa site, and we give it the time it deserves because everything that follows is measured from it. We fix a reference level on the plot, usually the majlis threshold or the planned deck level, and set the finished coping level from it. We then mark the excavation with timber pegs and taut string lines, check that the corners are square by measuring both diagonals, and add a working margin around the pool for formwork and external waterproofing.

1. 1
   Reference level
   We pick a fixed point on site and tie the coping, the deck and the majlis floor level to it.
2. 2
   Marking the outline
   Pegs at the corners, strings between them, then the two diagonals compared to confirm square corners.
3. 3
   Working margin
   Extra width around the outline for formwork, external waterproofing and backfilling.
4. 4
   What lies below
   We ask about irrigation lines, cables, the septic tank and the water tank before the machine moves in.
5. 5
   Staged digging
   Machine excavation to near depth, then hand trimming of the floor and its fall towards the drains.
6. 6
   Checking the formation
   We check that the soil is firm and dry and decide on compaction or replacement before blinding.

Pool excavation in Al-Ahsa: soil and water under farmland

Pool excavation in Al-Ahsa starts with the excavator and ends with hand trimming, and it varies from plot to plot. In much of the Eastern Province ground water lies only a short way down, and farmland under irrigation can be wetter than a yard in a residential district, so we assume nothing before digging. We check the soil at inspection, and should water seep into the excavation, a submersible pump or a ring of wellpoints keeps the pit dry while the base and walls are cast; the outside of the shell is then sealed before the soil goes back.

A medium pool produces a large volume of spoil, so we agree in advance whether it leaves the rest house or part of it is used to level another area of the plot. If old slabs or paving have to be broken out before digging, the method is covered in demolition contractor in Al-Ahsa.

A separate children’s pool in Al-Ahsa: shallow, with anti-slip tiles

A separate children’s pool is the extra that rest-house owners in Al-Ahsa ask for most, because it stops small children sharing deep water with adults. It is an independent concrete basin with a shallow depth agreed according to the children’s ages, divided from the main pool by a low tiled wall, entered by wide steps rather than a ladder, floored with anti-slip tiles and easy to watch from the majlis.

The dividing wall, depth and entry

We cast the dividing wall with the shell, not afterwards, so it does not become a weak point or a leak path between two basins, and we finish its top rounded and tiled. The children’s pool is best kept at a nearly constant depth without any sudden drop, with steps running the full width of one side at comfortable risers. Each basin has its own returns and suction points, so the children’s pool is not affected by the main pool’s suction, and every floor outlet gets a certified anti-entrapment cover.

Which tiles suit a children’s pool floor?

The floor, steps and edge of a children’s pool need tiles that grip under wet bare feet and absorb little water, ideally under 0.5 %. We fix them with an immersion-rated modified cementitious adhesive in a full, void-free bed and use epoxy grout where chlorine and wear are heavy. We turn down smooth glossy tiles here even when they look better, because children walk and run in this pool more than they swim.

How a concrete pool goes up in Al-Ahsa

Building a concrete pool in Al-Ahsa follows the same stages at a rest house and at a villa; what changes is the size and the number of basins. We never move on to the next stage until the tests of the previous one have passed, because whatever is covered by tiles cannot be seen again.

1. 1
   Drawings
   The engineering office sets wall and floor thickness and reinforcement; we build to the drawings.
2. 2
   Base and bars
   Lean concrete on rolled ground, then floor and wall reinforcement lifted on spacers to hold the right cover.
3. 3
   Buried pipework
   Main drains, returns and skimmer bodies are fixed before casting and pressure-tested.
4. 4
   Pour and cure
   Concrete with salt-resistant cement, waterstops wherever one pour meets the next, and at least seven days of wet curing.
5. 5
   Water test
   Before membrane or tiles, we flood the raw concrete basin and track its level.
6. 6
   Waterproofing and tiles
   Screed, immersion-grade waterproofing, then tiles, coping and deck.
7. 7
   Equipment and start-up
   Equipment fitted with the supplier, gradual filling, water balancing and a care briefing.

Fill-testing the shell before finishing

A fill test exposes leaks in the shell while it is still bare and easy to repair. Our routine mirrors the one used for tanks and reservoirs: the basin is flooded, the concrete is allowed to absorb water for three days, and then the level is recorded over the next seventy-two hours. We pass a loss of up to around 0.05 per cent of the volume per day, and a pan of water left alongside lets us subtract evaporation instead of blaming it on a leak.

How long does a rest-house pool take in Al-Ahsa?

A mid-sized pool tends to need four to eight weeks, and a big rest-house pool with a kids’ basin beside it. Some of that is waiting we refuse to shorten: curing the concrete, the fill test, and leaving the tiles about three weeks before filling. For Al-Ahsa we draw up a schedule that brings the crew on site for the stages that need it, so you are not paying for travel days with no work in them.

Skimmer or overflow for a rest-house pool in Al-Ahsa?

A skimmer system is enough for most rest-house pools in Al-Ahsa; an overflow system suits owners who want the water flush with the deck and a more upmarket look. In a skimmer pool the waterline rests a little under the coping and the top layer is pulled off through wall openings. In a brim-full pool the water tips over the rim into a perimeter channel and drains to a concrete balance tank ahead of the filter.

Because the water surface at a rest house surrounded by palms collects more leaves and dust than a yard in town, we pay attention to the number and position of skimmers. A common rule of thumb is one skimmer per roughly 74 square metres of water at most, and we tend to put an extra one downwind, where the breeze herds the leaves.

Pool waterproofing and tiling in Al-Ahsa

Pool waterproofing in Al-Ahsa

Pool waterproofing in Al-Ahsa starts only after the fill test has passed and the surface has dried. On the inner face goes a flexible cement-based membrane made to stay submerged, applied twice, with tape or mesh bedded into each corner and around each fitting; it costs from SAR 74 a square metre. Two other systems suit particular cases: a PVC sheet lining at SAR 92 upward per square metre, and a pool epoxy coat at SAR 138 upward. Outside, where the ground is damp, the walls receive a bituminous coat before backfilling. For the majlis roof and water tanks, our roof waterproofing in Al-Ahsa page applies.

Pool tiling in Al-Ahsa: ceramic, mosaic and coping

Pool tiling in Al-Ahsa is SAR 92 upward per square metre for the labour, and glass mosaic is SAR 110 upward per square metre to buy. We choose low-absorption tiles, fix them in a full bed of immersion-rated adhesive, leave the tiles at least three days before grouting, and plan movement joints where walls meet the floor. The coping is anti-slip and falls slightly away from the water, and tiling the deck and walkways with their falls is SAR 37 upward per square metre. Owners who would rather pave around the pool can read interlock paving in Al-Ahsa, and for ordinary floor tiles tile installer in Al-Ahsa.

Pool plumbing and electrics in Al-Ahsa

Pool plumbing in Al-Ahsa is fixed in position before concrete arrives: each pump pulls from a pair of floor outlets set ninety centimetres or more apart, or from another arrangement that prevents suction entrapment, return inlets spread around the walls, skimmer bodies or an overflow gutter, and pressure lines to the plant room. Every line is pressure-tested before concrete is placed around it, because a joint buried in concrete can only be repaired by breaking it out. For general plumbing at the rest house itself, such as washrooms and tanks, see plumber in Al-Ahsa.

We build the plant room in block or concrete with ventilation, a floor drain and a clear place for each component. The pump, the sand filter and the sanitiser, whether salt, ozone or UV used alongside chlorine, a heater for winter or a chiller for the Al-Ahsa summer, and a counter-current swim jet for a small pool if you want one, are selected by a specialist supplier according to the water volume and installed together with us.

Electrics are part of pool safety. Lamps under water are 12-volt fittings whose transformer sits beyond the splash zones; ladders, rails and any other metal near the pool are tied into the bonding, and the pool circuit has its own 30 mA residual-current protection. The team electrician carries this out, and outdoor electrical work in general is covered in electrician in Al-Ahsa.

Swimming pool prices in Al-Ahsa

Nothing is marked up for Al-Ahsa: the entry prices are the ones we use in Dammam, and only the trips and crew lodging are added after the site visit. A pool figure below already pays for digging in ordinary ground, the reinforced shell, the inner membrane, pool ceramics, pipes that have passed a pressure test and a plant room ready to receive machinery; the machinery itself follows once you and the supplier have picked it.

These are estimates until inspection and agreement; basin size and depth, the water system, the finish, the soil, any ground water and how easily a digger reaches the spot all shift them. Our other services appear on the price estimates page.

Worked example: a rest house with a main pool and a children’s pool

An illustrative example for a rest house among the palms with a main pool of about 5.5×10.5 m on a skimmer system, a separate children’s pool priced from the small-pool line, two stainless ladders and a 1.5 m deck all round the main pool:

Added to that figure, and decided at inspection: the equipment you choose with the supplier, travel, any groundwater pumping or soil replacement, and the fence. A children’s pool smaller than the small-pool line is re-priced once its final size and depth are fixed.

What pushes a rest-house pool budget up or down?

• ✓Size and depth: a deeper floor means more digging, more concrete and more tiled area, all together.
• ✓Number of basins: a separate children’s pool or a concrete spa means another shell and more pipework.
• ✓System: an overflow pool with its gutter and tank costs more than a skimmer pool.
• ✓Soil and water: damp ground needs dewatering and heavier external waterproofing.
• ✓Finish: glass mosaic and stone coping cost more than pool ceramic.
• ✓The trip: combining the pool, the deck and the majlis in one programme lowers each item’s share of travel.

Renovating and re-waterproofing older rest-house pools in Al-Ahsa

Pool renovation in Al-Ahsa begins with an inspection visit from SAR 140, during which we look at the tiles, the edges, any cracks and the plant room. Many older rest-house pools have a sound shell; the problem is tiles that have come away, grout that has worn out or waterproofing at the end of its life. For them, lifting the tiles (from SAR 14 a square metre), relining (from SAR 74) and re-tiling (labour from SAR 92) is usually enough. A crack running through the shell, or part of the pool that has settled, needs an engineer’s report to decide between repair and rebuilding; crack treatment is covered in crack repair in Al-Ahsa.

• ✓Tiles that have come loose or sound hollow when tapped in more than one place.
• ✓The water level dropping faster than normal evaporation over the same days.
• ✓Cracks along the edge, or rust stains on exposed concrete.
• ✓Algae that keeps returning despite sanitising because of cracked grout.
• ✓Old pipes or fittings that do not suit new equipment.

New wall jets or a lamp niche in an old pool wall are cut with a core drill, the technique explained in core drilling in Al-Ahsa, and for wider renovation of the rest-house buildings see renovation contractor in Al-Ahsa.

Waterfalls, fountains and planters at Al-Ahsa rest houses

A wall waterfall at a rest house starts from SAR 3,700 for a small one of about 1×1 m and from SAR 6,450 when it measures around two metres by one and a half; a ground waterfall in natural stone starts from SAR 7,400, a home fountain from SAR 3,200, and underwater lighting for a waterfall or fountain from SAR 460. A waterfall is a closed water loop: a basin, a small pump and hidden pipes. The wall behind it is waterproofed before the stone goes on, so no water finds its way into the majlis.

Built planters around the pool or the majlis are made in block or concrete, waterproofed inside and given drainage outlets and a root barrier; we price them on site, as their cost follows how long and tall they are and what clads them. We do not do the planting or garden landscaping itself.

Does a pool need a permit in Al-Ahsa?

A pool is a structural addition, so before excavation a licensed engineering office should tell you whether it needs approval. On a villa or rest house that already stands, Balady normally handles it as “Adding and Modifying Building Components”, requiring a current building permit and an engineering office, and Balady quotes one to ten days, with fees from its online calculator. For a new building, the pool is included in the permit drawings from the start.

Looking after a rest-house pool between visits

A rest-house pool sits closed for days at a time, and those are the days that spoil the water if they are ignored. A pool cover reduces dust, palm debris and evaporation; running the filter for enough hours each day stops the water stagnating; and checking pH and chlorine the day before use saves you from cloudy water in front of guests. The health benchmarks are a pH of 7.0–7.8 and a free chlorine reading no lower than 1 ppm.

• ✓The day before use: test pH and chlorine and empty the skimmer baskets.
• ✓After use: cover the pool and backwash the filter if its pressure has risen.
• ✓Weekly: check the water level so the pump never runs dry.
• ✓Pollination and harvest season: palm pollen and dates load the filter, so clean it more often.

How to order a pool in Al-Ahsa

Start with a WhatsApp message to 0547879578 that gives us what we need for a first figure before the trip:

• ✓Rest-house location: a map link, district or road name.
• ✓Photos of the land: the proposed spot, the palms, the majlis and the gate the machines will use.
• ✓Size: the area available, the pool size you have in mind and whether you want a children’s pool.
• ✓What lies below: irrigation lines, cables, the septic tank and the water tank.
• ✓Other work: a majlis, paving or a waterfall you want combined in the same visit.

1. 1
   First figure from photos
   Worked out from the starting-price table, with the items that depend on inspection listed.
2. 2
   Site inspection
   We measure the land, check the soil and fix the level and position.
3. 3
   Agreement and drawings
   Items and stages are confirmed, and the permit is checked through an engineering office.
4. 4
   Work in stages
   Setting out and digging, shell and testing, waterproofing and tiles, then equipment.
5. 5
   Handover
   A full, balanced pool and a briefing on care between visits.

Why Aemar Al-Maryam for your Al-Ahsa rest-house pool?

Because we treat a pool as a water-retaining structure, not a decoration: careful levels before digging, a fill test of the shell before finishing, pressure tests on pipes before they are closed in, and an open split between our building work and the specialist’s machinery. Concrete, membranes, tiles, pipes and wiring are all handled by our own people, so the main pool, the children’s pool and everything around them stay under one supervisor, and our starting prices are published before you call. Browse past projects, the short pools and waterfalls overview, or the detailed reference, swimming pool construction in Dammam.

Our pool coverage in Al-Ahsa

We take pool work in Hofuf, in Mubarraz and in the farms and rest houses around them, including these districts:

Coverage details are on the Al-Ahsa area page. We also build pools in Khafji and Hafr Al-Batin.