Reading · about 9 mi from our shop
Plunge Pool Installation in Reading, MA
Reading's main house zones call for lots of 15,000 sq ft and up, room enough for a plunge pool. Wetland buffers and the side and rear setbacks decide where.
Plunge pools in Reading
What to know before you start.
Reading's zoning treats a pool as a structure. Kept outside the side and rear setbacks, it can be any size. Pushed into them, it's limited to 600 sq ft or a quarter of the house's floor area, whichever is larger, and a plunge pool fits under that with room left over. You can try layouts in the online pool designer before we walk the yard.
Wetlands decide more pool sites here than zoning does. The local regulations bar pools and pool equipment from the 10-foot strip past the 25-foot no-disturb zone, so the pump and heater pad has to stay out as well. Filling follows the town's watering stages, which are tied to Ipswich River flows, and treated water shouldn't go down a catch basin when you drain.
Local rules that can affect your plunge pool project.
The no-structure zone
For 10 feet beyond that no-disturb zone, no new structures are allowed. That includes retaining walls, pools and pool equipment, fences, patios, sports courts, driveways and sheds.
Source: Reading Wetlands Protection Regulations ↗Fences and pools
Fences over 6 feet need a building permit. A pool can be any size outside the side and rear setbacks. Inside them, it's capped at 600 sq ft or 25% of the house's gross floor area, whichever is greater.
Source: Reading Zoning Bylaw ↗Filling a pool during watering stages
At Stage 1, pools can only be filled on your odd or even day during the allowed outdoor hours, unless the Town Manager grants a waiver. Stage 3 bans all outdoor water use. A new pool with a building, electrical or plumbing permit can get a sewer charge abatement on the fill.
Source: Reading Select Board Policies, Article 4 (public works & water conservation) ↗Draining pool water
The town asks residents not to drain chemically treated pools into catch basins or drainage ditches, and to hold the water until chlorine drops to an acceptable level.
Source: Reading Stormwater Management Program Report (2022) ↗
We check the current requirements for every project before we start.
Pool decks, coping and site work by our crew around the North Shore. See more of our work.
Do I pay sewer charges on the water that fills a new pool in Reading?
Not necessarily. A DPW policy grants a sewer charge abatement for filling a newly built pool once a building, electrical or plumbing permit application is in, if the property hasn't had one before. Ask the town when the permit goes in.
Can I fill the pool during Reading's water conservation stages?
At Stage 1, yes, on your odd or even day and only in the allowed morning and evening hours, unless the Town Manager waives it. Stage 3 bans all outdoor water use, pool filling included.
More in Reading
Let's talk about your plunge pool in Reading.
Estimates are free. We'll call you back to set up a time to see the property.