Your backyard is one of a kind. Your pool should be too. At Oak Wells Aquatics, every pool we build starts with a conversation about how you actually live — how you entertain, where the sun falls, who’s swimming, and what you want the view from your back door to feel like. From that, we design something that fits your home, your lifestyle, and your land.
We’ve been designing and building custom pools across Florida and the Southeast for more than a decade. Whether you’re picturing a clean architectural showpiece, a freeform retreat that disappears into the landscape, or a resort-style infinity edge, our design team will help you bring it to life.
See Your Pool Before We Build It
Before a single shovel hits the ground, you’ll see your pool in full 3D. Our design process includes virtual walkthroughs so you can stand in your future backyard — view the angles, the materials, the lighting, the surround — and make changes while they’re still easy to make.
This is one of the biggest reasons our clients tell us they chose Oak Wells: there are no surprises. You know exactly what you’re getting before construction begins.
Pool Design Styles We Build
Most of our projects fall into one of these design families — but the best builds usually borrow from more than one. Use these as starting points, not boxes to fit into.
Modern / Contemporary
Clean lines. Geometric shapes. Minimalist material palettes. Modern pools are about restraint — the pool shouldn’t fight your home’s architecture, it should finish it. Think rectangles or right angles, neutral finishes, smooth concrete or limestone surrounds, and often a single accent like a fire feature or sculptural waterfall.
Best for: modern and contemporary homes, urban infill lots, clients who want the pool to feel like part of the architecture.
Classic / Traditional
A more formal style with defined edges, symmetrical layouts, and timeless proportions. Often rectangular at the swim end with a rounded shallow end or curved spa attached. Classic builds pair beautifully with Mediterranean, colonial, and traditional Southern homes, and they age well — these designs don’t go out of style.
Best for: traditional or estate-style homes, clients who want a pool that looks like it’s always belonged there.
Freeform / Naturalistic
Curving lines, organic shapes, and integrated rockwork, plantings, or water features. Freeform pools are designed to feel like they belong to the landscape — like a spring-fed pond or coastal lagoon you happen to have in your backyard. These are some of the most fun pools to design because almost every shape is possible.
Best for: larger lots, naturalistic landscaping, tropical or wooded settings, clients who want a pool that feels like a destination.
Architectural / Geometric
A close cousin of modern design but with bolder shapes — split levels, raised walls with sheer descents, glass tile feature walls, cantilevered beams. Architectural pools are sculptural; they’re meant to be looked at as much as swum in.
Best for: statement properties, hillside lots, clients who want the pool to be the focal point.
Infinity Edge / Vanishing Edge
One or more edges where the water spills silently into a hidden catch basin below — creating the illusion that the pool runs into the horizon. Infinity edges work best when there’s a view to disappear into: water, a hillside, a treeline, or the sky. They require careful engineering and a slightly higher build cost, but the effect is unmatched.
Best for: properties with a view, elevated lots, luxury and resort-style builds.
Perimeter Overflow
Water flows over every edge of the pool into a hidden gutter, leaving a perfectly mirrored surface. The result is a reflecting pool you can also swim in. Perimeter-overflow pools are technically complex (two pump systems, careful tile and edge work) but they create the cleanest, most architectural water effect available.
Best for: modern and architectural homes, courtyards, builds where the pool’s reflection is part of the design.
Design Features That Make a Pool Yours
The shape of the pool is the starting point. The details below are what make it feel custom.
- Tanning ledges and Baja shelves — shallow, lounge-friendly platforms with umbrella sleeves, perfect for warm Florida afternoons and toddlers.
- Attached spas and overflow spas — raised or in-line hot tubs that flow into the main pool, often with custom tile and a spillway feature.
- Water features — sheer descents, scuppers, bubblers, rain curtains, and rock or formal waterfalls. The sound matters as much as the visual.
- Fire features — fire bowls, fire pits, gas-lit accents on raised walls. Fire and water together is one of the most-requested combinations we build.
- Pool lighting — color-changing LED, fiber optic accents, perimeter glow, and underwater feature lighting that completely changes how the pool reads at night.
- Tile and finish — glass mosaic accents, pebble or quartz interior finishes, natural stone coping, and custom waterline tile patterns. Tile choice has a bigger visual impact than most people expect.
- Acrylic windows and glass walls — clear panels in the pool wall that turn the pool into a viewing portal, ideal for raised pools, infinity edges, and dramatic poolside views.
- Smart automation — full control of temperature, lighting, water features, and chemistry from your phone. Set scenes, schedule cleaning cycles, and adjust everything from your couch or a hotel room halfway across the country.
Outdoor Living, Not Just a Pool
A pool is one element of your outdoor living space — not the whole thing. Our design process accounts for everything you want around the pool too: paver patios, summer kitchens, pergolas and shade structures, integrated landscape lighting, pool screens, fire pits, and walkways. The result is a complete environment, not a pool plopped into the middle of a yard.
How the Design Process Works
- Discovery. We listen first — what you want, how you’ll use the space, what your home and lot can support.
- Concept. We sketch one or more design directions and pricing ranges so you can see your options before committing to one.
- 3D Design. Your chosen direction becomes a full 3D rendering and virtual walkthrough. This is where the small changes get made.
- Engineering and permitting. We handle the structural engineering, soil reviews, and permit process with your county.
- Build. Construction follows a clear schedule with milestone updates and real-time progress visible in our project management system — no guessing where things stand.
Ready to Design Your Pool?
Every Oak Wells Aquatics location offers full custom pool design and construction. Find your nearest team to schedule a consultation and start sketching the pool that fits your home.
Currently serving Florida and Southeast Georgia from our locations in Jacksonville, Fort Myers, DeBary, and St. Marys, GA.
