Illustrated planning concept · Final design follows field verification and approved project documents
Scottsdale Spa Spillover
Resort-style pool with raised spa and signature spillway.
- Size range
- 16' x 32' to 18' x 38'
- Installed investment range
- $95,000 – $140,000
- Best for
- Mid-size backyards, families, entertaining
Two pages: concept rendering, planning dimensions, option decisions, and verification checklist. No email required.
Start with this conceptAn illustrated starting point
This concept is not a permit, engineering, fabrication, appliance-cutout, code-approval, or construction drawing. Field measurements, selected manufacturer documents and listings, site and utility conditions, required qualified engineering, AHJ/HOA review, approved documents, and the signed scope control the final design. The installed investment range is for planning, not a quote.
About this design
A geometric pool-and-raised-spa concept with a sheet-style spillway, sun shelf and bench seating. It is one planning configuration, not a prevalence, performance or acceptance claim.
Key features
- · Raised spa set into the view line; size and elevation from the approved design
- · Sheer spillway; width and face detail from the approved design
- · Sun shelf with umbrella sleeve
- · Splash pad bench
- · Automatic-cover feasibility reviewed for the selected geometry and system
Equipment & systems
- · Pool and spa circulation selected from the approved design and hydraulic calculations
- · Spillway and spa loads included in system sizing
- · Heating equipment selected for the approved pool and spa zoning
- · Sanitation approach selected for the approved project
- · Automation and controls selected with the qualified electrical trade
How this pool is planned
A geometric pool with a raised spa set into the primary view line, spilling into the pool below, planned so the spa elevation, the spillway face and the deck around both work as one composed outdoor room.
Two different uses sharing one body of water — swimming and entertaining in the pool, and a smaller heated gathering spot in the spa that gets used far more often in winter.
The raised spa is the geometry decision. Its elevation sets the spillway, the sightline from the house and the bond-beam relationship, so it is located from the view and the deck plan rather than dropped into a corner.
A spa is a separate thermal and hydraulic condition, not an accessory. Pool and spa circulation, heating, sanitation, automation and the spillway load are sized and selected together from the approved design, hydraulic calculations and the selected manufacturer's current instructions.
Raised structures, elevation changes and spa heating all interact with permit, barrier and HOA review. Requirements are confirmed for this address and this scope before construction.
A spillway face is the surface hard water marks first, and a heated spa is the part of the system that runs most. Both shape the maintenance rhythm and the service access you will want.
Zones and relationships this concept reserves
- ARaised spa
The elevated spa body, its seating and its relationship to the primary view
- BSpillway face
The visible face the water travels from spa to pool, sized and detailed in the approved design
- CMain water envelope
The pool body, its depth strategy and the sun shelf or bench relationship
- DDeck and entertaining zones
Circulation around both bodies and the furniture and dining relationship
- EEquipment pad and service access
Reserved pad space for pool and spa systems, screening and reachable service
Finish and material decision zones
- Spa face material
- Stacked stone, tile or a clad finish — evaluate each for mineral staining from constant water contact.
- Spillway edge detail
- The release edge that defines the water's behavior; its finish is seen and touched constantly.
- Interior finish
- Whether pool and spa share one finish, and how each reads at different depths.
- Coping and deck bands
- How the raised structure, the pool edge and the deck paving resolve into one palette.
Site fit — envelope, utilities and access
- Locate the spa from the primary indoor sightline and the deck plan before the pool shape is finalized.
- Confirm setbacks, the buildable envelope and any HOA view or height considerations for a raised structure.
- Complete Arizona 811 Blue Stake marking and identify overhead lines, underground utilities and easements before excavation.
- Confirm gas and electrical routing to the equipment pad with the qualified trades, including total connected load.
- Reserve equipment-pad space sized for pool and spa systems, with screening that still allows service.
- Set grading, drainage, finished elevations and the bond-beam relationship in the approved design; add survey, soils or engineering where the property or AHJ requires it.
Water system and equipment strategy
- Pool and spa circulation, heating, filtration, sanitation and automation are planned as one system from the approved design and hydraulic calculations.
- The spillway is a hydraulic load with its own requirements; it is included in sizing, not treated as decoration.
- Heating approach and the intended pattern of spa use are decided together — how often you plan to heat it drives the selection.
- Electrical circuits, bonding, controls and any automation are scoped by the qualified electrical trade.
- Equipment-pad location, clearances and service access follow the selected manufacturer's current instructions and approved documents.
Lock these before ordering and construction
- Spa elevation above the pool and what that does to the sightline from inside the house
- Spillway width and face material as illustrative planning dimensions, field verified
- Overall concept envelope — pool length, width and depth strategy as planning ranges
- Sun shelf and bench relationship, and where umbrellas and furniture actually land
- Heating approach and how much of the year you intend to run the spa
- Whether a cover is pursued at all, evaluated against the selected geometry and the selected manufacturer's own requirements
- Equipment-pad location, screening and the service route to it
Verified before anything is built
- Field-measured site dimensions, property lines, setbacks and finished elevations — confirmed on site, with a survey where the specific property or AHJ requires one
- Overhead and underground utilities, easements and Arizona 811 Blue Stake marking completed before any excavation begins
- Pump, filter, heating, sanitation, automation and feature loads sized and selected from the approved design, hydraulic calculations and the selected manufacturer's current instructions
- Gas, electrical and structural work — scoped and performed by the qualified trades for this address and this scope, with engineering where the property or AHJ requires it
- Barrier, gate, alarm and safety planning confirmed against current requirements for this address before construction — never assumed from a concept
- Current permit, AHJ and HOA requirements for this address and this scope — confirmed in writing before construction
- Approved documents and the signed scope, which control the final geometry, depths, equipment, finishes, safety features, schedule and price
Living with it — care and seasonal notes
- Valley water is hard. Expect mineral film at the waterline and on any feature the water travels, and plan a cleaning rhythm around the finish you choose.
- A constantly wet spillway face shows mineral film sooner than the waterline does; face material decides how visible that is.
- Blown dust and monsoon debris load the skimmer and filter faster in Arizona than most owners expect, especially after a storm.
- A heated spa runs more of the system more often; plan service access and a maintenance rhythm that matches how you will use it.
Planning this pool in Arizona
- Summer heat, low humidity and wind increase water loss; top-off behavior and auto-fill planning belong in the design, not in the first August.
- A raised spa catches wind on an open lot, which affects both spill behavior and comfort; evaluate the prevailing direction on site.
- Sun and UV age coping, deck and interior finishes differently depending on exposure — surface temperature and glare are worth evaluating on your own lot.
No pool, ledge, bench, cover, gate, fence or barrier replaces active adult supervision. Designate an undistracted adult Water Watcher whenever children are in or near water.
This planning board is a concept-stage tool. It is not permit, engineering, hydraulic, electrical, gas, accessibility, barrier, code-approval, safety-inspection, or construction documentation, and nothing here is an installation instruction. Pump, filter, heating, sanitation, automation and feature loads are sized and selected from the approved design, hydraulic calculations and the selected manufacturer's current instructions. Measured site conditions, total connected load, qualified gas, electrical and structural trades as applicable, current AHJ and HOA requirements, approved documents and the signed scope control the final build.
