This isn't a cost. It's an investment.
The figures on this page are real and we don't hide them — that's how AE operates. Treat them as planning ranges, not a site-specific quote. Your actual scope and price depend on design, site conditions, materials, and the work each written proposal includes.
When you compare proposals, compare what each includes — the scope, the materials, the exclusions, the warranty terms, and how changes are handled — not just the price tag. A lower total can reflect different scope, so ask each builder to clarify the differences.
New pool construction in Arizona, 10 phases, one accountable team, every phase inspected.
A new pool in Arizona is a 10-phase build. AE checks each phase against its spec before the next begins, the permitting authority inspects at the stages the permit requires, and payments follow five contract milestones. This page walks the full process — design through start-up — with the actual timeline, cost bands, and what your builder should be doing at every step. Everything on this page is how AE builds every pool, whether it's an $80,000 family rectangle or a $500,000 vanishing-edge estate build.
- AZ ROC 211530 · 347738 · 341002 · 340966
- Arizona-built since 2005
- President, Southwest Hardscapes Association
Phase 1 — Design & engineering (3–6 weeks)
Site walk, program brief, concept design, design visualization, material selection, and the engineered plan set the project and jurisdiction require (structural, plumbing, electrical, drainage). Construction starts after the required approved plans and permits are in place.
Phase 2 — Permit & HOA (2–6 weeks)
City building, electrical, plumbing permits. HOA architectural submittal package where the property's governing documents require one. AE prepares and coordinates the submittals assigned in the signed scope; the city and HOA control review timing and approval.
Want a number for your own property?
Tell us the space and we'll come back with a real range for your site — no pressure, no "call for pricing."
Phase 3 — Layout & excavation (2–4 days)
Layout painted and homeowner-verified. Utility locates. Excavation to shell profile plus gunite over-dig. Existing irrigation and drainage captured and rerouted (not cut through). Spoils hauled off-site. Access protection on driveways and hardscape.
Phase 4 — Steel & structural (2–3 days)
#3 rebar minimum on 12" centers. Tighter spacing on bond beams, transitions, and load points. Chairs supporting steel off the sub-grade — this is what stops corrosion later. Steel inspected before gunite scheduled.
Phase 5 — Plumbing rough-in (1–2 days)
2" minimum returns, 2.5" suction, sized for future equipment upgrades. All fittings glued and pressure-tested to 25 PSI for 24 hours before shot. If it doesn't hold, we find the leak now — not after finish is on.
Phase 6 — Electrical rough-in & bonding (1–2 days)
Equipment pad wired, GFCI protection specified, pool bonding grid installed (this is the safety system that ties every metal component together — never skipped). Sub-panel sized for future automation and heater expansion.
Phase 7 — Shotcrete/gunite shell (1 day)
6" wall / 6" floor minimum. 4,000 PSI mix. Slump monitored on-site — dry-shot shell is weak shell. Wet-cure schedule for 7 days after shoot. The shell is the structure every other phase depends on.
Phase 8 — Tile & coping (5–7 days)
Waterline tile set on thinset over shell. Coping (travertine, cast stone, natural stone) set with proper expansion joints. Grout matched to tile and sealed.
Phase 9 — Decking (5–14 days)
Sub-base compacted per spec (2–3" ABC minimum for pavers/travertine, 4–6" for driveway loads). 1" sand bedding. Polymeric joint sand. Never quarter-minus under pavers. Drainage graded away from house and pool.
Phase 10 — Finish, equipment, fill, start-up (5–7 days)
Interior finish (PebbleTec, Wet Edge, plaster) applied and filling started as the finish manufacturer directs. Equipment installed and commissioned. Chemistry balanced. 28-day cure program handed to homeowner in writing. Automation programmed. Walk-through and warranty package delivered.
AE payment schedule during construction
- 15% at signing.
- 25% after excavation.
- 25% after steel, plumbing, and shotcrete/gunite.
- 25% after decking.
- 10% before interior finish.
- Each percentage and its contract trigger is itemized in the written agreement. The signing deposit and the final 10% are paid before those phases are finished, so they are not payments for completed work. Your signed agreement controls.
Common questions.
Start your new pool construction.
Free site walk and program brief, followed by a line-itemed written proposal.
Start My Project PlanWhy this is an investment, not a cost.
An AE backyard is engineered to add daily livability and long-term home value. We publish honest ranges and build to code with a licensed and bonded Arizona crew. AE provides project-specific workmanship and manufacturer-warranty information in the signed agreement. Website summaries are for planning only.
- Licensed, bonded & insured in Arizona. ROC 340966 (R-62) · ROC 341002 (R-3) · ROC 347738 (KA-5) · ROC 211530 (CR-21). Most Arizona contracting work valued at $1,000 or more — or requiring a permit — must be performed by a properly licensed contractor, subject to statutory exemptions. Verify the legal entity, license status, and classification with the Arizona Registrar of Contractors.
- Real ranges, itemized scope. You see materials, finishes, equipment models, and a line-item budget before you sign — not a one-line "pool — $90,000."
Plan your investment with a designer.
Five minutes, a real range, and no sales pressure. Or vet any Arizona contractor (us included) before you spend a dollar.
Related reading
Real line-item cost breakdown.
Design workflow and shell customization.
Five criteria that actually matter.
Pre-design feasibility: usable area, easements, utilities, access.
Phoenix pricing bands, timeline example, and recorded AE pool projects.
Short answers on cost, schedule, payments, and vetting.
How to compare companies, scopes, and schedules.
More construction-process questions?
Every homeowner question about the build itself lives in the Pool section of the Homeowner FAQ.