Design Team:
Rick Chafey
Brett Blauvelt
Managing Members
Red Rock Pools & Spas
Gilbert, Ariz.
Architectural integrity: When the design team came onto this project, the plan was to build the house, then determine how a pool could be added onto the existing structure. They estimated that they could have a 1-foot-deep pool. Neither parts of that equation worked for Red Rock Pools & Spas. "The pool wouldn’t really work on the roof of the structure without it being extremely shallow, not matching the architecture at all, or breaking up the lines or the architecture," says Rick Chafey. "So we got in with the client and looked at how we could accomplish the concept of a rooftop pool and yet have it mold and meld into the architecture seamlessly so it doesn’t look like a pimple on the side of the building or be a nonfunctional body of water." One key to success was building the pool such that it would not be supported by the building, but actually serve as part of the abode's reinforcement. The other was blending the clean, long lines with the outer glass panels for a stunning minimalism. The home was built by Brimley Development of Scottsdale, Ariz.
The amenities: The long, narrow pool/spa combination melds with the strong horizontal lines of the architecture, while the perimeter overflow/Lautner edge detail brings the water flush with the deck. The spa sits at the far end and features the same edge detail so it all looks like one body of water. However, when the spa is in operation, its water lowers by a fraction of an inch and the heated vessel stops overflow, so the hot and cold water don't combine. A sunshelf in the foreground sits in about 7 inches of water. The three fire pits top support columns for the home.
Details in azure: Chafey and Blauvelt chose an intense blue glass tile to make it obvious this was a body of water -- and give it the appearance of being deeper than it was. "We wanted to stick with the theme, but we really wanted it to be obvious from the ground that you weren’t just looking through a glass panel and seeing nothing," Chafey says. "The look is pretty impressive with that color of blue that comes through the glass panel." Here, the spa jets are slightly recessed in the wall so the fittings, which protrude slightly, won't push into users' backs.
