Roger’s DIY Dipping Pool in the Dominican Republic (Case Study)

Last updated: September 2026

A DIY dipping pool? Yes please!

What I love about what I do is the variety of people, countries and projects I get to deal with. Some projects I’m heavily involved in. With others, like this one, there’s some correspondence, I supply some parts, and then, out of the blue, I get a wonderful email from Roger with a whole bunch of pictures of his finished build. That variety makes every day different, and I love it.

In this post, I’ll go through the stages Roger went through building his DIY dipping pool in his backyard in the Dominican Republic, plus the lessons he learned along the way.

Plans and parts first

Roger first got in touch because he wanted a plan for his dipping pool. I have lots of pre-made plans in my online store, and that’s what Roger used. So many of my case studies are custom designs with their own complications. This build shows you how simple yet effective things can be.

Roger’s biggest challenge was getting the parts he needed. We knew that from the start, when we first began to discuss the project. I ship parts all over the world for customers, so getting things to a forwarder for Roger wasn’t a problem at all.

That meant he knew he had the right parts for his dipping pool from day one. Knowing you have the plan and the right parts for the job is half the battle.

Base and block walls

Roger was building an above-ground dipping pool, so there was no real excavation, just removing some of the turf.

What you can’t see is that the base had already been poured, with the rebar risers set ready for the blocks. What you can see is the team starting to lay the courses of block for the walls. The blocks slot over the vertical rebar, which gives the walls lots of strength. There’s more on this in my rebar guide and cinder block hot tub guide.

It was all hands on deck for this project, including Simona, who did the mosaics you’ll see later in this article.

The walls went up pretty quickly, as you can see below.

A dual-skin cavity for the plumbing

Below you can see that the pool is built as a dual-skin cavity. The plumbing runs in the gap, out of sight, and is covered by a second skin of non-load-bearing blocks.

A simple control room

With the second skin and the plumbing in place, Roger and the guys turned their attention to the control room. This is another example of how something so simple can be so effective.

Given the climate, there’s no heater, just a filter and a circulation pump. Roger mentioned that he plans to add a small heater later so he can extend the season. If you’re in the same position, see what size heater do I need?

Returns instead of jets

If you look at the style of the “jets” here, they’re more like swimming pool returns than hot tub jets. Again, that’s what was available locally, and it’s simple, effective and it works.

OK, they won’t be as strong as a gunite jet with an air feed, but that doesn’t matter one bit. This build is all about simplicity. If you want proper hydrotherapy, see DIY hot tub jets.

Render, waterproofing and a tiled waterline

With the returns in and sealed, it was time for the interior. It was rendered flat, sealed and waterproofed, then the waterline was tiled and the floor of the pool was painted. It’s always a good idea to tile the waterline even if you’re not tiling the whole pool, because it makes cleaning much easier. For materials, see hot tub waterproofing, tile adhesive and grout.

Fill-up time

After leaving everything to cure, this is where the fun really starts: fill-up time! I remember filling my own tub for the first time, and the anticipation was huge. I’m sure Roger and the team felt the same.

Simona did some beautiful mosaic work on the ledge of the pool. The look they were going for was a dipping pool that had just emerged from the ground, and I think it looks fantastic.

And there we have it: DIY dipping pool done!

This whole project shows that a dipping pool or small cocktail pool doesn’t need to be complicated. The end result is just fantastic. Roger, Simona, what a great job you’ve done. Congratulations!

Roger’s lessons learned

After I published this article, Roger got back in touch with some of the things he learned along the way. Here they are, in his words.

1. The bench. When we put the bench in, we considered whether we needed to skim coat under the concrete bench and put pool paint on. In the end we thought there was no point, so we didn’t do it. When we filled the pool, we found a leak path from under the bench, through the blocks of the bench and then through the wall to the pump area.

Fix: drain the pool, put on a skim coat and waterproof pool paint, and refill. Problem resolved. The lesson is not to cut corners!

2. The return jets. On refilling the pool, once the level went above the water return jets, we discovered another small leak from 2 of the nozzles. This was caused by not enough skim coat around the jets. We found two small pin holes.

Fix: drain the water down below the inlets, clean and cut back, redo everything and repaint the areas needed. Problem resolved. Lessons learned, good and bad. Bad, because we should have been more careful in these areas and been aware that just a pin hole is enough to cause a problem. Good, because we left “windows” at each inlet (later filled with resined artwork from Simona), so we could access the problem areas.

3. The pool light. When refilling with water above the pool light, we found water coming out of the conduit pipe in the pump area. I had thought the conduit pipe would be dry and that the seal of the pool light would make it waterproof. On reading the instructions again, it was clear they said the conduit pipe must be a certain height above water level, but they didn’t say why, hence I ignored it!

Fix: I had to build a small box above the level of the upper walkway to get sufficient height (you’ll see a small mosaic box at the pump end). Problem solved. Lesson: instructions are there for a reason. Follow them!

Thanks, Roger! Those are exactly the kind of lessons that help the next person. If you do find a leak on your first fill, see how to find and fix a hot tub leak, and for lights, see hot tub lights: the ultimate guide.

Planning your own dipping pool?

I’ve written a full guide to building a DIY dipping pool, and there’s more in how to build a DIY plunge pool and how to build a DIY cocktail pool or spool.

My plunge and cocktail pool plans come in several sizes, including 10ft x 7ft, 12ft x 8ft and 15ft x 8ft, with architectural drawings. If you’d rather have jets and heat, my DIY hot tub plans include CAD drawings, the plumbing layout, a parts list and the video course.

FAQs

Can you build a dipping pool above ground?

Yes. Roger’s is built from block on a poured base, with almost no digging. A dual-skin wall hides the plumbing.

Do I need to waterproof under a concrete bench?

Yes. Roger skipped it and found a leak path under and through the bench on his first fill. Every surface that sits under water needs the same waterproofing as the walls.

Does a dipping pool need a heater?

Not in a hot climate. Roger’s runs with just a filter and circulation pump, although he’s planning a small heater to extend the season.

Got a question about a dipping pool like Roger’s? Drop it in the comments below. I read them all.

Cheers,
Andi

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Thanks - Andi

 

Hi, Andi here. I own Buildahottub.com and also write all of the articles and info pages on the site. Some years back now, I built my own hot tub but struggled to find the information I needed. So, once my tub was complete, I started this website to help others in their own pursuit of hot tub and plunge pools DIY building information.

Fast forward to 2025, I've helped over 1400+ DIY customers just like you all over the world build hot tubs and pools. Have a good look around the site, there are lots of resources here. Please do get in touch if I can help you. - Cheers, Andi