A pool's body. A pond's heart.
Swim in clear, living water with no chlorine, no salt and no chemical smell on your skin. A recreation pond looks like a mountain swimming hole, works like a pool, and looks good every day of the year, not just in swim season. Designed and built in Los Angeles.
Why Choose Build & Decor
No chlorine, salt or harsh chemicals: no burning eyes, no faded suits, no chemical runs to the store
Looks great all year: a pool off-season is a blue hole you maintain, a pond is the best thing in the yard every month
Built to last: rock, liner and ecosystem construction with no replaster cycle
Fully custom: beach entries, waterfalls, streams, jumping rocks and deep zones shaped to your yard
A living yard: plants, fish if you want them, dragonflies and birds
1-year workmanship warranty, written agreement, payments tied to milestones
Our Process
Discovery
Initial consultation and needs assessment
Design & Permits
Detailed planning and permit acquisition
Build
Licensed professionals execute the work
Final Walkthrough
Quality assurance and warranty
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1-Year Workmanship Warranty
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who builds natural swimming ponds in Los Angeles?
Build & Decor Construction designs and builds recreation ponds, also called natural swimming ponds, in Los Angeles under CSLB license 1113888. A recreation pond is a lined swimming pond with a deep, plant-free swim zone kept clear by a wetland filter instead of chlorine or salt. The build runs excavation, a 45-mil EPDM liner, an intake bay with an external pump, an upflow wetland filter, boulder work, planting and lighting. It is priced like the custom pool it replaces, with the number set at a free on-site design visit. Existing pools can often be converted. Serving Santa Monica, Brentwood, Pacific Palisades, Beverly Hills, the Westside and the rest of Los Angeles County.
Last updated 2026-10-20. Written by Sebastian Moreno Rivera, owner and license holder.
What is a recreation pond?
A recreation pond is a swimming pond built on purpose: a deep, clear swim zone kept clean by a living filter instead of chemicals. Water circulates through a wetland bog, layers of graded stone where beneficial bacteria and aquatic plants do the work a chlorine system does in a pool, the way a stream cleans itself.
You get the plants, the rock, the waterfall and the dragonflies, and water that feels like a lake, not a lab. It is not a converted koi pond and not a pool with plants around it.
Two ways to build a swimming pond
Both keep the water clean with stone, bacteria and plants instead of chemicals. They differ in where the planted filter lives, and that changes the look, the footprint and the price.
Wetland filter beside the swim zone
A separate upflow wetland filter sits next to the swim area. An intake bay skims the surface, an external pump pushes water up through graded stone and plant roots, and it returns over a waterfall or stream.
Fits: Hillside and irregular lots, a waterfall or stream as part of the design, a smaller swim zone with a bigger natural look.
Regeneration zone in one body of water
Swim zone and planted gravel zone share one liner, divided by a timber or stone wall just under the surface. Water circulates through the planted gravel bed itself, with an air ring and bubblers keeping it moving.
Fits: Flat lots and formal gardens, a clean rectangular swim zone, a planted shelf you can see from the house. Needs roughly as much planted area as swim area.
Pond versus pool
The honest comparison, concessions included.
| Topic | Recreation pond | Chlorine or salt pool |
|---|---|---|
| Water treatment | Beneficial bacteria on a schedule. No chlorine, salt or shock. | Chlorine or salt cell, shock, pH and alkalinity kept in range. |
| Off-season | Waterfalls run all year. Nothing to cover or drain. | Covered, or a blue hole you keep paying to maintain. |
| Weekly care | Dose, empty the skimmer basket, trim plants by season. | Test, dose, brush, vacuum, backwash. |
| Yearly care | One drain-and-clean, on our Pond Care plan or your own. | Opening and closing service, acid wash or replaster every several years. |
| Water | Closed loop. Evaporation top-off, no chemical backwash to the sewer. | Backwash and drain-and-refill cycles. |
| What lives there | Plants, dragonflies, birds at the falls, fish if you want them. | Nothing. |
| Laps | A swimming hole. A longer swim lane is a design choice. | Yes, if it is long enough. |
How is a recreation pond built?
The steps below follow the wetland-filter design. A regeneration-zone build swaps steps 4 and 5 for the dividing wall, the gravel bed and the air ring.
- 1
Design visit
We walk your yard, talk about how you will actually use the water, and design around sun, trees and the view from the house. Free.
- 2
Excavation
Swim zone, planting shelves and the filter footprint, shaped and compacted.
- 3
Liner system
Protective underlayment and a 45-mil EPDM liner, the class of system used on ponds that run for decades.
- 4
Intake bay and pump
Quiet circulation that pulls surface debris in and keeps the water moving.
- 5
Wetland filter
Graded stone layers plumbed for upflow and planted heavy. This is what replaces chlorine.
- 6
Rock work
Boulders, beach entry, waterfall and stream set by hand.
- 7
Planting and lighting
The aquatic planting that finishes the filtration, and light for night swims.
- 8
Fill, balance, walkthrough
We balance the ecosystem with you and show you exactly how to care for it.
Most builds run weeks, not months. Your schedule is set at the design visit.
How much does a recreation pond cost in Los Angeles?
Priced like the custom pool it replaces. Size, rock tonnage and water features move the number; the design visit puts yours in writing.
Plunge
A courtyard or a tight side yard.
- •Swim zone for two to four people
- •One waterfall
- •Wetland filter sized to the pond
- •Planted edges and a stone step-in
Family
The standard backyard build.
- •Full-length swim zone with a deep end
- •Beach-style entry
- •Stream and waterfall
- •Underwater and path lighting
Estate
Hillside lots and large properties.
- •Large swim zone with jumping rock
- •Multiple falls and a long stream
- •Deck or patio tied into the shoreline
- •Lighting, planting plan and service plan
See the idea in motion
These builders outside California have been building recreation ponds for years. Their videos show what the water looks like, how the filter works and what owning one is like. Each video belongs to its creator and plays from their channel.
"The body of a pool and the heart of a pond" is how Black Koi describes their work. Chlorine-free, runs all year, and looks better than a pool in every month that is not July.
Video credit: Black Koi Water Features and Ponds, North Carolina.
A Charlotte pond builder makes the case in two minutes: no caustic chemicals, never tarped or drained, a weekly dose and one annual clean, and a yard that feeds bees, birds and dragonflies.
Video credit: Hoaglandscape, Charlotte, North Carolina.
A regeneration-zone build: a Douglas fir sleeper wall splits the swim zone from the planted gravel, water circulates through the gravel and the plant roots, and eight air bubblers keep it moving. Two gravel grades, then washed flint to plant into.
Video credit: Wild Swimscapes, build series, part 3.
Are Recreation Ponds the Next Swimming Pool?
What a recreation pond is, how it works, and what it costs to own.
Credit: Black Koi Water Features, North Carolina.
Best Ever Recreation Pond and Waterfall
A finished swim pond with a cascading waterfall, walked by the founder of Aquascape.
Credit: Greg Wittstock, The Pond Guy, Illinois.
Building a BIG Natural Swim Pond, Part 2
Plumbing, the wetland filter and rock placement on a large build.
Credit: Just Add Water, Iowa.
Natural Swim Pond with Waterfalls and Wetland Filtration
A backyard swim pond on the same ecosystem method we build with.
Credit: Memphis Water Gardens, Tennessee.
How to Build a Wetland Filter for an Existing Pond
The filter that replaces chlorine, built step by step.
Credit: TEAM Aquascape, Illinois.
Transforming an Old Pond: How We Build Wetland Filters
An existing water feature rebuilt around a wetland filter.
Credit: Atlantis Water Gardens, New Jersey.
Pond Care, on a plan
A swim pond needs a specific kind of maintenance. We build it, so we are the ones who keep it right. One plan, no pool-chemical contract.
Weekly
Bacteria dose, skimmer basket emptied, water level and pump checked.
Seasonal
Plant trimming and division, filter flush, lighting and plumbing check.
Yearly
Drain-and-clean: rock washed, muck removed, filter reset, system rebalanced.
Already have a pool you don't love?
Converting an existing pool shell into a natural swimming pond is often possible. Los Angeles has one of the largest stocks of aging pools in the country, and many of them are a replaster away from a decision.
It starts with a site visit. Shell condition, depth and the equipment pad decide what is reusable. Ask about a conversion when you request your estimate.
Serving West Los Angeles
We proudly serve homeowners and businesses across West LA, including:
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Schedule a consultation today and let's bring your vision to life.