The cost of a pool renovation can't be captured in a single figure, because every pool is different. The main factors are the size and shape, the condition of the current substrate, the amount of preparation and demolition work (such as removing old tiles or repairing cracks), the chosen finish and how accessible the pool is.
Beware the lure of a low price. A cheap solution that has to be redone after a few years is often more expensive over time than a solid renovation that lasts. So don't judge on the purchase price alone, but on the cost over several years.
Because every project differs, we don't quote a fixed price per square metre without knowing your pool, that would be misleading. We do come and look with no obligation and prepare a clear, tailored quote, so you know exactly where you stand.
If you'd like a sense of the price-determining choices, see our explanation of the cost of a polyurea pool coating as well. Feel free to request a no-obligation quote.
Where the money actually goes
Most people think of the material when they picture a renovation. In practice that is the smallest part of the bill. The largest part is preparation: emptying the pool, removing the old finish, cutting out and filling cracks, getting the substrate flat and clean, and letting it all dry.
After that come the team's hours, transport and the machine. Only then the material itself. So anyone who looks only at the material price is comparing the wrong part of the quotation.
It also explains why two pools of the same size can differ substantially in price. One is in good order and only needs a new finish, the other has cracks, loose tiles and a settled staircase.
The five things that set the price
The number of square metres is the basis, and that is more than length times width. Floor, walls, steps and the rim all count, and with a beach entry or a kidney shape it adds up quickly.
The condition of the substrate is the second. Concrete that is sound needs little repair, concrete with reinforcement that is already rusting needs a great deal.
The third is demolition. Removing old tiles is heavy, dusty work and the rubble has to be taken away. If the new layer can go over the existing finish, that whole item disappears.
The fourth is the chosen finish and colour. The fifth is access: a pool the machine cannot reach, or that can only be reached down a flight of steps, costs more hours than the same pool beside the driveway.
Why a price per square metre misleads
An amount per square metre sounds fair, but it hides the set up costs. Rigging the machine, preparing the material, masking and clearing up afterwards costs the same on a small pool as on a large one.
As a result a small pool is always more expensive per square metre than a large one. Anyone who takes a rate from an advertisement and applies it to their own pool is almost always disappointed.
That is why we do not give a rate per square metre without having seen your pool. A total with a clear breakdown says more, and it is something you can genuinely compare quotations with.
The items that turn up later
With any quotation, watch what is not in it. The most common additions are removing and tipping the rubble, hiring a skip, a generator if there is no power, water on site, and repairing cracks that only become visible once the pool is empty.
A sound quotation handles that with a provisional sum: an honest guide amount for work whose extent cannot be fixed in advance, with the agreement that you are billed for work actually carried out and that you are called before anything extra is done.
If there is no provisional sum and no list of exclusions, that does not mean everything is included. It usually means the conversation about it is still to come, and by then you are in a weaker position.
Comparing two quotations fairly
Compare the content, not the totals. Is preparation included and how thoroughly. What is the build up of layers and how much material goes on per square metre. Who removes the waste. How many years of guarantee do you get and on what exactly.
Ask about expected service life too, and note how it differs from the guarantee period. Those two are often mixed up. An expectation of fifteen to twenty five years is an estimate of how long the layer will last. A company that does not explain that distinction of its own accord is telling you something as well.
And ask for photographs of earlier work nearby, ideally of a pool that has been in use for a few years. A crisp handover says little, three summers later says everything.
Cheap gets paid for twice
The temptation of a low price is strongest for a job you would rather not have had in the first place. But a finish that lets go after four years costs you not only the repair, but emptying and stripping the pool all over again and a summer without it.
So do not calculate per job, calculate per year. A solution that lasts fifteen to twenty five years is over its lifetime almost always cheaper than two cheap ones.
That does not mean the most expensive quotation is the best. It means you should know where the difference comes from, and that a good contractor can explain it to you without talking over it.
Watch the VAT rate in Spain
In Spain, renovation and repair work on a home qualifies under conditions for the reduced VAT rate of ten percent instead of twenty one. On a renovation of any size that is a substantial difference.
The conditions are that you are a private individual using the home yourself, that the home is more than two years old, and that the material supplied by the contractor accounts for no more than forty percent of the invoice amount.
With a sprayed finish that last condition is almost always met, because most of the price is labour and preparation. So ask about it explicitly on every quotation, and have the company explain why the rate shown has been applied.
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