OUTDOOR LIVING
Custom Pool Builder in Wilmington, NC for a Backyard You Never Want to Leave
Water That Fits the Way You Love to Live Outside
A great pool doesn't just cool you off. It changes your days. It pulls everyone outside, softens the pace of weekends, and turns your home into the place people want to be. As a custom pool builder in Wilmington, NC, Element Outdoor Living designs and builds inground gunite pools, spas, and complete poolscapes tailored to your routines, your gatherings, and the way your family actually uses your home. From the first design conversation through inground pool installation and final detailing, one team handles the entire build.
A Pool Designed Around Your Daily Rhythm
Every home, every family, and every coastal property lives a little differently. We shape your pool to fit the way you unwind, connect, and spend time outdoors.
A Spa for Quiet Minutes You’ll Look Forward To
Picture warm water waiting after long workdays or cool coastal evenings. A spa creates a private retreat you will use far more often than you think, offering year-round comfort and a dedicated space to reset without leaving home.
A Tanning Ledge Built for Slow Mornings
A place to sip coffee with your feet in the water. A spot for toddlers to splash safely. A built-in lounge for reading in the sun. It’s a small feature that changes your whole experience.
A Gunite Pool Shaped for Your Kind of Comfort
Love to swim laps before the day starts? Prefer a quiet end-of-the-day float? Want a space that keeps kids close but gives adults room to relax? Your pool’s shape, depth, and layout are customized to how you live.
A Poolscape That Makes Every Day Feel Like a Getaway
Your pool is the centerpiece. The surrounding environment creates the mood you live in.
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Travertine, limestone, and coastal pavers selected for comfort, durability, and long, easy days outdoors. Even in Wilmington’s heat and humidity, these materials stay cool and inviting.
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Refined edges and waterline tile chosen to elevate the pool’s character and blend naturally with your home’s architecture. Small details create a polished, resort-like feel.
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Walk from the kitchen to the spa. Step from the deck to the ledge. Drift from conversation to quiet. Every transition is shaped to feel natural, intuitive, and connected.
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Simple, reliable automation that manages heating, lighting, water features, and cleaning so your pool is ready whenever you are. Luxury that feels easy from the start.
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Attractive, code-compliant fencing options that protect your family while preserving the open, uninterrupted look of your poolscape. Peace of mind without compromising style.
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Soft grasses, palms, and coastal shrubs arranged to create privacy, shade, and movement. Thoughtful planting adds comfort and a lush, settled-in feel from the first season.
A Wilmington Pool Builder That Handles the Entire Build
As a full-scope pool builder and swimming pool contractor serving the greater Wilmington area, Element designs and constructs the whole project in-house, with no juggling separate trades and no gaps between design and construction. Whether you want a full-size inground pool, a compact plunge pool for a smaller lot, or a spa paired with a larger poolscape, the design is shaped around your property and how you plan to use it.
Custom Inground Gunite Pools
Gunite (sprayed concrete) lets us build a pool in virtually any shape, depth, or finish, which is why it's our foundation for custom inground pool installation on coastal lots. Unlike fixed fiberglass shells, a gunite pool is engineered to your space, your grade, and your design, from tanning ledges to vanishing edges.
Spas & Plunge Pools
Not every backyard needs a full-size pool. We build standalone spas and plunge pools that deliver year-round use and a private retreat, and we integrate them seamlessly when they're part of a larger poolscape.
Poolscapes & Full Outdoor Living
Your pool rarely stands alone. We tie it into surrounding hardscape, planting, and structures so the whole space works as one. Many clients pair their pool with a patio, an outdoor kitchen, a pergola or pavilion, fire features, and landscape lighting, all designed and built by the same team.
How It All Comes Together
Great poolscapes connect every element—from the water's edge to your back door—into one cohesive outdoor retreat.
“Working with element was a great experience…
all the way from design to installation. Drew our project manager answered all our questions and concerns and gave us great ideas and feedback.”
— Ken H. via Google
Why Homeowners Choose Element
Because your pool should feel personal, not predictable.
Everything for Your Poolscape in One Place
Custom pool construction, spas, decking, drainage, lighting, planting, safety fencing, and long-term care, handled by one trusted partner.
Clarity Before You Commit
You’ll see your entire space through master plans, finishes, and 3D renderings before any work begins.
Designed for the Greater Wilmington Area
Materials, drainage, and construction methods selected for sun, salt, storms, and long coastal seasons.
A Plan That Can Grow With Your Lifestyle
Whether you want a pavilion later, an outdoor kitchen next year, or expanded plantings over time, your plan supports easy phasing.
Creating your pool should feel exciting, not overwhelming.
A Process That Feels Personal From the First Conversation
01
Walk the Property
Together
We talk about how you want to use the space, where you spend your time, and what you want the pool to feel like in your daily life.
02
See Your Custom
Pool Take Shape
Your designer develops a complete pool plan with layout options, finishes, materials, drainage guidance, and 3D renderings you can explore.
03
Build With a
Team You Trust
From gunite work to tile, decking, lighting, planting, and final detailing, our team handles everything with steady communication and precision.
Questions Homeowners Ask Before Starting Their Poolscape
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Most gunite pools in the Greater Wilmington area take 10 to 16 weeks from excavation to final detailing. Weather, permitting, and the complexity of your poolscape can influence the exact timeline, but we keep you updated every step of the way.
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Element manages the entire project. Gunite pool construction, spas, decking, coping, waterline tile, drainage, lighting, planting, automation, and safety fencing are all coordinated under one team. You never have to juggle trades.
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Your poolscape design covers the pool layout, surrounding hardscape, planting, lighting, and the transitions between each space. Many clients pair their pool with pavilions, outdoor kitchens, fireplaces, or expanded gathering areas so the whole backyard works as one connected retreat.
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For coastal comfort, we guide you toward travertine, limestone, bluestone, and high-performance pavers. These materials stay cooler in the sun, handle salt and humidity well, and offer a refined finish.
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Element builds standalone spas and plunge pools in addition to full-size inground pools, which makes them a strong fit for smaller lots or homeowners who want year-round use without a large footprint. A spa or plunge pool can also be integrated into a larger poolscape as part of a phased plan. We shape the size and layout around your space and how you actually want to use the water.
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A gunite pool is built on-site from sprayed concrete, so it can take virtually any shape, depth, or finish, while a fiberglass pool is a pre-molded shell dropped into the ground in a limited range of sizes. For coastal custom projects, gunite gives you full design freedom for tanning ledges, vanishing edges, and integrated spas, which is why it's our standard for custom inground pool installation. Fiberglass can install faster on simpler jobs, but it can't match the flexibility a custom poolscape usually calls for.
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All custom poolscape designs include 3D visuals so you can clearly see the pool shape, depth transitions, tanning ledge, decking, planting, and material choices before construction begins. Seeing the space in 3D helps you make confident decisions early, before anything is built.
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Element prepares your design documents and guides you through the HOA approval process. For municipal permitting, we coordinate every requirement so the project moves forward without delays landing on your plate.
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Many clients begin with the pool, decking, and essential plantings, then add shade structures, outdoor kitchens, or expanded seating over time. Your master plan is built to support phasing, so each addition connects cleanly to what came before.
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Custom inground gunite pools in the Wilmington area typically start around $95,000, and the final number depends on size, depth, finishes, and the surrounding poolscape. Because every pool is engineered to your property, we give you a clear, itemized proposal before any work begins. A design consultation is the fastest way to get a realistic budget for your specific lot and goals.
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Look for a licensed, insured pool builder that handles design and construction in-house, shows you the full plan before you commit, and has real coastal project experience. Ask whether decking, drainage, lighting, and planting are coordinated by the same team or handed off to separate contractors. That difference shows up in both quality and timeline. Element manages the entire poolscape under one roof, with 3D renderings and a clear proposal so you know exactly what you're getting.
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Element Outdoor Living is a licensed and insured North Carolina contractor building custom pools and poolscapes throughout the greater Wilmington area. Working with a licensed swimming pool contractor protects you on permitting, code compliance, and long-term construction quality. Our in-house team carries the project from design through final inspection.
Start Living Outdoors the Way You’ve Always Wanted
Your outdoor space should invite connection, comfort, and pride. You deserve a partner who understands coastal design, clear communication, and the value of doing things right. Let’s design a landscape that reflects the coastal lifestyle you love.