Fully custom gunite inground pools designed by the owner, built for South Carolina’s coastal conditions, and delivered in 8–10 weeks.
Building a custom inground pool is one of the most significant home investments you can make — and in Charleston, SC, it’s one that pays off year after year. The Lowcountry’s climate gives you genuine outdoor living from March through November and beyond, and a well-designed pool becomes the centerpiece of how your family uses the backyard for decades.
At Low Country Lagoons, we design and build fully custom gunite inground pools throughout the greater Charleston area. Every pool we build starts with a custom design created by the owner of the company — not a salesperson, not a design template, not a catalog option. Your yard, your lifestyle, your preferences, and South Carolina’s specific soil and environmental conditions all factor into every design decision we make.
We’re a fully licensed and insured pool contractor serving Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Daniel Island, Isle of Palms, Sullivan’s Island, Johns Island, and Kiawah Island. We’ve built pools across this region and we know what it takes to design and construct a pool that holds up in coastal conditions for the long term.
Low Country Lagoons specializes in gunite pool construction. Gunite — a mixture of cement and sand pneumatically applied over a steel rebar framework — is the construction method used for the most customizable, durable, and long-lasting inground pools available. Here’s why it’s the right choice for Charleston-area homeowners:
Every pool we build starts from scratch. Below are the most common design directions we build in the Charleston area — though any combination of shapes, depths, and features is possible:
Freeform pools follow organic, curved shapes that mimic the natural environment. They’re the most popular style in the Lowcountry because they suit the relaxed, coastal aesthetic of Charleston homes and integrate well with lush landscape surroundings. These pools feel natural rather than architectural — like a resort pool designed for your yard.
Geometric pools — rectangles, L-shapes, and symmetrical designs — suit modern and contemporary home architectures and work especially well on properties where the backyard has defined edges, existing structures, or a formal landscape design. They’re also preferred for lap swimming and athletic use.
Vanishing edge pools — also called infinity pools — create the visual effect of water extending to the horizon by eliminating one visible wall. They’re designed for properties with a grade change, elevated yard sections, or a significant view to the rear of the property. They require more complex engineering but produce one of the most dramatic visual results in residential pool design.
Many of our projects include an integrated spa or hot tub as part of the pool design. In Charleston’s climate, a spa extends the usable season of the pool area well into fall and winter — and a properly designed pool-spa combination adds significant perceived and actual value to the property.
Every Low Country Lagoons pool is designed to support the features that matter most to you. Here’s a full list of features we design and build into our pools:
Building a custom inground pool in Charleston is an 8-phase process. Here’s exactly what happens from the first conversation to the day you swim:
The owner meets with you to discuss your goals, yard conditions, preferred features, and budget range. This is a working conversation, not a sales pitch. We leave with everything needed to design your pool.
The owner personally draws your pool design — shape, dimensions, depth profile, feature placement, coping line, and deck footprint. You receive a design plan to review and revise before anything moves forward.
We submit permit applications to the appropriate municipality. Charleston-area pool permits are required across all jurisdictions and are held by licensed pool contractors. We manage the full process and timeline.
Once permits are approved, we lay out the pool footprint on your property and excavate to the required depth. Excavated material is removed from the site.
A steel rebar framework is installed to the engineered specification. All plumbing lines — returns, main drains, skimmers, and feature lines — are set and pressure-tested before the gunite phase.
We design and build inground pools throughout the Lowcountry. Every location we serve has its own soil conditions, permit processes, and design considerations — and we know them all:
Common questions homeowners ask about pergola and cabana installations in Charleston:
Custom gunite inground pool costs in the Charleston area typically range from $80,000 to $150,000 for a standard residential pool with typical features. Pools with more complex designs — vanishing edges, integrated spas, extensive water features, high-end interior finishes, or premium pool decks — commonly run $150,000 to $250,000+. The primary cost drivers are pool size, feature count, interior finish selection, and deck material. We provide detailed, itemized pricing after your design consultation — not ballpark ranges before we've reviewed your property.
Gunite is a mixture of cement and sand that's pneumatically applied over a steel reinforcement framework to form the pool shell. It's the most flexible and durable inground pool construction method available because it's site-applied — meaning the pool can be any shape, depth, or dimension you design, and the shell is engineered specifically for your property's soil conditions. Unlike fiberglass pools, which are manufactured in a factory mold and delivered in a fixed shape, gunite pools have no dimensional or shape constraints. Low Country Lagoons builds gunite pools exclusively because of this design freedom and long-term structural performance.
Most Low Country Lagoons pool projects are completed in 8 to 10 weeks from excavation. More complex designs with multiple features may take 12 to 14 weeks. Permitting time is separate — permit processing in the greater Charleston area typically takes 2 to 6 weeks depending on the municipality and current application volume. We factor the full timeline — including permitting — into the project schedule from your first consultation so there are no surprises about when you can expect to swim.
Yes. Pool construction in South Carolina requires permits to be held by a licensed pool contractor for every project. The greater Charleston area includes multiple permitting municipalities — each with its own process, timeline, and requirements — including the City of Charleston, Town of Mount Pleasant, Town of Sullivan's Island, Town of Isle of Palms, and others. Low Country Lagoons holds a South Carolina pool contractor license and manages permit applications across every municipality we serve. This is part of our standard project process — not an add-on.
Yes. High water tables are common in many areas of the greater Charleston region, particularly on the sea islands and in low-lying neighborhoods. Gunite pools can be engineered to handle hydrostatic pressure through proper shell thickness, hydrostatic relief valves, and drainage design. We assess each property's drainage conditions during the design consultation and engineer the pool shell accordingly. Properties with extreme water table conditions may require additional engineering measures, which we identify and account for before construction begins.
We offer four primary interior finish categories: standard white plaster (the most affordable and classic finish), quartz aggregate plaster (a more durable mid-grade option that resists staining and fading better than standard plaster), pebble finishes (Pebble Tec and similar — highly textured, extremely durable, 15+ year lifespan, wide color range), and glass tile (the most premium finish — full interior tile or waterline tile bands for a distinctive, high-end result). We discuss all finish options during the design phase and show you samples so you can make an informed decision.
If you’ve been thinking about a pool for your Charleston home, the best time to start the design conversation is before you need it. Permitting, design, and construction all take time — and the most popular build windows fill up months in advance.
Contact Low Country Lagoons today for a free, no-obligation design consultation. We’ll review your yard, discuss your goals, and give you a clear picture of what’s possible — including timeline and realistic cost range. We respond to every inquiry within 24 hours.
Contact Low Country Lagoons for a free design consultation. We respond within 24 hours.
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