This 18 ft round pool has a 52-inch wall, holds 7,600 gallons, has 254 sq ft of water surface and fits 8 swimmers.
Build the pool around your yard. This Aquasport 52 can be installed semi-inground or fully inground with the right setup, and this size can also stand completely above ground, like 10 of our 13 sizes.
The pool kit includes the pool, your choice of three full-print beaded Swimline Perma 2500 liners custom cut for this pool, and the standard above-ground skimmer and return. Pump, filter, ladder or steps, and installation are extra unless they are in the package you pick. Fully inground needs the inground skimmer kit and its wall panels.
Planning a semi-inground or inground pool? The Pool Builder has more pump and filter choices, steps, inground skimmers, lights and accessories. Pick a quick package, or build around your installation. Need us to install it? Semi-inground pool installation in Massachusetts.
See the wall construction difference
Which install is yours
Level lot, ladder or step, built in a weekend. The 18 ft round stands fully above ground.
Bury it one inch or four feet, and anywhere in between, for the built-in look. Our most common install. Add the inground skimmer if the standard skimmer would end up buried too.
Inground skimmer kit and panels, a self-priming pump, bonding. Buy the kit here with the skimmer upgrade, then build the equipment in the Pool Builder.
Bonding kit, self-priming inground pumps, the Pentair Quad 60 filter, light kits, decks and fence. Open the Pool Builder.
Pick your package: Really Good, Better or Best
Ladders and steps are chosen on their own below, because where the pool sits decides what you climb in on. So the difference between the packages is the filter, the pump and the tool kit.
Really Good, sand filter is the crazy value. You get the complete 175 lb sand filter system: the filter, the 1.5 HP 2-speed pump, the pressure gauge, hoses, clamps and base, plus the 9-piece tool kit. Sand is the simplest filter to live with, you backwash it and go, and it is what I usually recommend to people who don’t consider themselves handy.
Really Good, cartridge filter is the 120 square foot cartridge filter system with a 2-speed pump and the same tool kit. It catches finer dirt and you clean it with a hose instead of backwashing.
Better steps up to the Hayward XStream 150, a bigger cartridge that goes longer between cleanings, with the Hayward Matrix 2-speed pump and my Elite pool cleaning tools kit.
Best is that same XStream 150 with a Speck E71-II variable speed pump and the same Elite tools kit: program it once and it runs cheaper all season.
These packages fit a pump that sits below the water line, which is every above-ground install and most semi-inground ones. If your pump will sit above the water line you need a self-priming inground pump, and those are in the Pool Builder.
| Package | Filter | Pump | Tools |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pool kit | Not included | Not included | Not included |
| Really Good, sand (crazy value) | 175 lb sand | 1.5 HP 2-speed | 9-piece kit |
| Really Good, cartridge | 120 sq ft cartridge | 2-speed | 9-piece kit |
| Better | Hayward XStream 150 | Hayward Matrix 2-speed | Elite kit |
| Best | Hayward XStream 150 | Speck E71-II variable speed | Elite kit |
Ladders and steps
Pick one in the options, or none if you already have one. Every ladder comes with the liner guard and every step comes with its weights and liner guard, so nothing rubs the liner.
| Option | Good for |
|---|---|
| Confer 7100 A-frame ladder* | Above ground, with a safety barrier |
| Confer 7200 A-frame with roll barrier* | Above ground, the heavier ladder with the locking roll barrier |
| MGK drop-in step with weights | A deck or a semi-inground pool, easier in and out than a ladder |
| Confer Curve designer drop-in step | A deck or semi-inground, the wide curved step |
| King step, Granit Blue, 2 handrails** | Fully inground and semi-inground, the step we put in most of our own installs |
* Semi-inground or a deck coming later? Cut the outside legs of the A-frame to ground height, or off entirely once the deck is built. These steps and ladders are all plastic, so a saw is all it takes.
** The King step does not ship to every area. Picking it up yourself at an SCP pool supply branch near you saves money. Text Mike at (978) 710-8667 to set it up. In Massachusetts and nearby, we deliver it.
You are not building this alone
I sell this pool and I install it, and part of what you get with it is me. After your purchase, you get my cell number for free tech support. Site work, excavation, the bottom, the liner, plumbing, the electrical questions: if you get stuck on any part of the build, text me at (978) 710-8667 and we will work through it. Liner day is the big day; text “Liner day tomorrow” the night before and I will walk you through setting the bead. After hours, Sarah takes the message and I call you back.
Plus, every page of the manufacturer’s manual is online, retyped with the drawings and our own build photos: Aquasport 52 owner’s manual. Read it before you order so you know what the build looks like.
At a glance
- Size
- 18 ft round, 52-inch wall
- Water volume
- 7,600 gallons
- Water surface
- 254 sq ft
- Swimmers
- 8
- Wall
- Interlocking 4-inch aluminum panels, thicker than a quarter, beaded into a 1.5-inch structural column
- Frame
- Aluminum, bead receiver built into the top rail
- Liner
- Swimline Perma 2500, full print, beaded, your choice of three
- Skimmer
- Hayward above-ground skimmer and return included; inground skimmer kit with panels optional
- Install
- Above ground, semi-inground or fully inground; no cement collar, Massachusetts engineer’s stamp
- Shipping
- Free to the lower 48 with liftgate delivery; no shipping to Alaska, Hawaii or outside the US
- Manufacturer
- Aquasport Pools LLC / Buster Crabbe
- Warranty
- 30-year warranty
Questions people ask before they order
Can this size stand above ground?
Yes. The 18 ft round is one of 10 of our 13 sizes that can stand fully above ground. Only the 24 ft round, the 15×30 and the 17×32 must go at least one foot in the ground.
What does the price include?
The pool, your choice of liner print, and the Hayward above-ground skimmer and return, shipped free to the lower 48 with liftgate delivery. Pump, filter, ladder or step, and installation are extra unless you pick a package.
What changes for fully inground?
The inground skimmer kit with its wall panels is required, and the pump is usually above the water line, so it needs to be self-priming. Buy the kit here with the inground skimmer, or build your whole package on the Pool Builder page.
Does semi-inground need an inground pump?
Not always. If the pump sits below the water line, an above ground pump will work. If it sits above, use a self-priming inground pump from the Builder.
Does it really not need a cement collar?
Yes. The bottom of the pool has a track that locks in and holds the wall panels, which is the job cement does on other semi-inground pools.
Can I run a salt system?
A salt system voids the Aquasport 30-year warranty.
Can I see it installed?
Yes. The Aquasport 52 brochure page has a bunch of our installation photos and the full video the clip above was pulled from. The owner’s manual has the installation illustrations. More of our install videos are on the MGK Pools YouTube channel.
More: Aquasport 52 pools for sale in every size, the Aquasport 52 brochure, semi inground pool cost, replacement above ground pool liners, the pool bonding kit, semi-inground pool installation in Massachusetts, or contact Mike.
Building it yourself? Read the Aquasport 52 owner's manual, retyped page for page with every assembly drawing, plus build photos and videos from our own installs.
