Original subtitles

-Let's rock! -Yeah!

LUCAS: I'm Lucas Congdon...

Alright, you guys. We did it. Yeah!

[ Laughs ]

I'm here to show you some of the biggest...

Oh, my God! Yeah, baby!

...craziest...

Wow! This is awesome!

LUCAS: ...and most beautiful pools in the country.

WOMAN: This is the best pool I think I've ever seen.

Tuck it in. Tuck it.

LUCAS: These talented crews...

Oh, my God! That is crazy!

...take jaw-dropping pool designs to the next level.

Anyone can build a pool,

but these pools are a little slice of paradise.

-Whoo! -Yeah!

¶¶

Today, I'm heading to meet the Martin family.

They live in Bradenton, which is just south of Tampa.

So, I pull down their driveway,

and I see this mountain lodge, I mean, in Florida.

They're wanting to complete their retreat

with a Colorado Rocky-themed backyard pool area.

It just looks like we are in Colorado already,

and I haven't even gotten to do my magic yet.

Hey, Lucas, nice to meet you. Hey, nice to meet you.

My name's Steve Martin.

I live in Bradenton, Florida, with my wife, Lori,

and my three kids -- Cam, Eli, and Reece,

Oh, this is a big backyard.

You got the lake back here.

What's cool is, you really have a nice view

from every point of the house, out to this area.

Part of the reason we have such a nice view

is 'cause our house sits up 4 or 5 feet from the grade.

And you can see the elevation. If we came out level,

it's probably gonna hit us. Right.

I don't know if we'll have steps or...

We do want levels, but no handrails.

Over in here, I'm thinking big waterfall.

But we don't want to block

our view because this is... Right, right.

what you look at every day. Beautiful.

We could do a spa

on top of the waterfall, where you climb up,

and you're up here in this hot tub,

and you're looking out over the property.

Well, just one wrinkle. We've already ordered

an electric above-ground hot tub.

Oh, really?

Most clients just let me run wild and be like,

"Oh, yeah, that's cool. Just build me something awesome."

But you guys definitely seem to have

some real specific ideas of what you want.

They really want to know exactly what I'm gonna do

before I do it.

I'll get my creative team together,

we'll draw up some stuff,

and, uh, we'll talk to you soon.

Sounds great. It was nice meeting you.

Thanks, Lori. Nice to meet you. Appreciate you coming.

Alright. Thanks, Steve.

LUCAS: We've come up with a great design.

It's got all the things

that the Martins are looking for,

and it meets their budget.

I brought Ben with me, my account manager,

to show them everything that we've got.

First, you come out onto a wood deck,

come down even lower to the pool area.

Gives you all the levels you want.

We made a place to put the hot tub

and hide it behind the waterfall.

Steppingstones up to the top of the waterfall

so the kids can jump off of it.

Gives you the cool rockwork.

Opens up the entire view to the pond.

What do you think? This looks pretty close.

I think we're getting the total feel.

I-I think this design's coming together.

LUCAS: Now that we have design approval,

we can charge full steam ahead with the build.

¶¶

Crash and I get started by laying out the pool

so we can get to digging.

¶¶

CHRIS: A typical pool,

we excavate about 60 yards of dirt.

The Martin job is so big,

I had to excavate 120 yards out of it.

For every new pool, we got to dig

the depth and a couple of extra feet

to accommodate the pool shell and the plumbing.

LUCAS: With most of the heavy lifting done,

the rest of my crew joins us to finish digging the pool

and build the wood pool forms.

¶¶

It's always organized chaos at this stage of the build.

Normally, we don't see the clients around,

but I've seen Lori out there with her tape measure

multiple times.

LORI: Double-checking measurements.

It just kind of comes my nerves and helps me know

that things are being relayed between Lucas and his team.

LUCAS: I mean, this is a dream for them, and I get it.

But I know we're spot-on on all our measurements.

¶¶

The pool has been dug, and we've installed the rebar.

The rebar will support all the concrete

and the huge waterfall grotto.

It's time to shoot the shotcrete.

[ Truck back-up warning beeping ]

¶¶

The shotcrete is in at the Martin project.

It's had time to cure.

We've got the whole shell sealed.

The rocks have arrived from Tennessee.

So now time to start building that beautiful grotto.

I love when it's rock time, because that's when

Lucas Lagoons becomes this well-oiled machine.

This is one dirty rock.

Now we're setting the first rocks

that are the builders for the grotto.

And what does that rock weigh, like 3,500 pounds?

Yeah.

I let it glide along the edge,

so if it does tip, it'll catch me.

Just keep an eye. Tell me how close I can get.

The position of the first rock really determines

how the rest of the rocks are gonna fit together.

So it's really crucial

to get that first rock just right.

Up, up, up, up!

CHRIS: Whoa, I'm tipping! Get out from under it!

Perfect.

One down, 526 more to go.

It's always exciting, setting that first boulder,

but we've got a lot of work to do here.

It's gonna take all this week and into the next

trying to build this Rocky Mountain stream grotto.

¶¶

We're nearing the end of the grotto build.

Lucas is off-site this morning for a client meeting.

He gave us a plan, and we're ready to execute.

¶¶

You can come to me a little.

Let it -- Let go, John! John, let go.

I can see it right now. You're still like 8 inches away.

JANE: We had some challenging rock-setting moments.

You must be in the wrong spot.

Well, now you changed where I was, like, from last time.

JANE: Chris wants to turn it this way.

John's got another idea. So, you know,

there's always that kind of headbutting.

I'm saying, "either, either, either."

That's not right. No, it's not.

Geez, everybody's getting their panties

up in a bunch this morning!

I'm trying to explain something to you,

and you're telling me something else!

We're not [Bleep] idiots.

We can -- We know what's going on.

This morning, I couldn't be on-site at the Martin project

because I had another client meeting.

I left specific instructions on where to put this rock.

I figured the team can keep working without me.

We've got to stay on schedule.

I'm trying to explain something to you,

and you're telling me something else.

When Lucas isn't around,

everybody seems to have their own idea

about how things should go.

Of course, Lori comes to check in when

we're at our worst.

I just think that is so pretty.

Yeah, no, it would look nice if that was all wet.

Because Lori saw us arguing,

I could tell she was getting concerned about the plan,

and that's the last thing we want.

So if there wasn't so much water coming over here,

then you could actually see it coming down.

Right, 'cause you don't want to detract from the grotto.

Right.

So we decided to call Lucas

and straighten it all out for her.

LUCAS: I think it would be a waste to just hide water

coming out from underneath it.

We -- we can't do a little bit of both?

No problem. We can do that. I'm on my way back right now.

You know, we've kind of let it evolve with their input,

and they're really happy 'cause they feel like

they're a part of it.

So, finally, it's time for the grotto rock lid.

I mean, this rock is awesome.

It's so big, and it's like 12-foot wide by 10-foot deep.

It weighs like 4,500 pounds.

[ Clacking ]

LUCAS: I like the way we got this strapped.

We're doubling up on everything, not taking any chances.

Keep coming just like you are.

[ Squeaking ]

Alright.

Let it boom out.

Here it comes. [ Squeaking ]

Okay. That's good.

LUCAS: When we set the grotto rock,

it's starting to come together.

It makes such a huge impact.

Oh, yeah. That's frickin' beautiful.

It's level.

With the rockwork basically done,

it's time to start the decking.

We're gonna do two different levels of decking system.

We're gonna have a lower travertine deck

that's 500 square feet,

and the upper deck of 700 square feet

that's rustic barn planks

that are actually made out of concrete.

Your last two pieces.

You want this one first? Thank you. Yeah.

Just setting that, and we're done.

This looks incredible.

Now it's time to incorporate the therapeutic hot tub

that Steve and Lori bought.

Everyone down. One, two, three.

Okay, I think we can handle it.

Normally, if the clients want a hot tub on their pool,

I build it with the pool,

but they had this therapeutic spa

they wanted to incorporate.

-Oh-hoo-hoo! -We go down?

No, no, no, no!

-Okay. -One, two, three.

Okay, that's about it.

¶¶

LUCAS: The landscaping is going in.

That's one of my favorite parts,

because not only do I love doing it

but that means we're that much closer to being done

with this build.

7 1/2 feet between each one.

The landscape materials that we chose this time

are so much different than what we normally use.

We're using this kind of mountainous

type of Northern landscape material.

It's smelling like Christmas.

Bringing the mountains down to Florida.

JANE: We're in the final stages of the Martin build,

and one of the last things I have to do

is finish the fire pit.

You go that way and I'll go this way,

and I'll meet you on the other side.

¶¶

LUCAS: As we finish the fire pit, the rest of the crew

is installing the irrigation, filtration system, and lighting.

¶¶

Now it's the moment of truth.

The Martins have waited seven long years

to build their dream pool.

I hope now they feel the wait was worth it.

Alright, guys, come on out!

¶¶

This is awesome. This is unbelievable.

You had a backyard of weeds.

I mean, a beautiful backdrop and everything,

but you were lacking a feature.

And you wanted the Colorado Rockies.

The only thing missing is,

like, a bison running across the backyard.

[ Laughter ]

It all started with Steve and his fire pit.

When it gets nice and cold,

this will be perfect for hanging out at.

And then check this out.

I mean, incorporating the spa into this elevated area,

but actually sinking it down

so it looks just part of the design.

It fits great.

I can't imagine it fitting any better.

Check out this amazing rock creation we did for you.

You can actually sit underneath it.

Even someone tall like you, Steve, could sit under there,

have the water coming over your shoulders.

Lucas definitely created the Colorado look we wanted.

I feel like I'm in a Colorado resort.

All the furniture and the plants and the colors,

it just makes such a difference.

I think Lucas understood

that it is more than a pool to us,

that it was part of this vision

that started many, many years ago.

You only have so long to have your kids at home.

That's the main thing I wanted in the pool,

was to have our family time.

You really took that in stride

and saw that it meant something to us.

And rather than just pushing our ideas aside

because they weren't the normal tropical lagoon,

he took hold of them and really made them his own.

I'm happy that you guys will be able to make memories

for your kids, and as a family, for years to come.

¶¶

-Cheers, everybody. -Cheers.

-Cheers. -Cheers.

-Whoo-hoo! -Yeah!

LUCAS: In Las Vegas, Nevada, Brett and Christina Benson

are hoping to hit the jackpot on a new pool.

CHRISTINA: This is the house where I'm gonna retire in.

This was our dream house.

So, Brett and I have three grown children now.

The yard right now is kind of an eyesore.

And this is her pool of dreams.

Turning their pool dreams into reality

starts with a 6-foot-high retaining wall

that will double as a water feature

that can be seen from inside the house.

The beautiful mosaic spa will spill into a splash pad

that has two bubbler water features.

Next to that will be the main pool

that will be set up for this volleyball-loving family.

Continuing down the yard will be the sunken bar

and outdoor kitchen, complete with a 48-inch grill.

And to utilize this large corner of the yard,

there will be a huge dance floor for the Bensons

and their kids to party in style.

¶¶

With the plans in place,

the crew marks out the outline of the pool,

and the dig begins.

Before reaching the required depth,

they hit rock bottom with the backhoe.

A hydraulic breaker attachment is needed

to break through the rocky desert soil.

The plumbing and electrical are installed,

and the crew begins shooting and forming the shotcrete.

They must carefully sculpt each feature

of the Bensons' backyard oasis.

The pool is really starting to take shape.

Massive palm trees are brought in

to create a tropical look.

The trees are so heavy that a crane is needed

to move them into place.

These trees weigh 5,000 pounds each.

That's enough to go right through the roof

if they're not careful.

Looks good.

There we go.

It's all hands on deck

to tile the pool and its 6-foot water feature.

The Bensons chose a porcelain woodgrain tile,

accompanied by a natural white limestone

for the water-feature wall.

MAN: Make sure that we hit those angles right there.

Looks good.

LUCAS: Before they can get far on the fireplace,

Christina stops by to express some concerns.

MAN: Hey, Christina.

Wait, what's going on over here?

That's your fireplace.

Is it gonna stick out this far?

Yeah. I didn't want it to come out so far.

I need some room on my dance floor.

I don't like it.

You want to go without a fireplace?

No, I want the fireplace. But can we do something else?

What if we tucked this into the hillside

and your fireplace would be sitting back there?

Is that hard?

Yeah, it's gonna be all-day work.

Let's get to work.

LUCAS: With Christina's request,

the crew shifts gears on the fireplace

and begins tiling the dance floor.

The dance floor will be made of travertine tile.

Travertine is a dense tile

and will make this dance floor extra sturdy.

¶¶

The pool has been tiled, and the plaster is applied.

The bright white plaster

will reflect the brilliant desert sun.

Finally, the pool is filled, the cleaning system installed,

and the final touches are made to the Bensons' pool.

Here's your new backyard.

What?! Wow!

LUCAS: The wait is over for the Bensons' backyard getaway.

Here's your new backyard.

What?! BRETT: Wow!

What?!

¶¶

Wow! Are you kidding me?!

¶¶

No way! Wow.

Oh, my God, Paul and Brian, this is ridiculous.

LUCAS: Not only is there a beautiful retaining wall

that you can see as you walk through the front door

but there's actually four rainwater features, as well.

That is beyond amazing.

I am blown away. It's kind of like being

somewhere tropical on our own little island.

We don't need to go anywhere for vacation.

It's all right here.

Up next, their beautiful mosaic spa.

Wow! Wow!

This is amazing.

I love the way the water goes off both sides.

¶¶

On the other side of the yard is their new outdoor kitchen.

Wow!

Look at that barbecue! Oh, yeah!

I can cook some steaks on that.

Not only is there a 48-inch grill

but they also have a sink and a refrigerator.

Wow.

Christina, turn around.

How many people in your family?

Five. Look at that.

Five custom bar stools.

Oh, no way!

Oh, my goodness, you've thought of everything.

This is just over-the-top amazing.

¶¶

Here it is, Christine -- your brand-new dance floor.

What?! This is where Mama is gonna be.

Wow! Look at the travertine!

It's just gorgeous.

BRETT: You can see everything from up here.

It's awesome.

LUCAS: It's time to have a party at the Bensons' place.

Point for Gala.

Cooking and being able to serve drinks and food,

having people swim up.

[ Laughter ]

The water features and the fire,

and it's amazing -- amazing to me.

It's beyond amazing. I am actually speechless.

Impossible. [ Laughs ]

Go ahead, Kristina.

This is a pool worth talking about.

¶¶

In San Antonio, Texas, Brittany and Mark Wohlfarth

are wanting a pool that caters to the whole family.

MARK: We just sold our house, bought a new house.

The only thing missing is the pool. Yeah.

Are you getting a new pool? Yeah.

The good thing about doing a new house is,

we get to do a new pool.

And we know exactly what we want to do in that pool.

Our two oldest love every sport imaginable.

So we want a lot of sports activities --

basketball, volleyball.

We want to design that into the pool.

And then, for our youngest, we want to get

somehow incorporated in design for him, as well.

It's kind of a split-level house.

And above the garage is a big patio area.

And what I'm envisioning is

putting a barbecue area up there,

and then right adjacent to that is having a pool.

But the problem is, it's about 13 feet up in the air.

Don't worry, Mark and Brittany,

you're getting a pool that checks all the boxes,

starting with this raised Baja shelf and spa for Brittany

that will have a spillover infinity edge.

There will be another infinity edge feature

on the back of the pool, spilling down 15 feet

into a practice pool for their youngest son.

The older boys will enjoy

the built-in basketball hoop and volleyball net

that they can be enjoyed day or night.

For Mark, he'll get a large swim-up bar

and patio for grilling and entertaining.

¶¶

The pool is going to be

right off the Wohlfarth's back patio,

15 feet in the air.

But before the workers can start,

they first need to clear 11 trees from their backyard.

¶¶

With the trees finally out of the way,

they can begin to build the wooden forms

and shape out the pool.

To be level with the existing patio,

the pool is going to be about 15 feet high,

so they need to build a pretty serious network of forms

to support all that concrete they're going to be using.

It's gunite day,

and the first truck of concrete is rolling in.

An average pool uses about six truckloads of concrete,

but this one will take over 13.

Once they finish, they'll let it sit, cure,

and move on to the next step -- tile.

Brittany and Mark chose an iridescent tile

that will really sparkle in the sun

and will be perfect for the overflow spa and infinity edge,

while a split-face stone tile goes up by the swim-up bar.

The pool is finally ready for plaster.

This unique plaster has a glass-bead finish

that will shine under the crystal clear water.

An acid wash is used to expose those glass beads,

and when they hit the sun, they're really going to pop.

¶¶

The Wohlfarth's pool is finally ready for the family to see.

Alright, guys, let's see what y'all think.

-Whoa! -Man!

LUCAS: The Wohlfarth family is excited to see their new pool.

Alright, guys, let's see what y'all think.

-Whoa! -Man!

It's amazing. Man! Holy cow!

-Hey, it's a pool! -Look at the fire bowls.

-Oh, my God, yeah. -Whoa! Awesome.

MARK: With that negative edge, whoa, that is so cool, man.

-Alright. Good? -Perfect spot.

What do you think, Cooper?

What do you think, buddy?

-Whoo! -Whoo!

How about it? Yeah!

I tell you what. I love the swim-up bar.

Like, I could see the kids, sitting there eating, swimming.

We barbecue a ton. So we have a ton of people over.

And this, for lounging around, suntan.

LUCAS: The steps leading to the Baja shelf

can double as extra seating.

What's your favorite, Brittany?

You know, I'm gonna enjoy myself right here.

Couple of lounge chairs.

And he's gonna be waiting on you.

Exactly, I'm coming back to that.

"Go get me another drink."

Man, I love the hot tub.

LUCAS: The glass tile in the overflow spa

is the perfect complement

to the tile and plaster surrounding it.

MARK: What is this stone up here?

Face tile. Oh, my gosh, that's beautiful.

A nice little privacy wall.

I love how it's private, yeah.

I love the glass bead, by the way.

I wasn't sure, like, the blue

was gonna integrate with the grays and all that.

It looks awesome.

LUCAS: The glass bead finish inside the spa was also used

on the backside of the infinity edge.

MARK: That infinity edge just wraps down,

and the view back over the trees is beautiful.

LUCAS: There's also a built-in seating area

right in front of the infinity edge,

perfect for enjoying the water as it flows over.

Barry, what is your favorite part of the pool?

I like the fire bowls and definitely the hot tub.

What do you think? Basketball goal.

Cooper? I like basketball.

You like basketball? Yeah.

We've also got something a little special

set up for you, Cooper.

We got your own little area called Cooper's Basin

on the backside of the pool.

-Whoa! -Whoa!

Cooper's Basin!

You lucky dog.

-What are you doing? -Whoa!

Oh, he wants to get in.

[ Laughter ]

Well, it looks like Cooper's ready to get in.

Are we all ready to get in?

-Yeah! -Whoo!

Let's do it!

-[ Chuckles ] -Are you ready?

-Whoa! -Whoa!

MARK: This pool changed our family for the better,

because we can actually enjoy family and friends,

and we don't have to go elsewhere.

We can get our kids and have their friends over.

It's a one-stop shop. Yeah.

[ Crowd cheers ]

I like hanging out on this Baja shelf,

sit in the bubblers, and just relax

and soak up my everything.

Vitamin D. Yeah.

Cooper's pool -- I mean, my gosh,

Cooper loves it down there.

Yeah, we have swim lessons coming up with them.

And he can't wait to jump in the pool.

He's a daredevil.

Are you ready? Now try.

[ Laughs ]

The beautiful thing is, we're creating memories.

Exactly.

We each have an item in this pool

that we all care about -- love.

And that's why I think we love this pool as a family.

LUCAS: It's the perfect family pool.

¶¶

I'm in Sarasota, Florida.

I'm going to meet with the McClouds.

They say they want to do a complete backyard remodel.

They got an old, dated pool.

And I can't wait to see it and give them some ideas.

Hey, Lucas, how you doing? Hey, Gant.

Come on out this way.

This is the pool area. Alright.

So, when we bought this house, we inherited this old pool.

And it's really time to change it.

I want my son to grow up

with a really fun, exciting place to swim.

And we'd like to have a shallow area

for him to enjoy.

We want to make it more natural and updated.

With the current pumps and with the current valves,

it's not up to code -- for safety reasons.

You know, having that single main drain

on the floor of the pool is dangerous.

There's been cases across the country,

with old pools --

you know, kids swimming down to the deepest part

and getting stuck to the drain and drowning.

Well, what other type of features are you thinking

to incorporate in this area?

Well, we'd like to update the spa that's there,

because the old kind of glass-block style is dated now.

Right. And maybe do something

with some natural stone, water overflowing.

We love it here in this sort of natural-setting environment.

And our property backs up to this preserve area,

which we love. Beautiful.

On the other side of this preserve,

there's a road,

and the county is expanding that road now.

So there's gonna be even more road noise.

So we're hoping that you can create some waterfalls

to help drown that out. Is that possible?

Oh, yeah, definitely.

I mean, you have a beautiful backdrop here.

I can take you away to just another place.

Perfect. Well, I see

you don't have a lot of deck space,

but it looks like you have a grill over there.

We grill there now, but we were thinking,

that area, we use so much for relaxing.

This area over here is more of a dead zone

we don't use at all. Do you think it's possible

maybe to put an outdoor kitchen on this side instead?

Yeah, actually, that's kind of a good idea.

So, here's your pool area.

Okay. We're talking about

turning this whole area here for your son.

Maybe we'll call this, like, a Toddler's Tidal Pool.

And then the corner here would be the grotto.

We'll bring that concrete wall up

to about 6 foot, do the rock on top of that.

So you're gonna get 7 foot of height for the waterfall.

And then we can do the planter, look like an island

with a palm tree coming out of it.

Oh, that'll be great. By extending the pool,

you're adding at least 50% more pool.

So, over there, I love tying in the kitchen.

Having that rockwork start with the kitchen,

turn into the waterfall that turns into the grotto.

Is there anything else you can give us --

more waterfall, something like that?

If you want more, we can do more.

I love waterfalls.

We could just do a whole water wall

from here, all the way down to the spa,

and just block out all that noise.

It sounds amazing.

We're super excited, Lucas. Thanks so much for coming out.

Cool. You got it.

LUCAS: So, for this project, it's not a complete demo.

So it's actually harder, because

you can't just get a big machine in there and rip it all out.

They got my whole crew over there.

-Nice. -Alright!

We're ready to go full steam ahead

and knock this project out.

A lot of times, you know, having a cage hinders the view,

but the way I'm doing this,

it's gonna feel like one big atrium.

Hi, guys. Let's mark up the place

and just start demo.

Their cage is still in great condition.

So we will only remove a few sections

to access the pool.

Grab a saw. Let's cut these out of here.

And then we can get right into the concrete.

We're having fun now.

¶¶

And just like that, it's demo time.

¶¶

I mean, just basically almost half of that pool is gone now.

It's time to start that new pool.

LUCAS: Demo's done,

and we're ready to build ourselves a pool.

The new forms and rebar are going in.

We got rebar going around everywhere,

where our water wall is going to be,

our grotto, and our outdoor kitchen area.

LUCAS: One big upgrade are the new suction lines.

Now there will be dual suction,

creating a safer and more efficient pool.

With everything installed, we're ready for shotcrete.

¶¶

CHRIS: Once you shoot that shotcrete in there,

I mean, it's in there for good, it's strong.

LUCAS: Holds all our rocks and all the water features.

So I'm so stoked we can just keep moving forward.

[ Bird trills ]

We're using Tennessee fieldstone on this build.

It's a smoother stone than the Florida limestone.

I think it's gonna look great there.

That's gonna give them that natural look

they're looking for.

Once I see all the rocks together,

I start visualizing where I want to put them.

I mean, you can't really design to the T on paper.

The rocks speak to me.

Oh, this rocks is gonna be cool to jump off of.

This one's a water feature. Here's a grotto rock.

The rocks that you choose

really dictate the design organically.

¶¶

JOHN: Woman is working on the water wall.

Come in just like you are. Come straight in.

Lucas is in a million different places at the same time.

And I'm over, busy, working on my spa.

So we're gonna to have a water feed on that rock

and this rock? Part of this rock.

We integrate all the plumbing for the water feeds,

for irrigation, lighting,

all that internally within the waterfall, hidden.

In this case, we've used inch and a half trunk lines

that are split up into one-inch feeds.

That's a lot of waterfall in there.

On this water wall, we have

eight total separate areas where water is coming out.

Come down a little more.

When you look at the water wall.

you don't see any plumbing. It's just organically kind of

working its way between the crevices of the stone.

The rockwork on this pool just doesn't end.

It flows all the way from the kitchen to the waterfall,

down that amazing rock wall, and surrounding the entire spa.

The plants in the middle of the pool

will look like an organic island formed from rock.

This is why I love my rock guys.

I mean, we've really rocked this out quickly.

In a few short days, we're ready to set the grotto lid.

Alright, Crash that grotto rock

is probably gonna be one of the hardest lids we've ever set.

Got to be very careful.

Don't hit this beam or this beam or the roof.

You think it's gonna fit in between there?

Follow my signals, and nothing will happen.

Okay, don't pull them out too much.

You're scaring me.

Okay, you're plenty high.

Watch this post. Watch that post.

Watch the post. Watch this post.

Oh, dude, dude! Come on!

What'd I do?

Why are you going into that post?!

You're tweaking the whole roof!

[ Sighs loudly ]

Keep an eye on this post.

This is not a good situation.

Watch that post!

-Hold it, hold it! -Aw!

Oh, my gosh! What did I hit now?!

You're taking out both posts.

I did what Lucas told me not to.

5-foot opening with a 7-foot rock,

and he expects me not to hit anything.

At this point, for safety,

I think I'm gonna cut out both posts.

Whoa, buddy.

I guess sometimes it's got to get worse

before it gets better.

[ Laughing ]

Okay, let's try that again.

Keep coming in as far as you possibly can.

After that, we were able

to slide that big grotto rock right through.

Keep going down? Keep coming down.

Aw, this is the hardest grotto rock

I've ever had to set.

Okay.

The Eagle has landed.

We set the lid of the grotto.

Unfortunately, it's, like, hanging by a thread

on the one side of the grotto.

Over time, this 5,000-pound rock

will probably end up cracking right here,

where it's thinner, and falling.

I cannot trust that rock to hang on forever like that.

So we're gonna have to figure out

how to get some rocks in here to go from the floor

to the ceiling and support this rock.

Okay.

Alright, Chris, on the count of three.

Soon as I hear three, I'm dropping it!

-One, two. -[Bleep]

Go! Down!

Whoa!

Geez, almost broke the whole rock!

Didn't have to go down that far.

He was like, "Yeah!" What the hell?

Did that work? Does that look good?

-Perfect. -Alright.

Get on out of here.

Alright, well, that got us three-quarters of the way up.

-Just have this left to go. -Gnarly.

Stand to one side. We'll lift it.

-Funky. -Hold it.

LUCAS: I'm really pleased with the way it's turned out.

Everything's secure. Everything's safe.

And everything looks just beautiful.

Now that we're on the homestretch,

we got a cage specialist here.

He's gonna reframe it all back out.

We're just doing the finishing touches.

We got the guys here doing the interior finish.

Got Old Man installing that grill.

And all that's left is to add water.

I'm about to show them their new backyard.

I can't wait for them to see it.

Check it out.

Wow! Oh, my gosh.

LUCAS: I'm about to show them their new backyard.

I'm so proud of my crew. They exceeded my expectations.

I just hope it exceeds Julie and Gant's.

Alright, you guys ready? [ Baby coos ]

We are definitely ready. We're ready.

Alright, let's go, guys.

We are so excited to see your pool.

What do you think, Colton?

Are you ready to see your new pool?

Alright. Check it out.

Wow!

Oh, my gosh! [ Laughs ]

See, you got waterfalls everywhere.

I wanted it to feel like you're in your own world.

And I really wanted to bring that outdoor feel in this area

and make it feel like an atrium.

It is a total transformation in every way.

[ Chuckles ] Wow!

Now it's just nice and softened,

lush plantings everywhere.

Awesome.

A whole wall of water like you guys wanted.

It looks exactly like I pictured it,

but 10 times better.

Everything looks perfect.

And I love the size of that pygmy date palm

you found for the island. It's nice and high.

It doesn't block the view of any of the rockwork.

It's just -- It's just gorgeous.

Not only did you want it to be beautiful back here,

but it had to serve a functional purpose, right?

And that was to block out the sound.

Yes. So I want you to listen.

What do you hear?

Running water.

Waterfalls. No traffic.

No construction. No traffic. That is perfect.

You have your beautiful spa, which now you can't even tell

that it's octagonal, with all the rock softening it.

It looks like it's just an organic shape.

That is a spa I want to get in.

That looks so good. Yeah, like a real lagoon.

Come on, bud. Check this out.

You got a nice shallow area to play.

You can go back in, behind the cave.

The water won't be falling on your head.

You can kind of hide back there.

And it came out to be, like,

my favorite part of the whole waterfall.

There's no way I could pick my favorite part.

All of it's my favorite. That's the right answer.

[ Laughter ]

Gant, I know, for you,

a big thing was having an outdoor kitchen.

-So turn around. -Wow.

You've got your awesome grill right here.

We've incorporated the same rockwork into the kitchen.

You got this beautiful granite.

I mean, look how big this tabletop is.

I mean, you could have everybody sitting over there

and even a seat for Colton.

Just a natural extension of what you did.

It's just gorgeous.

JULIE: I didn't think it could be done.

But he did it. [ Chuckles ]

¶¶

Whoa-ho-ho-ho-ho!

LUCAS: Being here at the end

and seeing how happy it makes the family,

it just makes me want to keep doing this again and again.

JULIE: Lucas did a great job.

We really got the pool of our dreams with this project.

Whoa!

Even better than our dream. Yeah.

I can't imagine it being any greater.

¶¶

LUCAS: In Southern California,

Vic and Yukari are looking to build their dream pool.

YUKARI: I mean, it's very important to us.

What are we cooking tonight? We're cooking chicken tacos.

We moved to this new house to be close to our son.

And we have two sons and one grandson.

Can I do tomatoes? You want to do tomatoes?

I like to keep whole family close together.

Our yard is just the weed and the dirt.

I want my yard to be something special

so that family can enjoy.

Maybe we can build a lap lane.

I can do exercise.

My family all like to barbecue.

So I like to have a barbecue so they can come and cook for us.

Yeah, I agree. [ Laughs ]

LUCAS: Their barren backyard will be transformed

into a luxurious outdoor getaway,

starting with a 40-foot lap pool,

highlighted at the end by a see-through wall

that is tied into a sunken fire pit area.

The water will flow over the see-through glass

and under the seating area

to create a tranquil environment.

On the other end of the lap pool will be a see-through fireplace

that will give a "fire dancing on water" effect.

In front of it all will be this raised spa

with an infinity edge, allowing water to cascade

over the sides, onto the Baja shelf.

And to top off the pool will be these colored water fountains

that will look like neon lights streaming into the pool.

Finally, on the other side of the sunken fire pit

will be a huge outdoor kitchen and patio

big enough for the whole family.

¶¶

The magic of this pool design is that, from the fire pit,

it looks aboveground,

but actually both are sunken features.

The 40-foot lap pool and fire pit are dug out,

and the plumbing and gas lines are in.

The rebar is in place, and it's time for shotcrete.

They're using 80 yards of the sand-and-cement mixture

to form the pool, fire pit area, and spa.

Vic and Yukari's backyard is coming together fast.

The spa is wrapped in a 3-D gray glass tile,

and their surrounding walls and fireplace

are the perfect complement with their white ceramic tile.

Travertine coping ties everything together.

Man, that is a heavy piece of acrylic.

Weighing in at over a thousand pounds,

this see-through wall needs to be lowered into place by a crane

without getting a single scratch.

That's a lot of pressure when trying to safely move

a $25,000 piece of acrylic.

Alright, buddy, we're ready to roll.

-Alright, get one done. -Watch it on that side.

We're good here. Looking good, still.

-Keep it coming. -Hold it up easy.

Don't hit that right there.

We're about to drop on into this side here, Blake.

Make sure it doesn't bang up the sides out here.

Be really careful on that side.

And we have touchdown.

Alright, boys, let's get this sealed up, locked in place,

and on to the next phase. Good deal.

LUCAS: The panel is secured with epoxy,

which will take about a week to cure.

The plaster is the last step before filling the pool.

¶¶

Vic and Yukari, here's your brand-new pool!

[ Laughs ] Oh, my gosh.

LUCAS: It's time for the big reveal

of Vic and Yukari's dreamy lap pool.

Vic and Yukari, here's your brand-new pool!

[ Laughs ] Oh, my gosh.

¶¶

Amazing. It's beautiful.

It's a dream come true.

LUCAS: This pool is 40 feet long, 6 foot deep,

and is surrounded by over 2,000 square foot

of travertine decking.

I love this travertine.

Beautiful. Beautiful.

What was achieved with this design

was making this unusual-size yard

feel like one continuous space.

Look at that huge see-through fire pit area.

You'll be able to see that over the top of the water,

and that'll light up as another fire feature.

Wow. It's gonna be beautiful.

LUCAS: To make this area completely flow,

the outdoor kitchen is right next to the pool,

so it's easy to serve.

Wonderful. We don't have to go anywhere.

Yeah. [ Chuckles ]

And isn't this a fun area here?

Yeah, I love this.

Your own fire pit. Yeah, I love this.

Now, this is the pièce de résistance.

The acrylic see-through wall.

It's a thousand pounds, and let me tell you,

it was not easy to get in here.

Look amazing.

You know, this is holding back

a 160,000 pounds of water.

YUKARI: Wow.

I never seen anything like this before.

LUCAS: The water actually sheets over the wall,

under the cement paths,

and recirculates back into the pool

after being filtered.

So smooth, the waterfall down.

You notice we have three bar stools here,

and right behind Brian, there's an open spot.

That's open because we left 40 feet

of unobstructed lap lanes.

So Vic can be doing laps every day.

I need it.

Get your family over, because it's party time.

Party time! Party time!

I love it. It's amazing.

Beyond my expectation, really.

[ Laughter ]

I think I'm going to spend most of the time in the spa.

Have a drink in my hand and watch you swim laps.

[ Laughs ] That sound like a good idea.

This is a dream come true. Yeah.

LUCAS: Vic and Yukari now have a backyard to be proud of.