A kidney-shaped swimming pool, sometimes called a bean shaped pool, is practical, appealing, and modern, yet classic. But it’s this very shape that makes it tricky to calculate how much water it holds.
That’s why we’ve created a kidney shaped pool volume calculator. It will do all the math for you without you needing to know any formulas.
Article Contents
Kidney-Shaped Pool Volume Calculator (Gallons or Litres)
Follow these steps to calculate how much water goes into your kidney-shaped pool.
Step 1) Select your unit of measurement, litres or gallons
Step 2) Enter the pool’s measurements in meters or feet.
Note: if your pool has a constant depth, enter the same number into both of the depth fields in the calculator.
About the Kidney-Shaped Pool Volume Calculator
The kidney-shaped pool volume calculator is an online pool volume tool designed to assist you when calculating the volume of a kidney-shaped or bean shaped swimming pool in both metric litres or imperial gallons.
To use it, you must know the depth of your pool (shallow and deep end), the length and the widths of two of the sections. You’ll then input those values into the calculator. From there, the calculator will do the rest of the hard numbers crunching so you don’t have to.
You can also refer to our kidney-shaped pool volume charts if you want to double-check your work or seek a quick reference.
Kidney-Shaped Pool Volume Charts
You can use the volume table by looking for your kidney-shaped pool’s length and average width. We’ve based these calculations using an average depth of 4.75 ft (1.5 m).
These are only approximations, but they should be close enough for you to calculate the amount of chlorine or other chemicals you need.
| Dimensions | Volume |
| 16 ft by 30 ft (4.9 m x 9.1 m) | 15,390 gallons (58,257 litres) |
| 16 ft by 34 ft (4.9 m x 10 m) | 17,442 gallons (66,025 litres) |
| 20 ft by 38 ft (6.1 m x 11 m) | 24,368 gallons (92,243 litres) |
Measurements Needed to Work Out Kidney-Shaped Pool Capacity
To determine the volume of your kidney-shaped pool, you need a few calculations:
- Pool Width (2 measurements)
- Pool Length
- Average Depth
Pool Width
You’ll need two measurements to work out the gallonage or number of litres in your kidney pool. Using the image above as a guide, take a tape measure and measure the two widest widths of your pool in metres or feet (W1 and W2 in the above diagram).
Pool Length
Measure the length of your kidney pool as shown above. The calculator will multiple the length by the average width of your pool.
Average Depth
The last calculation you’ll need is the average depth. A kidney shaped pool will usually have deep and shallow end. On average, inground pools usually have and average depth of 4.75 ft (1.5 m). That is, 4 ft (1.2 m) in the shallow end and about 5.5 ft (1.7 m).
How do you measure & workout the average depth of a kidney-shaped pool?
Measure both the deep end depth and the shallow end then take the average. To do this, put a measuring tape into the pool to measure the depth from the floor to the top of the pool wall.
Once you have the depth measurements, work out the average using this formula below. And if your pool only has one depth, just use the one number.
Average Depth = (Deep + Shallow Depth) / 2
e.g. let’s say the deep end is 6 feet and the shallow end is 4 feet. Add 6 and 4 together to get 10, then divide by 2 to get an average depth of 5 feet.
How Do I Calculate the Volume of a Kidney-Shaped Pool?
Calculating the volume of a kidney-shaped pool is more complex than doing the same for a round pool, but not impossible.
The diagram below will make it especially easy.
Use the following kidney pool volume formula:
Volume = Length (L) x (Width 1 + Width 2) x Avg. Depth X 0.45
Here is an example:
Let’s say these are your pool’s measurements:
Length = 30 feet (9.1 m)
Width A = 15 feet (4.6 m)
Width B = 17 feet (5.2 m)
Average Depth = 4.75 ft (1.5m)
Put the numbers in the above formula:
Imperial:
30 ft (length) x (15 ft (width 1) + 17 ft (width 2)) x 4.75 ft (avg. depth) x 0.45 = 2052 cubic feet
Metric:
9.1 m (length) x (4.6 m (width 1) + 5.2 m (width 2)) x 1.5 m (avg. depth) x 0.45 = 60 cubic meters
Note: The answer above is in cubic feet or cubic meters. We must convert this to gallons or litres next.
Convert the Cubic Feet to Gallons
It’s very easy to convert cubic feet to gallons. Just take the cubic feet you calculated and multiply by 7.5 to get gallons.
In the above example it would be:
Gallons = 2052 cubic feet X 7.5
= 15,390 gallons
Convert the Cubic Meters to Litres
If you want to convert cubic meters to litres, it’s just a matter multiplying your answer by 1,000.
In the above example it would be:
Litres = 60 cubic meters X 1000
= 60,000 litres
What Can You Use the Kidney-Shaped Pool Calculator For?
The kidney-shaped pool calculator we put together for you comes in handy for many uses, so let’s take a look.
1. Estimating Kidney-Shaped Pool Water Filling Requirements
If you need to get water delivered then the first reason it’s good to know the volume of your kidney-shaped swimming pool is to avoid over-ordering water. You don’t want to be wasteful.
2. Buying Pool Equipment
Your pool needs a filter, pump, and other equipment, such as a heater depending on where you live and how long you keep your pool open. Each piece of pool equipment is designed to handle a certain amount of water. That’s why it’s essential to know how many gallons of water your kidney-shaped pool holds before purchasing any pool equipment.
3. Running Time of Pool Pump
Here’s another factor that’s determined by the size and gallonage of your swimming pool: how long you’ll run your pump for.
Even if you got the size correct, if you don’t know how many gallons of water a kidney-shaped pool can hold, you might not run equipment like the pump for long enough. Or you might run it too long, which will cost more in electricity.
Failing to operate the pump and filter for long enough leads to cloudy water and algae.
4. Calculating Pool Chemical Amounts
Yet another great reason to understand the gallonage of your swimming pool is to calculate the precise amount of chemicals your kidney-shaped pool requires. More chemicals are not better!
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