Why Is Pool Automation Now Standard on Luxury Pool Construction?
A custom luxury pool in 2026 is a system: pumps, heaters, salt cells, lighting, water features, spas, automated valves, chemical dosers, water-level fill, and increasingly, integrated audio. Without automation, controlling that system means walking to an equipment pad and rotating mechanical timers. With automation, every function lives on a single iPhone or Android app, an in-home touchscreen, or - if the home runs Crestron, Savant, Control4, or Lutron - within the home's existing home-automation interface. Gedney Pools installs and integrates pool automation systems as part of every new construction project and as a standalone retrofit service for existing pools across Connecticut and Westchester County.
Pentair IntelliCenter - Our Most Common Recommendation
Pentair IntelliCenter is the system we specify on most new luxury pool installations. The IntelliCenter platform supports up to four bodies of water (pool, spa, water features as independent zones), 40 auxiliary relays, integrated VRGS-compliant suction safety, and full salt-cell, heater, and ChemCheck integration. The mobile app - Pentair Home - is the most polished pool app on the market, with reliable remote control over LTE or Wi-Fi, push notifications for alerts, and granular schedule management. IntelliCenter integrates natively with Crestron, Savant, Control4, Lutron Caseta and RA2, Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home. For estate-scale projects, IntelliCenter's expandability and the Pentair dealer network make it the lowest-risk choice.
Hayward OmniLogic - Strong Alternative
Hayward OmniLogic is the right choice when the project is already standardized on Hayward equipment - VS Omni pumps, Universal H-Series heaters, AquaRite salt systems, ColorLogic lighting. OmniLogic's mobile app and integration ecosystem are slightly less polished than Pentair's, but the platform is reliable and the integrated equipment package is competitive. OmniLogic supports the same major home-automation platforms as IntelliCenter. The choice between IntelliCenter and OmniLogic is most often driven by the homeowner's existing equipment preferences or by the integrating contractor's preferred ecosystem.
Jandy AquaLink - Specific Use Cases
Jandy AquaLink is the appropriate choice for projects committed to Jandy hardware (ePump, JXi heaters, TruClear salt cells). AquaLink's iAquaLink mobile app is functional but less feature-rich than IntelliCenter's Pentair Home or OmniLogic's app. We specify Jandy automation primarily for renovations of existing pools that already have Jandy equipment, and occasionally for new construction where the homeowner has experience with Jandy from a prior pool.
Smart Home Integration: Crestron, Savant, Lutron, Control4, Apple HomeKit
For homes running Crestron, Savant, Control4, or Lutron, integrating the pool automation into the home interface is typically a 1- to 2-day commissioning project added to the pool installation. The home-automation contractor (Crestron dealer, Savant dealer, etc.) installs a vendor-supplied driver into the home's automation processor, and the pool functions appear as native controls alongside lighting, climate, audio, and other home systems. Apple HomeKit integration is comparatively simpler and works directly with IntelliCenter, OmniLogic, and AquaLink without a third-party driver - an Apple TV, HomePod, or iPad becomes the HomeKit hub. We coordinate the pool-side commissioning with the home-automation contractor so the integration is solid before final walkthrough.
What Does Pool Automation Actually Control?
A typical luxury pool automation installation manages: variable-speed pump scheduling (run high during heating, low for filtration), heater on/off and target temperature for both pool and spa, salt cell output level (or chemical doser on traditional chlorine pools), pool and spa lighting (color, scene, schedule), water features (sheet falls, spillway pumps, fire bowls), automated valve actuators (pool/spa transfer, in-floor cleaning systems, water-feature sequencing), water-level fill from auto-fill valve, ChemCheck or pH/ORP sensors with alerts, and increasingly, integrated underwater audio. The mobile app provides full control plus historical logging - useful for diagnosing equipment issues without on-site presence.
Retrofit on Existing Pools
Most existing pools built within the past 20 years can be retrofitted with full automation. The retrofit replaces the existing electromechanical timer-and-relay setup with a centralized controller (IntelliCenter, OmniLogic, or AquaLink), runs LV control wiring back to the equipment pad, and installs Wi-Fi or wired Ethernet for the mobile app. A typical retrofit takes 2 to 3 days and costs $4,000 to $12,000 depending on the controller selected and the number of zones being automated. Pool renovations typically include automation upgrade as a standard inclusion. We have completed automation retrofits across Greenwich, Darien, New Canaan, Westport, and the surrounding Fairfield County towns.
New Construction: Automation as Standard Inclusion
Every new custom gunite pool we design includes automation as a standard inclusion. The cost differential between automated and manually-controlled construction has narrowed substantially in the past five years - typically $5,000 to $15,000 added to the project budget - and the experiential difference is significant. Clients who walk to an equipment pad to flip a manual timer once are committed; clients who control their pool from anywhere on the property via app rarely go back. We design the equipment pad layout, conduit runs, and control wiring around the chosen automation system from the schematic-design phase forward.
Service Area
Gedney Pools provides pool automation installation, integration, and retrofit services across Fairfield County, CT and Westchester County, NY. Our automation service area mirrors our pool construction service area - every town we build pools in, we also retrofit and service automation. Greenwich, Darien, New Canaan, Westport, Wilton, Weston, Ridgefield, Fairfield, Stamford, Norwalk, Rye, NY, Bedford, NY, Scarsdale, NY, Armonk, NY, and the rest of our service area.