Hi, i've made a pool windows tutorial that is a bit different from others on the web. You'll have correct water levels & pool floor levels that maintains after
reloading or relocating your simlots.

Its my first tutorial, so bear with me.


Create your pool at ground level:



Create stairs 4 steps down, delete the stairs. Then Ctrl+Shift+C: constrainfloorelevation false



Level the lowest terrain to the edge of the pool:




Create a basement room:



Place windows on the walls connected to the pool:



Create foundations at ground level surrounding the basement:



Level the pool window walls to the foundations level:



Notice the water level is correct. It covers the top of the window,
but there's a slope at the edge of the pool floor:



Continue ...

Near the pool, create stairs 1 step down



Delete the stairs and level the terrain. Then create a small pool.



I've colored the pools to explain how we want to level it.
BLUE are the normal pool floor levels.
GREEN are the 1-stairs down pool floor levels, using the the small pool as reference
WHITE are the slopes
Use the level tool, click on the small pool and drag it to the main pool to level it.



The pool should end up like this, viewed from the pool window's room



EDIT: I've made the above shape so the effects will be visible. All you really need is the GREEN level next to the pool windows, followed by the WHITE slope and then the rectangle BLUE levels. Like the following:



Notice the edge of the pool floor connected to the window is level, the water level is still correct


EDIT: When your done, don't delete the small pool yet. Constrainfloorelevation TRUE. Zoom out to the town, zoom back in your lot, THEN delete the small pool.

EDIT: (Credits to jrclark for discovering this)
This method only works for 2 sides of a pool of any lot. Please read post #18 - Solution Found by jrclark

This is the end result. Sims can "swim here" anywhere in the pool. The water level and the pool floor levels remains after reload or moving in/out, or even placing items in the pool.


As an added bonus for using this method, your sims get to swim in the BLUE area and slowly submerges as they approach the pool window's GREEN area.

This method is also good for 2-sided pool windows like this.


You can have more windows. Just remember this:

GREEN levels for all floor tiles NEXT TO THE POOL WINDOW
BLUE levels for tiles WHERE SIMS CAN GET IN/OUT OF THE POOL

Never allow your sims to get in/out of the pool via the WHITE or GREEN
levels! You'll have glitches in animation (whether dive in / climb out, or using the pool ladder)

Make sure the BLUE areas are the only place your sims can get in/out of the pool. Block entering/exiting the pool via the WHITE and GREEN areas with walls, foundations, ladders, plants, or other objects.

Wow, thank you for this. So much simpler. I've managed to have a pool without destroyed levels, however couldn't get it right for a room inside a pool. It'd only show up right on 2 sides. I'll have to give this a try.

Room inside a pool, is it possible? Do mean you at ground level inside the pool?
Do you have a screenshot?

I must tell you my results mate...

This is a great tut no doubt but,
there is a effect that you ment to fix using this
method that really keeps pumping out, at least
for me, the gap of one tile beetwen the windows and the pool water surface
still apears after a while, even after you desactivate the " Cosntrainfloorelevation "
cheat !

I wanted to fix this, as I am finishing a house to post here later on,
But this issue is far from being solved!

The results are this,
also there is a part over your tut that I find
rather confusing, for me,



I am not sure about this secound pool to level what in this case,
cause with the level tool you end up leveling the all pool floor
or just part of the good one !

Sorry about this but could you be a litlle more
especific on this tut mate?!

Thanks

To put it simple, this is all you need to level:



Hope it helps.

Thanks mate,
I guess the green part is the one to level!?

But still pops out the gap in the water surface
in the first tile near the windows!

I have tryed everything on your tut.
maybe its cause I am making something wroung somewere!

Did you first try it out on an empty lot in EDIT TOWN MODE? (A reminder, the basement is FOUR stairs down, not three).

I could troubleshoot better if you show me the steps you took in your screenshots.

Whell I did for steps down with the stairs but couldn't make one large stair
as you have in the pic, but for small stairs down and than leveled the problem can be there or with the size of the windowed wall that is bigger than the one you
make as example!

Any way I am deleting the all house as its allready built and furnished
and will make it again from scratch!

Ok here it goes!

I have made it exactely the same dimensions and steps as you have here!

Thought I think there is a possible issue that is making this gap empty
space to return back!

The foundations near the water can cause this.

Everything goes whell untill you place or delete the secound swimming
pool that would be used to level this gap in the main pool!

From there the gap returns and you have to revert the all building
to his first state to try again!

Also in your first part of the tut, you show up a part that you place
foundation surrounding the walls from the created basement, but,
after you show a foundation near the pool water, You should especify
when to place this foundations and when at the building stage, also until where you should level the all top of the masement, if untill the windows
line or one tile ahead of it...

Just by using the constrainfloorelevation False/true cheat you should also
name in the tut when to activate or desactivate it, and if it is necessary to enable the cheatconsole or something!

There is at some point something that leads to the all building stage to revert
we just have to find where and how to stop this from happening!

If u've made a mistake you dun hve to do it again. Jus undo tilll the beginning, and then reedo to the point before you delete the small pool.

Now try this:

Before you delete the smaell pooll, constrainfloorelevation TRUE.
Choose the create tile tool, move it on the pool floor edge's tiles (don't click it). See if the gap comes back.

If it doesn't, zoom out to the town. Then zoom back in.
If there's no gap and the water level is correact, delete the small pool.



I should have mentioned you'd just hav to create foundation near the pool at the beginning. And you shold also levell all the top of the masement plus tiles ahead of the windows line.

I'll update the tutorial once we sort ur problems out.

Nope, no mistake, it simply doesn't work for me and
I do not know why!?

I have tryed everything, the only way that it works is after placing the
foundations until the window, not placing close to the widows, I whent off to the Neightb. and return and everything was as left!

Again when I place the secound small pool the gap in the main
pool shows off and the only way is to returne into
the time I have placed the main pool at the start cause the
all building process. reverts but this gap in the water line.

This is starting to make me sick! LOL

it doesn't work for me too

I've uploaded the tutorial file for all to see. If you see the correct water levels and pool floor levels, that means this method works, and you're not following the tutorial exactly.

Okay, Ekaterina2008, from what i can tell you're not following exactly, there should be a room surrounded by the basement. Look at my screenshots again.

And sorry jcwolf, i can't troubleshoot for you if you won't upload any screenshots.

this file of yours is password protected!

This method as you say might work for some but I guess others it doesn«t.

I am making it again, and will upload screenshots, and you will see that
it simply doesn't work for me !

Maybe the game version or region haves something to do with this,
maybe somefiles on my game version are diferent from yours and
causes some stuff to be diferent...Do not know!?

I will upload screens soon to take your doubts away!

Hi!

Thanks for the tutorial, however it's not working for me either Mine even seems to go bad earlier than building the second pool. I've attached a second screenshot that shows just the pool, room with windows and foundation. I had been having trouble with it and just wanted to see if I could tell when the trouble starts, and as you can see it's early for me. This showed up after returning to edit town mode and then back to the lot. Any further ideas would be great.

In case it makes a difference I'm on version 1.3.24.00001

Hi!

I also downloaded your .zip file above and was able to extract it and load it to my game. Sad part is that it also has the gap between the pool water and the windows, so there must be something different about your installation and mine. I do have some custom clothes from here, as well as some content from the exchange, and as i mentioned before I'm on 1.3.24 version.

If anyone has any suggestions it would be greatly appreciated!

Hi!

Found the solution thanks to a post on youtube!

Only 2 sides of the pool will work on any lot, the other two sides ALWAYS have the dropoff.

The side OPPOSITE the road (means putting the pool IN FRONT of the house) ALWAYS works.

One other side works, depending on which lot you pick. The only real way to check is to sink a room and then fill in all the sides around it with pool and exit to edit town and come back, you'll easily see which sides work and which don't.

BTW, this also means that you don't have to use a foundation at all, though i did find it easier to use one to paint

HTH

Thanks jrclark, great feedback! I'd didn't realize that at all!

And sorry jcwolf, i'm just frustrated my method wouldnt work for everyone till jrclark pointed this out. Can you try his method, building the pool with pool windows facing a different side opposite the road (try all sides: north east south west)? Like to hear from your results ( and screenshots, screenshots! ).

OK , I will try out his way!

I was trying to make a new one and the problems showed up as usual!

But I will try out his way then

Whell it worked just perfect!

This is the solution,

Has jrclark found and said in his previouse post,
we have to build the pool in the house front and place the windows
as in the screens I have atached!


It works even after reloading!

Solution found problem solved!
Great find jrclark!

Great! everyones happy. I've edited the tutorial to include jrclark's find with credit.
Looking forward for your house jcwolf.

It works!!!

Mmmm, guess that answers my question to whether or not my room in a pool would work.... Glad I read throught he entire posts before trying it out.

p.s. My only screenshot I took of this house, which was not planned or anything and really my first build, which was as an add on to the house my chars resided in and it was all fooey. It does basically the same as Ekatrina's screens.

Thank you so much I tried this on another lot it worked like a charm on the first try you said it only works for two sides, well I tried the same method for this new design, an underground garage on one side and the basment on the other do you think you could help me, again thnx so much for the help. as soon as i build the second small pool it goes haywire