Dave Penton - Builder, Mentor, Professor

BY JOE TRUSTY

Photos: Berlyn Photography, Pool Chasers

Dave Penton is probably one of the most recognizable voices in the pool industry. As a Co-Host of the Ask The Masters Podcast, and Professor at Watershape University, Dave has been a mentor to countless builders in the field of pool construction.

Acertified PhD in Pool Construction, if there was such a thing – David Penton is pretty much omnipresent in the pool industry. Here is a man who is involved at such a high level in this field and has given back so much to the industry over the past few years. It’s tough to discern exactly how he finds time for it all.

Penton has been involved in a number of high profile pools over the years. His construction projects have been featured in The Robb Report, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, Luxury Pools, and now we are privileged to be able to highlight and profile his incredible story and body of work in Pool Magazine.

Dave Penton has earned a reputation as one of the leading pool builders in the industry. Penton first got started in the pool industry back in 1992. His company at the time which was called Krystal Klear Pools, originally focused on pool & spa

Dave Penton is a true mentor in our industry, finding time to Co-Host ‘Ask The Masters’ and teach other pool builders.

maintenance and repair services. Receiving his state contractors license, the company continued to work on bigger and bigger projects. Dave began developing a reputation as one of the leading service providers in Orange County for his residential and commercial work. His company, Krystal Klear Pools continued to grow until he received his C-53 pool construction license in 2003. Penton decided to sell his service business to focus on pool construction full time and re-branded the company as Fluid Dynamics.

His first major project was a $100,000 remodel. A pool builder friend of his guided him through his initial foray into the industry and helped him learn the ropes. Penton committed himself to learning as much as he could, as quickly as he could and became a voracious student. Penton credits studying with organizations like Genesis with providing the stepping stones he needed to becoming one of the industries high-end builders. Fast forward to 2021, his company Fluid Dynamics, has been responsible for numerous high-end pool construction projects all over Los Angeles and Orange County.

Dave’s body of work includes the type of complex restoration projects that only the leaders in the industry at the pinnacle of their career get to work on. Penton recently worked an incredible restoration project at The Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades and another restoration of the fountain at the historic Century Towers property.

Projects like an over-the-top 26 by 100 foot pool in Bel Air are all in a days work for this master pool builder. With a laundry list of high-profile inground pool projects, Penton has worked with a veritable who’s who in the pool industry including top names in construction and design like Jimmy Reed, Shane LeBlanc, and many others. As one of the leading experts in the country, Dave has found time to give back to the pool industry in so many ways over the years. His transition now to mentor has seen him function as an instructor for both the Genesis program, and now Watershape University where he teaches today.

We asked Dave how he finds time for it all, and what the transition has been like to becoming a mentor for other builders “I couldn’t have gotten to where I am without people doing the same thing for me.” said Penton who claims to find it immensely rewarding to be able to give back in the form of imparting his expertise on other builders. “That rhythm has always been established since the beginning of my career for learning or being able to carve out time for giving back” said Penton.

Read the rest of the article on Pool Magazine