Blog · November 9, 2026 · 5 min read
How much does it cost to refill a pool in Scottsdale?
Refilling a 19,200 gallon pool costs about $68 to $161 in Scottsdale water charges, depending on how much water the home already used that month. A national 2026 cost guide lists $425 to $475 for the drain, clean and refill service, which is a separate figure. The water is a small line next to a resurfacing job, and the math is short. Here is how to find your pool's gallons, what Scottsdale charges for that water, and where the $425 to $475 fits.
Good to know
How many gallons does a backyard pool hold?
The average residential swimming pool holds about 25,000 gallons, according to a 2012 US Department of Energy guide (US Department of Energy, Building America measure guideline (opens in a new tab)). Your pool can sit well above or below that, and its length, width and depth set the number.
Good to know
How do you calculate the gallons in a pool?
For a rectangular pool, multiply length x width x average depth (all in feet) x 7.5. The result is an estimate, because 7.5 is a rounded factor.
The exact conversion is 7.48 gallons per cubic foot of water, per the same Department of Energy guide and a K-State Research and Extension conversion sheet (opens in a new tab). That makes 7.5 about 0.3% high, which is small next to the guess in the average depth.
For a pool that slopes from a shallow end to a deep end, add the two depths and divide by 2 for a rough average. Steps, benches and curves change the real volume, and round or free form pools need other formulas.
Take a 16 by 32 ft pool with a 3.5 ft shallow end and a 6.5 ft deep end, which averages 5 ft. That is 16 x 32 x 5 = 2,560 cubic feet, and 2,560 x 7.5 = 19,200 gallons. With the exact 7.48 factor the answer is about 19,149 gallons.
| Pool size | Average depth (example) | Cubic feet | Gallons (x 7.5) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 x 20 ft | 4 ft | 960 | 7,200 |
| 16 x 32 ft | 5 ft | 2,560 | 19,200 |
| 20 x 40 ft | 5.5 ft | 4,400 | 33,000 |
The depths in the table are examples, not measurements of any real pool.
Arizona water and sun
What does Scottsdale charge for residential water?
Scottsdale bills a monthly base charge set by meter size plus a monthly usage charge, and the usage price per 1,000 gallons rises in 5 tiers as the month's use goes up (City of Scottsdale, rates and fees (opens in a new tab)).
| Tier | Gallons of use | Rate per 1,000 gal, effective Nov 1, 2025 | Rate per 1,000 gal, effective Nov 1, 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 to 5,000 | $1.72 | $1.80 |
| 2 | 5,001 to 12,000 | $3.24 | $3.39 |
| 3 | 12,001 to 20,000 | $4.75 | $4.96 |
| 4 | 20,001 to 30,000 | $6.27 | $6.55 |
| 5 | Over 30,000 | $8.05 | $8.41 |
The first rate column is the city's Water Rates Schedule effective Nov 1, 2025 (opens in a new tab), single family residential. The second is the Nov 1, 2026 schedule in the city's FY 2026/27 Water and Sewer Rate Report (opens in a new tab), a 4.5% increase to every tier that went to a public hearing on May 19, 2026 (opens in a new tab).
A refill does not change the monthly base charge. For a 5/8 inch meter it goes from $15.75 to $16.46 on Nov 1, 2026. The 2025 schedule's notes also add a stormwater account charge, a state fee of $0.0065 per 1,000 gallons and applicable taxes.
Arizona water and sun
What does refilling a pool add to a Scottsdale water bill?
At the rates effective Nov 1, 2026, refilling a 19,200 gallon pool adds about $68 to $161 in usage charges, depending on where the month's other water use already sits. Higher use pushes the fill into higher tiers.
| Other water used that month | The fill is billed in | The fill adds (usage charge only) |
|---|---|---|
| 0 gallons | Tiers 1 to 3 | $68.44 |
| 16,000 gallons | Tiers 3 to 5 | $129.07 |
| 30,000 gallons or more | Tier 5 | $161.47 |
The 16,000 gallon row uses the figure the city's rate report applies when it compares Scottsdale bills with other Valley cities. It is a benchmark, not your household's number, so use last month's water use to find the closest row.
Tiers reset each month, so a fill spread over 2 billing cycles can land in lower tiers. These are usage charges only, before the base charge, the notes above and taxes.
Good to know
Can refilling a pool raise the Scottsdale sewer charge?
It can. The city sets each customer's sewer volume once a year from 90 percent of average water use billed in December, January and February, and it lists a pool refill as abnormal use you can ask to have adjusted (City of Scottsdale, rates and fees (opens in a new tab)).
A refill in those 3 winter months is the one to watch. Forms submitted before June 20 are reviewed before the July update, and the city notes that completing the form does not mean the charge will be adjusted.
Costs
What does the $425 to $475 drain, clean and refill figure cover?
The $425 to $475 is a service figure, not the water bill. A national 2026 cost guide lists it as the cost of draining, cleaning and refilling a pool before resurfacing work begins.
So a refill has 2 separate parts: the service to drain and clean the pool, and the city's charge for the water that goes back in. The two are not added together here, since a published service price may already count some of the water.
For the whole job, the same guide's range is $6,000 to $15,000, and the pool resurfacing cost page breaks it down by size and finish. The cost calculator builds a range from your own pool, and draining a pool in Scottsdale covers the drain side.
4 questions
Questions people ask
Still have a question? Call (747) 243-2089 and say what your pool is doing.
How many gallons does it take to fill a pool?
A rectangular pool takes about length x width x average depth x 7.5 gallons. A 16 by 32 ft pool averaging 5 ft deep takes about 19,200 gallons. The factor is rounded, so treat the result as an estimate.
Does Scottsdale charge the same price for every gallon?
Scottsdale uses 5 usage tiers for homes, and the price per 1,000 gallons rises from tier to tier. The first 5,000 gallons in a month are tier 1, and water over 30,000 gallons is tier 5.
Is the drain and refill service price the same as the water bill?
The $425 to $475 is a service figure from a national 2026 cost guide, and the city's charge for the water is separate. The rate table above shows how that water charge is built.
Does the formula work for round or free form pools?
The 7.5 formula is for rectangular pools. A US Department of Energy guide says round, sloped and custom shapes need more advanced calculations, so start from the pool's plans or tell us the size and shape.
Keep reading
- Pool resurfacing cost: for the published price ranges by pool size and finish.
- Pool resurfacing cost calculator: for a range built from your own pool.
- Draining a pool in Scottsdale: for the drain step before a refill.
- Pool resurfacing guide: for the full job from chip-out to start-up.
- How often to resurface a pool in Arizona: for the finish by finish timeline.
- New pool plaster start-up: for the weeks after the refill.
