Pools & Spas in Ballinger
Gunite pools and spas planned with the deck, shade and kitchen.
Outdoor Living in Ballinger, TX
Outdoor living is the covered patio, pool, kitchen, stone and lighting that make a backyard part of the home. Longhorn designs and builds them together for Ballinger homeowners in Runnels County, with one family-owned team.
- 40+Years in Business
- 15,000+Projects Completed
- 1984Family-Owned Since
- 334Texas Cities Served
Before you build in Ballinger
Ballinger, the seat of Runnels County, sits at the junction of U.S. highways 67 and 83 and State Highway 158, thirty-six miles northeast of San Angelo. The Colorado River and Elm Creek converge at the town.
That ground decides how a slab, a pool shell or a footing has to be built here. Here is what it does to a patio.
In Ballinger the job is reviewed by the Code Enforcement/Permitting, and we file and follow the permit through that office ourselves. Our permit guide lists the office for every city we have checked.
Longhorn has been building since 1984, and every project starts with a free design visit and a firm price.
Outdoor living we build in Ballinger, TX
Outdoor Kitchens in Ballinger
Stone islands, built-in grills, fridges and a real vent hood, under cover.
Patio Covers in Ballinger
Solid-roof shade over the patio. It’s the simplest way to use it year-round.
Pergolas in Ballinger
Fixed or louvered, built to your slab, the yard’s centerpiece.
Sunrooms in Ballinger
Glass walls under a solid roof. Real square footage, light all day.
Patio Enclosures in Ballinger
Screened rooms: the breeze and the view, none of the mosquitoes.
Hardscaping in Ballinger
Travertine, pavers, seat walls and fire pits, with drainage solved first.
Landscaping & Lighting in Ballinger
Water-wise planting, irrigation and lighting for North Texas.
Outdoor living ideas for Ballinger homes
Homes and Yards in Ballinger
The Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway founded the town in 1886, drawing 6,000 people to its lot sale on June 29. First called Gresham and then Hutchings, it was named for Galveston attorney William Pitt Ballinger.
The large lots of Ballinger’s original plan give room for a covered patio with a ceiling fan and lighting that extends the living space of an older home.
Runnels County’s gently sloping prairie rises from 1,650 to 2,350 feet, with a few steep limestone hills in the northeast. Its black waxy and sandy loam soils are mostly shallow to moderately deep over limy earth, red beds, or limestone.
Water comes from the City of Ballinger, which treats surface water.
Runnels City, the old county seat, lost out because Ballinger offered a better water supply, and the railroad gave free lots to anyone who moved a home from there. The town incorporated in 1892. Its population grew from 1,128 in 1900 to 3,536 in 1910 as farming overtook stock raising, and a Carnegie library funded with a $12,500 gift opened in 1911.
The drought years that began in 1916 cut the population to 2,767 in 1920, but steady growth followed, peaking at 5,302 in 1950. The town had 3,975 residents in 1990 and 4,243 in 2000. Ballinger is the main shipping and distribution center for Runnels County, and its yearly events include a Rattlesnake Roundup in March and a Pinto Bean Cookoff in October.
NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 67 hail reports in Runnels County from 2016 to 2025, 64 of them an inch across or larger, with stones up to 4 inches. 27 of those reports were logged at Ballinger itself, the largest 4 inches. The same records show 22 damaging thunderstorm wind reports, with gusts up to about 90 mph, and 5 tornadoes. That is why a patio cover’s roof panels, fasteners and posts here are chosen for hail and wind, not only for shade.
What each outdoor project needs in Ballinger, TX
How is a pool built in Ballinger?
Rolling Plains clay swells when it is wet and shrinks when it dries, and a pool shell is a rigid object sitting in it. The shell, its bond beam and the deck are designed for that movement, and the deck is graded so rain runs away from the pool and the house. In Ballinger the permit goes through the Code Enforcement/Permitting, and Longhorn files it and follows it through inspection. More on pools.
What does a patio cover need in Ballinger?
On Rolling Plains clay a patio cover’s footings carry the whole structure, and the top of the clay is the part that moves most. Footings are taken below that movement and the slab is graded away from the house, so the roofline stays true as the ground wets and dries. In Ballinger the permit goes through the Code Enforcement/Permitting, and Longhorn files it and follows it through inspection. More on patio covers.
How is a pergola built to last in Ballinger?
A pergola on Rolling Plains clay stays square only if its posts sit below the ground that moves. The footings go deeper than the seasonal swell and shrink, and the grade around each post sheds water instead of holding it. More on pergolas.
Can a sunroom or screened enclosure be added in Ballinger?
A sunroom or screened enclosure in Ballinger is attached to the house, so it is permitted through the Code Enforcement/Permitting and sits on footings designed for the ground under it. We match the roofline and the exterior to the house so it reads as part of it. More on sunrooms and patio enclosures.
How a Backyard Project Runs in Ballinger
- 1
A free design visit in Ballinger
A designer comes out to the house, measures the space a backyard project has to fit, walks the access a crew would need, and talks through what you want it to do. You leave with a firm price. On Rolling Plains clay ground, that is also when the grading, drainage and movement details get decided rather than improvised on site.
- 2
Drawings, permit and HOA
We file the permit with Code Enforcement/Permitting at the City of Ballinger and follow it through review. Where an HOA wants a submittal, we prepare the drawings it asks for.
- 3
One crew, one schedule
The same team builds the whole backyard project in order, so the slab, the structure, the electrical and the finish work are not three different companies working around each other.
- 4
Walkthrough and warranty
We walk the finished backyard project with you, settle the punch list and leave one warranty on the work, and we are a phone call away if you need us later.
Ballinger outdoor living questions
The Code Enforcement/Permitting reviews residential projects in Ballinger. Pools and structures attached to the house, such as patio covers, sunrooms and enclosures, almost always need a permit. Longhorn files it and follows it through inspection.
Ballinger sits on Rolling Plains clay ground in Runnels County. The ground decides how a slab, a pool shell or a footing has to be built, so we plan the drainage and the footings for it at the first visit rather than after something moves.
Where an HOA in Ballinger asks for a submittal, we prepare the drawings and details it wants, alongside the city permit, so the approval runs in parallel with the design rather than after it.
Yes. Many homeowners start with one piece, such as a pool or a patio cover, and add the rest later. We plan the whole space up front so the gas, power, water and drainage for later phases are in place from the start.
Other cities we build in near Ballinger
Every town we serve in Runnels County · See all 334 cities we serve
Free design visits in Ballinger
Tell us what you have in mind and we’ll come measure, talk options and give you a straight number. No obligation, no pressure.
Call (972) 534-2716Get Your Free Quote
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