Anyone bought/installed a swimming pool?

[Bodyflight.Net 0]

New house this year... need input.. any advice/tips/experiences to share??? I've got the acreage.. but looking for something small, less extravagant.. suitable for our growing teen and ourselves.. I would like in-ground.. but budget & practicality might dictate above ground...

I helped install 2 pools above ground as a kid/teen but well.. that was a while ago

Pink Suits!

[cocheese 0]

Don't forget the sign that says :
Welcome to our ool.
Notice there is no P in it.
...........
Get one of those small pre fab kind. Just add water.

[freeflir29 0]

The last one I installed was fairly easy. Helps if you buy one of those air matress inflators to blow it up though.

[SkymonkeyONE 4]

I would never, ever purchase an above ground pool. No amount of additions to it will ever make it anything other than what it is and in some cases they will actually lower your property value. I have seen more than one which started out really nice puncture and then totally disintigrate and flood a yard.

Now as to what kind of in-ground pool to get, you have quite a few options: shotcrete (concrete), fiberglass, stainless, and "liner". The great majority of people I know these days end up with liner pools. My dad's has been installed for over twenty years and he has only had to change the liner once. I believe they are the best value unless you find a place closing out fiberglass.

Chuck

[lawrocket 3]

Quote

for something small, less extravagant.. suitable for our growing teen and ourselves

First - no above-ground pools. They can be quite a hassle and flood your lawn and house if they puncture. Go dug in.

The purpose for your pool will dictate what type of pool is best. For example, do you want to be able to swim laps for exercise? If so, you'll likely want to go gunite. Also gunite for a pool that is deep enough for a diving board.

On the other hand, if you want a simple recreation pool that is decorative and great for games of Marco Polo, fiberglass or liner pools can work just fine.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[Bodyflight.Net 0]

I'm so glad I posted!
I was ALMOST convincing myself that above ground would be "ok"...

as far as purpose.. no diving really... marco polo and floating around sounds great.. some laps would be good.. HEY that could be my new exercise routine..
Liner pools... what is that.. an IN ground pool with a liner..?

[wingnut 0]

my parents just had a fiberglass pool installed. it's 11ft by 29 ft and 4 ft deep with stairs that run all of one side (short side)but there is also a "seat" built in on one side of the stairs if one would like to just sit in the pool, it went in in a couple days (not counting drying time for concrete pad on the perimiter) and itr looks great.. think t ran something like 10k but i'm not sure......... it is really nice just to take a dip in but for laps or anything other than a cannon ball is bad for, i wish it was a little deaper for diving or a little longer to beable to do laps in....

______________________________________
"i have no reader's digest version"

[HUSHPUPPY 0]

I have inground with a liner, aprox 14,000 gal (sport pool) that is only neck deep at the deepest. Replaced the liner July 2004 (just before IVAN) and should last for 10 yrs or more (went with 32 mil). With a liner it is critical to keep the chemicals right to keep the liner in good condition. I think this is the best value for a pool and seems to be the standard here in NW Fl. Have fun!

"You made my panties wet!" Skymama (Fitz 09)
"Never argue with an idiot. They will bring you down to their level and beat you with experience."

[gmanpilot 0]

Also...even if you go with an inground pool, don't think of it as an investment that will increase the resale value or marketability of your home. When I bought it, my last house had a 38,000 gallon pool and huge deck that the pool guy said would take $50K to replace, and when I sold it, the pool did'nt affect the sale at all. Pools are like vacations...lots of fun and very expensive.

_________________________________________
-There's always free cheese in a mouse trap.

[Bodyflight.Net 0]

Thanks for the reminder.. I'm one of those "practical" people.. I have limits on the investments we can make into our current home.. but the thing is.. when I priced an inground pool (small one) it cost AS MUCH AS OUR 3bd HOUSE...

yes I know I bought an inexpensive house.. (I was grinning all the way to the bank!!!) HOWEVER I can't see spending the same on a pool.

Here's the situation.. I live 20 minutes from EVERYTHING.. including friends, town, activities.. mostly the concern is with the kid.. who has 8 lovely years of being bored at home to look ahead to... we don't watch much TV or stuff like that around here. I figure a pool would be 'something to do' and looking at 8 years worth of needing something to do for her.. seemed like a good idea... besides she LOVES to swim...

[Deuce 1]

I'd advise you not to do it. I have a beautiful in ground lap pool with a motorized retractable cover and the amount of maintenance it requires, even with the cover is a hassle. I'm having the plaster re-done (it wears out, just like a liner) as we speak (type?).

We used it a lot for the first 10 years, but not so much any more.

A suggestion? The endless lap pools. It's like a great big spa that generates current for you to swim against.

As a Realtor, pools are often deal breakers. People who don't want them REALLY don't want them, and people who do can put them in themselves. The endless lap pool is something you can take with you when you move, or add to the deal.

http://www.endlesspools.com/landingpages/searchlandingsp.html

[Bodyflight.Net 0]

$18,900
never gonna happen

[Guest]

Quote

$18,900
never gonna happen

I have three experiences with pools,

One of my childhood friends (his family) had an above ground pool with a deck around it, on 5 ac so no neighboors to flood (but that never happened). Certainly because of the company, but it was a very cool place to play/hang out for hours and hours.

My brother had an in-ground pool on a house they had for 10 years (seattle), was a lot of maintenance and he believes it hurt his resale value. But I REALLY REALLY loved to visit :) and they entertained quite a bit - it was excellent in that respect.

Now they have a swim spa they put in themselves with a small amount of contractor help - guessing 12' long by 4' wide by 5' deep. Also much less $$ to heat and maintain a swim spa. Might try Lowes or Home Depot for better prices (?).

You can have it good, fast, or cheap: pick two.

[elizfowler 0]

Have a very dear friend and CRW Dog that owns, operates and runs a pool business in FL (for YEARS) I know he would be a good person to help another skydiver with information needed to secure a good pool company, negotiate for exactly what you want and know what to look out for.

He's a good guy and has never missed a chance to help with his knowledge especially when he's not in the same area and couldn't help in the actual end results.

I think you'd really enjoy being able to get some REAL and HONEST info so I'm going to mention this to him and can certainly pass along a way to reach you or you reach him if you'd like?

[Deuce 1]

Quote

$18,900
never gonna happen

Um. 19 grand ain't going to buy you much swimming pool. Period. Just resurfacing mine with pebble-tec is going to cost 8 grand+.

Pools are a maintenance item like a boat. It's not enough to be able to afford to buy one, you have to have the money to maintain one as well.

Think about that. Most "lifetime" warranties are for as long as you own the home. And with that being less than 5 years, the pool manufacturers gamble.

[Bodyflight.Net 0]

Well.. I still can't spend close to the same on a pool as I did the house that sits next to it.. if I were going to spend 20k bucks, I'd build a new home.. a 1500sf cordwood home doesn't even cost that much to build even if I buy the timbers cut, peeled & split from the sawmill!!

so.. tell me then about maintenance costs.. what's involved... some chemicals and more electricity... no???

[Deuce 1]

Depends. I have a REALLY BIG solar array. I just pay to pump the hot water off my roof, not to heat it.

Electricity in Cali is horribly expensive. To add a natural gas heater into the mix can be prohibitive.

With the pool pump running solar heat, and the AC keeping thing about 78, I pay $300 a month, and I have it averaged out.

If you manipulate your own chemistry, and it's not easy, at about $50 a month you are running the pool, busy.

If you cover it, and stall the chemistry during the winter, you can save some money. You don't want to drain a pool though, cause they can pop up out of the ground without the weight of water in them, and they can deteriorate due to oxygen exposure just as much as water exposure.

[Bodyflight.Net 0]

Well... I wonder how much electricity they use.. any idea how I can figure that out? Would a pump label/manufacturer tell me how much it costs to run it like water heaters do?

it doesn't sound easy.. that's for sure...
and wow, the cost to keep up your pool is more than my mortgage..

OBVIOUSLY if I'm going to have a swimming pool I'm going to have to change the way I think about the costs!!!!!!