Any pool owners out there that can give some insight on putting in a pool? Things you would have done different or preferred materials or pumps?

I am leaning towards a fiberglass pool for long term cost savings, any thoughts?

Any energy efficiency tips?

The pool will be more for entertainment, so it doesn't have to be too deep.

I am about to retire from the AF after 21.5 years and we will be moving back to East Texas to build our forever dream home and could use some tips. Thanks in advance!

There are all sorts of gimmicks to try to lessen the initial cost of a pool... vinyl liners, fiberglass, etc., but for the long haul the in-ground sprayed-in concrete over rebar will save you headaches and long term maintenance.

Otherwise, all pools require "maintenance" - chems, skimmers (Polaris!!), pumps, timers, filters, non-slip decking, etc.

The more lights, water falls, built-in hot tubs, heaters, covers, etc., you add...

You have to trade off "shade" or open to sunlight continuously with leaves, brush, grass clippings, etc...

Many places require by code a latched fence for the pool IN ADDITION to any other fence you have for safety and insurance purposes.

A "pool service" can be the best $$ you'll ever spend...

Not only is there initial cost, but keeping a pool in service will cost at least $100/mo for electricity - PLUS any heater time which becomes astronomical if you do the entire pool and not just the hot tub...

Definitely use Gunite, not fiberglass. Plan on spending at least $45k. We just finished one in Dallas with a $50k initial budget and ended up closer to $60k.

Since you're in TX I say go with gunnite. In other parts of the country the rules change because soils are different.

If you go with an above ground pool - be aware that absolutely nobody will perform work on it due to liability issues with the vinyl liner. We bought a house with an above ground pool and only discovered this after the fact.

maint, all the time.

Don't do it.

A friend of mine with a pool suggested this exercise if I ever entertained the idea of a pool.

1) Dig a hole in the ground
2) Start throwing money into it

If you like the way that feels, you may like a pool. If not...

I have yet to meet a pool owner who didn't say, "if I had to do it all over again, I probably wouldn't." Most have all regretted the decision for one reason or another at some point in time.

Whether it be cost of the structure, cost of maintenance & upkeep, or stories of catastrophic disaster, everyone I've talked to seems to eventually have second thoughts.

An acquaintance of ours recently told me a story of having to completely rebuild a pool that had numerous structural problems, built by one of the most reputable pool builders in our area. His tales of spending thousands in back-to-back years to simply keep the pool in usable condition are enough to make me nauseous.

YMMV

Buy a golf cart and take it to the neighborhood pool.

Thanks for all the input. I have heard lots of horror stories as well. You guys have me second guessing. I may use that $ and have a nice pond built on the land and have it stocked with Florida strain bass. Hey I can even put a rope swing in and zipline!

I regret nothing about having a pool

I didn't put it in tho, specifically shopped for a house that already had one.

I have the best situation. I live next door to a divorcee and I mow her yard and help out around the house. In exchange, me and my kids get free use of the pool.

I do help out on maintenance and even bought the filter that is being used now.

Wife and I put in a pool last year and love it. Maintenance is not that bad, except falling leaves in the fall. Even when we aren't in it, it provides a nice place to chill out and have coffee in the AM or drinks in the PM.

I guess it boils down to having a good contractor do the job right the first time and proper maintenance. I have read so many different reviews on fiberglass vs gunite and just can't decide.

My parents haven't regretted theirs yet, and we got it when I was in junior high or high school. They just finally had to get it resurfaced or something a few years ago (not quite sure of details, but it's normal for one that's that old; eventually gets cracks or something so it has to be drained and then have something done; think this is an every 20 year kind of maintenance). They still use it pretty often. They did take the diving board out a long time ago, but I think that was the only thing they no longer wanted in the pool. As others said, it is expensive to heat more than just the spa. I think they had to replace something on the heater a while back.

We've had ours for 2 summers now and love it. We're in it every weekend practically and it's our kids favorite activity. Maintenance isn't bad, and with the new type of pumps, our electric bill is typically about 50 bucks more than it was previously. We live out in the boonies, so our pool is our primary hangout spot now...

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I regret nothing about having a pool

I didn't put it in tho, specifically shopped for a house that already had one.

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Completely agree. OP, if you want a pool, I'm a huge proponent of buying a house that already has a pool if that's an option(don't already own the land). By my calcs, I paid about $10k extra to have a 31k gallon pool. I was told it would cost $40k, minimum, to have the same pool put in. Then you also get to put that cost into your mortgage payment.


[This message has been edited by agnerd (edited 7/15/2014 10:18a).]

Have thoroughly enjoyed my pool we had put in 10 years ago. If you use it, the work will be worth it. Of course you have to maintain it, but what do you have to enjoy that you do not have to maintain.

Pools are great as long as you keep up with them. That typically means a half hour per week and maybe a few hours extra once a month or less.

We had a pool at the house I grew up in, bought with the house. Had to have it resurfaced due to age. At that time, the filter and furnace were also replaced to be a new type. Other than that, it never had any major problems and was used all the time.

My parents downsized for a few years before building their retirement place out on the ranch and couldn't wait to put in another pool.

My brother also put in a pool at his house and doesn't regret it.

I would vote to not put in a hot tub with the pool. The added cost is quite high compared to an above ground tub and the heating costs will also be fairly high if you use it a lot. For the price difference, you could put a decent deck around an above ground hot tub, have nicer jets/seating, and always have it hot instead of having to wait 30 min to an hour depending on the starting temp.

In response to an above poster saying he has never met anyone that didn't regret it.....

I'm the exact opposite, I'd say between my friends & family friends, there are roughly 10 people with pools, that all love them.

I agree there is maintenance involved, but nothing crazy, and def not a reason to avoid in my eyes.

I agree with Jon. I know 10 people with pools, myself included, and none regret or complain. Regarding heating costs, they are not "astronomical." We heat ours a lot during shoulder month weekends and natty gas is not pricey.

Pros: having a pool
Cons: having a pool

make friends with the neighbor that has a pool

Building a house in some land so an existing pool isn't an option. For those that have them, do you have gunite, fiberglass, or liner? I was told in east Texas the soil is not good for fiberglass. Anyone have trouble with that?

The people I know with them love them. And I have always been against them but plan on having one when we move out of the city now.

The only advice I have would echo what someone already said. I would rather have the whole pool be shallow than a deep end. The pools we hang out in get congested in the shallow end and are empty in the deep end. Also, makes playing basketball harder and games like volleyball impossible. I can see the benefit of a deep end with kids that want to dive in, just not worth it in the long run IMO.

We have some friends who installed a pre-fab and apparently can never drain it or it will float out of the ground. Ours is shotcrete and I really hope it stands up, longterm, to the clay soil which expands and contracts. I would second the shallow throughout. Ours goes from 3.5 to 4.5.

We have had a pool for two years and absolutely love it! We use it much more than I thought we would, nearly every day.

Recommend you make it deep on one end so the pool does not heat up too much during the summer. Shade on the pool helps.
Go with a variable speed pump so the electrical costs stay down.
Am not sure about the Ozone Generator systems, we have one but am not sure it is worth the effort.
Make sure you get a good pool builder - talk to references.
Keep pumps away from pools to keep the noise down.
We use a cartridge filter and have to clean it every three months or so. You may want to consider a sand filter.
Drop a chlorine tablet in the skimmer once a week and it will stay crystal clear all the time.
Good luck!

First ... thank you for your service.

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We have some friends who installed a pre-fab and apparently can never drain it or it will float out of the ground.

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That can happen with any type of pool due to hydrostatic pressure. Pools usually have a plug/valve in the bottom to relieve that pressure when you drain it. Most prone to "pop" after heavy rains. Just google it for some interesting stories.

I have a pool. I won't have another pool. Mainly because the kids will be gone and I'm not maintaining it just for show.

I also would not build a pool, I'd only buy a house with one like someone else did. But I'm a cheapskate.

It's a wash to me. They are a pain in the neck, but you get to have a pool.

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Not only is there initial cost, but keeping a pool in service will cost at least $100/mo for electricity -

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With modern viable speed pumps that is no longer true.

[This message has been edited by Medaggie (edited 7/21/2014 3:39a).]

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I regret nothing about having a pool

I didn't put it in tho, specifically shopped for a house that already had one.

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This. Absolutely love having it. Only regret is I would have made it bigger if I put it in.

Love my pool. Kids love it. Great for entertainment.

Cost about 3-4K to maintain a year for pool guy, water, electricity.

From packing up kids, brining to public pool, strong chlorine smell, I would rarely go or take kids.

I switched from a reg pump to variable and went from spending 150/mo to about 5 bucks/mo in electricity.

I would highly recommend variable pump.

I would do it again 10 x over with kids

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I switched from a reg pump to variable and went from spending 150/mo to about 5 bucks/mo in electricity.

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Can you help explain this, because it doesn't make any sense to me.

You are saying that you reduced your energy consumption by 97%, correct? I don't see how.

You still have to turn the water "x" number of times per day. To get down to that electical use, the pump wouldn't do what is required.

I'm not trying to be a contrarian, I'm really interested because I'm considering getting a variable speed pump.

I thought the variable pump info I read online seemed fishy too. I talked to my pool guy and he said that the savings were real. I would have been happy to cut my bill by 75% but the website were touting cutting by 95+ percent.

Anyhow, the variable pool pump has a controller that tells me how much electricity it uses at any given time. I also have a solar panel with a real time meter that tells me how much electrictiy my house uses at any given time.

My old one speed pool pump would use 4KW/hr when on. My solar panel meter would spike when it turns on. I have it on 10 hrs a day so 40kw x 30 dys = 1200 kw/mo at 12 cents per KW in Austin = $144/mo. In the Winter it runs more b/c it runs ALL day on freeze days and we had a bunch this past year. So I would avg about $150/mo or $1800/yr electricity.

My current variable speed pump runs 23 hrs a day at 57 watt/hr. When I turn on all of the water features during use it goes up to about 1200watt/hr. So I would say I avg 70watt/hr/day or 1680watt/dy x 30 dys = 50.4kw x 12 cents = $6/mo = $72/yr

Thats a 96% savings similar to what their website quotes.

pretty amazing. Cost me $3500 to put in, payback in about 3 yrs.