Thinking about getting an in-ground pool

[yall]

I'm thinking about having an in-ground pool built in my back yard, and would love to hear any thoughts or experiences from those in the know.

 

Also, if anyone has any builder recommendations for the Buffalo area, I'd like to hear those, as well as any rough price ranges.

 

Thanks in advance gang!

[Alaska Darin]

I recommend a fiberglass pool with a Pentair Intellichlor Chlorine generator and an Aquabot Robotic Pool Cleaner.

[stuckincincy]

Be sure to check with your homeowner's insurance agent for coverage and rate increase, and with the municipality for zoning, fencing requirements etc.

[rockpile]

Be sure to check with your homeowner's insurance agent for coverage and rate increase, and with the municipality for zoning, fencing requirements etc.

 

I have an in-ground pool, and the insurance really is nothing. You MUST have a fence with locked gates or no access from the yard. It is gunnite (concrete) surrounded by a concrete patio deck.

 

One thing to think about is resale. It is one of those things some people consider an asset and others a turn off. In WNY the season is short and there is a significant amount of time and money to maintain it. I have no heater, just a solar cover, but I like the water cool anyway.

 

Did you consider an above ground? They make some nice rectangular pools that are very nice if the deck and patio are well planned. When you go to sell, if someone does not want a pool, they can remove it.

 

That said - I LOVE my pool!

[the_franchise]

I'm sure this isn't much help. But, do NOT get a pool liner.

[SABURZFAN]

I'm thinking about having an in-ground pool built in my back yard, and would love to hear any thoughts or experiences from those in the know.

 

Also, if anyone has any builder recommendations for the Buffalo area, I'd like to hear those, as well as any rough price ranges.

 

Thanks in advance gang!

 

 

 

i recommend Bob the Builder.

 

 

can he do it?

 

 

yes he can.

[yall]

I have an in-ground pool, and the insurance really is nothing. You MUST have a fence with locked gates or no access from the yard. It is gunnite (concrete) surrounded by a concrete patio deck.

 

One thing to think about is resale. It is one of those things some people consider an asset and others a turn off. In WNY the season is short and there is a significant amount of time and money to maintain it. I have no heater, just a solar cover, but I like the water cool anyway.

 

Did you consider an above ground? They make some nice rectangular pools that are very nice if the deck and patio are well planned. When you go to sell, if someone does not want a pool, they can remove it.

 

That said - I LOVE my pool!

 

I will definitely consider an above ground - mostly because the cost is so low.

 

Mind giving any cost details on your pool? I'd really like to have some idea what the base costs might be for a decent in ground set up.

[rockpile]

I will definitely consider an above ground - mostly because the cost is so low.

 

Mind giving any cost details on your pool? I'd really like to have some idea what the base costs might be for a decent in ground set up.

 

My house came with the pool, so I cannot help with costs to install a new one. We removed the old concrete patio had a new one poured. The pool is 16 x 32 with a four foot patio on one side, 10-12 foot patio on the other three sides. I also had the pool drained, acid washed, and a tile border installed. That was several thousand $$ but I figure the demolition and clean up was probably as much a a NEW pool!

 

We spend half the summer on the patio.

 

I agree with the "no liner" advice. Liners do not seem to last and are expensive to replace.

 

I would guess I spend about $1,000 a year on electricity for the pool filter, water, chlorine tablets, algaecides, and so on. Figure replacing solar and winter covers every three or so years and keeping the pool primed just right as a summer hobby.

[mcjeff215]

I have an in-ground pool, and the insurance really is nothing. You MUST have a fence with locked gates or no access from the yard. It is gunnite (concrete) surrounded by a concrete patio deck.

 

One thing to think about is resale. It is one of those things some people consider an asset and others a turn off. In WNY the season is short and there is a significant amount of time and money to maintain it. I have no heater, just a solar cover, but I like the water cool anyway.

 

Did you consider an above ground? They make some nice rectangular pools that are very nice if the deck and patio are well planned. When you go to sell, if someone does not want a pool, they can remove it.

 

That said - I LOVE my pool!

 

Where do you live? (OP).

 

I'd never consider getting one here in GA. A good 85% of the houses around here are in swim & tennis subdivisions. It's a total waste of money in that there's a pool for each neighborhood already.

 

I consider it a big turn off when house-hunting. It's an added expense to the maintenance of the house. A friend of mine here just had one pulled out as he was sick of using it 5 hours a year and paying the additional $$ to maintain it. His was above ground. Ripping the pool down was easy, rebuilding the deck surface to account for the big 25' hole in the middle.... not so easy.

 

Seeing what he's gone through, I'd really go above ground and keep the decking small but tasteful. If you (or subsequent owners) decide you don't want it anymore, it's a dumpster, some pry-bars, and a weekend. If you go for one of those elaborate deck-jobs, it's going to cost you just as much to have it pulled out and rebuilt as it does to have the thing put in to begin with.

[Gordio]

Where do you live? (OP).

 

I'd never consider getting one here in GA. A good 85% of the houses around here are in swim & tennis subdivisions. It's a total waste of money in that there's a pool for each neighborhood already.

 

I consider it a big turn off when house-hunting. It's an added expense to the maintenance of the house. A friend of mine here just had one pulled out as he was sick of using it 5 hours a year and paying the additional $$ to maintain it. His was above ground. Ripping the pool down was easy, rebuilding the deck surface to account for the big 25' hole in the middle.... not so easy.

 

Seeing what he's gone through, I'd really go above ground and keep the decking small but tasteful. If you (or subsequent owners) decide you don't want it anymore, it's a dumpster, some pry-bars, and a weekend. If you go for one of those elaborate deck-jobs, it's going to cost you just as much to have it pulled out and rebuilt as it does to have the thing put in to begin with.

 

I agree with this somewhat but you really can not compare an inground pool to an above. Inground's are just so much nicer. Above grounds are eyesores & they are really not that fun to swim in. With that being said, Rockpile is right, if you are looking as it as an investment to your house, it really does not add much resale value & some people will not buy a house just because of an inground pool. If you have little ones it is always a concern. My little guy just turned 4, our setup is pretty good though. We have our pool tucked in the left hand corner with a separate gate around the pool. Plus we have an alarm. Still, many of nights I have woken up worried about it as it only takes one time to make a mistake to change your life forever. Little guy is starting to swim on his own so hopefully in another year or two I will not have to worry about this. I would guess the maintenance is a little under $1k per year. We do have a heater but it is very expensive to run. Im guessing it adds about 5-10 dollars per day to run on your heating bills. With all the negatives, I love my inground pool. It adds so much to the yard, I bought a nice bar for it last year, & the weather was great last year so we basically hung out & had friends over just about every weekend. Alaska is right, I would go with the fiberglass. Holds the heat in better. Your probably talking if you want to do it right, with the stamp concrete around the pool about $30K - $35K for an inground. Hefty price for a pool season that usually only lasts from june to august. Last year was unusual, I remember we were swimming in it until the 3rd week of september. But usually once the nights get cool around late august pool season ends, unless you want to run your heater, which as stated above, is very pricey. Tough to drop that kind of coin with the weather we have in buffalo.

 

To the above post, I can not really agree with you on comparing the neighborhood pool to your own pool. No where near the same thing. You have to share it with the whole neighborhood, where you have every little kid p*ssing in the pool. No thanks.

[apuszczalowski]

I recommend a fiberglass pool with a Pentair Intellichlor Chlorine generator and an Aquabot Robotic Pool Cleaner.

I did some work for someone designing an addition to a house for an indoor pool, and the owner specifically wanted a Fibreglass pool and I read up on them and they sound like a great product, but are alot more expensive.

[yall]

Where do you live? (OP).

 

Conveniently enough, I live in OP (Orchard Park)

 

I'm not too worried about adding value to my home as I am being able to enjoy a pool. i love swimming, and want to have a nice deck area and maybe even a small pool/projector house (I also plan on building a small drive-in style screen and playing games and watching movies while floating around in the pool).

 

I kinda figured I was looking at 30-40K. More than I want to spend, but if I financed half of it, it could be paid off in a pretty short time.

[Navy Chief Navy Pride]

I have an 18x36 inground gunite pool. I usually spend about 800 to 1k per year in maitenence and supplies. Do not get a liner as they leak like sives and are very expensive to replace every few years. But at the same time make sure that your calcium levels are right or the water will take it out of the gunite and your pool will start chipping and flaking. I found that out the hard way.

 

Overall I will never be without a pool again. The convinience and accesability are awesome. You will find this out once you have yours installed.

[rockpile]

I agree with this somewhat but you really can not compare an inground pool to an above. Inground's are just so much nicer. Above grounds are eyesores & they are really not that fun to swim in. With that being said, Rockpile is right, if you are looking as it as an investment to your house, it really does not add much resale value & some people will not buy a house just because of an inground pool. If you have little ones it is always a concern. My little guy just turned 4, our setup is pretty good though. We have our pool tucked in the left hand corner with a separate gate around the pool. Plus we have an alarm. Still, many of nights I have woken up worried about it as it only takes one time to make a mistake to change your life forever. Little guy is starting to swim on his own so hopefully in another year or two I will not have to worry about this. I would guess the maintenance is a little under $1k per year. We do have a heater but it is very expensive to run. Im guessing it adds about 5-10 dollars per day to run on your heating bills. With all the negatives, I love my inground pool. It adds so much to the yard, I bought a nice bar for it last year, & the weather was great last year so we basically hung out & had friends over just about every weekend. Alaska is right, I would go with the fiberglass. Holds the heat in better. Your probably talking if you want to do it right, with the stamp concrete around the pool about $30K - $35K for an inground. Hefty price for a pool season that usually only lasts from june to august. Last year was unusual, I remember we were swimming in it until the 3rd week of september. But usually once the nights get cool around late august pool season ends, unless you want to run your heater, which as stated above, is very pricey. Tough to drop that kind of coin with the weather we have in buffalo.

 

To the above post, I can not really agree with you on comparing the neighborhood pool to your own pool. No where near the same thing. You have to share it with the whole neighborhood, where you have every little kid p*ssing in the pool. No thanks.

 

I have 4 children and 5 grandchildren and have not lost one yet! If you are careful you have very little to worry about.

 

Every access to the pool is a padlocked gate or keyed deadbolt door. I was a tyrant about controlling access to the pool by little ones, especially since my wife has a daycare and NO they are not allowed in it. We are inspected regularly by the state gestapo and they are very strict on this kind of safety, especially after Alysa's Law was ennacted requiring barriers to pools and ponds:

 

There were four children in the Archibald house when Alysa was left there Oct. 23. It was during an eight-minute telephone call that Archibald received from a prospective customer just after noon that Alysa slipped away unnoticed. She wandered into the back yard and apparently fell headfirst onto the water-covered plastic cover.

 

When Archibald finished the phone call, she went looking for Alysa and found her lying face down in four inches of water on the pool cover. She pulled the child out and called 911, but paramedics couldn't save the child's life.

 

This was a case of pure neglect by the daycare provider. I do not know what the final sentencing was (financial and/or judicial).

 

The worst scare I had was finding out years after the fact, that my "children", all in the 18-25 range had a party when we were out of town. They were drinking heavily, and jumping off the roof into the pool. I discovered the party had occurred and at the time assured them all that they were one f* up away from eviction.

 

So do not worry about your toddlers, lock up the "almost adults" !

[yall]

I have dogs and may have children at some point, so safety is of the utmost importance.

 

I already have a fully fenced yard, with the wooden planks holding the sections together on the inside of the fence which makes it difficult to scale form the outside (not to mention nice to look at - at least from theperspective of my neighbors).

 

I will definitely get a pool alarm as well as a safety cover no matter which route I go.

[Phil Indablanc]

Pool type:

 

I have an inground with a liner and I am very pleased with it. As long as you cover it in the winter and maintain it properly you should easily get 10 years out of a liner. The only complaints that I have against gunite is the surface can be a little abrasive and if you don't have a really stable soil structure they have a tendency to crack which is pool nightmare time. I have not owned a fiberglass pool but I have heard good things so I would not be opposed to going that way either.

 

Sanitizing:

 

With regards to sanitizing there are some nice new options with ion/salt systems that some people swear by. If you are going to go with a chlorine based system you should consider the Sustain system from PPG Industries. I began using this when we bought our new house about 4 years ago and it is the best chlorine based system I have ever used. Chemicals go in about once a week barring exceptionally high swimmer load and temperatures and I have had few problems.

 

Foliage and Region:

 

Pools are like farms in that where you are located is one of the biggest factors in what type of pool you should install. Issues such as the level of your water table and frost line need to be considered when selecting what type of pool to install. Also consider the tall foliage that exists near your pool. Pines that are close by can be a real pain in that then tend to drop a lot of crap. I live near the mountains in the Carolinas and my foliage factors is that I have a lot of hardwoods near the pool. As a result I do not open my pool until the spring drop (mostly from sweet gums) and I close it just before a significant amount of leaves start to fall. That puts my season from about now until mid to late September so I do not need a heater.

 

Logistics:

 

One important design consideration that you should think about is the social element. Kids tend to jump and splash in the deep end of the pool. Adults tend to hang (stand) around in the 3 foot end and on the steps where they can keep a drink with them and socialize with the "non swimmers" who are sitting in chairs near the pool. As a result the largest deck area needs to be near the shallow end rather than the deep end

 

Jets and Skimmer:

 

A lot depends on your builder but it has been my experience that you get much better circulation if your return jets and skimmer(s) are on the same side. I believe that one center skimmer located in the middle of one side with two return jets located left and right (about 3/4 of the way between the center located skimmer and the short sides of the pool) with provide you with the best flow circulation particularly surface skimming action in a standard 16X32. In this configuration aim the jets somewhat down and pointing towards the far corners of the pool. This creates an upwelling flow back towards the center skimmer which will quickly pull debris into the skimmer and not it allow to get water logged and thus sink resulting in additional cleanup work.

 

Best Advice I Can Give:

 

Safety first. 110% security to prevent the little ones from a disaster. You cannot spend too much time and money on this factor.

Maintain your pool regularly. If you spot a problem address it NOW. More chemical checks during hot weather and heavy swimmer loads.

Spend the money on a good cover and winterizing. If you do so you spend about 4 hours opening your pool when that really warm day hits. If you don't you will spend about 4 weeks getting it ready.

Have fun. If you would like to send me a message to discuss further I would be happy to discuss it with you more but I have rambled on too long as it is. No, I am not in the industry. I am an IT nerd. I have owned several homes with pools. No attempts to check grammar or spelling on this post have been attempted so forgive me if I have made any as Sister Loretta would be very disappointed in me

[yall]

Well, I took the plunge and went with a 16x30 inground composite wall, vinyl lined pool. Full package including loop-loc safety cover, heater, solar cover, install, concrete, self cleaning, alarm, the whole nine yards.

 

I did a lot of research and it seems the vinyl liners last on average about 15 years, and with a replacement cost of about 3k it still seems like a better deal that fiberglass which was about 5k more.

 

I'm really excited and can't wait to get it in. I had them put it in writing that it would be complete by 15 August, the day before my annual summer bash. I'll post some pics and a review of the builder once I'm done, for those of you who are interested.

[mcjeff215]

To the above post, I can not really agree with you on comparing the neighborhood pool to your own pool. No where near the same thing. You have to share it with the whole neighborhood, where you have every little kid p*ssing in the pool. No thanks.

 

 

Oh sure! No comparison, but you do need to factor that in. Lots of developments that have the neighborhood pool explicitly deny personal pools in the HOA covenants. Additionally, I would think that a pool-is-a-pool to most. If there's a neighborhood one available, the desire for one in the backyard drops off dramatically -- you're simply creating a reason for someone to pass when you sell.

 

That all said, I'd put one in if my neighborhood didn't have one. Nothing beats a pool during the summer. Especially here in Georgia.

 

Congrats on the purchase! If we ever wind up back in WNY, I'll probably do the same.

[stevestojan]

Well, I took the plunge and went with a 16x30 inground composite wall, vinyl lined pool. Full package including loop-loc safety cover, heater, solar cover, install, concrete, self cleaning, alarm, the whole nine yards.

 

I did a lot of research and it seems the vinyl liners last on average about 15 years, and with a replacement cost of about 3k it still seems like a better deal that fiberglass which was about 5k more.

 

I'm really excited and can't wait to get it in. I had them put it in writing that it would be complete by 15 August, the day before my annual summer bash. I'll post some pics and a review of the builder once I'm done, for those of you who are interested.

 

Please don't be like my neighbors who put in a gorgeous ingrounder several years ago and use it on average once every other year. Take advantage of the thing. Also, make sure to get floating loungers with cup holders so you can have your beer out there.

 

/jealous

[yall]

Please don't be like my neighbors who put in a gorgeous ingrounder several years ago and use it on average once every other year. Take advantage of the thing. Also, make sure to get floating loungers with cup holders so you can have your beer out there.

 

/jealous

 

You must have missed the part where I talked about how I'm building an outdoor drive-in screen for nighttime multiplayer Risk matches in the pool (although I guess I'll need some plastic baggies for the controllers).

 

Yeah, it's gonna be awesome.