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Yes: Pools are worth it....


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16 hours ago, milkman said:

Getting into the home stretch and should have the house and pool finished by the end of May. Need to start looking at pool/patio furniture. I know I probably should have started looking months ago. Any recommendations or things to stay away from?

After trying maybe sets at different price levels I just couldn't see the furniture at like Home Depot/Lowes lasting in my yard with kids, dogs, weather, etc. so bit the bullet at went looking for next level up in price (large step). Been very happy with it and definitely feels like their is a chance it will last a long while.  We and couple friends/neighbors all got our sets at Rooms to go and all have been happy so far.  The "Sunbrella" fabric has been pretty forgiving, definitely worth it IMO.

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After a VERY long delay, we finally got plaster and swam for the first time on Easter.  It took about 36 hours to fill with two hoses running wide open (~38k gals).

I'll send a pic once I have a chance to remove the 1/2" blanket of oak pollen that is currently floating on the surface.

Our deck is complete and we have sod down as well.  Now we just need to finish the landscaping (flower beds) and the out door kitchen needs counter tops and appliance installed.  I'm hoping to have the project complete by the end of next month.

As to outdoor furniture, ours will trickle in over the next two months.  I was pretty surprised at how much the "good" stuff costs, but we are hoping that by paying up we will get more life out of it and have to replace it less often, I'll report back on that.

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My builder says you need to brush the pool sides twice a day for 10 days after plaster is done, then another few days for the stuff to filter out and balance the chemicals before it's safe to swim. I understand that these guidelines vary from builder to builder. Anyone else have thoughts or experience with that?

Other topic: We have a whole house water filter that pulls out 100% of hardness/scale from the water. The filter vendor says filling the pool with regular water would be best, bypass the system for a couple days while we do that, then turn it back on and let the pool autofill using filtered water.  Is there any issue with that? Filter guy says it means we won't have calcium fed into the pool, which prevents the white buildup on the sides. Internet says it will take more chemical to balance new water and cost more. 

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19 minutes ago, Dutchrudder said:

My builder says you need to brush the pool sides twice a day for 10 days after plaster is done, then another few days for the stuff to filter out and balance the chemicals before it's safe to swim. I understand that these guidelines vary from builder to builder. Anyone else have thoughts or experience with that?

That's what I've always heard. I don't know about the safety issue but it allows for proper curing of the plaster and helps remove loose particles.

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My builder told me we could get in when there’s 6 inches of water in it if we wanted to, so that’s exactly what my kids did. 
We were also told to brush 2x daily for 10 days. We’ve been swimming in it nearly everyday since the day it was full.  
For furniture I got 2 adirondacks from Pollywood and 2 chaise lounges from them as well. That’s the heavy resin stuff. They aren’t fancy but they are sturdy, heavy, and should last without weathering or rusting or needing stain so I’m happy. 
Getting an old school wood picnic table for meals. 

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57 minutes ago, Dutchrudder said:

My builder says you need to brush the pool sides twice a day for 10 days after plaster is done, then another few days for the stuff to filter out and balance the chemicals before it's safe to swim. I understand that these guidelines vary from builder to builder. Anyone else have thoughts or experience with that?

Other topic: We have a whole house water filter that pulls out 100% of hardness/scale from the water. The filter vendor says filling the pool with regular water would be best, bypass the system for a couple days while we do that, then turn it back on and let the pool autofill using filtered water.  Is there any issue with that? Filter guy says it means we won't have calcium fed into the pool, which prevents the white buildup on the sides. Internet says it will take more chemical to balance new water and cost more. 

Bypass your softener.   Your pool water needs the hardness

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58 minutes ago, Dutchrudder said:

My builder says you need to brush the pool sides twice a day for 10 days after plaster is done, then another few days for the stuff to filter out and balance the chemicals before it's safe to swim. I understand that these guidelines vary from builder to builder. Anyone else have thoughts or experience with that?

Other topic: We have a whole house water filter that pulls out 100% of hardness/scale from the water. The filter vendor says filling the pool with regular water would be best, bypass the system for a couple days while we do that, then turn it back on and let the pool autofill using filtered water.  Is there any issue with that? Filter guy says it means we won't have calcium fed into the pool, which prevents the white buildup on the sides. Internet says it will take more chemical to balance new water and cost more. 

Bypass your softener.   Your pool water needs the hardness

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6 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:

My builder says you need to brush the pool sides twice a day for 10 days after plaster is done, then another few days for the stuff to filter out and balance the chemicals before it's safe to swim. I understand that these guidelines vary from builder to builder. Anyone else have thoughts or experience with that?

Other topic: We have a whole house water filter that pulls out 100% of hardness/scale from the water. The filter vendor says filling the pool with regular water would be best, bypass the system for a couple days while we do that, then turn it back on and let the pool autofill using filtered water.  Is there any issue with that? Filter guy says it means we won't have calcium fed into the pool, which prevents the white buildup on the sides. Internet says it will take more chemical to balance new water and cost more. 

 

5 hours ago, Poolflood said:

Bypass your softener.   Your pool water needs the hardness

Yep.  Poolflood is right (of course).

I used regular water (sourced from Lake Travis) and Calcium Hardness was still too low so I had to add some Calcium Chloride to get my CH level up.  For plaster pools you want about CH of about 250.  I think it helps prevent etching.  I don't think you need it for liners or fiberglass pools.

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7 minutes ago, TexasEd said:

 

Yep.  Poolflood is right (of course).

I used regular water (sourced from Lake Travis) and Calcium Hardness was still too low so I had to add some Calcium Chloride to get my CH level up.  For plaster pools you want about CH of about 250.  I think it helps prevent etching.  I don't think you need it for liners or fiberglass pools.

Are you talking about the initial pool fill of 30k gallons of water?  Because I will definitely bypass for that. 

I'm more concerned about the incremental fill as water evaporates out of the pool, and the auto-filler adds water throughout the life of the pool. Is that enough clean purified water to make a detrimental impact on the pool water health/quality?  

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8 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:

Are you talking about the initial pool fill of 30k gallons of water?  Because I will definitely bypass for that. 

I'm more concerned about the incremental fill as water evaporates out of the pool, and the auto-filler adds water throughout the life of the pool. Is that enough clean purified water to make a detrimental impact on the pool water health/quality?  

Definitely bypass for initial fill.  For the autofill it's a balancing act depeding on what your unsoftened water is.  Putting softened water isn't a big deal.  But if your source water (before softener) is high in copper, iron or even manganese that could cause issues a little more difficult to manage than calcium levels.

You'll get a good indicator when you fill.

Green water indicates copper.

Brown is iron 

Purple is manganese.  Which is rare but pretty amazing to see.

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It might as well be my pool. My pump died like a month ago when we had a decent rain. I ordered a new pump from the place that had the shortest lead time - I was suppose to get the pump on the 3rd of April. It just shipped today.

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7 minutes ago, Poolflood said:

Not very often.  Delays in shipping/manufacturing are still part of horrific supply chain issues.   

Hey, speaking of... My pool guy thinks that the pump failure was caused by flooding. It is possible but I'm not sure. In any case, I'll raise the pump 6" when it is reinstalled. But, can the old (1 season) Intelliflo pump be fixed? After I install the new pump, it would be great if the broken one could be repaired.

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38 minutes ago, Bevo said:

Hey, speaking of... My pool guy thinks that the pump failure was caused by flooding. It is possible but I'm not sure. In any case, I'll raise the pump 6" when it is reinstalled. But, can the old (1 season) Intelliflo pump be fixed? After I install the new pump, it would be great if the broken one could be repaired.

Yes it can bw fixed but probably more expensive than it's worth esp if the power pack failed.  

But if it was 1 years old it should have been taken care of under warranty?  Or did they say no because of possible flooding?

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33 minutes ago, Poolflood said:

Yes it can bw fixed but probably more expensive than it's worth esp if the power pack failed.  

But if it was 1 years old it should have been taken care of under warranty?  Or did they say no because of possible flooding?

Great question. My pool guy doesn't do warranty stuff anymore. It was a replacement pump for a pump that failed under warranty and he said Pentair wouldn't warranty a replacement pump. So, basically we haven't even contacted Pentair. But, it seems like if I take it to a repair place to diagnose the problem, maybe they could contact Pentair.

In the meantime, with the way the industry is working right now I'm glad I just ordered a new pump right away without going through Pentair. Where should I take the old pump for diagnosis in Austin?

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2 hours ago, Bevo said:

Great question. My pool guy doesn't do warranty stuff anymore. It was a replacement pump for a pump that failed under warranty and he said Pentair wouldn't warranty a replacement pump. So, basically we haven't even contacted Pentair. But, it seems like if I take it to a repair place to diagnose the problem, maybe they could contact Pentair.

In the meantime, with the way the industry is working right now I'm glad I just ordered a new pump right away without going through Pentair. Where should I take the old pump for diagnosis in Austin?

To see if you can get the old one fixed under warranty you'll need a local warranty station.  If it's been less than 3 yrs since pool was started up pentair should fix/repair pump even if they've done before.   If you can't find one PM me your zip code.   I may be able to find one.

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My builder dropped this in the pool yesterday.  He couldn't get it working before he left, I think they're coming back to try some other shit this morning.  Anyone have one of these? Thoughts?

https://www.polarispool.com/en/products/pool-cleaners/pressure-automatic-pool-cleaners/polaris-3900-sport

f6_pol_3900_01.png

Edited by BTW
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13 hours ago, Poolflood said:

To see if you can get the old one fixed under warranty you'll need a local warranty station.  If it's been less than 3 yrs since pool was started up pentair should fix/repair pump even if they've done before.   If you can't find one PM me your zip code.   I may be able to find one.

Thanks

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On 4/20/2022 at 7:40 AM, williemackgarza said:

My kids started swimming as soon as the fill water reached the tile line. It was 3am. No fucks given. They swam for like an hour. Sure the neighbors hated it.

LOL, mine "would" have, but we put our in over the winter months and their blood is as thin as mine.  Soon as it warmed up, it was game on!

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6 hours ago, BTW said:

My builder dropped this in the pool yesterday.  He couldn't get it working before he left, I think they're coming back to try some other shit this morning.  Anyone have one of these? Thoughts?

https://www.polarispool.com/en/products/pool-cleaners/pressure-automatic-pool-cleaners/polaris-3900-sport

f6_pol_3900_01.png

I have an older model and it kicks ass.

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1 hour ago, LebongJames said:

Did a remodel of our pool built in the 80s. New tile, coping, Led light, pebble stone plaster and added a Baja shelf with bubbler. Plaster went in today. Should be swimming early next week.

 

 

3B5F243F-6CC2-4E8D-8351-9A8373869564.jpeg

So you aren't going to wait the 10 days for the plaster to cure before swimming? My wife is insistent on waiting, cause rules or whatever.  

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So you aren't going to wait the 10 days for the plaster to cure before swimming? My wife is insistent on waiting, cause rules or whatever.  

We were told it was ok to swim just don’t stand in one place for too long. Didn’t matter because it was the middle of February.
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On 4/17/2022 at 6:21 PM, milkman said:

Getting into the home stretch and should have the house and pool finished by the end of May. Need to start looking at pool/patio furniture. I know I probably should have started looking months ago. Any recommendations or things to stay away from?

Went and looked at pool/patio furniture yesterday.  Holy cow is that expensive!  We just went to one place but it seems they know they have you by the balls!  Any places in Austin or Dallas that people would recommend?  I want this to be a one time purchase that I'm not replacing things after a year or two.

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Finally got around to snapping a photo. (Complete with photo bomb by Murph and Penny)
34017318cbcac92fd4caf103140ac559.jpg
We swam for the first time on Easter, but haven’t been in again yet because we had a dust storm and 1/2 of west Texas ended up at the bottom if the pool.

Any recs on getting it out of there quickly? My pool builder said to just brush it toward the drain and let the filter get it. But I’ve probably brushed the entire pool 8 times over the last couple of days and each time it’s a little cleaner, but there’s still a lot of dirt left behind.

It gets super cloudy, then it settles out over an hour or so, Rinse, repeat

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21 hours ago, BTW said:

Finally got around to snapping a photo. (Complete with photo bomb by Murph and Penny)
34017318cbcac92fd4caf103140ac559.jpg
We swam for the first time on Easter, but haven’t been in again yet because we had a dust storm and 1/2 of west Texas ended up at the bottom if the pool.

Any recs on getting it out of there quickly? My pool builder said to just brush it toward the drain and let the filter get it. But I’ve probably brushed the entire pool 8 times over the last couple of days and each time it’s a little cleaner, but there’s still a lot of dirt left behind.

It gets super cloudy, then it settles out over an hour or so, Rinse, repeat

Been dealing with dirt/sand for a couple months because of my never ending construction zone. I brush the deep end towards the drain and then the shallow end I just try and get it away from the sides and run the Polaris constantly.  Brushing from the shallow end kept everything stirred up too much to where the returns just kept blowing it around.

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