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Yes: Pools are worth it....

Poolflood

By Poolflood
in Can You Help Me With This?

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BTW
BTW

Here are some after pics for the project.  We started last September and have been swimming since Easter.  Pavilion/outdoor kitchen have recently been completed.  Sectional in the pavilion is incomple

Tailgate
Tailgate

Weather was a big slow down with the rain we had last year. Also removing an in-ground floor system I didn’t realize was installed was the other big delay...I don’t want my pool to look like it has 20

PorscheGuy
PorscheGuy

Before: pool built in the late 70’s. Major structural issues and ancient equipment that cost a fortune to repair over the years and maintain. Also had dated landscaping and flagstone After: wante

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troph 24781

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Because I’m not a dude or a chick into maintaining shit and it seems complicated enough and I’d just rather drink beer or tequila or wine and enjoy the sunset and not worry about the pool. Besides I’d probably turn the thing green or at least cloudy and mess it the eff up.

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HouTex

HouTex 1866

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After my pool builder quit my job and I had to finish the job myself a couple of the builders I consulted told me to use Pentair pumps instead of the Hayward that my original builder was going to use.  For some reason, Hayward seems to get a bad rap.

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Pogo

Pogo 284

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3 hours ago, Poolflood said:

Was in distribution for pool equipment for the better part of 17 years.  The big 3 have about the same issues percentage wise

I've had 2 Pentair pumps (variable speed main pump and a smaller one for the water feature) and neither has given me a problem in 7+ years.  In that time, though, 4 Pentair valve actuators have died.  The first 2 were under warranty.  The 3rd was $300 to replace.  The 4th happened in April at 5:30 on a Friday.  A bit of research showed that those are the shittiest things Pentair makes.  I bought 2 Haywards Saturday morning and installed them myself in an hour.  When I opened the Pentair that had failed, it was full of water.

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Bevo

Bevo 13560

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My last system was Jandy and it was fine. The one before that was Hayward and it seemed okay. This new one is Pentair. So far I like the automation better than Jandy automation: The apple app is pretty good and I think they have a better overall product offering. As far as support, I never tried calling Hayward. Jandy support wasn't great and I had to tell them I was a pool professional to get anywhere. Pentair seems easier to contact, but I haven't needed any significant help.

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Buzzrock

Buzzrock 14902

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On 6/25/2019 at 3:09 AM, Dutchrudder said:

So we are currently looking for a new home, but not an urgent need to move yet. We have a 5 month old boy and want to get a better school district, better house for less money, etc. One thing we both want is a pool. Anything I should know or look for when buying a pool that's already built with the house?

Fresh or salt water seems to be the big dividing opinion, but I'm leaning towards salt water right now. Any thoughts on that?

Any brands of pool equipment we should avoid?

Is it worth it to have a little robot drive around to pick up dirt and leaves?

 

Having just done this myself I would strongly recommend having a separate inspection of all of the pool components by a highly reputable pool service company. I didn’t do that and a few months later my whole electrical board burned up and cost me $1,000 to repair (and could have been a lot worse). Turns out none of the breakers are up to code. For the most part the pool is fine now but I’m still chasing a few gremlins that it would have been nice to have the seller fix. 

And I’ll just add that mine is saltwater and I’m doing the chemicals and minor maintenance myself. It’s not burdensome and I enjoy it, and pool services around here are $230 or so per month. The water has been remarkably stable despite loads of pool time with the kids and their friends and a fair amount of rain. 

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Poolflood

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21 hours ago, Rimbo said:

I need tips on a new pump.

We need something quieter, more efficient, quieter, less leaky, and quiet. Did I mention it needed to be quiet?

Pool Co recommends Hayward Tristar VS 950. Alternatives? Thoughts?

Either that pump or the pentair equivalent - intelliflo.  If you have automation it's easier to couple same brand.  So if you have Hayward automation, go Hayward, etc

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Hate

Hate 20106

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The last pump I replaced a few months ago, we went back with this.

6248e56cfb311b2dc8fbdc2e29805fea.jpg

The pool guy said that these are fairly new, have a longer warranty (3 years), and are supposed to last longer because they have a built in cooling fan. We’ll see. In the 10 years I’ve had my pool, I’ve replaced both pumps (Polaris and pool).

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Poolflood

Poolflood 845

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On 6/28/2019 at 8:33 PM, Hate said:

The last pump I replaced a few months ago, we went back with this.

6248e56cfb311b2dc8fbdc2e29805fea.jpg

The pool guy said that these are fairly new, have a longer warranty (3 years), and are supposed to last longer because they have a built in cooling fan. We’ll see. In the 10 years I’ve had my pool, I’ve replaced both pumps (Polaris and pool).

Looks like a variable speed motor replacement for their (Pentair) whisperflo pump.  Pentair launched the first vsp pump like 10-15 years ago.  Market leader in pump innovation.  

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77horn

77horn 216

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On 6/27/2019 at 10:36 PM, Rimbo said:

I need tips on a new pump.

We need something quieter, more efficient, quieter, less leaky, and quiet. Did I mention it needed to be quiet?

Pool Co recommends Hayward Tristar VS 950. Alternatives? Thoughts?

Do you need an entire new pump or could you just replace the motor?

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Rimbo

Rimbo 25911

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7 hours ago, 77horn said:

Do you need an entire new pump or could you just replace the motor?

I really think variable speed is the way to go. Single-speed is no good. Too loud and too much power to run all the time at full blast.

The guy at the pool company that maintained this pool before we moved in has been top-notch. He actually got Hayward and Pentair to send graphs of the pumps in question with the dB ratings across different speeds; the Pentair rep even graphed the distances (which seems silly, but it gives you a notion of the frequency band).

We're hiring them to do the job once we have the money.

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Poolflood

Poolflood 845

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15 hours ago, Rimbo said:

I really think variable speed is the way to go. Single-speed is no good. Too loud and too much power to run all the time at full blast.

The guy at the pool company that maintained this pool before we moved in has been top-notch. He actually got Hayward and Pentair to send graphs of the pumps in question with the dB ratings across different speeds; the Pentair rep even graphed the distances (which seems silly, but it gives you a notion of the frequency band).

We're hiring them to do the job once we have the money.

Pentair, Hayward or even Jandy.  Variable speed is the way to go.

Edited by Poolflood
Mandy pumps suck
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Poolflood

Poolflood 845

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7 hours ago, Hate said:

The new pump that I posted also has a fan on it. It’s supposed to extend the life by a few year. I paid a little more for it, but if I get a couple of extra years it will be worth it.

TEFC - Totally Enclosed Fan Cooled.  Yup.  Money well spent

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GRHorn

GRHorn 105

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On 6/25/2019 at 8:54 PM, immamac said:

IDK why people have a pool guy. If you have a chlorinator and good filtration and your pump isn't severely undersized maintenance takes like 10 minutes a week. 

It's never something I've wanted to fuck with. I've had a service since mine was built and it has not been more than a couple days total in those years (after massive kids pool party), that it didn't look perfect.  Worth it.

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HouTex

HouTex 1866

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As I am new and in Texas in the Summer I have a question, any way to cool the pool cheaply? It is pretty hot, I think because it is shallow, 94 degrees now. Would like it a bit cooler if possible. Any ideas? 

Search online for how to make a cooling fountain out of PVC pipe. The contraption screws into one of your returns and sprays water about 5-7 feet into the air back into the pool. As a slight amount of water evaporates it cools the water down a bit. You have to run the pump 24/7 for a couple of days but you can get the temp down to the high 80's which makes a huge difference. It worked well for me. It probably cost $15 in pipe material and glue. And there's the cost of electricity from running the pump for a couple of days at full speed. You'll need to add some water to your pool during the process due to the evaporation. Hopefully you don't have water restrictions.
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rage-a-holic

rage-a-holic 4373

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I have a bunch of these. Just keep the kids away from them. Kids like to hang on them, jump on them, etc, and pieces start breaking off.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Splash-Round-Pools-SEC385-Waterfall/dp/B0024NKMA4/ref=pd_cp_86_1?pd_rd_w=nUBK3&pf_rd_p=ef4dc990-a9ca-4945-ae0b-f8d549198ed6&pf_rd_r=W1MWGMG375VW038H1QH6&pd_rd_r=6a905986-a7f2-11e9-8006-db48d46a0e0b&pd_rd_wg=JxcRd&pd_rd_i=B0024NKMA4&psc=1&refRID=W1MWGMG375VW038H1QH6

 

51k20IJaDbL._SL1153_.jpg

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Rimbo

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Son and I did our first turn at washing the filter today.

We made two mistakes. One, we didn't backwash after we were done, so the final rinse went into the pool (just a wee bit though)

Two, we didn't put new DE into it. Gotta go buy a bag today. And a mask.

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Bill Clay

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14 hours ago, Lobwedgephil said:

As I am new and in Texas in the Summer I have a question, any way to cool the pool cheaply? It is pretty hot, I think because it is shallow, 94 degrees now. Would like it a bit cooler if possible. Any ideas? 

I tried those gizmos that screw into the jets and didn't get much from them. My pressure was too low/weak to make any real spray plus they look like shit when not in use and are easily broken by kids playing.

Solution was a portable "kit" I designed which consisted of a submersible pump rigged into a milk crate with a couple of dumbbells inside to keep it from tipping over. Ran some PVC up vertically from the pump output above the waterline to a T fitting with another piece of PVC with holes drilled. Run it all night and get a -7 degree drop by morning. $75 all in with the pump being $57 of it. I run it once or twice a week during summer to keep it cool.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017TWW1PI/

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HouTex

HouTex 1866

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^^^ It will depend on the size of the pump.  My pump was way oversized for my pool--I only had to run it a few hours a day to chlorinate (I had a salt water pool) and filter the pool.  My pump had no problem shooting fine water streams 5-7 feet into the air.  They look like shit and kids would break them, but in my case my kids were off at college and no one used the pool during the week so I was ok. 

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HoustonHorn

HoustonHorn 1062

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As I am new and in Texas in the Summer I have a question, any way to cool the pool cheaply? It is pretty hot, I think because it is shallow, 94 degrees now. Would like it a bit cooler if possible. Any ideas? 
Not cheap but I bought a chiller and it's awesome. I don't enjoy a pool at 90+ so it was either spend the money or know I'm basically not going to use the pool from July through September. Exactly when I need it the most. I want to say it was about 3.5k installed. It's an Aquacool or something like that. If you're interested PM me and I'll send you the exact name.
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SHOOTER12

SHOOTER12 8800

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On 6/26/2019 at 7:06 AM, HouTex said:

After my pool builder quit my job and I had to finish the job myself a couple of the builders I consulted told me to use Pentair pumps instead of the Hayward that my original builder was going to use.  For some reason, Hayward seems to get a bad rap.

Sheesh, I've designed and had 3 pools built and always used Hayward equipment with 0 issues.

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Snake Diggity

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21 hours ago, rage-a-holic said:

I have a bunch of these. Just keep the kids away from them. Kids like to hang on them, jump on them, etc, and pieces start breaking off.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Splash-Round-Pools-SEC385-Waterfall/dp/B0024NKMA4/ref=pd_cp_86_1?pd_rd_w=nUBK3&pf_rd_p=ef4dc990-a9ca-4945-ae0b-f8d549198ed6&pf_rd_r=W1MWGMG375VW038H1QH6&pd_rd_r=6a905986-a7f2-11e9-8006-db48d46a0e0b&pd_rd_wg=JxcRd&pd_rd_i=B0024NKMA4&psc=1&refRID=W1MWGMG375VW038H1QH6

 

51k20IJaDbL._SL1153_.jpg

I have one of these and it’s worked great to cool the pool quite a bit.  In fact my sister in law always complains our pool is too cold even tho the pool is 100% in the sun.  Without the fountain thingy it feels like bathwater in the sunny afternoons.

They are rinky dink so they do look like shit, which I don’t mind because our pool is 40 years old so it all kind of looks like shit.

They are also fragile enough that kids will break them.  I have been through 2 so far, but at 20 bucks a pop it’s not a big deal.  

In addition to cooling the pool down they make for good entertainment as a water feature and something for the kids to play in.

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rage-a-holic

rage-a-holic 4373

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2 hours ago, Hate said:

Is one of them enough to cool your entire pool?

Not unless your pool is an overgrown bathtub. Mine is 28k gallons and I need 3 of those things running to make a difference.

Another pro-tip is to leave the water running on the slide all the time (if you have one). Does the same thing.

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Snake Diggity

Snake Diggity 4619

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1 hour ago, Hate said:

I just bought this. 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0716CJDVX/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_image_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I wanted the ability to easily remove the sprayer if I wanted to and this seems to work for that perfectly.  I'll get it in a few days and report back with the results. 

 

 

I’m sure you know this but it looks like that one has to hook up to the booster pump outlet that the vacuum normally hooks up to.  If you don’t have a booster pump or if you use a Polaris vacuum, you will not be able to use that fountain.  The model linked further up thread hooks up to any filter outlet.

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El Diablo

El Diablo 4232

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Who here wants to walk me thru a FAS-DPD test? I've been messing with aquarium water chemistry for about a year now and got the bright idea that I wanted to know more about the water in the community pool so I bought just the chlorine test kit from Taylor. I figure the chlorine's all they're going to let some retard mess with anyway so I didn't think I need the full meal deal. Plus, I already can test pH and have a TDS meter.

I checked the pH and it's fine, right at 7.4.  The TDS were pretty much spot on from where I understand to be good, they are at 817ppm and internet says no more than 1,500. Not sure what all is included in that since it's total and I don't know the composition break down but assume it's not really all that important for just a quick and dirty assessment.

So then I started messing with the chlorine test. I followed the directions very slowly which brings me to my question - After adding some drops of the first reagent into the now pink water it began to clear so I stopped. Was doing something else and noticed that it had begun to turn pink again. Hmm. Added some more drops (counting them of course), it turned more or less colorless and so I set the sample back aside. After a little while again it began to turn pink again. It's got me wondering if by doing it this way, very slowly, I'm going to get a more accurate reading OR is something breaking down and the test NEEDS to be done quickly, one step right behind the previous.

One of you chemical wizards got any thoughts?

tl;dr version - pink, clear, pink, clear, pink, clear, pink, clear

EDIT: Found my answer - keep adding drops. Per the Taylor website

Ferrous ammonium sulfate (FAS) is then added drop by drop until the pink color

completely and permanently disappears, signaling the endpoint of the reaction

Edited by El Diablo
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Tailgate

Tailgate 3021

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If it took a year I wanna see pics


b5aecbfc0784118f92a3f54495c9f982.jpg

Weather was a big slow down with the rain we had last year. Also removing an in-ground floor system I didn’t realize was installed was the other big delay...I don’t want my pool to look like it has 20 sprinkler heads in it...and I didn’t read too many positive reviews on them and like things simple. Less moving parts the better. My pool builder, however, has been awesome and jumps at any issue.

It’s been fun and glad we were able to do it. It’s a no brainer if you can with this heat.
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Poolflood

Poolflood 845

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3 hours ago, Tailgate said:

 


b5aecbfc0784118f92a3f54495c9f982.jpg

Weather was a big slow down with the rain we had last year. Also removing an in-ground floor system I didn’t realize was installed was the other big delay...I don’t want my pool to look like it has 20 sprinkler heads in it...and I didn’t read too many positive reviews on them and like things simple. Less moving parts the better. My pool builder, however, has been awesome and jumps at any issue.

It’s been fun and glad we were able to do it. It’s a no brainer if you can with this heat.

 

Very nice!  They do the cover and kitchen as well?

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