Swimming Pools 101: What to think about if you’re considering a pool.

[FloridaKash]

Originally Posted by TechGromit

I wonder how an outdoor pool in Alaska affects house values, I betting not good.

LOL - lived there... nobody has an outdoor pool. Some idiots may have above ground pools.... but they never last long. Very few private residences have indoor pools. All public and gym owned pool are indoor.

[SuperSparkle928]

Originally Posted by FloridaKash

LOL - lived there... nobody has an outdoor pool. Some idiots may have above ground pools.... but they never last long. Very few private residences have indoor pools. All public and gym owned pool are indoor.

you got that right.... my neighbor had an indoor pool; besides hiring someone that knows how to construct the structure for the environment, the killer is the dehumidification system needed (the condensate is drained back into the pool). I would not want to see his electric bills. Though swimming in a pool when there is 2 feet of snow coming down outside, and watching it through the windows, must be a lot of fun.

[JayCT]

So I have researched our options for a new pool and found out a lot. Because we have no idea what we want or how much to spend, all of the different options are available to us. This is what I found:

1. 27 ' Round Above Ground Pool - $7,600
2. 33' Semi Above Ground - $14,000
3. 17' by 41' Semi Above Ground Pool - $24,500
4. 16' by 32' On Ground Deck Pool - $25,000
5. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (Medium Quality) - $29,500
6. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (High Quality) - $39,500
7. 17' by 34' In Ground Gunite Kidney - $34,000
8. 17' by 32' In Ground Gunite Sport Pool - $40,000

So what do you think? Do these prices look reasonable for a complete pool including filter, electrical, cover etc.? Would we be smarter going in ground or above ground? If in ground would gunite be worth it?

I am tempted by the 33' Semi Above Ground because it is not expensive and can be partially buried. We could position it to abut a new raised patio off the back of the house. Plus I would not have to worry about fencing an inground off from our dogs. What do you think? Jay

[fallingwater]

Originally Posted by JayCT

So I have researched our options for a new pool and found out a lot. Because we have no idea what we want or how much to spend, all of the different options are available to us. This is what I found:

1. 27 ' Round Above Ground Pool - $7,600
2. 33' Semi Above Ground - $14,000
3. 17' by 41' Semi Above Ground Pool - $24,500
4. 16' by 32' On Ground Deck Pool - $25,000
5. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (Medium Quality) - $29,500
6. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (High Quality) - $39,500
7. 17' by 34' In Ground Gunite Kidney - $34,000
8. 17' by 32' In Ground Gunite Sport Pool - $40,000

So what do you think? Do these prices look reasonable for a complete pool including filter, electrical, cover etc.? Would we be smarter going in ground or above ground? If in ground would gunite be worth it?

I am tempted by the 33' Semi Above Ground because it is not expensive and can be partially buried. We could position it to abut a new raised patio off the back of the house. Plus I would not have to worry about fencing an inground off from our dogs. What do you think? Jay

I wish I had pictures to you show you but a home in my childhood neighborhood was amazing. The owners really had excellent taste. They put in a pool in the backyard and for most of my childhood I assumed it was an inground. I learned later it was actually a semi above ground. They installed a red cedar deck all the way around it that was flush with the deck off their house. The opposite side had built in planters. Even from the grassy area of the lawn, it really had this feel of being completely inground. It was a dutch colonial home painted in a rustic red with lots of mature trees on the property (probably made the pool cleaning a nightmare) but the whole yard had this very serene woodsy feel. They must have did the pool correctly because that set up lasted for many years. The pool was finally removed a couple of years ago. I'd say they got at least 30 years of it (probably replaced the liner a bunch of times though). It really looked nice. Here are some cool designs I saw online.

[Coldjensens]

Originally Posted by JayCT

So I have researched our options for a new pool and found out a lot. Because we have no idea what we want or how much to spend, all of the different options are available to us. This is what I found:

1. 27 ' Round Above Ground Pool - $7,600
2. 33' Semi Above Ground - $14,000
3. 17' by 41' Semi Above Ground Pool - $24,500
4. 16' by 32' On Ground Deck Pool - $25,000
5. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (Medium Quality) - $29,500
6. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (High Quality) - $39,500
7. 17' by 34' In Ground Gunite Kidney - $34,000
8. 17' by 32' In Ground Gunite Sport Pool - $40,000

So what do you think? Do these prices look reasonable for a complete pool including filter, electrical, cover etc.? Would we be smarter going in ground or above ground? If in ground would gunite be worth it?

I am tempted by the 33' Semi Above Ground because it is not expensive and can be partially buried. We could position it to abut a new raised patio off the back of the house. Plus I would not have to worry about fencing an inground off from our dogs. What do you think? Jay

It seems a bit high. This should be including absolute top quality filter system and salt generation, a heavy duty solar cover with a reel, chemicals, a robot cleaner and all otehr tools you need.

Even if that is all included, I suggest you shop around.

From our investigation of the options, gunnite absoultely is not worth it. It is out of date technology for pools. It costs more inictally, and costs more later, requires more chemicals, more expensive to repair, less resistant to ground water . . . There is really nothing beneficial about it. Gunnite sales people will tell you a bunch of bad things about vinyl or fiberglass pools that is out of date. They had a lot of problems when they first came out, but this is not 1982 (or whatever the date was). Gunnite has not improved. Fiberglass and vinyl have both worked out many of their respective problems and inproved with technology.

A semi above ground pool might be a decen option. Less of an eyesore, but less expensive. However your city or township will probably require a fence no matter what. Most do.

I am not sure whether I mentione dthis in this thread or another, but our pool is 40' long and we frequently wish it were longer. I should have spring for the few hundred extra dollars to go to 45 or even up to 60. 40 is too short for meaningul laps, too short for water volleyball or other games except whent he kids are pretty little. now they are teens and young adults, it really would be more useful if it were much longer.

[whoisjongalt]

Originally Posted by JayCT

So I have researched our options for a new pool and found out a lot. Because we have no idea what we want or how much to spend, all of the different options are available to us. This is what I found:

1. 27 ' Round Above Ground Pool - $7,600
2. 33' Semi Above Ground - $14,000
3. 17' by 41' Semi Above Ground Pool - $24,500
4. 16' by 32' On Ground Deck Pool - $25,000
5. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (Medium Quality) - $29,500
6. 18' by 36' In Ground Vinyl (High Quality) - $39,500
7. 17' by 34' In Ground Gunite Kidney - $34,000
8. 17' by 32' In Ground Gunite Sport Pool - $40,000

So what do you think? Do these prices look reasonable for a complete pool including filter, electrical, cover etc.? Would we be smarter going in ground or above ground? If in ground would gunite be worth it?

I am tempted by the 33' Semi Above Ground because it is not expensive and can be partially buried. We could position it to abut a new raised patio off the back of the house. Plus I would not have to worry about fencing an inground off from our dogs. What do you think? Jay

I'm curious how much it would be for a 18 x 40' gunite deep enough for a diving board. I thought it was around $40,000 but, based on those prices, it would have to be more. I sure wish I could find a house that already had one!

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by JayCT

I am tempted by the 33' Semi Ground because it is not expensive and can be partially buried. We could position it to abut a new raised patio off the back of the house. Plus I would not have to worry about fencing an inground off from our dogs. What do you think? Jay

If you plan to build elaborate decking anyway and have a sloped yard, you can save money with the full above ground. My neighbors had a full above ground but you would have never guessed, except for it being round. They dug out the hillside, put in a round retaining wall on one side (couldn't see the wall because it was slightly lower than the pool), and the other side had multi-level decking. They planted bushes and plants to blend the edge of the pool with the hillside. You approached the pool from the decking side. The first big deck was only one step up from the grass. There was a smaller landing deck between it and the top deck but it was still big enough for some furniture so it didn't seem like it was merely there to elevate for the pool.

I forgot to mention he got the pool for free in the Pennysaver---someone was giving it away in exchange for the labor of taking it down and hauling it away. If you really want a pool and can do the work yourself, you'd be amazed at how cheap you can do it while still retaining an attractive appearance. His only expense were the materials for the retaining wall and the decking plus the landscaping.