Pools in Phoenix (buy, new construction, costs)

[Rosievw]

Does anyone have any ideas on costs to add a pool to new construction in the Phoenix area? Most likely a play pool.

[CheyDee]

Off the top of my head I would guess just < $20k for a basic play pool, without anything extra, (ie: no spa, salt water, in-ground cleaning heads, extra decking, etc.)

[Rosievw]

What would salt water take the costs too?

[Jkgourmet]

Originally Posted by Rosievw

What would salt water take the costs too?

add another $3-5K for salt water pool.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by Jkgourmet

add another $3-5K for salt water pool.

Seriously?! There is nothing special about a salt water pool. It is just a chlorine generator in the return line and a few bags of salt in the water. The generator costs about $1K max. Putting it in is a fairly simple DIY project and something a handyman could do for a couple hundred bucks tops.

[Zippyman]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Seriously?! There is nothing special about a salt water pool. It is just a chlorine generator in the return line and a few bags of salt in the water. The generator costs about $1K max. Putting it in is a fairly simple DIY project and something a handyman could do for a couple hundred bucks tops.

I think the key word here is " new construction" - the guys doing this kind of work know you've got the "money truck" in the driveway and they won't be bashful about asking for some... Basic pool "packages" advertised on Craigslist start at about $13k, but *everything* costs extra. You can spend $50k pretty easily and not buy all of those upgrades. While the individual components aren't that expensive, hiring someone to pull the whole package together into a "turn-key" backyard gets expensive really fast.

[elwood58]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Seriously?! There is nothing special about a salt water pool. It is just a chlorine generator in the return line and a few bags of salt in the water. The generator costs about $1K max. Putting it in is a fairly simple DIY project and something a handyman could do for a couple hundred bucks tops.

I agree with the $3-5K assertion being on the high side. We are converting a play pool to Salt after a resurfacing with Mini Pebble, and the cost is $1298. If you can't get a reasonable quote from your pool builder, have it added after by someone else. They usually can't start using salt until the finish has cured for 30 days anyway.

[Rosievw]

Thanks for all the input. We are just trying to make wise choices.

[LBTRS]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Seriously?! There is nothing special about a salt water pool. It is just a chlorine generator in the return line and a few bags of salt in the water. The generator costs about $1K max. Putting it in is a fairly simple DIY project and something a handyman could do for a couple hundred bucks tops.

If they are having the pool built it would be much more cost effective to purchase it and have it installed with the pool. Another benefit is that the pool company will stand behind it and if something goes wrong he/she won't be out trying to figure out what is wrong themselves.

I can't imagine paying to build a pool and then start cutting it up and adding aftermarket parts right away. It only cost me $1200 to add a salt chlorine generator system when I built my pool and you're not going to find it aftermarket and have it installed for that. Also, it's not just the generator in the return line as it requires a special control panel that the generator and flow switch plug into which could be a bit more than the average DIY person can handle.

The the OP: I built my pool four years ago and it is a larger salt play pool and the cost was right at $30k. I had a few extras that are not standard on the cheaper play pools (larger flagstone deck, larger water feature, colored LED light, etc.).

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by LBTRS

If they are having the pool built it would be much more cost effective to purchase it and have it installed with the pool. Another benefit is that the pool company will stand behind it and if something goes wrong he/she won't be out trying to figure out what is wrong themselves.

I can't imagine paying to build a pool and then start cutting it up and adding aftermarket parts right away. It only cost me $1200 to add a salt chlorine generator system when I built my pool.

The the OP: I built my pool four years ago and it is a larger salt play pool and the cost was right at $30k. I had a few extras that are not standard on the cheaper play pools (larger flagstone deck, larger water feature, colored LED light, etc.).

1200 bucks would be a reasonable up charge for it, but someone had posted that it would run $3-5K more. I would definitely retrofit for that differential.