Building a Pool - what extra features should we add?

[CountryCowboy]

Wow! This thread is full of good information and thanks to all of you who have taken the time to reply!!

My parents had a pool when I was growing up, and I was the pool boy. No automatic pool sweep - that was my job. I actually liked cleaning the pool - skimming the leaves, brushing the sides, vacuuming the dirt, checking the chemistry, back washing the filter, etc. My reward was to swim in a fresh clean pool.

My parents had an attached spa/hot tub. It spilled over a tiled curved wall into the pool to help heat it up. That spa was great for sore muscles.

Pool had a diving board, deep end, and a built in love seat so you could sit and rest, plus three steps to walk in and out. Kool Deck was easy on bare feet.

I want to have a pool to enjoy again. I am thinking beach entry - we have an aging dog who loves to swim. I want to exercise and lose some weight without tearing up my knees. Same with the bride. And dog, too!

I like the umbrella stand ideas, the sprayers to cool the water, and I plan on a big deck area - raised and less to mow. Also want to put in a real wood fire pit. Love those - had one in my last back yard.

Like to get the blue LEDs for nighttime ambience. Not much on other colors...but that's just me.

Thinking about a basketball pool hoop - like to shoot around.

Bride wants real stone coping and will probably do stone on beach entry - stairs into spa/hot tub unless I go with a separate hot tub.

Is paying a pool service worth it? I don't have as much time on my hands like I did as a teenager....

What other ideas do you good people have? This could get real interesting...take me to school, please!!

[PedroMartinez]

Originally Posted by CountryCowboy

Wow! This thread is full of good information and thanks to all of you who have taken the time to reply!!

We had the Kool Deck put in as well, and I'll stick with it. It is cool, you can pick any color you want and pretty much anything goes with it.

At first, I was going to go with a beach entry, but after reading a lot of posts and opinions over at TFP, I decided against it. However, if you have an old dog that likes to swim, it may be the best route for you.

My neighbor put in a hybrid gas/wood fire pit. It's pretty cool, because he puts the logs on, starts it with the gas and once the logs catch, he shuts off the gas.

Just to clarify, you should have umbrella sleeves (which have screw in caps and are flush to the deck) installed and not actual stands. My guess is that is what you are talking about, but I just wanted to clarify to be on the safe side.

We just have one of those water filled base basketball hoops that we usually keep out at the edge of the pool. Since we don't want to have it sitting there during the winter, we didn't go with a more permanent setup.

The good thing about umbrella sleeves is that they also act as volleyball pole sleeves. So, I recommend having those installed halfway across the pool. Even if you never once play volleyball, you can still set umbrellas in them.

Originally Posted by CountryCowboy

Is paying a pool service worth it? I don't have as much time on my hands like I did as a teenager....

IMHO, a pool service isn't worth it. My neighbor has gone through three different services after just five years due to them not doing a good job. I've been doing it all myself, and it really takes very little time as long as you stay on it. I have a SWG pool, and I essentially clean the traps (3 minutes at the most), look at the SWG and see if it needs salt added (5 seconds), add salt every couple of weeks (7 minutes), check the chemicals twice a week (7 minutes), pour in acid about twice a week (2 minutes), empty the robot bag twice a week (3 minutes), sweep off the stairs and tanning deck once a week (5 minutes) and empty the pump baskets once a week (5 minutes). Every couple of weeks I dump in a shock packet which is about 2 minutes. I'm literally doing about 36 minutes worth of work a week.

Four times a year, I pull out the filter canisters and clean those. This is about a 45 minute process, but it's only four times a year. I also pull out the SWG once a year and give it a diluted acid bath. You essentially mount a cap that acts as a stand on one end after removing it from the system. Then you pour in diluted acid and let it sit there for a while. Then you just hook it back up. The actual labor time is only about 15 minutes at the most.

Now, in the fall, I also skim the extra leaves off the top when I get home every other day when leave drop is going full force, but even if you have a service you'd most likely be doing this anyhow.

This is my experience with a SWG pool that has auto-fill and is at a constant level.

[Tommi]

We bought a house with a saltwater pool and move in mid November. The folks that sold the home did not recommend the pool service provider. Can any of you recommend a great pool service? They are currently on weekly service and we would like to maintain that.

Regarding the original question....

Our pool has:
Spa/hot tub connected
Slide
Grotto
Shallow/beach entry
Seating/ledge around the perimeter
Saltwater
Heated
Umbrella in shallow end
Rock waterfall
Speakers

The one thing I wish we had is a chiller. We have friends that just added one to their pool and love it especially when it's 100 degrees outside. Their pool is in direct sun with no shade. Something to think about.

[Lowexpectations]

Put umbrella sleeves in the pool, on the steps, seats and benches

[stan4]

Our pool service is good. Worth $100 a month not to have to do any cleaning/maintenance/repairs and just enjoy our pool stress-free.

But you do have to find a good service.

Our house/pool was built in the 80s, so we have the basic 3 steps in, love seat, diving board design. I wish we had the sunning area or a more gradual entrance so the kids could enjoy it more as toddlers/preschoolers. My 3 year old can swim now, so it's not a big deal, but my 14 month old only gets to float around in a raft bc she can't stand up anywhere.