For those who have a pool - give it to me straight

[grinningghost]

We just bought an above ground pool. It's getting installed in mid June. I have never owned a pool in my life, and I want to hear every piece of advice you can give me. The good, bad, ugly, what works, what doesn't - everything!

Thanks.

 

[Wish Upon A Star]

We have a 27 foot above ground pool with 54" sides which is really nice because it makes it deeper. We also had them dig down a bit in the middle so its above 5 feet there. DH cleans and vacuums the pool so I can't give you the advice there. I do the chemicals. Our pool isn't in total sun so our pool has always tested well after we shock it. We let the filter run 12 hours a day and put the chlorine in first thing in the AM. We use slo-tabs (the small ones) and put between 6 - 7 in daily when it is extremely hot and humid. Always check your chemicals daily to see if you are balanced.

Having a pool is fun if the Summer season is good. Last year we probably only swam around 6 times because the Summer was a bit rainy and chilly. We were thinking of getting a propane heater this year. I can't stand to be in it if the temp is under 80.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Any of your neighbors or your kids friends who dont have a pool will now become your new best summertime friend.

 

[WebmasterAlex]

A hole in the ground into which you throw money

 

[Kallison]

We have an inground pool -- we love it, the kids and yes the neighbors get a lot of use out of it.

Make the kids bring their own towels.

Be prepared to have a lost and found box.

If they can't swim, then you don't watch them.

My kids are older now -- it's not a problem, the kids come over, tell me who is there and they go swimming, I can keep an eye on them from the house.

My neighbors are great about sending over snacks to share -- my grocery bill still goes way up in the summer. I enjoy having my kids and their friends at home swimming.

GG any more Q's, feel free to IM me.

 

[Epcotgal8]

Originally posted by WebmasterAlex
A hole in the ground into which you throw money

This is true! But, I would have psychiatric care bills if we didn't have the pool The kids get bored in the summer and it gets so hot here you can't just send them out to play or ride bikes except for early morning and evenings. So they love the pool. It is work especially because with the intense summer heat chlorine burns out very quickly and you have to watch the chemical levels constantly. I have a friend who has a salt water filtration system that she swears by. It's the new rage. The deal is that it isn't cheap up front but they say they have already recouped their money because they don't have to put chemicals in. And it doesn't sting your eyes either. I would like one but I have other budget needs like a new car, new carpet right now so it will have to wait for us right now.

 

[CamColt]

I dont have any good advice, DH does most of the work, but we we got ours in August 2002. By the end of that summer we were soooo glad we had it. Nothing beats being able to just jump in and out whenever you feel like it,especially on those scorching days. We love it!
However after uncovering it this spring and started to get it ready, we found a hole in the liner and we have to drain it and replace the liner. Sure its a pain and an added expense, but Im sure it will be worth it this summer.

 

[DukeStreetKing]

Originally posted by Kallison
We have an inground pool -- we love it, the kids and yes the neighbors get a lot of use out of it.

Make the kids bring their own towels.

Be prepared to have a lost and found box.

If they can't swim, then you don't watch them.

My kids are older now -- it's not a problem, the kids come over, tell me who is there and they go swimming, I can keep an eye on them from the house.

My neighbors are great about sending over snacks to share -- my grocery bill still goes way up in the summer. I enjoy having my kids and their friends at home swimming.

GG any more Q's, feel free to IM me.

Your house sounds like the kind I used to love going to. Cool parents who were a blast to hang around with.

 

[trishy]

We have an in-ground pool and I'll add to what someone above said. Very few children will tell you they can't swim. Always assume they cannot swim until you see they can. Even if they can, they may not be strong swimmers and become too tired to stay above water. If you allow other people's kids into your pool, understand that you take the full responsibility if the child drowns. Don't count heads; count bodies inside the water. We had an incident where a child nearly drowned in our pool. It happened years ago. My dh is a paramedic and was able to save the day. This child and her mother had told us she was a good swimmer. Well, she wasn't. A half hour into the swim party and she got scared when a 'floaty' went over her while she was underwater in the deep end. Now, one would think that a floating device right above her would have helped her, but she panicked. Anyway, could've been reeeaaaaallllllllllllyyyy bad.

 

[LvsTnk]

We got a heater last year....best thing we ever did!

 

[twinmomplus2new]

We also have an above ground pool. It is now 7 years old. I agree with webmaster Alex. A hole to throw money into!!!
We had to replace the liner, the surronding fence, the filter and pump. I added stairs instead of a ladder. So about 3,000.... In the last year. I am hoping thats it for awhile.
That said I do enjoy having the pool and being able to let the kids hop in when ever they want. Buy lots of cheapo beach towels, popsicles etc... I no longer have an open pool rule, it used to be if my kids invited they could come. However I had become the babysitter, a few years of that and I was done. If you can not swim than mom has to be with you, No exceptions. I have the only pool keys and only I can/will open it. ( we have 3 padlocks between kids and Pool.) Once when my kids were about 1. A new neighbors kids came over. I asked could they swim? Oh yes, of course. Ok then. I am sitting on the lawn swing nursing my twins. Trying to be discreet. They jump in and guess what CAN NOT SWIM!!!! I put both babies on the lawn and ran over. Seems they can swim just not over thier heads....HUH???? They have not been back, because mom says she doesn't have the time to watch them. ( I guess I do?) Make your rules and stick to it. ANd have fun!

 

[wdw4us]

we just too ours down this year after 12 years. It gave us a lot of fun. I took care of the chemicals and it really wasn't too hard. I had the Sustain system.

When I bought the pool, the woman who sold it to me gave me some good advice. You will either pay to run the filter or pay for chemicals. Decide which. I opted for running the filter at least 10 hours a day and my pool was always clear.

My advise, buy one of those automatic vaccum cleaners. Worth it's weight in gold.

I'll miss my pool this year but we only used it a handful of times last year, not worth the investment to start it up and we had a lot of leaks that could not be fixed. Time to take it down and move on.

Enjoy yours!

denise

 

[mbb]

if mom ain't with you, you don't swim...
and we don't run an "all-inclusive summer swim day camp/care aka the dump and run"
And please, call first - before you tell your kids "Let's go to mbb's for a swim"

We're the only pool in the neighbourhood - and really enjoy the social aspect of it...but it's on our terms, not our neighbours...
Setting rules allows everyone to be safe, and have fun...

Enjoy yours!!!

 

[lrmillen]

huge fun, huge relaxation, and huge...liability. Like others have said don't let someone else's kid step foot in your pool until you are certain they are strong swimmers. upkeep isn't too bad and your fun with it will far outweigh anything negative. have fun!!!!

 

[KathyTX]

We have an in-ground pool. It's therapy!

Maintenance is not too bad- we have a service that takes care of the chemicals, and a polaris automatic sweeper. We just sweep it occasionally (especially after high winds or rainstorms), and enjoy!

We don't have a problem with drop-in guests... when DS has friends over, the rule is that the kids only swim when we're outside with them. Many of our friends and neighbors have their own pools, so dropping by uninvited is really not much of a temptation for them.

I will not and would not encourage neighborhood kids to come over uninvited and without parents... we have plenty of company that we *do* invite!

 

[huey duey & luey]

I can't tell you much about the maintence because my dh handles that (but he grew up in an apt in bklyn and my pool hasn't turned green so it cant be that hard.) As for me I absoluletly love it. It is total relaxation for me. Everyday when my kids take their nap, I spend that time on a float in my pool. My housework and cooking suffers but I am very relaxed
me with no pool
me with a pool
enjoy
Tara

 

[sunni]

We've had an above ground pool for 7 years and love it. It has never turned green on us and we've had no trouble. A few tips from my perspective:

Get a pump that can run on either high or low. With the exception of occasionally adding some chemicals, we run ours on low 24/7. It's affordable and easier to keep chlorine level stable and the pool clean. (Our pump is a Sparco).

Consider an automatic chlorinator. The water goes through the pump, then into the filter, then into the chlorinator, then back to the pool. The only thing you need to do to adjust the chlorine level is to turn a dial. No guessing how many tablets, gallons, etc.

If you use a solar cover plan on replacing it every other year, they just don't last. We quit using one because our pool is in full sun all the time and it didn't seem to make a difference using one. IMO, if you need warmer water, buy a heater, it's probably a better investment.

We use Kleen Pool for an algaecide and never have a problem.

We replace our winter cover every 3 years or so, our winters here do a bit of damage.

The only other things we've had to replace were hoses that dry rotted, they are very inexpensive, and the head to the vacuum, again not very expensive.

Last bit of advice, ask around and use a supplier/water tester that you can trust. We are so fortunate to use the place we do, my SIL was given bad advice from other pool suppliers, and another person we know has to replace his pool because his supplier improperly tested water and recommended things that ruined his pool.

Good luck and have fun! It's easy if you keep up on it and so worth the small bit of effort.

 

[Mad4Mickey]

We have a in ground pool also and I agree with everyone else . Lots of work , Lots of money , Lots of high food bills in the summer, Lots of teenagers all the time but .....Worth it when it is hot outside and you just wanna cool off or float around (If you can keep the kids out of it for 10 seconds )

 

[luvdzny]

We have an above ground and I grew up with a in ground pool, I really don't think they are that much work. If you have a lot of trees then leaves may be a problem, other than that it is very easy to keep up with. I only use chlorine and shock and the water stays crystal clear. We don't have a problem with the neighbors either. When we fisrt got the pool we made it clear that swimming was by invitation only. Make sure you get a solar cover it really increases the water temperature. We love ours!

 

[aprilgail2]

I use an ionizing orb in my pool and very little chlorine, I've had it 3 years now, never turns green and because of the low amount of chlorine doesn't burn your eyes or stink you up. I also use a solar cover. Have had it for 3 years now and just took it out today and put it on when I opened the pool and its still in great shape. Chlorine kills the solar covers so if you are using chlorine only in your pool you will ruin the cover pretty quickly. I find its very little work owning a pool. I opened it up today and within an hour it was up and running, thats the most work it will need until closing time.