Inground pool??

[mlulrich]

Just wanted to add in our experience, since we spent a lot of time getting opinions and research from others before we made our choices.

We have a roughly 38x18 free formed inground pool - it is sprayed concrete over a welded re-bar form (shotcrete?) We had a fairly large concrete decking installed and treated with Cool Deck (an additional layer applied on top of the concrete that keeps the surface about 10 degrees cooler). We also paid extra for pebble tec (sprayed in pebbled surface on the interior of the pool) and a propane pool heater (to extend our swimming season a bit in the spring and fall).

For everything, we spent about 51K - for the pool, pool extras and fencing around the pool - With 4 boys, it is ABSOLUTELY money well spent and we are in the pool twice a day through summer break. Good luck with your decisions!!! The pictures are just a few weeks after completion, while we were still waiting for grass to grow back in and the decking to set and be powerwashed, but you get the idea ...

 

[chobie]

When we moved from Washington State to South Florida, having a pool was a must for us. We sacrificed a bit on the size of the house do we could get a nice pool and patio. Houses with pools down here increase the value of the home. Ours is rectangular and very long, great for swimming laps. 3/4 of the pool is shallow but there is a small deep end. Our kids are teens when we bought it and do not do s lot of swimming, but my husband and I swim several times a week.

We just bought the latest model of this to clean and chlorinate our pool:
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=riA_tbn1Rac&desktop_uri=/watch?v=riA_tbn1Rac

Solaxx is the name of the company.

We had the older model for 3.5 years before it died. We live it. Gives us the nice silky saltwater and cleans the pool everyday. We figured with the initial cost, plus replacing parts, and salt and occasional stabilizers, we spent $70 a month on that. Which is what a pool cleaning service would cost you, but we got the saltwater and the pool vacuumed whenever we wanted, rather than just once a week.

 

[mbf]

Just wanted to chime in…

We are nearer to you (outside of Utica, NY) and we have had our in-ground pool for about 6 years now. WE LOVE IT. A lot of people say an in-ground pool is a questionable investment in Upstate NY because the swim season is so short. I suppose that may be true but like a lot of the above posters I really, truly believe in a greater value that comes from having a pool in my own backyard.

We have not opened yet this year (probably next weekend just because of time) but I get excited every year around this time. Once the pool is open I get a great, calming joy out of looking over my back yard (we live in the country) and seeing it there. My son (who is 8) cannot wait to go swimming every year and every day. Summer is my DH’s (self-employed) busiest time of year so the hours he is able to spend with the family during this time are often spent swimming in the family pool.

We maintain our own pool. Opening and closing are done by us as well. I buy my chemicals (chlorine tabs, shock, cartridge saver, algaecide) early in the season (before the end of April) at a nice discount from a local pool store (about 20% when combined with their online ordering discount). Many of my friends have very good luck with Walmart/BJ’s chemicals but since my pool gets full hot sun for 90% of the day I seem to have better luck with the pool store brands. For PH/Alkalinity levels I use Borax and Baking Soda (Walmart carries giant bags of baking soda which are great for many other things as well).

I do hate vacuuming the pool so this year I purchased a Kreepy Krauler automatic vacuum. I did not make this purchase lightly. I had been looking at automatic vacs for years and this one came very highly rated as well as was a lot cheaper than a robotic vacuum. It was $319 w/ free shipping and a $100 rebate from an online company pool company (that also got great reviews). I will have to let you know how it works out.

I find most of the people in our family/friends circle are very respectful of our privacy. We live on a country road surrounded by family (DH’s father and Uncle were farmers so we all moved onto the family land over the years). They always call and ask and not that often. Most of DS’s friends and our families have pools (mostly above ground) of their own anyway but DS (and older DD’s) are happy to have people over anytime. I have issued a standing invite to any of the family to come when they want and they don’t overdo it. If I have other things going on I just say feel free to come over but I may not be able to talk long but stay as long as you like. Usually they bring some sort of a snack for their kids and mine and only stay a couple of hours.

We have a vinyl lined pool. We were advised that in this area of the country fiberglass is not a great bet due to ground conditions. I think, honestly, that it may or may not vary. I am not a scientist lol so I cannot make a certain determination on that.

We have a heater (electric) but do not use it except to heat up the pool in the spring (and then we keep the solar cover on at night) and maybe a few times in later August. We do keep our pump running on low 24/7 (which I have heard is not necessary to do). When we bought the pool we invested in the diving board and fiberoptic lights. We added a slide last year which we bought from Craigslist for $75 and my DH, who has an auto body shop, repainted. After people saw ours he got 3 more slides in the shop for refurbishment from friends.

We also have the Loop Loc cover which is AMAZING. We haven’t put an elephant on it yet but our German Shepherd walks on it quite a bit and it snaps back into place like nothing was ever there.

The lights I think we could have done without but I am so glad we got the diving board, slide, and Loop Loc. Those are the things I think were a necessity for my family.

I think next year we may invest in a Chlorinator. Or maybe this year IDK as I haven’t really discussed it with DH yet. I have heard they are a really nice asset for a chlorine pool.

Good Luck!! I think you will have a lot of enjoyment from what you say about your family.

 

[AZMermaid]

And real estate agents I've spoken with tell me that permanent, in-ground pools are a huge liability these days when it comes to selling a home. They actually reduce home value.

QUOTE]

I would say this must be based on location. I live in AZ and we just had our house appraised last week. We got downgraded compared to our comps $15K for not having a pool. Now, obviously a pool costs more than that to put in, so you could make that arguement- but having a pool when it is 115 all summer long does not hurt home values.

We will be putting one in in 2 years after my daughter turns three and can swim across the pool by her self. My son is 2.5 now and is super close to doing this and I am sure will be able to after a summer of pool time- which we have to bring them somewhere for, but I am going to make a schecule to make it happen! He should be able to swim by his 3rd birthday. Right now he can swim as far as he can without a breath, he is close to getting the breath part!

 

[Dsnyfireman]

I know here in maine you don't get taxed on an above ground pool but you do on an in ground pool. It can hurt resale value up here but I can see it being the opposite in the south. My aunt and uncle lived in Mesa Arizona for years and couldn't have done it without their pool! But the resale part up here is definitely not a sure bet, most will not get their money back on them, a lot of people up here don't want to bother with a pool we might get to use for 3 months and not every day of those months.