mystreba
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- May 6, 2010
- Threads
- 29
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- 426
It's been (correctly) pointed out recently that I'm long-winded, so this ain't gonna help me on that score!
My pool is concrete/gunnite, and it's 35 years old. Still going strong, though looking a little "tired". It needs new plaster coating, tile and coping. It's a big pool so the job is $30k
The previous owner covered the massive concrete deck with stone. Looks gorgeous - big mistake. Can't refinish the pool without removing the stone :confused2: $30k price doesn't include this! Previous owner also drained the pool and painted it. BIG BIG mistake. It all has to be sandblasted before refinishing, which accounts for $5k of that $30k price tag. I've been putting this off for years - truth is, when the water is crystal clear, it really don't matter.I replumbed and replaced the pump/filter two years ago, for less than $1k (doing the work myself). I expect it to last 10 years, minimum. New setup is a dream, and the multi-port flush valve makes maintenance a breeze.
So that's the story on durability. If I installed a new pool today, I'd expect to be dead long before it needed major work.
As far as maintenance, the biggest headache is opening and closing. If you don't close the pool properly, you could lose the pool - pipes could freeze and crack and you'd have to dig it all up. Therefore I hire a professional company to close it - for $350 I prefer to let them carry the liability. Opening the pool takes a week or more, and at least one full day of focused work, but it's something I can easily do myself. It's mostly chemicals, but there's a great deal of stuff to clean off the bottom of the pool, even with a high-quality cover.
I doubt you'd have to deal with all that - a Florida pool would likely be open all year long. Even if you had a couple months where it was too chilly, you could go into "hibernate" mode with little to no maintenance - just run the filter a couple hours a day and keep an eye on the chemicals. Remember that when the temperatures dip to 70 or below, you don't need much chlorine at all since algae and bacteria don't flourish.
Daily maintenance requires just 5 minutes of time. I add chlorine tabs to the skimmers a couple times per week, and "shock" the pool each Friday evening (I usually have 20 kids in the pool on Fridays). This involves filling a 5-gallon bucket with hot water, adding three bags of chlorine shock, stirring and dumping it into the pool. I skim the pool daily. The only time it takes more than 5 minutes is when there is a storm that blows yard debris into the pool. And here's the thing - the amount of maintenance will depend greatly on how much vegetation you have around the pool. Most people I know who have pools have no trees or shrubs near their pool. I have a large maple and oak shading my pool, along with many flowering trees (dogwoods, crape myrtles, japanese cherry, etc). This increases my workload somewhat.
You gotta have a robotic cleaner. Some swear by Polaris, which runs off the pool pump and requires no electicity. Almost all pools have plumbing to run a Polaris cleaner. I prefer to use Aquabot, which is electric (low voltage). Figure $1k for a decent unit. I run it every other day for about 6 hours, and it cleans the pool, including the sides. The only thing I have to do is clean the filter bag when it's done - it takes 3 minutes. I can buy any part for the Aquabot over the Internet, and it's super easy to fix when things break. My unit must be at least 10 years old.
I used to take water samples to the pool supply store for their "free" analysis, until I realized it was a complete racket to get you to buy their chemicals. Since I stopped doing that, I rarely have to add anything but chlorine. Last year I added nothing. This year I added a pound of stabilizer. The only thing I have to buy other than chlorine are test strips. A couple times per week I dip a strip in the pool and check the color-coded tabs to make sure all chemicals are in line. Once per month during the season I backflush the filter (this blows out all the DE) and add DE back in. This takes 10 minutes.
In the fall, maintenance goes up with all the leaves falling, but again - it's just a few more minutes of skimming. Honestly, most of my maintenance is for landscaping around the pool. I have several perennial beds and more than 60 large pots of annuals. Watering alone during the summer is 30 minutes every other day.
In terms of cost, it will depend somewhat on the size of the pool. Mine is 35k gallons. I spend about $400 per year in chlorine. $50 in test strips. $200 in DE. Generally $100 for misc. Aquabot parts (mostly wear items). Every couple of years I replace the leaf skimmer @$75. I once had to replace the pool light fixture which cost about $300. That's really it. If you take good care of your deck furniture, it'll last many seasons. But I do occasionally spend money on deck-related items.
In terms of electricity, I wish I had a number for you. My house is so energy-inefficient (something I'm working on) that my bills are through the roof, and I couldn't tell you how much is for the pool. Figure running a 1.5 HP, 14 amp, 220V pump motor. I rewired my pool and put the whole thing on a timer. This allows me to shut the pump down for 8 hours per day (generally at night), peak season. A couple times per season I have to top off the water, and that requires running my well pump, but it really doesn't amount to much.
Here's the bottom line. Everyone told me I was crazy for buying a house with a pool. Especially since the property has 1.5 landscaped acres. But it really hasn't been bad! I think it is well worth the effort. Sure, I have young kids. But I enjoy the heck out of that pool!
Anyway, sorry for the manifesto :ashamed: Hope it helps...
ps - I know some folks who have salt-water pools. As a swimmer, it doesn't feel much different. As an owner, they swear they are much easier to maintain than chlorine-based pools. I have no direct experience.
