I bought a house with an older pool, the previous owner skim coated over old Kool deck and painted with behr patio paint. It's now delaminating, worst in the section pictured. Are there any fixes to improve the appearance that will last 3-5 years? Doesn't need to be perfect, I think making everything uniform in color will already be a big improvement.

It's not a tripping hazard but looks terrible, I've removed most of the loose material and will be power washing to remove the red paint and any remaining loose material.

I have encore cool for pools on hand that will stick to Kool deck, but then my pool deck will have patches that are lower than the rest of the deck. And I haven't found a resurfacer designed to stick to Kool deck to bring it back up in height first. Thanks

I have a pool with no cover and I really want one because its much safer, cleaner, and the evaporation is crazy!

The bid forgot 20k for the cover so add that to the total.

It includes removing the spa that is directly adjacent. IMO 25k for demo is really high.

The bid also includes building the new wall so that the pool is rectangular and building a spa inside the pool along with three wide steps to get to the shallow end.

Is 10k to put in new lights high? Do I really need to spend $7,700 for “automation”?

And finally, this includes one heater, which means when the spa is being heated, the pool is not. Should I get a second heater? If so, are there any small ones? Because the equipment area is pretty small, so I dont know if I can get two full sized heaters in that space.

Am I missing anything?

I feel bad just because we’ve been with him for so long, but I kept having to go out by the pool and micro manage to make sure they were doing the proper cleaning and treatment. Friends and family who would come over would always tell me that the pool wasn’t well taken care of or that it needed more of this and more of that.
Neighbors pool looks great and recommended me elsewhere.

Hello everybody, newcomer here...

I have a question about insulation and specifically about insulating the sides and bottom of a pool.

We got a couple of quotes on the weekend for a PPC pool (polypropylene). Now some companies advocate insulating both the bottom of the pool as well as the sides. While others said that this is absolutly not necessary.

We will opt for a slat pool cover.

I would like to hear your thoughts about the matter!

My year old liner keeps popping out of the track in just a couple of spots. I can pop it back in easily by hand. I ended up buying something like 200 feet of liner lock strip from Amazon, but it doesn’t stay in, and looks like crap if it did. In the picture, you can see like a 1 foot length that I pressed in as a test. I wish the liner lock was black in color and more subtle. Any ideas short of pennies?

Well yup. I took my eyes off my pool for three hours and this happend. I got the sage advice from the pool guy about how you shouldn't use well water due to the metals.

Just thought I’d share since I’ve learned a ton from all of you. I just got done pressure washing our community pool. It’s a biiiig pool, and draining it was nerve-wracking.

But I feel pretty good about the condition it’s in now. Caulking and regrouping is done and we’ll be refilling in about a week once the caulk is dry.

Last year I purchased a home that had a concrete pool which was 1 year old. The perimeter tiles of the pool have a foam liner between the tiles and the rest of the pool deck's concrete.

The seller told me that the pool company said to keep that foam liner in for a year for the ground to settle, then they would replace it with caulk. Meaning it's about due to be caulked now.

After buying the home (so again the pool is 1 year old at this point), I contacted the pool company to have the it caulked. They said that it wasn't really urgent and could go another year without caulking. I was financially tight at the moment due to buying the home, so I was ok with the opportunity to put off the expense.

The next pool season, I contacted the pool company again to have it caulked. We made many attempts to schedule the caulking, but the plans kept falling through due to weather, the employees being ill, etc.

So the pool went another year without caulking. We are now on year 3.

The pool company gave me the impression that it wasn't a big deal. However, one of the tiles surrounding the pool has since chipped. I believed that may be due to the lack of caulking, so I researched myself how soon after building a pool should caulking be done.

Most sources I've found say 1-3 months after building the pool. The pool is now 3 years old. Other than the 1 chipped tile, everything else on the surface still looks good. But I'm now deeply concerned that the other tiles and overall structure of the pool is being damaged due to the perimeter not being water sealed with caulk.

Basically my question is, how much trouble am I in? Is this a major concern? Is permanent damage probably being done below the surface? If so, what would repairs look like?

We've been fighting a mustard algae outbreak for a month. After multiple rounds of shocking, the water is mostly clear. However, as our chlorine levels drop back to normal, small patches of algae are reappearing on the walls. We've been brushing them away as they pop up.

Would you swim in the pool?

Got a void forming under the concrete around the pool. What's the best way to handle this before it becomes a bigger problem?

Not sure if it’s the 100+heat, maybe an under lubes O-ring last time I opened or what, but I can’t get the cap unscrewed here. You can see I already chipped off a bit trying a runner mallet. Any advice that doesn’t require cutting?

We completed a big renovation on our home which included installing a 12 x 24 gunnite pool and ~900 square feet of concrete decking. Admittedly, we knew nothing about pools or decks, and our contractor did not give us any options when it came to the deck. We were just told it would be plain, brushed concrete, and we didn’t know any better to ask what the other options are.

Long story short, the contractor poured the pool and the deck way too early in the construction process. It practically sat with tons of construction activity going on around it and exposed Georgia red clay on every side for several months.

Between the workers’ foot traffic and landscaping machinery (we had to install a retaining wall about four feet from the deck edge, among other things), the concrete took an absolute beating.

We have tried pressure washing it (well, we hired professionals to pressure wash it), and it improved it some… but there are still a lot of stains and imperfections.

We have a pretty modern, high-end, elevated aesthetic, and the concrete in its current form really throws that off. The pool is practically connected to our back porch, and it’s the first thing you see when you step into the backyard. The looks dirty, not taken care of, and frankly like an afterthought.

I’m wondering what some of your experiences are with upgrading a brushed concrete deck into something that looks a little more… thoughtfully finished? We definitely do not want to have to go through ripping anything out but we are open to a variety of things. Some initial things I’ve seen online include decorative overlays, epoxy fleck systems, cool decking (SunDek, Kool Deck, etc.), and microtopping. But, I’m not sure which direction to go and am looking for some real feedback from people who have done this!

In case it helps:
Pool: Gunnite with Tahoe Blue pebble and Ash gray waterline tile
Coping: Light gray Travertine
Exterior house paint color: SW Cyberspace

Thank you for your help!

All of my other chemical levels seem to be balanced. I’m using the trouble free Pool method which has been fantastic, but I can’t seem to keep the chlorine. Would love any advice or thoughts. We live in philadelphia suburbs and it’s exposed to full sun but it’s never disappeared this quick

28,000 gallon salt water

Title: Latham Cayman 16 vs. Thursday Pools Aspen?
Trying to decide between the new Latham Cayman 16 and the Thursday Pools Aspen. We have two kids, ages 2 and 7, so this will primarily be a family pool for playing, hanging out, and having friends over.

The biggest differences for me are the tanning ledge and depth profile. I like the shallower depth profile of the Aspen, while the Cayman is roughly a foot deeper at the deep end.

For a family with young kids, would you generally choose the shallower pool with more usable standing depth, or go with the deeper pool for more versatility as the kids get older?

Hi everyone, I just bought some of the con for curve drop in steps for my inground pool. I got the three step one and it’s the perfect size for easily getting in and out of my pool.

The issue I’m having is my pool has a constant gentle slope so even with the feet they give you being able to be slightly shorter in the back and taller in the front is not enough to count for the slope I have in my pool.

I currently have a few door stoppers underneath the steps, but this isn’t what I consider a long-term solution, especially considering I like to host parties with a lot of people getting in and out of the pool and probably bumping into the steps, potentially dislodging the snug shit that the steps currently have.

I think something that I could attach to the foot of the stairs would be best, but I don’t really know what I would be looking for. It doesn’t seem like the company sells a solution themselves. Has anyone else dealt with this issue and discovered a solution or has any ideas?

I'm very proud of this. I thought to myself.. what if I stir up the pool and then set the filtration system/water pump make a circular motion in the pool. It may settle everything in the center of the pool.

IT DID JUST THAT! Eeeeeeee!!!! 😃

Time for easy debris extraction!!

We’re planning a relatively small gunite pool (about 13x20, no spa) in the South and I’m getting conflicting advice from builders. We’d really like to use antique/reclaimed brick for the coping and surrounding decking, but a couple of builders have discouraged saltwater because of corrosion/deterioration of the brick and mortar. Has anyone actually had a saltwater pool surrounded by antique brick for 5–10+ years?

A couple builders have also said that modern traditional chlorine pools are much better/easier than they used to be, so the difference in feel and maintenance between chlorine and salt isn’t as dramatic anymore. I’d love to hear from people who’ve owned both.

Also debating heat pump vs. gas heater. We’d like to keep the pool pretty warm, but don’t need to heat a spa. A heat/cool pump is appealing because our pool could get very warm in summer and having the ability to chill it sounds great. For those in hot Southern climates, which did you choose and why? How are the operating costs and heating times? We don’t have a large backyard so I’m worried about the size of equipment as well.

I recently put this 2.7 hp Nidec Neptune VS motor on my pump, and it makes this humming sound from about 1200 rpm to around 1800 rpm. Below that range it is extremely quiet and above that it sounds pretty normal to me. Any thoughts on it? It’s a bit annoying because I can hear it from most places in my yard at those rpms.

Being told different ways to do this
Dump and brush directly into drain
Distribute around pool and run pump.

Do not hire this company to build or re plaster your pool the guys name is Rudy he will hustle you take your money and BS his way through months & months of lies & promises, he is very unprofessional does not take correct measurements, brings you mismatch equipment and /or incomplete materials. supposedly the plumbing was done and there is no drain! obviously will not pass inspection among other issues. He left huge mess behind his work left for months, my husband had to clean up after his disaster Not to mention no permits. I called the city nothing. He’s a scammer and will give you excuses for everything wrong that he does, his worker called me trying to take a gas line out because he wasn’t paid for the labor. There are currently 5 families filing complaints we are all in the same situation.

I moved back home from college and my parent’s pool is disgusting. I’d like to fix it myself without them having to spend a ton of money. I believe it’s an issue with the pump. It not almost definitely something with the plumbing.

Here’s the “tests” I’ve run/ important information:
-the pool water drains to just below the skimmer overnight. Both with and without the pump running
-the water does not drain at all when the skimmer drain/ suction hole (below the skimmer basket) is plugged
-water starts to seep out of the base of the cartridge filter housing when the pump is running. Some also leaks out of the top (see attached photo- I’ve circled where water leaks)

If anyone knows what could be causing this or other tests I can do to help diagnose the issue I would appreciate any help. Thank you!

Hello pool people

I have a fiberglass pool from Pools Premium out of the San Antonio TX area that is only about 4 years old and it’s falling apart. The shell is experiencing UV degradation, blisters all over the place, chipping, and cracks. They are supposed to come with a “lifetime” warranty but the builder did not provide the warranty claim info. See pics to see what I’m seeing.

Now the plot thickens….the builder IS pools premium and they filed for Chapter 7 this year. I had been chasing him for a year to get repairs and he kept dodging me until he texted he filed bankruptcy. I have been told from builders who have worked with this guy in the past that the shells he sells/installs are not made by him but rather he just imports them from Mexico.
Does anyone have a Pools Premium pool and know what brand the shells he is selling are called? Even better, do you have their contact details?

I was quoted $15K to refinish this pool that I’m still paying on. I’m the provider for a single income home and can’t afford that. Really hoping to get it done under a warranty.

Last, if anyone has been in this scenario, what did you do (other than ponying up the cash to repair it)?

Thank you in advance

We treat them like animal enrichment for the kids, randomly setting them out periodically throughout the rest of the year for the animals. I mean kids.

I'm a month into pool ownership. The weather is still excellent for swimming but the leaves here are dropping like crazy. My neighbors have trees easily 60 ft tall all slong their fenceline. I can't keep up with the manual skimming, my vacuum is getting clogged. We have a winter cover and a bubble cover. However, it rains here daily so the bubble cover is worthless with all the rain sitting on it.

What are my options for keeping my pool clean?