NighthawkChris Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 I am taking the plunge - will be, literally - by getting a pool installed in my backyard for the fam. I am having an above-ground, oval pool installed, and can't wait to cool my butt down in it. The kids I'm sure will love it, and will have quite a few years to enjoy it like I did when my folks got my brother and me a pool in my kid years. I will also enjoy having friends/family over to enjoy visiting even more - yes "use" me, haha! So looking forward to being on a raft on a hot, sunny day, drinking a cold one. But a large part of my motivation again, is for others to have enjoyment. Not an economical investment, and costly to install, but sort of a lifestyle investment - and responsibility - the way I look at it. Anyhow, hoping for this to be as good as I can hope when it's all said and done. Expecting this thing to be planted in our yard around the second week of June - weather permitting. Can't wait! 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitefang Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 Congrats. The ex and I had a pool put up in our yard just a few years before we split up. The kids loved it. And so did I, especially when coming home from work in the summer months and ripping off the sweaty work duds, throw on the trunks and jumping in. Sure, keeping the chlorine and Ph levels steady can be a b!tch. And keeping the filter sand clean can be a pain too. But by pacing yourself well enough skimming the pool can be somewhat cathartic. We had a round pool, so the framed clear plastic dome we had put on helped keep things from dead leaves falling in thereby eliminating the need for skimming. And other things being tossed in by jerkwads and the graphite from the nearby steel mill that coated everyone's cars in the downriver area for years out of the water. I'm sure you'll really enjoy it. Whitefang 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karloff Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 that'll be great. you guys will love it. we need a new pool. ours should have been replaced 10 years ago lol 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merciful-evans Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 I just got back from a Homesit job in the Surrey hills. They had a good sized outdoor pool in the grounds there. When we met the clients at a prelim meeting, Cherry was staring at the pool smiling. She swims most mornings and we were going to be there 20 days. It had not been serviced since last year. The pool company were sent 4 times while we were there, testing, adjusting water levels, filters etc. The clients had it prepared for her. She was over the moon about it. It was warm and usable even on chilly days. Having your own pool is a fine thing. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tman Posted May 28, 2023 Share Posted May 28, 2023 Congrats NightHawk hope you and the family get a huge amount of use! After 4 and a half years of struggling to get a permit we finally started our pool. Excited and can't wait. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired Posted May 28, 2023 Share Posted May 28, 2023 On 5/26/2023 at 9:41 AM, NighthawkChris said: I am taking the plunge - will be, literally - by getting a pool installed in my backyard for the fam. I am having an above-ground, oval pool installed, and can't wait to cool my butt down in it. The kids I'm sure will love it, and will have quite a few years to enjoy it like I did when my folks got my brother and me a pool in my kid years. I will also enjoy having friends/family over to enjoy visiting even more - yes "use" me, haha! So looking forward to being on a raft on a hot, sunny day, drinking a cold one. But a large part of my motivation again, is for others to have enjoyment. Not an economical investment, and costly to install, but sort of a lifestyle investment - and responsibility - the way I look at it. Anyhow, hoping for this to be as good as I can hope when it's all said and done. Expecting this thing to be planted in our yard around the second week of June - weather permitting. Can't wait! Congrats. My parents had a big oval pool put in when I was a kid. Used it a lot. Both are gone and it's still there. My youngest sister lives there now. One end of it is dug deep in the ground so you can dive in it. Would be great after work. I wouldn't need one now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted May 28, 2023 Share Posted May 28, 2023 I do look forward to Speedo photos, poolside!!😀 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted May 28, 2023 Share Posted May 28, 2023 My favorite pool is my friends pool. I can come over and use it and not incur a cost or have to clean it. Congrats you are gonna be the cool dad. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fortyearspickn Posted May 28, 2023 Share Posted May 28, 2023 We 'had' a pool in a home we rented for a year when we first moved here from Houston. They had a big old Crepe Myrtle right next to it. I would have chopped that sucker down if it weren't the owners! But it was fantastic to get to experience having a pool in the backyard ! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted May 28, 2023 Share Posted May 28, 2023 Pro tip: if you don’t want the guys guys using your restroom in your house, rent a porta potty. You don’t want a bunch of workers at your house with nowhere to relieve themselves. You probably don’t want a bunch of random guys walking through your house 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NighthawkChris Posted June 6, 2023 Author Share Posted June 6, 2023 Thanks everyone! Really excited about this pool. I am expecting this to happen in a week or so. I have been busy getting all the "miss dig" markings in the yard so no accidents hopefully. I have all the parts for the pool on a couple of pallets in my garage, so very soon approaching this build date! It's going to be a bit involved when all is said and done as I have to worry about electrical of course for the filtration, but I also need electric AND gas for a pool heater to hopefully extend the seasonal usage here in MI. So yeah, expecting a ripped up yard as some trenching is going to happen, but geez, grass is not hard to grow. Well, easy if you don't have a dog - like I do - that does his "stuff" with "new" things we do for the yard, haha! Anyhow, really appreciate the sentiments here, hoping to share some photos of the build when it's ready for showtime. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badbluesplayer Posted June 7, 2023 Share Posted June 7, 2023 Just in time for summer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepdog1969 Posted June 7, 2023 Share Posted June 7, 2023 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitefang Posted June 7, 2023 Share Posted June 7, 2023 On 5/28/2023 at 11:57 AM, Dub-T-123 said: Pro tip: if you don’t want the guys guys using your restroom in your house, rent a porta potty. You don’t want a bunch of workers at your house with nowhere to relieve themselves. You probably don’t want a bunch of random guys walking through your house I avoided that by having a bathroom in the basement. It was already in the house when we bought it. I wouldn't go through that expense just to avoid the pool installers using my bathroom. And if the cost to rent a porta John isn't too unreasonable, it might be a consideration. I remember when me and the ex had our pool put up.(an above ground pool), we made the error of going with the lowest estimate and the crew showed up at 8:00 in the morning. The crew chief, a guy a few years younger than me, was standing at the door, weaving unsteadily, eyes looking like he spent several hours in a chlorine pool and a dopey grin on his face, with the aroma of some fine Colombian gold surrounding him, and looking over at his truck, the rest of his crew was surrounded by a thick cloud of smoke reminiscent of Spicoli's van in "Fast Times". And in a Tommy Chong type voice he said, "Like we're here to put up your poool man...." I told him, "I'm afraid not." and suggested he go home and get some snacks and sleep it off. Now, I wasn't(at that time in my life) opposed to getting buzzed and having a good time, but if I was in that line of work, I'd at least wait until the job was done. Whitefang Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saturn Posted June 7, 2023 Share Posted June 7, 2023 Hope the installation goes well. A pool is nice to have. We bought our house in 1993, and there was an oval above ground pool with it. I knew nothing about pools then, but someone advised us we had a Johnny Weissmuller( he was Tarzan) pool, and other than replacing the liner, it will last us forever. Well it's 2023 and as of now they haven't been wrong. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duane v Posted June 9, 2023 Share Posted June 9, 2023 waits for images. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NighthawkChris Posted June 20, 2023 Author Share Posted June 20, 2023 Yes!!! Finally, got the call yesterday to call in an order for mason sand and water trucks! I am hoping to get building started next week, but looks like some storms to navigate - figures, haha! I literally have had butterflies in my stomach ever since I came up with this idea. Being patient is no fun... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitefang Posted June 20, 2023 Share Posted June 20, 2023 All I know is that you're in the "metro Detroit" area. That could be one of several places. Just asking because back when me and the ex were getting our pool the place that sold it told us that (at the time) Lincoln Park city ordinance required us to get clearance from the zoning board. It was no problem but wondering if you had to go through that kind of crap. Whitefang Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted June 20, 2023 Share Posted June 20, 2023 1 hour ago, NighthawkChris said: Yes!!! Finally, got the call yesterday to call in an order for mason sand and water trucks! I am hoping to get building started next week, but looks like some storms to navigate - figures, haha! I literally have had butterflies in my stomach ever since I came up with this idea. Being patient is no fun... Cool! We've had a pool in the backyard since like 92.. replaced it once, so we're on our 2nd one. you're going to love it! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NighthawkChris Posted June 20, 2023 Author Share Posted June 20, 2023 26 minutes ago, Whitefang said: All I know is that you're in the "metro Detroit" area. That could be one of several places. Just asking because back when me and the ex were getting our pool the place that sold it told us that (at the time) Lincoln Park city ordinance required us to get clearance from the zoning board. It was no problem but wondering if you had to go through that kind of crap. Whitefang I consider any of the tri-county area to be metro Detroit - correct or not, it's what I have been refer to this as. Trying to be vague of my location I suppose. I'm out in the northern Oakland County area where it was once more rural, now slowly (perhaps even more quickly than I am saying) turning into suburbia... Sort of like Wixom turned out to be. So go figure... I lived in the Dearborn-area for ~30 years prior, so fully relate to suburbia. Moving out where we did, we got quite a bit bigger yard which was something my wife and I really wanted. And it is a lot better land plots than all these cookie-cutter homes - that are popping up for 3x or more the price I paid for my home - with backyards a fraction of the size of land I have. I don't have huge home, but it's a nice home to raise a family. Not running into issues with permits and such. I paid the licensed contractor (pool builder in this case) to handle the liability of codes and such. Literally my first thing before hiring any contractor - are you licensed and insured... I don't play around with that stuff, haha! Of course, not all "jobs" require permits, but any way I can alleviate jobs that require codes and standards to be adhered to, I try to absolve myself of responsibility to do the job correctly - the way I look at it. I probably (and have known at times) pay a little extra to have contractors pull permits and what not, but again, if there's an issue, I don't want to be directly responsible to make the "fix" happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duane v Posted June 20, 2023 Share Posted June 20, 2023 I'm so jealous.... I miss having a pool. My back yard isn't wide enough for a slip-n-slide. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NighthawkChris Posted July 6, 2023 Author Share Posted July 6, 2023 Here's the build after the guys finished up assembling the stuff: You can see water was just added slightly. It took 2 x 9000 gal trucks to fill this up to where it was needed - think ~17000 gallons this pool holds give or take. I have been busy with a TON of landscaping. No worries, it makes me feel good to move yards and yards of dirt, put down pavers, cut sod haha! Just glad I can still DO it without keeling over 😁 It's getting better around the yard though since this was what it looked like last week. I have to wait for the inspectors to approve the permits the contractors pulled to do this job - electrical, gas, build. After that, I can start grading around the pool and getting landscape rocks to fill around, etc. Not too concerned with grass - other than eliminating a lot of mud. The house isn't falling down yet because the grass is gone in certain areas. My kids absolutely LOVE the pool! My wife and I were so happy when we saw those kids go bonkers for swimming. I don't care about grass and yard I lost. I had that for a long time and all it meant to me was more work to cut it just to look at... Much more fun to have a pool if I don't say so myself. Deck will be installed next year which will be fun to go through. Don't anticipate the deck being a huge ordeal, but it's needed... Right now, I have an A-frame ladder just so we can go in/out easy enough. Anyhow, as mentioned, I wanted to share this with you all here. Thanks everyone for all the kind words! 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted July 6, 2023 Share Posted July 6, 2023 Very nice too. A lot of hard work there. I hope you have a cover - or put something that floats in, at night - so any animals that do get in don't drown. Can put you off when you come out in the morning and find a drowned rat or squirrel. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saturn Posted July 8, 2023 Share Posted July 8, 2023 Looks great. I hope it brings your family years of summer enjoyment. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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