Giving in to swimming pool, What can I expect?

[John Pratt]

I have never big a big fan of owning a swimming pool, but LOML has pretty much broken me down. I have always been a firm believer that the best pool in the neighborhood was the one next door, that way I don't have to pay for it. For those of you who have pools, what can I expect in the areas of maintenance costs? We are looking at approx. 16' by 30' in-ground concrete (above ground is not an option). Not sure if a pool with a liner is an option with the dog in the yard. I have a concern that the dog may damage the liner getting in or out.

I know the construction costs vary greatly around the country, but it is the yearly maintenance costs that have me worried. Dad always said a pool is a hole in the ground that you throw money into, while a boat (which I want) is a hole in the water you throw money into.

Are there any "extras" that I should be looking at for the pool that you wish you had or have discovered are essential? (all the safety gear and fence are a given and I understand all the liability concerns).

[Lee Schierer]

I have never big a big fan of owning a swimming pool, but LOML has pretty much broken me down. I have always been a firm believer that the best pool in the neighborhood was the one next door, that way I don't have to pay for it. For those of you who have pools, what can I expect in the areas of maintenance costs? We are looking at approx. 16' by 30' in-ground concrete (above ground is not an option). Not sure if a pool with a liner is an option with the dog in the yard. I have a concern that the dog may damage the liner getting in or out.

I know the construction costs vary greatly around the country, but it is the yearly maintenance costs that have me worried. Dad always said a pool is a hole in the ground that you throw money into, while a boat (which I want) is a hole in the water you throw money into.

Are there any "extras" that I should be looking at for the pool that you wish you had or have discovered are essential? (all the safety gear and fence are a given and I understand all the liability concerns).

Two things that you must have with your pool. A 4' high fence with locking gates and a childproof pool cover. Even if you don't have kids, others do and you don't want someone/something small falling in your pool.

[Belinda Barfield]

John, I don't have a pool currently but I did have one in the past and daily cleaning is a must.

My SIL converted her pool to salt water and swears the maintenance is much easier and that it costs a lot less to maintain.

[glenn bradley]

Its a lot like having a boat but, you can't park it out of sight to try to forget how much its costing you ;-)

[David G Baker]

Back in the 70's I researched buying a pool and found that to properly maintain a built in pool it would have an average annual cost for upkeep, power and chemicals of around $1000 in the Sacramento California area. The cost didn't factor in the increase in property tax. That was around 40 years ago.
Belinda is correct in the fact that daily cleaning is a must along with constant filtration.
You are right about the best pool in the neighborhood is the neighbors.

[Rod Sheridan]

What can you expect with a pool?

Why many new friends of course.

Regards, Rod.

[Tom Godley]

I can't comment on the construction costs as that will depend on the pool -- but like any other project it always ends up growing

Most of the liner pools I have encountered are not concrete - they are steel. I have never owned one.

........ never added up all the costs -- but they can be sizable. Opening and closing a regular pool is easily $400.00 each - plus a like amount for chemicals (if all goes well). My pool in is in NJ and is open for a little more than 4 months. Factor in 8 hours of electricity each day (my pool has two pumps) plus natural gas to heat it.

I take care of my own pool during the season -- I actually like to do it. With an automatic pool cleaner and chlorinator the daily maintenance is minimal -- many days it requires nothing.

My current pool is around 20x40 -- it is a conventional sand filter using chlorine to sanitize. It is actually easier to maintain the pool chemistry in a larger pool. I have friends with all kinds of different systems that are supposedly easier and cheaper -- but never work out that way. The sand filters and chlorine are so easy and in 25 years of having pools I have never had anyone complain. Although on a smaller pool I have had a DE filter - also a great filter.


If you have a dog it is imperative that they be acclimated to the pool - even if they don't want to. They have to be trained on how to get out in case they fall in - its amazing how fast they learn where the steps are.

I like a lot of light in a pool - the fiber optic systems are really great. Having more than one skimmer really helps if you have any trees around. And having extra controllable inlets and outlets helps to maintain the temperature at different times. I can have all the water from the heater go to the shallow end so on cooler evenings when people end up just standing in the one end -- it toasty! The extra inlets also allow you to pump hot surface water to the bottom in order to heat the whole pool on warmer days

I also have three fountains that spray into the pool -- mostly to make noise -- love them-!!

[Pat Germain]

Growing up, I lived in two homes with built-in, concrete swimming pools. Here's what I learned:

- Concrete/plaster pools are far superior to pools with vinyl liners. Everyone I've known with a vinyl liner pool had constant problems with them and they had to be replaced regularly. Sure, you have to acid bathe a concrete pool once in awhile. (Don't do this yourself. I've seen many cratered pools from do-it-yourselfers.) But dollars to doughnuts you'd be replacing the liner just as often.

- Insist on a high-quality filter system for your pool. Don't go cheap here. Don't go with the cheaper sand filter. (I'm sure a sand filter is fine for Pennsylvania. But probably not in dusty Oklahoma.) There might be newer technology, but my pools had filters using diatomacious earth. My diatomacious earth filter was FAR superior to my neighbors' pools which had sand filters. You just buy a big bag of "Diatomite" and dump some into the filter after an occasional backflush.

- Insist your pool filter has a good timer. This is no big deal, is very convenient and will save electricity. If electricity rates are cheaper at night in your area, run the filter at night.

- I have also heard salt water pools are lower maintenance. I've never had one. But I can tell you that a fresh water pool requires constant chemical adjustment. My pools used chlorine and muriatic acid.

The amount of chemicals required depends on your area. When I lived in Phoenix, I had to add chlorine almost every day in the summer. The sun would quickly neutralize it. Again, my neighbors who didn't do so had green pools with algae-covered walls.

It's a good idea to test the pool water daily. Buy a good quality test kit. (Again, don't go cheap here. A good test kit isn't very expensive.) You just dip the tester into the pool water to get a sample. Then you add a few drops of a chemical to test the chorine level. Another chemical tests the PH and tells you if you need more acid. Both are based on the color of the water after you add the test chemicals. It's very easy to do.

- In SoCal and Phoenix, we tried to use the chlorine pellets that were added to a floating thing. They just didn't work. Our neighbors who used those things had green pool water. In Pennsylvania, I'm sure the floating chlorine thing would work fine. But I doubt those things would work in Oklahoma considering how hot it gets there in the summer. (I used to live near Stillwater.)

- Regular vacuuming is a must. You just connect a big hose to the filter inlet which is attached to a metal vacuum with rubber wheels. You can usually just use the vacuum for the whole pool. Sometimes you have to brush off tougher areas, then vacuum after it settles to the bottom.

- The recommendation about the fence and cover is spot-on. In fact, your homeowner's insurance will most likely require it.

- Consider installing a solar heater. It's basically just a panel on your roof through which pool water is pumped to heat from the sun. They cost almost nothing to operate and can significantly extend the number of weeks you can use your pool.

- You must absolutely, positively supervise any and all children in your pool at all times. No exceptions. No kidding. Many a neighbor kid has come over to swim and ended up drowning. Sorry to be a bit maccabre here, but thems the facts.

- Much of the expense people complain about is a direct result of lack of proper maintenance. People don't keep the chemicals adjusted. They don't backflush the filter. They don't vacuum. Then they need major maintenance.

- Almost always, when swimmers complain the pool stings their eyes, it's not from chlorine. It's actually from algae and bacteria in the pool which is a result of too little chlorine. It would take an insane amount of cholorine to make the water sting your eyes. (Eyes can become irritated after long term exposure to pool water. But if your eyes sting almost immediately, it's from a lack of maintenance.)

[Zach England]

Make sure to consult your homeowner's insurance.

[John Pratt]

Wow, thats a lot of information and greatly appreciated. I feel like I am drowning in choices and things to think about. If it were up to me, I would just let the kids use the water hose a couple days a week, but SWMBO has spoken. Thanks for all the stuff to think about. I do know a guy in an adjoining neighborhood who has a saltwater pool, but I don't know if he enjoys it or the maintenance required. I just thought it would be harder on the yard, the eyes, the skin, and the pets. I will ask him if he has any problems.

[Dan Friedrichs]

My folks have an above-ground pool, and I just want to echo the comments of Pat, re: "Invest in quality stuff now and take care of it, and the costs will be low".

If you call the "pool guy" out everytime there's a slight problem, yeah, it may get expensive. I never understood why people need someone else to "open" and "close" the pool for them - if you understand how all the pumps, filters, etc work, there is no reason you can't do this stuff yourself.

If you take good care of it, the only expense you should ever have is chlorine. And that's not expensive.

[Rick Davidson]

We have a above ground pool, but use saltwater now. We used to use chlorine but it seemed like we could never get it right and was trying to adjust it everyday. With the saltwater we never do anything and it is always right. The salt is so minimal that it doesn't bother you at all.

[Chris Harry]

What can you expect? Lots of swearing at the money pit/hole in your backyard Trust me from experience.

You can make it easier on yourself....saltwater generator, or at minimum a liquid chlorine (aka bleach) feeder. Check out www.troublefreepool.com and www.poolforum.com for the "BBB" method......basically take care of your pool with 3 basic ingredients right from any supermarket. Bleach, Borax, Baking soda.

I have a vinyl inground and it got a lot easier once I got a bleach feeder (saltwater generator would give you the same experience). I load it up with 8 gallons of bleach and make sure the flow setting is good and leave it. 8 gallons lasts about 2 weeks in my pool. With a steady stream of chlorine (while the pump is running), cleaning is minimal. I only really vacuum when winds pick up and drop leaves into the pool. Otherwise I just brush the sides and bottom towards the main drain (get one....a REAL main drain with a separate line plumbed back to the pump).

They arent so bad. The best pool, though, really is the neighbors. I have access to another pool too, so mine isnt necessary to me, but it came with the house and I have kids that love it.

BTW, totally agree on the fence and safety cover. Also make sure your fence has a good self-closing gate. Before we changed our fence from chain link to mesh, the gate wasnt self closing. Many a nights I ran outside in the early AM because I woke up paranoid that I hadnt closed the gate. My own kids getting hurt around the pool is one thing......someone elses stumbling into my irresponsibility is something completely different.

[Matt Meiser]

We looked at a house with an aboveground pool and I talked to our insurance co about it because if we made an offer we were going to make them remove it as part of the deal if it was an issue. They wouldn't insure the pool against damage, but our homeowners automatically covered the liability portion and didn't affect the premium at all as long as it had a locking gate. If not, they wouldn't insure us.

[Michael Weber]

Had a pool at the house we purchased a couple of years ago. Had it filled in. Best decision I ever made. A real headache for maintenance. What ever you do don't build it near any trees.