My daughter will be starting swim lessons a month before her 3rd birthday in the middle of July. My son will turn 1 at the same time. My parents are putting in a big fiberglass pool in their backyard (construction to start in the next week or two) but that is 25 miles away and going to grandma's house is a bit of an "event". My wife and I are thinking of getting something basic for the kids to splash around in (properly supervised/accompanied of course). I looked at the real basic plastic wading pools or the $30 inflatable side pools. For not a lot more I can get a small Intex easy set pool. I just measured the concrete pad on the lower level of our walkout (deck above). To fit a 10' diameter circle, I would have to build up the ground past the concrete about 6" on 2 sides of the concrete, only an arc. This would leave about 3" between the side of the pool and the house on 1 side and the 4x4 posts that support the deck on the other sides. I drew it up in google sketchup to get a better idea. Here are a few view from the basic model I threw together:
There is a GFCI outlet right near the inside corner of the house. I would place the filter/pump in that corner.
The only problem is that this is based on a 10' outer diameter, but what is the maximum diameter of a 10'x30" pool? Is the 10' the inside diameter of the ring or the maximum diameter of the pool including the "bulge" of the sides when it is filled? Does anyone have a 8x30 and/or a 10x30 setup that they could measure for me? I would hate to get it in place and mostly filled only to realize it is going to hit the corner of the deck support and put a hole in it. I guess I could take the easy way out and get the 8' pool, but where is the fun in that!
Secondly I wanted to get a ballpark estimate of the operation costs of an easy set pool if I decide to go that route rather than an ankle deep toy for the kids to play in. Our electric is cheap around here, currently ranging from 3-8 cents per kw/h ("power smart pricing"), but I am unsure of the amount of chemicals I will need. I have been reading up on the BBB method and plan on going that route. Our water here is very "hard" so I am sure that will complicate things a bit. If I can fit the 10'x30" intex, I will be looking at around 1,000 gallons. The pool will get very little direct sunlight as that side of the house faces north and there is a deck above it. Roughly how much bleach, borax and bicarbonate would I be looking at per week/month if the pool is only getting light usage by my family of 4? Any ideas on the current draw for the little pump intex includes with the smaller pools?
Thanks in advance for the help!
There is a GFCI outlet right near the inside corner of the house. I would place the filter/pump in that corner.
The only problem is that this is based on a 10' outer diameter, but what is the maximum diameter of a 10'x30" pool? Is the 10' the inside diameter of the ring or the maximum diameter of the pool including the "bulge" of the sides when it is filled? Does anyone have a 8x30 and/or a 10x30 setup that they could measure for me? I would hate to get it in place and mostly filled only to realize it is going to hit the corner of the deck support and put a hole in it. I guess I could take the easy way out and get the 8' pool, but where is the fun in that!
Secondly I wanted to get a ballpark estimate of the operation costs of an easy set pool if I decide to go that route rather than an ankle deep toy for the kids to play in. Our electric is cheap around here, currently ranging from 3-8 cents per kw/h ("power smart pricing"), but I am unsure of the amount of chemicals I will need. I have been reading up on the BBB method and plan on going that route. Our water here is very "hard" so I am sure that will complicate things a bit. If I can fit the 10'x30" intex, I will be looking at around 1,000 gallons. The pool will get very little direct sunlight as that side of the house faces north and there is a deck above it. Roughly how much bleach, borax and bicarbonate would I be looking at per week/month if the pool is only getting light usage by my family of 4? Any ideas on the current draw for the little pump intex includes with the smaller pools?
Thanks in advance for the help!