Buying house, pool? Expensive problems/maintenance? DFW

[bchaney]

Well, we're looking at houses in DFW and a lot of them have pools. We've never owned a pool - it sounds exciting but also scary. I've heard the standard "you better use it enough to make it worth the maintenance" speech. I'm not really worried about general maintenance, I'm worried about big, expensive problems like leaks or cracks, and maintenance like relining or resurfacing. How likely is a pool to leak? Crack? Need Relining? Resurfacing? Any other major problems that could occur or major maintenance that will be necessary?

What should I look for in a pool to avoid these things?

I'm just trying to get an idea of what we could be getting ourselves into. I don't want to get wrapped up in the idea of having a pool and then end up with an expensive hole in my backyard. Thanks for any help.

 

[gullzway]

We bought our house with a pool 2 years ago. It's a 19 year old gunite pool. So far I've only had to replace the pump impeller, pretty cheap.

The plaster has a few "bad spots" but nothing that will need replaced anytime soon.

My advice would be to inspect the pool, any cracks, water level low?
My BIL bought a house with a pool over the winter, the owner didn't want to remove the cover because of "the leaves." Turns out there's a major crack/break in the gunite near a seat in the deep end. They have been adding at least 2" a week. Also their sand filter is putting sand/debris back into the pool.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[UN1017]

Welcome to TFP.

I can tell you one thing....you are doing the right thing by starting out here before you even own the pool. If you follow the TFP way of pool maintenance then you REALLY won't regret it. We bought a bank owned home with a pool and we haven't had anything major happen. We need a little more info (and maybe some pics) to really answer your questions. How old of pool are we talking about here? Age of surface/equipment and general condition? Well maintained or neglected?

Our pool was just over 4 years old....a 20 year old pool is most likely going to need some work. But it all depends.

As far as some things to look for: Serious cracks in anything (deck, plaster etc.) are a problem. Exposed rebar through plaster is also bad. Pool equipment can usually be replaced "easily" and at a "reasonable" price. Resurfacing and the like can start costing you some $$$.

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

My father-in-law bought a house with a pool this summer. We required them to "open" the pool, we paid for a pool company to inspect it, and we looked it over (without real knowledge) ourselves.

So far so good. The pool has some minor issues but no major problems. It has been more work than anticipated to keep it clean, but not so much that the fun is outweighed.


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[bchaney]

Welcome to TFP.

I can tell you one thing....you are doing the right thing by starting out here before you even own the pool. If you follow the TFP way of pool maintenance then you REALLY won't regret it. We bought a bank owned home with a pool and we haven't had anything major happen. We need a little more info (and maybe some pics) to really answer your questions. How old of pool are we talking about here? Age of surface/equipment and general condition? Well maintained or neglected?

Our pool was just over 4 years old....a 20 year old pool is most likely going to need some work. But it all depends.

As far as some things to look for: Serious cracks in anything (deck, plaster etc.) are a problem. Exposed rebar through plaster is also bad. Pool equipment can usually be replaced "easily" and at a "reasonable" price. Resurfacing and the like can start costing you some $$$.

Thanks for the welcome. We don't have a specific pool in mind yet, so I guess I'm asking what to look for in a pool when. Age - the newer the better? Or should it be a couple years old to see how it's holding up? What type of surface/equipment/etc? How often do pools need relining/resurfacing? How often do they crack?

If I know what to look for and what to stay away from, I could reduce the risk of running into expensive issues later.

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

Honestly many of those things are very personal.

What type of use do you plan on for the pool? Who will use it - what ages? How much maintenance is too much?

There's no way to give good advice without more to go on.

Also many aspects of a pool can be changed - better to bring info on the pools to us as you find houses.



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[Swampwoman]

Bchany, I was a brave soul who bought a foreclosed pool. During our inspection period, we researched via equipment labels to find the original builder. We then paid the original builder to inspect the equipment and confirm it was in working condition. Because it was a black swamp beneath the cover, we could not inspect the liner condition, so we pretty much had to treat the sale with consideration for a liner replacement and ensure we'd still be happy with the agreed price. In our case, we also had a hydrogeologist come out and inspect the rather complex array of drainage installed on the property (the pool is at the bottom of a hill and forest with a river in front

We also got a list of "what-if" budgets so we'd be prepared for worst case scenarios.

I can happily report even the liner at 12 years old is great, didn't wrinkle from neglect, and is solid to the walls, so things were even better than we'd hoped. However, on a complex piece of land like this one (we also have 2 septic tanks and a well) the intense research served us well and it was good to enter the deal with our eyes wide open.

If you find the right house with the right setting and it happens to have a pool, I would let condition rather than age guide your decision. Just be sure to pay for a separate pool inspection by a reputable pool company and attempt to get complete records from the homeowner (unless it's foreclosed). But if you don't really want a
pool for certain, DON'T BUY A HOUSE with one because the only thing more expensive than building a pool is
removing a pool

BTW, my h really really didn't want a house with a pool. But guess who now is in that thing every darn day and happy as a clam We have absolutely no regrets! But it's a little bit like buying a dog -- you want to make sure you're committed to the idea, to being around enough fr light daily observation and maintenance or will hire someone else to, and that a "big vet bill" here and there wouldn't kill ya

Best wishes in your search.

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

What a great post! ^^^^^ I agree 100%.


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[march2012]

Well, we're looking at houses in DFW and a lot of them have pools. We've never owned a pool - it sounds exciting but also scary. I've heard the standard "you better use it enough to make it worth the maintenance" speech. I'm not really worried about general maintenance, I'm worried about big, expensive problems like leaks or cracks, and maintenance like relining or resurfacing. How likely is a pool to leak? Crack? Need Relining? Resurfacing? Any other major problems that could occur or major maintenance that will be necessary?

What should I look for in a pool to avoid these things?

I'm just trying to get an idea of what we could be getting ourselves into. I don't want to get wrapped up in the idea of having a pool and then end up with an expensive hole in my backyard. Thanks for any help.

If the pool is relatively new say 5 years or less the pool itself is probably fine, but some of the equipment like pump might be close to needing to be replaced. Equipment might cost in the range of 5K if there is a heater, Long term maintenance if you use BBB or have a salt system will cost on the order of $60-80/month for chemicals during the summer (also depends on the size of the pool), much less in the winter. I spend about 5 minutes every few days to maintain the pool, but we dont have trees that drop leaves into the pool. If you get a pool service, expect to pay maybe 200-250/month