Building a house with a new home- advice needed, please!

Feb 11, 2013
3
I am building a new home in Orlando at the moment and am putting in a pool at the same time. This will be my first time owning a pool and I am trying to understand what I should preemptively consider/buy now during this process. We have to use the pool company the builder has contracted with in order to have it done by close. Of course those prices are higher, so I am trying to get the most for my money. I know I could go with another pool builder, but honestly I don't want to deal with the hassle/mess afterwords! Here are a few questions I need help with:

Is it easy to add on a wireless remote control for the pool? The one they are trying to give me has a price tag of over $2k. I've seen the eaxct same one online for about $600.

Adding in a screen footer? We will not be getting a screen put over the pool at this time (maybe in a year or so depending on how we like it without the screen enclosure) as we are overlooking a lake and have a nice wide open view. The pool guy has indicated that we put in the screen footer now so that its ready incase we add it in later. Thats about $1,300. Is that a good price? I dont understand what is involved in this process to know otherwise and if I don't put it in now, would a footer be terribly difficult to add in at another time at a cost much greater than $1,300?

What kind of decking would you reccomend? I was just going to continue with the brick pavers we are using under the lanai as it is pretty massive in and of itself.
We won't get out yard fenced in- aluminum fence per the HOA- until after close, but in order to meet code we need to have the child safety fence put up, which is about 130 linear feet in to cover our pool. Thats pretty massive to have to store around after the fence and other controls are put in. What do other people do with these massive fences when they are not in use?

It was indicated on our paperwork that if we wanted our in floor cleaning system to work while we are in the spa, we will nedd to add an auxillary pump. Do I need to add this? Our spa will spill over into the swimming pool as a water effect when it is on. So it is necessary for the in floor system to be cleaning CONSTANTLY or when you are entertaining or sitting in the spa, its OK for it not to be "cleaning"

I think we will want to add solar panels later to heat up the pool. Is that a complicated process of digging and tearing up pavers to do? Does anyone know of a way to "preplumb" for solar panels in the future?

Sorry so many questions! I can't tell you how many times I heard during this process that it's better to "have it down now, instead of after you close", so the lines start to blur between really the truth and the eagerness to sell someone for commissions sake!
 
Welcome to the forum. :lol: Rushing this process is could come back to bite you. I would suggest you slow down a bit and learn more about what you want and don't want.

Each pool and pool owner is different and it will be very hard to prescribe a pool for you that fits you perfectly.

I will help by saying you could save a lot of money by canceling the infloor cleaning system. Reports here on the forum indicate they don't work all that well and can be very troublesome.

Others may have an opinion on your other questions.

What size pool are you considering?
 
Welcome to TFP :wave:

I like pavers for exactly the reason if replumbing is ever needed, they can be re-used. Also, it is possible to rough in the plumbing for solar.
 
Depending on the automation system you are getting adding a wireless remote is straight forward( well as much as wireless is) if the remote is hard wired(spa side ) then you could have the conduit run now and pull the wire later.
 
The pool I am building is kind of a lazy L shape. 30 feet long with the most narrow end being about 13 feet wide the largest width being about 20 feet wide. Unfortunately for me, I am under a bot of a time crunch as I have to have these decisions made now because the builder will not start building until they are made. I do believe that I know what I want, I'm just trying to understand what I can wait to do later without it being a big mess, and hassle.

The automation system they were trying to put on my order is an Aqualink PDA.
 
Lots of pools are built after houses are up. If you need to roll the cost of the pool into the house, then that's when to do it. The fence sounds like a waste. If the devloper has to put in the fence eventually, you are paying for it when you shouldn't need it and they are not cheap. Footers are nothing to put in. Not sure of the size of enclosure you are considering but it's not a big deal to put it in later. Pavers are a good choice. I would concur with the earlier poster. Slow down and decide what you want. Don't be forced to making an uninformed decision that you will have to live with for long time.
 
The developer will not put in the fence later, we will need to do so after close. However, in FL there is a state law regarding gates/access to pools and this must be met for my inspection. Unfortunately, it's a cost I will likely need to eat, and will need to keep the gate around the pool until I do get my own fence for the yard, which will hopefully be soon after!

The footer they want to put in would be for 130 linear feet. I was thinking that if I end up not doing the screen in the end, then that was a wasted cost, and if I do do the screen later, whats that cost in the grand scheme of how much the entire enclosure would be.
 
For what it is worth, I would concentrate on the home construction and leave the pool out of it. I would never deal with a home builder that dictated what pool builder I use. It is your money and your investment. Maybe you can talk to your mortgage company and add your pool to your mortgage upon completion at a later date. Do your research and get what you want at a competitive price. Good luck on your build!

Dave Hurley
 
OK, I thought the developer was putting in the fence, just it wouldn't be done in time. I understand about code requirements. Just seems silly to pay twice for a fence. Your temp fence is not going to be cheap but if you need it, you need it. You can always try selling it on craigslist when you no longer need it. May be able to find one on there as well. But you will need to meet code before final inpsection. Regarding footer, don't do it now. If you put in screened patio later, they can easily do it then at similiar cost.
 
All the tract and semi-custom builders use their preferred pool builder here in AZ as well. I've dealt with it in the past and it's not terrible. They typically have relationships and even some deals due to the volume of referrals. I'm sure there are financial incentives to the builder as well. It may not be ideal with regard to equipment choices, but at least here they are the larger builders in the area. Like them or not, they build a lot of pools. The only real benefit of doing it at the time of the home build is access for digging equipment and rolling the cost into the home loan. Easier to get the pool financed into the cost of the home than to close on the house and try to get separate funding. And that is a big deal and can easily be worth the sole source environment with the PB of the developer's choice.
 

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