Livinright said:
hyperionguy said:
For jollies I even asked my local Leslie pool supply guy about it...
That makes me smile because my local Leslie's guys are so ignorant.
That was the goal! :-D
JasonLion said:
We get large numbers of reports of problems with zeo media. When it works it seems to work great, but it can occasionally cause serious problems, so we do not recommend using it. Besides, few people can tell the difference in water quality between zeo and sand.
Cool, thanks for the input... your opinion is enough to tip me to again buy regular pool sand.
gd5015 said:
talhart said:
any reason you are completely replacing your pool every year ???
Seems to be upgrading each year.
John
That's right!
I enjoyed the year 1 pool so much that I wanted something bigger and the year 2 pool is nearly double the capacity.
During year 2 I decided the pool visually dominated the yard. I can't tell you how many people came over and said "Jeebus! wth?". I think what contributed to the illusion is the more severe slope of the sides on the larger easy-set and the blow up ring crown on top. I started having dreams of something more 'normal' and better filtration, etc. I ran across a good deal on my first ultra-frame and went for something smaller. The problem is... I live in a patio home so my yard space is limited and even where I could fit a long narrow in-ground pool (I like that look) there are utilities underneath, so it would be cheaper to just move than to fix all that. The back yard is split in two by concrete pad and steps out the back sliding doors, right in the middle of the house. The side I put the 15' easy-set on probably had only 6 feet left on 3 sides. My side yard is a better shape but has a good slope to it and has too many trees.
During year 3 I was the happiest I have been with an AG pool (I grew up with an in-ground pool) mostly because I learned a lot from you guys and it became nearly maintenance-free other than vacuuming. It was fun. Also, my theory was validated... that a smaller ultra-frame would actually have more usable space and feel more open than an easy-set. The idea is that even with a smaller overall diameter I would still have more surface area as well as not wasting all that volume beneath the sloped sides. I hadn't noticed as much on the smaller easy-set model but when I went double-sized the slope was much bigger and wasted a lot of space. I think that's also what made the big easy-set look so bad in a small space, it just looked so much like a big sack o' water.
I had fun trying out new things like adding the bigger Intex return that came with the sand/swg filter and adding the Hayward skimmer. Based on how the pool looked, I decided I could go back to a slightly bigger pool without it looking like the sack. I wasn't seriously considering it until I accidentally stumbled across the 14' x 42" on seasonal clearance at Wal-Mart (online only!) for under $200.
I tried giving away the smaller ultra-frame, including posting here to find someone who knew someone local who would take it for free... including leaving in the bigger return and thru-wall skimmer. No takers. So I took off the parts and pitched it. A waste, I know.
This year I'm going to hard-plumb the new ultra-frame and since I'm in the middle of reworking the back yard before installing the pool, I plan to keep it up year round since I don't have to winterize in Houston. This may be the one I stick with for good.
I already have two H-D bags full of PVC parts I'm collecting as I mentally sketch out the plumbing plans. I can't wait.
