Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc?

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Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

The final layer is just dirt & grass. The previous owner had concrete over this area, but just left it as grass after the last time they had to dig up concrete to fix a leak.

PB wanted it dug down to 3'. Doing my best to do that, but it might be tough.

We have a quote of $265 for 1 cubic yard of concrete, with the delivery charge being a bulk of that price. We will have some use for the extra, so that's ok. $265 is the sweet spot for me to be worth it to not have to mess around with mixing. I have some rebar and was going to stick some extra galvanized fence material in as well, in hopes that the combo should make it quite solid.

Our HVAC guy who just did our furnace & water heater last week is going to hook up the outside line to the heater. Only problem is that our utility company is going to have to move out meter outside and upsize it to handle an extra 400k BTU. Thankfully the utility is upgrading old meters in our neighborhood right now, so it won't cost us anything but time!
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Three feet deep, sounds painful. I would just use the excavated soils on top of the sand then. Compact best you can, but since it just grass save some extra dirt to level it back off after it settles in the fall/spring. Getting there!
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Pool Tool said:
Three feet deep, sounds painful. I would just use the excavated soils on top of the sand then. Compact best you can, but since it just grass save some extra dirt to level it back off after it settles in the fall/spring. Getting there!
Click to expand...
This is roughly the path I want the pipes to run, but I don't know how I'm going to dig this that deep. The left edge of the top soil line I dug up is about 3' from the edge of the pool:
IMG_4251.jpg

I'm already having some cave-in issues, notably at the deep end wall connection. TONS of rock has fallen in from a good bit back, even though the top layer of soil is still holding up on top. I think the arbor vitae roots are holding the top soil together pretty well.

Should I be digging a bit closer and wider? Do I need to worry about the pool wall integrity if I do dig closer to the wall?
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Pick axe a shovel and a broken back ... you can also try a digging bar.FB_IMG_1463785522136.jpgFB_IMG_1463785522136.jpg

Concrete equipment pads are nice... I used an electric mixer 4x8 pad 2x6 forms
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Yeah, that looks really nice. Working on a "box" that will be built into the slope on the side of our house, with 2 tiers of 6x6's for the border/retaining wall. Still working on convincing my wife that topping it with concrete will be the way to go.
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Do I need the electrical and/or gas lines to come up through the concrete???

So here's the form. Do I have it right, that I need to fill this with (roughly) 3" of compacted sand, 3" of gravel, then the rest (3-5") of concrete?:
IMG_4272.jpg

Getting this ready to go so that it can cure in plenty of time, while we continue to dig the trench. Had several friends & family over to help today, knocked out the dig for the retaining wall (and re-graded the side of the house with what we dug out), emptied the sand filter so we could move it and have the guts ready for inspection (to make sure everything is OK with it), but we only got about 1/5 of the trench dug. Lots more to do!
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

That's one heck of a form. Are those 6x6 timbers? Either way 3-5 inches of concrete is plenty for an equipment pad. Toss a sheet of wire remesh in there to help keep it from cracking. Make sure to compact your fill in small lifts to ensure even compaction. You don't have to run pipe or conduit thru the form it's more an aesthetic choice. You should have your bonding wire run up thru the concrete and attach it to the wire mesh.
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Yes, 6x6 treated timbers. The soil on this side of the house is incredibly soft, so it needed to be dug up and compacted down well (that plus there was a large uneven slope). Probably driving down some pilings for extra support too (I have a lot of extra fence posts). Also going to use some fence material as the mesh, with a few pieces of rebar as well. Should I attach a bond wire to the mesh as well as the fence posts?
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

I wouldn't use chain link fence as a re-mesh in concrete. Twisted or welded wire fencing would be better. I also wouldn't drive any piles under the slab the 8 inches or so you are putting underneath it is plenty it also looks like the forms are staying put you may be overthinking the slab a bit. The weight of the slab and anything on it is spread out over the entire area of the slab. Instead of using separate sand and gravel try and get quarry process material (crusher run, inch and quarter minus, road base, or some other local name). It will have no organic material and will compact very well giving you a very solid base for a slab. It is also cheaper around here it is only $9.50/ton as apposed to gravel and masons sand which are $15+ per ton in my area.

Yea the bonding wire should be attached to whatever steel you embed into the concrete.
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

oh yea make sure to cover the tops of your forms with something to keep the concrete splatter off of them otherwise they will get very messy and wont be easy to get clean.
 

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Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Ah, OK. I was going to use the chain link fence just because I had a bunch of extra. I might save it and the posts to use as a fence around the gear to keep the kids out. I'll head to Home Depot later and pick up the mesh. Should I still use the rebar with the mesh, or is that overkill? I could return the rebar while I'm there if it's not needed. Already have the #8 green wire for bonding.

I have 11" to fill now that I've added back a little bit of fill (compacted back down). Should I shoot for 7" of gravel/stones and 4" of concrete?

What might you suggest to use to protect the tops of the form? Won't the concrete need to be scraped across the top to level it out?
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Yea your bonding wire need to be solid bare copper wire min 8awg, buried directly in the ground not in conduit. The insulated green colored wire is for your equipment ground and that is run in you conduits.

Wire remesh will be plenty for a slab. You don't need additional rebar.

Some painters plastic sheeting would work and masking tape. Concrete self levels to some extent esp once you get the cream to the top with a float. It will soak into the wood and stain it tho. So a lil bit of prevention and care will give you a nicer looking project in the end. There is nothing clean about working with wet concrete.
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

Good thing it's easier to remove insulation than it is to put it on! :D

I'll grab some painters plastic today too, after I return all the extraneous crisp I picked up.
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

So why not get a new liner while we are at it? I guess it's a drop in the hat considering all the other renovations we've had to do in addition to the pool. The current liner is about 9 years old, and is sagging/stretching in a few places. Also, when I pulled the pool cover back a couple months ago to see if any water was needed, the water level was dangerously low, about 18-24" lower than where I filled it when I closed the pool last fall. It should have been 1-2" above the wall fittings, but it was 2-3" above the shallow end of the pool! Yikes!

So since there's a new liner... I am considering getting a skimmer equalizer valve/kit put in (for our Bermuda widemouth skimmer). That equalizer wasn't on my radar, but if we are doing work on the wall/liner, why not?
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

MitchRyan912 said:
This is roughly the path I want the pipes to run, but I don't know how I'm going to dig this that deep. The left edge of the top soil line I dug up is about 3' from the edge of the pool:
View attachment 48458

I'm already having some cave-in issues, notably at the deep end wall connection. TONS of rock has fallen in from a good bit back, even though the top layer of soil is still holding up on top. I think the arbor vitae roots are holding the top soil together pretty well.

Should I be digging a bit closer and wider? Do I need to worry about the pool wall integrity if I do dig closer to the wall?
Click to expand...

Digging that trench by hand 3ft deep is a son of a gun! thats why mine are ran at 2ft I had plans for deeper but.... I gave up! I just make sure to winterize properly and all is good. Good luck and its going to be great when its done!
 
Re: Digging up pipes & starting over: all new PVC, pump, filter, skimmer, heater, etc

PB is letting us dig to save some $$$, but they spec'ed it as needing to be 3' deep. It's been a pain, and we're all the way down to about 3' depth for 1/3 of the trench. One stretch from the shallow end plumbing to the skimmer is 1.5' down. Have a lot more digging to do from the skimmer to the deep end plumbing connection.
 

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