Pool Renovations in Tucson

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JoyfulNoise said:
....now that he's finished with his pool renovation, we have to make him a TFP Expert so he can start answering threads :)
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I've learned a lot but am faaaar from being any kind of expert. I'm still very green.

Fill on the pool is now halfway up the bottom step. I went out to the well and adjusted the switch in hopes of getting a better flow rate but discovered the pressure gauge was broken. I didn't crank it up much. Last thing I want to do is burn out the pump.

I'm really happy with the look of the Pebble. Pretty snazzy.

My BBQ was a hit. Didn't take pictures of the ribs but here is the pork butt just before I pulled it:

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PB is going to come by Saturday to check out the fill. I would hate to be forced into trucking in water because the last time I priced it, it was big bucks.

- Flappy
 
That's a nice looking bark on that pork butt, I'm sure it tasted fabulous!! I'm sorry, did you mention something about a "pool" ....

{sooooo hungry}


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kimkats said:
Uncle F I am going to guess that asking a neighbor for a hose off of their well would not work? It would not for me! None of my neighbors are close.

Kim
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Good thought, Kim, and I bet at least one of my neighbors would be willing to do it for BBQ in trade; however, it would take one heck of a long hose. My neighbors are good 100 yards away.

JoyfulNoise said:
{sooooo hungry}
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I'm not too worried about you. Anyone that makes a stuffed pork tenderloin like the one in your photo can't go hungry for too long!

Making progress on the fill... Looks to be about half way now.
 
Pool looks amazing! What a difference after the tile was cleaned....
Barbeque looks delish! Hubby doesn't Barbeque, I'm the one who does the cooking but have never tried anything fancier than grilling the standard hot dogs, burgers, chicken and veggies. Maybe I'll give it a try after our build is done. I hear the Egg is amazing...and expensive.
 
Nursenini said:
Pool looks amazing! What a difference after the tile was cleaned....
Barbeque looks delish! Hubby doesn't Barbeque, I'm the one who does the cooking but have never tried anything fancier than grilling the standard hot dogs, burgers, chicken and veggies. Maybe I'll give it a try after our build is done. I hear the Egg is amazing...and expensive.
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Sounds like you need to add an outdoor kitchen to your fantasy pool build ;)

The Big Green Egg is awesome but I found having both the BGE and a gas grille helps. There are some days when I want to grille a steak but I don't feel like going through the effort to start up the BGE. And I'm happy to do burgers and dogs on the blowtorch. I primarily use the BGE for "fancy" outdoor cooking but it certainly can do the basics just as well. And nothing tastes more fabulous than food done on real hardwood charcoal.

I wish we had more of an outdoor kitchen. Mine is really just a grille deck with a bar-style countertop. I would love to have the full outdoor kitchen but that'll be someday in the future.


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I use a Traeger. Pellet "grills" are really nice because they are self-lighting and maintain a consistent temperature by way of a PID. If the temperature drops, the auger motor speeds up; if too hot it slows down. There is also an electric fan that controls air flow. To quote Ronco, "set it and forget it." The downside is that they cook only with indirect heat and don't sear very well. I use mine almost exclusively for smoking with the only exception being wood-fired pizza.

If I could do it all over again, I would still get another pellet grill but choose a different brand. The build quality of a Traeger is not on par with Yoder, RecTec, etc.
 
Uncle Flappy said:
I use a Traeger. Pellet "grills" are really nice because they are self-lighting and maintain a consistent temperature by way of a PID. If the temperature drops, the auger motor speeds up; if too hot it slows down. There is also an electric fan that controls air flow. To quote Ronco, "set it and forget it." The downside is that they cook only with indirect heat and don't sear very well. I use mine almost exclusively for smoking with the only exception being wood-fired pizza.

If I could do it all over again, I would still get another pellet grill but choose a different brand. The build quality of a Traeger is not on par with Yoder, RecTec, etc.
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I looked at pellet grilles but decided on the BGE because it is all ceramic and I can easily get it up to 700F (yup, that's not a typo, 700F). I can also easily get it to stabilize at 225F. There's ceramic insert that you can use that blocks the direct heat from the coals and forces it up the sides so you can do indirect, low temperature smoking. I'm actually quite impressed with the BGE because it has such a incredibly temperature range that is easily controlled and dialed in by simply moving two different adjustors - the bottom screen door and the upper flue adjustor. Admittedly it does take some babysitting but when I smoke, I stay at home anyway and make a day of it outside by the BBQ.

Definitely lots of smoker options out on the market and I would totally get an offset firebox horizontal smoker if I had the room for it. I knew a guy at work whose father built custom horizontal smokers as a side business. They were incredibly made and completely solid in their construction; the things would probably outlive the owner.

Shoot...we may have to move this conversation to the Outdoor Kitchen & BBQ Islands forum...
 
Woohoo! On the homestretch. Definitely making better progress since I cranked up the well pressure and added a second hose. Should be full by this time tomorrow.
a6e175b9ea32b165ca54e2760b36acdd.jpg


JN, I looked at the BGEs when first getting into smoking. They're pretty impressive. I ultimately went with pellets because I have a hectic schedule and am lazy. I like that a slab of meet can be thrown on at bedtime and ready for me with my eggs. It all comes down to personal preference, I guess.

By the way, JN, you have my sincere gratitude for all of your help with my pool. Your advice has been invaluable in taking over chemical service from the pool dudes, converting to SWCG, and now the renovation. I sincerely thank you for all the help.

- Flappy
 

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Sweet looking pool, Flappy!! And, to each his own on the smoker...I totally get what you're saying.

As for the help, you are most certainly welcome. I'm impressed with all that you've done and, truth be told, YOU DID IT ALL! You did the hard work converting to salt, you installed the SWCG and you renovated the pool...ok, you had some guys do it for you on that last one, but you get what I'm saying. It's be fun watching your thread and seeing all the progress and, had I never responded to your initial post I would have never met a fellow smoked meat enthusiast!! So it's WIN-WIN all around....

Now, your challenge is to go forth and pay-it-forward! Stay on TFP, read the latest threads and help anyone you can. That's how we roll here, you just pay-it-forward...
 
So you know what's really cool, I clicked on the link to this thread and got sent to the first page which has a great picture of your pool BEFORE the renovation. If you go to your last picture, the transformation is incredible. You should try to take an AFTER photo using the same lighting and camera angle (as best you can) based off the original photo and then finish this thread by showing a single, side-by-side framed image of the before and after shots (need to do a little a simple PhotoShop magic). It will be dramatic to post that and very inspiring for others who might be on the fence about starting their own renovation.

Just a thought....
 
Great idea. The pool builder has also been taking pictures and posting them on FB. That may give me additional angles to pull from. Hopefully the giddiness of completion doesn't induce temporary memory loss and I forget to take good shots of the finished product. The wife and I are already basking in the success of the new plaster. It really is beautiful.

Oh - on a side note, I was having testing withdrawals and put some well water in the SpeedStir. CH was pretty darn low for being right out of the ground - 50ppm. (I think) that is a good thing.

Finally, I'd be happy to contribute to the noobs but am still such a rookie myself. So much more to learn. If there comes a time to chip-in it will be because I understand all the intricacies for an educated answer and not just the basics like buy the right test kit. I'm funny that way.

- Flappy
 
Uncle I learned by reading just about every post I could even if it was not something I need for my pool. I wanted to know it or at least know about it just in case I needed AND if I could help anyone else.

Even just saying HI! and a nice welcome goes a long way!

Kim
 
Uncle Flappy said:
Thanks, Kim. At the very least I will offer encouragement. Thank you for yours and for following this thread. Even though I am allergic to cats. [emoji12]
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You can post smoker recipes too :pig:

TFP has a diverse offering of forums :D


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Also, the low CH well water is not surprising. CAP water is mostly surface water (Colorado River water, etc) and so Tucson water gets its high mineral content from surface sources. Deep well water like what you have tends to be lower in CH.

What's the TA and pH of your well? Be thankful for low CH; my pool is currently pushing 800ppm CH. My next pool "investment" will be rain water collection drums to capture the hundreds of gallons of rain water that pours off my roof. I'm planning/hoping to try to get off the auto fill water from my city supply.


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Uncle Flappy said:
Woohoo! On the homestretch. Definitely making better progress since I cranked up the well pressure and added a second hose. Should be full by this time tomorrow.
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Look! It's got water!! And it's beautiful!!

- - - Updated - - -

JoyfulNoise said:
Sounds like you need to add an outdoor kitchen to your fantasy pool build ;)

The Big Green Egg is awesome but I found having both the BGE and a gas grille helps. There are some days when I want to grille a steak but I don't feel like going through the effort to start up the BGE. And I'm happy to do burgers and dogs on the blowtorch. I primarily use the BGE for "fancy" outdoor cooking but it certainly can do the basics just as well. And nothing tastes more fabulous than food done on real hardwood charcoal.

I wish we had more of an outdoor kitchen. Mine is really just a grille deck with a bar-style countertop. I would love to have the full outdoor kitchen but that'll be someday in the future.


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JN- I'm currently using a big Weber Kettle. I LOVE charcoal, not a fan of propane but we are looking to add a 3'x9' cooking space with a natural gas grill, small fridge and bartop space on the backside. Not much room for more but it'll work for me ��
 
Uncle Flappy said:
Thanks, Kim. At the very least I will offer encouragement. Thank you for yours and for following this thread. Even though I am allergic to cats. [emoji12]
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LOL Uncle you will not be able to visit me as there as kitties at my house..........We have a king size bed so there will be room for us! We take in the ones that need us...........very old, sick, scared, ect. We are full right now as we took in a couple that had been left in foreclosed houses :(

BUT I will wash and dry my clothes and pack in the laundry room so no cat fur will get on them before I come visit for a swim and dinner! :slidehalo:

Kim
 

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