New F/Glass build DownUnder - Adelaide - What have I let myself in for?... :)

[riley00dog]

It is great to have it sorted. I think I’ll probably have to stick to the remote though (until it gets lost or broken). I need to walk to the deep end of the pool away from the patio for it to connect. I guess we weren’t thinking of wifi pool lights when we placed the equipment pad... not that there was anywhere else to put it! It was bugging me though so thanks for walking me through it.

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

It was bugging me though so thanks for walking me through it.

No problem - Keep in mind that it is not all that difficult to move it if you ever feel inclined to do so.

Realistically all it needs is to be near a mains outlet and then having to extend some 4 core cable (one for each light) from your current location at the pad to another spot.

 

[riley00dog]

No problem - Keep in mind that it is not all that difficult to move it if you ever feel inclined to do so.

.

Thanks [emoji4] That doesn’t sound too hard.

Any updates on your pavers or are they still being chipped off the side of hill?

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

Any updates on your pavers or are they still being chipped off the side of hill?

The paving supplier called me yesterday and stated that they are now in WA (ship unloaded in WA) so he stated that they should be here within 2 weeks.

Not raising my hopes as yet - We will see if he calls back again in 2 weeks time..!

On a lighter note, my rear fence is almost complete. My fencing guy is popping around tomorrow, so if the weather holds out the final bits of the fence can be done.

 

[riley00dog]

The paving supplier called me yesterday and stated that they are now in WA (ship unloaded in WA) so he stated that they should be here within 2 weeks.

Not raising my hopes as yet - We will see if he calls back again in 2 weeks time..!

On a lighter note, my rear fence is almost complete. My fencing guy is popping around tomorrow, so if the weather holds out the final bits of the fence can be done.

Well I guess they’re in the country at least. Probably still quite cold in SA anyway. We have had a nice week but next week looks freezing. Hurry up Spring.

Great news about the fence. I think achieving something keeps you going. It’s when nothing is happening that frustration sets in.

I’m still waiting on concrete guy to come and remedy blotchy patches and pour a little step up to pool. Hoping he hasn’t done a runner on me. I haven’t made the final payment yet so we’re probably about even. But still would prefer not to have to stuff around getting someone else in. Also waiting on painter to give me a time to repaint back and part of the side of the house that we’re badly damaged during the build. It’s the company we had repaint our house inside and out 7 years ago and they were amazing so at least I’m not concerned about a bad job. Just a matter of when. Then the pb needs to finish this drain (still) and last little bit of silicone. Agh. So close.

I do have a question for you - I’m assuming the concrete guy will not be cleaning up the concrete overspray from my pool equipment. I’ve found a product at Bunnings that is non acidic and meant to work but wondered if you had any better/easier/gentler ideas for removing it. It is beyond me why he didn’t cover it. Everything else was taped up nicely. In fact we couldn’t get out any of our rear door for two days (which is also why I didn’t realise he hadn’t covered it). Pretty annoyed although haven’t seen him to ask. You would feel ill looking at it!

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

wondered if you had any better/easier/gentler ideas for removing it.

You may find that the majority of the concrete overspray will not stick to plastics too well - Try just wiping it with a cloth and some spray & wipe or similar.

Spray & wipe is reasonably gentle on plastics so it is good to get the heavier dust off.

You are probably best to wipe the equipment down rather than trying to hose it down as you don't really want to force water in places where it should not go.

 

[riley00dog]

You may find that the majority of the concrete overspray will not stick to plastics too well - Try just wiping it with a cloth and some spray & wipe or similar.

Spray & wipe is reasonably gentle on plastics so it is good to get the heavier dust off.

You are probably best to wipe the equipment down rather than trying to hose it down as you don't really want to force water in places where it should not go.

Thanks. I’ve gently rubbed in places with my finger and yes some does come away. I think I’ll try the spray and wipe. Leave it for a bit then try and wipe it off. It did need a good clean anyway from the building dust. Going to be a big job I think [emoji31] Can’t stand looking at it like this. My equipment wants to move in with yours [emoji23]

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

My equipment wants to move in with yours

Ha Ha...

I'm still waiting on doors - Currently just have a tarp covering the opening...!

 

[riley00dog]

Ha Ha...

I'm still waiting on doors - Currently just have a tarp covering the opening...!

Your poor equipment slumming it without doors [emoji23] Mine can only dream of a tarp [emoji22] I do have an awning to put up but not something I can do by myself. Hopefully will get it up before summer. That’s the best my equipment can ever hope for given its location. I am thankful each and every day to our excavator operator who suggested the location. I can’t imagine it in our pool area... well I can and it’s not pretty.

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

I do have an awning to put up but not something I can do by myself. Hopefully will get it up before summer.

Awning should be good as that would keep the majority of harsh UV and direct heat off the gear.

All Electronic always prefer to run in a cooler environment as running it in hotter conditions always reduces its lifespan.

 

[riley00dog]

Awning should be good as that would keep the majority of harsh UV and direct heat off the gear.

All Electronic always prefer to run in a cooler environment as running it in hotter conditions always reduces its lifespan.

Yes awning will at least protect against uv damage to some extent. The side of the house that the equipment is on is almost always in shade due to the proximity of our house to the huge double story house next door. We do expect to have to replace equipment sooner than we otherwise would but happy enough to fork out for that for a good location. Definitely a nice cool location for it. Plus my heat pump produces mass amounts of freezing cold air so when that’s running there is no chance of overheating. Not that it will run much in summer so a bit of a mute point.

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

The side of the house that the equipment is on is almost always in shade

That is a bonus then - especially in the hot summer months.



Well my rear fence is now up - Took a quick snap while helping the builder throw it up.

We actually had most of the posts in last weekend - today we concentrated on working at the rear of my shed as we had to break up an old concrete foundation which formed part of an old brick fence.

Finished just as the light was going down so my rear neighbours should now be glad their privacy is back.


We still need to add a lattice section across the top of the whole fence but it is mostly complete.

Also need to paint shed and fit some doors to my equipment room - probably complete this towards the end of the whole project.

 

[riley00dog]

Wow! The fence looks amazing! Such a difference. Are you going to paint the shed the same colorbond colour? Is that iron bark? Got to say, I jealous of your water colour. Wish we had gone with pure white pebble in hindsight but I think even that wouldn’t have given this water colour. It’s perfect [emoji108]

 

[Dirk]

What is the kicker material? That's a nice touch. Contractors here, now-a-days, build awful fences. Their idea of a "good-neighbor" fence is revealing the ugly side on one side of the yard, with the good side showing on the other side of the yard. Repeat for everyone down the block. So everybody has one ugly fence! Or alternate 8' sections, so that every fence looks awful!! No kickers. Just run the fence down into the dirt, let it rot/rust out. They'll be long gone before anyone's the wiser. Good for repeat business? Or just lazy/cheap? Kicker's help maintain a straight line at the top, and preserve the fence. And a good-neighbor fence is supposed to look good, and exactly the same, on both sides. A lost art...

Your fence looks great!

 

[riley00dog]

What is the kicker material?

Dirk they’d be concrete sleepers I think. The colorbond fence is advertised here as the good neighbour fence as no one has a bad side. Great combo with the concrete sleepers as completely termite proof. Our neighbourhood has timber fencing which I’m not a fan of. Hoping when the time comes to replace our neighbours will want to go with colorbond. Complete privacy, non climbable and no maintenance. The only thing can be that it doesn’t handle high winds all that well but easy enough to replace sections if needed.

 

[riley00dog]

Costas did you have to bond the fence posts?

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

Wow! The fence looks amazing! Such a difference. Are you going to paint the shed the same colorbond colour? Is that iron bark? Got to say, I jealous of your water colour. Wish we had gone with pure white pebble in hindsight but I think even that wouldn’t have given this water colour. It’s perfect [emoji108]

Yes - Shed will end up the same colour - Colourbond's 'Woodland Grey'.

Pool is actually a tad dirty at the moment, just a few leaves but mainly dust/dirt that has fallen in through the week. Job for the robot tomorrow...!

The colour of the water looks great when the sun is out but falls 'flat' when it is overcast - I guess most pool colours do the same.

What is the kicker material? That's a nice touch. Contractors here, now-a-days, build awful fences

As Liz pointed out - They are concrete sleepers that have beveled edges and are designed to slot and lock into the metal posts.

Fence is available in a wide variety of profiles and colours to suit most tastes... Good Neighbour Fencing | Steel Fences Gates | Stratco

Your fence looks great!

Costas did you have to bond the fence posts?

No need as it is way over the min distance of 1.5m from the pool. It is way too far to be touching the water and the fence at the same time.

 

[riley00dog]

Ah woodland grey! My friend has this and it’s a lovely colour. Then I don’t mind any of them other than the cream.

It was hard to tell how far away from the water the fence is but knew you’d be all over it anyway.

Yes your pool looks filthy ? Your right about the colour of all pools looking flat with no sun. There’s a huge difference with mine when the sun is off it.

We have had huge winds today. I’ve had a pool literally full of leaves and even a few branches [emoji15] August is always horribly windy but I’m noticing it more this year having a pool. Spent many hours on it and Jeff is on his third run for the day. Scooped out multiple nets worth of leaves too. It’s crazy. It’s clear now and will put the cover back on once Jeff’s finished. Doesn’t do much though as the leaves find their way under and I end up dumping them all in the pool when I take the cover off [emoji31]

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

I’ve had a pool literally full of leaves and even a few branches

We had a small storm pass over a few weeks ago and I found a branch approx 25mm in diameter and about 1m long stuck in my skimmer weir. Not even sure where it actually came from as the closest gum tree that would have such a branch is 4 houses away....!

Yep - my bot also makes short work of leaves - Had mine running today - I run it once a week just to keep the floor clean.

Depending on the prevailing wind direction I can just get a hand full of leaves over a couple of days or a bucket load in one day.

I end up dumping them all in the pool when I take the cover off

I wondered what is the best way to remove & clean a cover if its full of leaves. Since mine will be underground - I don't really want the cavity filled up with debris as I roll the cover in. I may have to vacuum/sweep the cover? as I pull it back into its enclosure.

 

[Dirk]

I wondered what is the best way to remove & clean a cover if its full of leaves. Since mine will be underground - I don't really want the cavity filled up with debris as I roll the cover in. I may have to vacuum/sweep the cover? as I pull it back into its enclosure.

This was one of a few reasons I never seriously considered a pool cover. Sure, I'd like the extra warmth it could maintain, but I couldn't figure out how it wouldn't actually be worse for the pool's upkeep. A cover would completely shutdown skimming. And I couldn't imagine how cleaning a cover of dirt and dust and leaves was any less work than cleaning the pool of those things... So instead I rely on a solar heater and a vac cleaner, and let my filter do its job. Not trying to talk anybody out of using a cover, just knew I would be too lazy to want to use one myself...