Sorry for the delay in replying. This weekend was 100° or so for both days, and super-high humidity. (Typical for Chesterfield, VA in the summer!) I was out both days and did okay until Monday morning, when I got up and realized I was wiped out, so it's taken me time to get back to posting. I have friends who work with a local alcoholism treatment program nearby (one of the best in the country, or so I hear). The people in the program often don't have ways to make money because the program is months long and intense, so, at the start, they don't have jobs. I offer them $10 an hour, for a minimum of 5 hours a day and will drive in to pick up 2-4 of them for the Sunday (about the only day they have much time off!) and bring them out. Even the urban guys love getting away from the program and doing physical work instead of mental and emotional work for a day. They also love that they can see what they've done - and you can't see the results of all that emotional and spiritual work. So I bring them out, they will usually work for 6-7 hours, then I pay them and take them back. They are always eager to come out and grateful for the chance to make some cash.
And, of course, on my end, I get some good work done - stuff that would take me days to do on my own and it's at a good pay. (I also feed them and supply them with as much water and Gatorade as they can drink and, since there's now power in that area, I have fans they can set out where they work - which they love. I try to treat them well and with respect and they deeply appreciate it for me. Often they'll look over what I'm trying to do and come up with easier or better ways to do it. They really get invested in doing it well.
So I was getting things ready on Saturday and was working with the crew I had out here on Sunday. And the AC in my Outback died. You do NOT want to know what it was like driving them home with all 5 of us with clothes soaked through with sweat sitting in that car!
OH I am SO in on this one!!! This sounds like fun!
Closing the pool=when the water gets below 60 degrees. It is not the time of year it is the temp of the water as algae does not like water below 60. Opening the pool=BEFORE the gets up to 60.
So, if I understand you correctly, you don't close the pool when it's a certain day or when you're done, you close it when the water temp drops below 60°? You mention algae, so I take it that, with the cover on and no light hitting the water, if the temp is above 60° and you have the cover on, you get algae problems? (I often do this to make sure I understand someone - I rephrase what they've said in my own words to verify I understand them.)
A piggy farm? Lagoons? HUGE barn? What an adventure this is going to be! How big is the house? We would LOVE to see pics of it all! Of course we need to see pics of your critters also!
There are various pics I can share, but I have agreed with my wife to not share pics of our house. I would love to, since it's unusual, but she's a super-introvert (she doesn't mind me saying that about her!) and we've agreed we're not going to post house pics so they don't get spread around the internet. I can post some house picks - stuff that doesn't show the whole house and may show parts of rooms. I can send some other pics in PMs, I guess. Pics of the barn, pond, and pool (all in the same area) are different - I can post more of those.
I can give more history, which is interesting, and post pics of the barn area, but I'm wondering if the best way to do that is to start a thread, something like, "Tango's Barn, Pond, and Pool," and post pics there. That way, as more work is done, I can update it with more pictures. Or is there a better way to do it?
I LOVE your style!!! Good job taking care of the driveway on your own after the punk boy "weeked" you! Did the punk every try to get back to you to do the work and get paid for it?
Thank you!
I think the punk kid was trying is best and wanted the job, but was intimidated by the size of it. Which is funny, since I had NO experience and ended up doing the job by myself - proving it can be done. One contracter (not the kid) quoted me about $100,000 for the driveway (and that didn't include the roadway to the barn). I did it for about $50,000 or so, and that includes the $21,000 I spent on a Kubota BX25D tractor. 25HP with a front loader and 2 buckets (one is a multi-bucket with a claw) and a backhoe. Buying that tractor saved me a LOT of money in the long run!
The kid did contact me again. Basically he had boxed in part of the driveway and I had paid him. He got me the 3 culverts, 30" diameter, that I needed, but he had to go 2 hours away to get them. I later found if he had checked a well known supplier that was located near where he lives (about 40 minutes from here), he could have gotten them closer, and cheaper AND had them delivered. So I think he's well intentioned and works hard, but there is a LOT he doesn't know!
He was supposed to bring a load of gravel for the very front of the driveway on Monday and didn't. I called and asked him about it. That's when he said, "Oh, I won't be able to get out there at all this week." We had agreed I'd pay him weekly, so I asked him to text me his address and I'd send him the check for the culverts. He agreed, but didn't text me. But once he had said, "I can't get out there this week," something just kind of snapped in me. No need to yell, just a decision, "He's fired." I just figured I'd send him his check and not call him back.
Thursday I text him about that address so I can send the check. No response until the next Tuesday. He wants to meet me so I can give him the check. In other words, he wants to see me in person to get back on the job and to get paid because he doesn't have another job that'll pay him at this point. I told him I was now doing the driveway and didn't have time to meet because all the places he mentioned were about 40 minutes out of my way. So I got his address, sent him the check, and never heard from him again.
If I ever bump into him again and he asks what happened, I'm just going to tell him he didn't keep his word on timing and I wasn't about to spend over $1,000 a week for the Bobcat when he wasn't going to use it that week. (Lesson: Make them rent it so they know the clock is ticking or rent it yourself if you're going to be using it a lot, too - but know if they aren't paying for it, they aren't going to move quickly.)
I do have to give the kid credit. He was willing to make a few trips out to look things over. (One initial trip and one later, after the field was bush hogged for the first time in 2 years so we could see the lay of the land - and one more after that to review the topography with the county permit people.) He had figured out how to handle the routing so we wouldn't have to put in another expensive culvert. He was invested in the job originally - but his "one week more" thing when he knew we had to get the well in ASAP for the full permit was just too much.
We will work on the skimmers and such as you get the plans.
The "pond entry" will be referred to as a "beach entry" in pool builder talk. There are several materials you can use to do it. Most do not recommend using plaster for this as the plaster needs to stay wet. Take a look at this stone one! This is my fav way of doing it!
pool beach entry - Google Search:
Kim
Yeah, beach entry sounds like a good description. It also seems to me that, in some ways, that can cost less, since there's less work in making a form for walls with a beach entry. I'm hoping to do a good part of the pool like that. I know I can't do a lazy river that way, but I can do the main swimming area like that.
And I will DEFINITELY need good skimmers!
Nope, sorry

. I had a lot of issues with trees and pool, so I have to admit I dont like trees around pool
Yeah, I did throw a lot out there. I seriously considered putting the pool in our front field at one point, but ruled that out because it's too easily visible from the road. Other than the front field, the rest of the lot is wooded - so I don't have a choice. Guess I got trees near the pool if I want them or not.
There is one big tree by our pool and let me tell you - it is an issue in spring and fall. Creates a lot of mess and extra cleaning duties. I love the tree, but don't like the cleanup from it. The pool and tree were already there when we bought the house. There is an amazing amount of leaves, pollen, etc from just that big tree.
I get that. I'm stuck, though. Yes, in some directions, I could cut a lot of trees, but that would really destroy the natural beauty of the area.
It's been years, but when I've been to Kings Dominion (not too far from here) in the past, I loved the way the flume ride went through a wooded area. (I have no idea how it looks now!) I really liked that. It gave you a feel of going down a river or big creek in the woods. I wish I could do that with the lazy river, but I think that's just asking for trouble! I might be able to do it if I planned on putting some kind of roof over it, eventually, but that would mean the water there would stay colder and it would spoil the atmosphere I'd want to create.