New Build in Katy, TX

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tommy1005

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Sep 17, 2015
141
Katy, TX
My wife and I are planning on building a pool with our new house in Katy. Our house is currently slated to be completed in a couple of months and we are starting to work with pool builders to determine a design and price that we can live with. 3 of the 4 builders we are talking to are priced within $5000 of each other by the time we make them apples to apples, the 4th is about $15K higher, but is the design we seem drawn to the most. Our lot is in an interesting spot because we have lake across the back and down the right side when looking from the patio, so we will only have neighbors on one side which is a really nice bonus to us.

These are the designs we are looking at and would appreciate feedback on what you like or don't like. One thing we have decided to do that is not shown in most of these drawing is to go with travertine pavers for the patio and coping instead of using pea gravel with flagstone inlays. We are also debating the location of the spa because with the spa at the back of the pool you wouldn't be able to see the TV, but with the spa in the front of the pool you would be able to watch TV from the spa. The other thing that I like, but my wife does not is the 360 spa, so we only have one design with that. Thanks for the input and help on designing our first pool. Any tips or advice are greatly appreciated.

PB#1






PB#2






PB#3




PB#4 with 360 spillover on spa






PB#4 with traditional spillover




 
I like aspects of all of them. Maybe determine what you like best and get quotes from the 4 PBs to get an "apples to apples" comparison. I personally would like all of them, but if I have to put them in order for my taste, I like 3, 4 (360), 2, then 1. I'd be happy with them all, but I liked the landscaping elements in 3 quite a bit.
 
Gee, how do you chose from any of those? They're all gorgeous. You'll probably get your best assistance here by getting lists from each builder of what they plan to use to build you pool (materials, type of equipment (pump(S) size, speeds), chlorination method (liquid, salt water), any automation, etc. Post those lists and info back on this thread and we can help you to ensure you're getting to best value and not purchasing equipment not really needed. We've seen pool builders add equipment to a project that is not really necessary.
 
so the 360 spa, with the all around infinity edge? that will be the expensive one right?

if/when we ever get ours done, i'll be looking at a 180 deg (or slightly less) infinity edge on the spa with the spa near the house and the inf edge facing the pool (and dumping into the pool). that way you'll the the advantage of the reflection of the view away from the house and the coping to rest your head on as you admire the view. the downside being that you'll have the inf edge behind you for tv viewing.

your image here is similar to what i will end up with, minus the rocks...

Culver%20-%202_009_zpsmjurwexm.jpg
 
PB#4 is the one that is the most expensive, but seems to be the design that we like the best. His with the traditional spillover is $15K more, the 360 adds another $5K or so on top of that.

Here is what they are including for size of the pool and equipment on all but PB#3, that one wants us to come in person to get the quote, so we are meeting with him in the next couple of days and I will update with the equipment he's using. I noticed when putting this together that some of the quotes are infinitely more detailed than others. I will need to get with some of these to get more specifics on the equipment they will be using.

PB#1
pool surface area is 530sqft, spa surface area is 70sqft, perimeter is 100 linear ft., Pentair 520 Clean and Clear, Pentair Intelliflo 3HP pool pump, Pentair Whisperflo for the waterfall, legend cleaner with 3/4hp pentair pump, colorlogic LED 2 pool and 1 spa, Pentair Rainbow 320 chlorinator, Mineral Pure ionization system, Pentair easy touch 8 with spa side 4 function remote.

PB#2
pool surface area is 696sqft, spa surface area is 40sqft, perimeter is 105 linear ft, 525sqft cartridge filtration (doesn't specify brand), 1.5HP Tristar pool pump, 1HP waterfall pump, Polaris 280 w/ Halcyon pump, colorlogic LED 2 pool and 1 spa, in line chlorinator (no specifics), Omnilogic remote.

PB#4
pool surface area is 689sqft, spa surface area is 55sqft, perimeter is 113 linear ft, quote doesn't say anything about the pool pump or filtration, 2HP waterfall pump, Pentair Racer, EC2 Ozone and chlorinator, ET w/ screenlogic app
 
Just some initial feedback on your 3 listed options: PB 1 seems to some better equipment and options, however I would caution you about the ionization system. Please see THIS THREAD about that very topic. PB 2 is not bad, but I suspect some may question the filtration. I have a cartridge filter myself and do just fine, but many love sand and DE filters as well. You might want to review THIS PAGE for filtration comparisons. Don't worry too much about the in-line chlorinator. They can install it, but you won't use it very often when following the TFP method. PB4 is giving you more surface area, but I would be concerned about the lack of information related to the equipment. They also list an Ozone product which you will find doesn't receive much support here either since the sun will do just fine to oxidize your combined chlorine on its own. Hope some of this initial feedback helps. I suspect you will receive more soon. Have a nice day.
 
I can't give much info but honestly I really like the ones where the spa spillovers face back towards the house. This way when you are in the house or on the main part of the patio all the water features face you. It seems like on the other ones with the spa towards the house you would have to be near the fence to really enjoy the spill over aspect. I would be worried about the 360 spill over being a pain to keep clean and algae free. Just something to think about. Plus in my mind they seem really hard to get in/out of and some visitors probably will want to stick their feet in the spa without getting their butt wet.
 

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Texas Splash said:
Just some initial feedback on your 3 listed options: PB 1 seems to some better equipment and options, however I would caution you about the ionization system. Please see THIS THREAD about that very topic. PB 2 is not bad, but I suspect some may question the filtration. I have a cartridge filter myself and do just fine, but many love sand and DE filters as well. You might want to review THIS PAGE for filtration comparisons. Don't worry too much about the in-line chlorinator. They can install it, but you won't use it very often when following the TFP method. PB4 is giving you more surface area, but I would be concerned about the lack of information related to the equipment. They also list an Ozone product which you will find doesn't receive much support here either since the sun will do just fine to oxidize your combined chlorine on its own. Hope some of this initial feedback helps. I suspect you will receive more soon. Have a nice day.
Click to expand...

If I'm reading correctly ionization is good as algae control, but chlorine is still needed, thus the online chlorinator should handle disinfecting? In Houston algae can pop up seemingly overnight, so I would think using ions to assist in keeping algae levels in check would be a good thing?
 
Tommy do some reading and searching............it sounds like a good idea UNTIL you really read and understand what it does and does not do. Stick to LIQUID chlorine. You can use the tablets for weekend get aways and such BUT you do not want to rely on them for day to day chlorine as they will cause your CYA to rise. Once your CYA gets too high the only way to get it down is to drain water and refill!

I am going to post a link for you to read. It might take some rereads for it all to sink in and even then, until you get water, it may not really stick.

Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry

You also need to get a good test kit. Look in my siggy for the one we use and love.

I hope this helps.

Kim
 
I think we've finally settled on a design....the only difference from the 3D will be the addition of fire to the waterfall, similar to the last picture here, and doing a stacked travertine spillway on the spa. We will be doing the entire patio in travertine and will have about 950sqft of patio space once it is finished. The only thing left at this point is to pick plaster color. Our quote has Wet Edge satin matrix and I think we like either the Northshore Tahoe or the Midnight Sea. We still need to see pools in person that have either of those finishes to know for certain which color we want. I've also attached a picture of our selections for travertine and the split face on the outside edge of the spa.

We are supposed to be able to close on our house by the end of March, but considering we don't have electricity or gas yet, I'm not holding out too much hope. Everything is pretty well finished except for some touch ups and the wood and carpet flooring. They won't put those in until they get electricity and gas to keep the house climate controlled. Hopefully all goes as planned and the pool is finished by mid May.









 

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