Another O/B in Arizona

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S

Silvio

Well-known member
Jun 22, 2020
64
Gilbert/AZ/USA
Pool Size
14000
Surface
Plaster
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Hi all,

It seems like it is pool building season in Arizona, I see a few threads from fellow soon-to-be pool owners! :) Backyard clean-up will come in mid January and digging scheduled by Jan 22nd. It will be a simple 15x30 SWG play pool with a Baja step on the east side, a bench with 4xjets on the west side, no Spa. If my calculations are right, it is just a little shy of 14k gallons. I'm leaning towards a Pentair build: Base Intellicenter bundle with an IC40, Intelliflo VSF, Clean&Clear Plus 420sqft and 3 Color Microbrights. I'll visit NPT and CDC Pools to evaluate their pool finishes. Coping and deck will be limestone, I found it a lot cooler to touch than travertine.

I do have a few questions!

- QuickSkim or regular skimmer? The pool will have a dual main drain, no IFCS.
- I plan to use a robot cleaner and remove the vacuum stub. Good idea?
- Pipe size is current set to: Main Drain (2-1/2"), Skimmer (2"), Returns (1-1/2"). I'm temped to bumb up the return to 2".
- Do I need to seal the limestone coping and deck?
- Aerator or not? Not sure is worth the extra plumbing and raise of pH but heat gets pretty brutal in summer.
- Lights enough and good position?

Plan below. I will move equipment further south to the side of the house. Any red flags?

Pool_Plan.jpeg
Timeline
Feb 5-6: Excavation
Feb 9: Plumbing
Feb 10: Rebar + Rough Electrical
Feb 11: Inspection (Passed!)
Feb 18: Small plumbing rework finished for shotcrete
Feb 26: Shotcrete
Mar 2-10: Tile, Coping and Deck
Mar 9: Electrical
Mar 12: Inspection (Passed!)
Mar 23: Pebbles

Thanks!!
 
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welcome and get ready for the fun as o/b.

i like the design and actually had that as our first layout, but changed it up a bit to give more swim length. a buddy just finished his with very similar layout but a spa halfway and barstools on where your bench is. we are 3.5-7ft so it was only going to give basically a 15x20 swim sq. i turned my shelf and now it gives me a full 30ft to swim and still a good spot for the kids to play without interfering with the adults like it would with the original layout. if you arent on the shelf, youre in the play/swim space and might not like the splashing that close.

also that bench might get in the way of playing basketball and might get a couple injuries depending how competitive things get. also i would think about going to 5' deep or 5 1/2' so you can get some variance in depth, or it might seem like its all pretty much the same depth all the way across. currently you go from about bellybutton to mid chest height and might want it a bit deeper to cool off better in our wonderful summers.

i am mid dig in our O/B and know what youre going through. @Nikilyn is also doing one out in PHX area.

good luck
 
Hi neighbor! We're getting an aerator. It didn't really add anything to the cost. We also left the vacuum stub in just in case we ever move and that's what someone else wants.
How are you doing o/b? A pool consultant? BYOP? On your own? We have a consultant.
 
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Just saw you’re going to NPT and CDC. After NPT make sure to go Noble Tile. They are just over the freeway. They were really good about giving me samples. The girl at NPT was less than knowledgeable or helpful. And FYI, they aren’t open on Saturdays. We also went to CDC. They have a great pool finish showcase. We have a bid from them and are most likely going with their quartz surface. I really like the color of a couple of their pebble finishes but I really want smooth. We’ll see if texture or color wins out. It depends on the day 😉.
 
BUT ITS A DRY HEAT said:
I like the design and actually had that as our first layout, but changed it up a bit to give more swim length. a buddy just finished his with very similar layout but a spa halfway and barstools on where your bench is. we are 3.5-7ft so it was only going to give basically a 15x20 swim sq. i turned my shelf and now it gives me a full 30ft to swim and still a good spot for the kids to play without interfering with the adults like it would with the original layout. if you arent on the shelf, youre in the play/swim space and might not like the splashing that close.
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Thanks a lot, that was spot on. I didn't think about it before. I measured on the floor here and will settle for a 7x7 baja, I won't put any chairs on it so I don't need a big ledge. I saw your pool thread and will steal with pride :) Moving the bench over to the north wall is genius, people can enjoy the jets and be close to the common area.

BUT ITS A DRY HEAT said:
Also that bench might get in the way of playing basketball and might get a couple injuries depending how competitive things get.
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Thanks a lot! My pool planner raised the same point but the idea was to add a pole for stationary swimming more than anything :) But I really like better your idea to move the bench to the other side and out of the way of aggressive players ;)

BUT ITS A DRY HEAT said:
also i would think about going to 5' deep or 5 1/2' so you can get some variance in depth, or it might seem like its all pretty much the same depth all the way across. currently you go from about bellybutton to mid chest height and might want it a bit deeper to cool off better in our wonderful summers.
Click to expand...
Initially I was setting the deepest point to be at wife's chin and have both sides depth even for a volleyball game. Now that layout is changing, I will likely keep a flat 3'6" depth on the east side so people can hang out and not be on a slope. From the baja to the end I will slope from 3'6" to 5'. Thinking if 3'6" is too shallow but at least will make a good play space.

Nikilyn said:
Hi neighbor! We're getting an aerator. It didn't really add anything to the cost. We also left the vacuum stub in just in case we ever move and that's what someone else wants.
Click to expand...
My concern with vacuum is that I'll leave it close all the time with stagnant water and is one more pipe to break. I'll keep the aerator indeed.

Nikilyn said:
How are you doing o/b? A pool consultant? BYOP? On your own? We have a consultant.
Click to expand...
I'm doing on my own really, I had someone helping with the pool plan but not really anything else. Can you PM your consultant contact? I might want to at least get a consultation to finalize my plans.

Nikilyn said:
Just saw you’re going to NPT and CDC. After NPT make sure to go Noble Tile. They are just over the freeway. They were really good about giving me samples.
Click to expand...
That is gold, thanks!

Nikilyn said:
The girl at NPT was less than knowledgeable or helpful. And FYI, they aren’t open on Saturdays. We also went to CDC. They have a great pool finish showcase. We have a bid from them and are most likely going with their quartz surface. I really like the color of a couple of their pebble finishes but I really want smooth. We’ll see if texture or color wins out. It depends on the day 😉.
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I was going for NTP's Baja Mini pebbles but I'll check out CDC and get a quote, it might be slightly cheaper as well.

How are you both doing skimmers and drains? I'm tempted let go of the main drain and setup a 2nd skimmer instead. Are you using a venturi skimmers (quickskim)?
 
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My husband did NOT want a second skimmer. We ended up getting a Venturi because he talked to my niece's husband about theirs. I have no idea about the main drains 🤷🏻‍♀️.
The quote from CDC'S mini pebble was way cheaper than the Wet Edge pebble quote we got. The other quotes we got were for quartz.
 
TexasRain said:
Just make sure the shorter ones are on that side of the net! 😂
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:) I think I will just let go of the volleyball idea. Pool is too close to the neighbors anyway ;)

Nikilyn said:
My husband did NOT want a second skimmer. We ended up getting a Venturi because he talked to my niece's husband about theirs. I have no idea about the main drains 🤷🏻‍♀️.
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Interesting! The reason for the main drain concern is that it would be the only plumbing under the pool. If it breaks or leaks, the repairs are hard and will have to break through pool finish, concrete and all. It seems like most people with Venturi are using in-floor cleaning. That is because when using it, most of the flow needs to come from the main drain based on my understanding. I explain:

Venturi skimmer work by using a return flow (filtered water) crossing through the bottom of the skimmer. That creates negative pressure so the skimmer pulls more debris from the top. If there is no main drain, the skimmer drain will have all the pump pressure and, in my opinion, will end up pulling filtered water down to the pump. So, what I wanted to do is avoid the main drain and add two skimmers without venturi.

Nikilyn said:
The quote from CDC'S mini pebble was way cheaper than the Wet Edge pebble quote we got. The other quotes we got were for quartz.
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That is good to know :)
 
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Didnt mean for you to change your whole design, just wanted to help point out the issues i was running into. we have a 4yr old and 1.5 year old so the bigger shelf for us will work out. the bench and shelf will be on the west side where our pool building/bbq area will be plus will be completely shaded from about 230/3 on in august (in theory), so the thought of the bench is you can hang out in the shade and still be part of the conversation bbq area.

the north side on my pool will be the deep end and raised beam, so our yard is situated the same just pool is turned. we are leaving about 8ft at 3.5 to stand and talk if youd like, then itll start to head down to the 7ft.
 
BUT ITS A DRY HEAT said:
Didnt mean for you to change your whole design, just wanted to help point out the issues i was running into.
we have a 4yr old and 1.5 year old so the bigger shelf for us will work out. the bench and shelf will be on the west side where our pool building/bbq area will be plus will be completely shaded from about 230/3 on in august (in theory), so the thought of the bench is you can hang out in the shade and still be part of the conversation bbq area.
the north side on my pool will be the deep end and raised beam, so our yard is situated the same just pool is turned. we are leaving about 8ft at 3.5 to stand and talk if youd like, then itll start to head down to the 7ft.
Click to expand...
Too late, you changed my mind already :D Thanks a lot for your feedback, it was just in time. My kids are 7 and 9, they will profit more from the shallow area than the ledge but I like having it there for younger kids visiting or adults that are not going "all in" to the pool. What really sold me was that I could have a bench in the conversation area.
 
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After talking to the plumbing company, it seems like pools without main drains are quite rare here in Arizona (his words were "maybe 2 out of the 35000 that I've built"). He didn't refuse to do, even gave me an updated bid, but I decided to keep the main drain (AVSC single suction drain with pebble top) and one venturi skimmer.

With dig scheduled to January 22nd, it seems like I will have to wait another 4-5 weeks because of the plumbers backlog :-( I'll try to get electrical done before plumbing if possible but otherwise it will be a long period of staring at an empty hole in the backyard. On the plus side, I will use the time to select all materials for deck, coping, tile and pool finish. If you have any tips on what to do between dig and plumbing, I am all ears!
 
Main drains in a play pool= toe stubbers. Might want to rethink it again LOL

5' of water may not be a good thing. Measure your shortest adult in the house. Where will 5' of water hit them? I am 5'5" and 5' of water hits me just above my chin and that would not be fun to try to walk around in.

Make sure you are talking WATER depth from floor to the middle of the waterline tile. Some do the "depth" as from the floor to the just under the coping.

Kim:kim:
 
And the plumbing company just confirmed what I was afraid of: nothing can be done between excavation and plumbing :( No rebar or anything...

kimkats said:
Main drains in a play pool= toe stubbers. Might want to rethink it again LOL
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Hi Kim, thanks for chiming in! Yeah, I was back and forth on this for a while but I will just leave it. Apparently AVSC drains are flush to the floor and it will be at the deeper end anyway. Because it is not common in AZ to have pools without main drain, I'm afraid that it might impact the ability to get people to do work on the pool or lose value when reselling the house. Does anyone have first-hand experience with AVSC drains? I can't find more information on how to match my pool finish and whether it is really flush or not.

kimkats said:
5' of water may not be a good thing. Measure your shortest adult in the house. Where will 5' of water hit them? I am 5'5" and 5' of water hits me just above my chin and that would not be fun to try to walk around in.
Click to expand...
My wife's perfect comfort water level is 4'6", mine is close to 5' (I'm 5'8"). When the depth was v-shaped, I made the deep point at 4'6" for obvious reasons :) Now that it became a slope, I'm happy to get myself a comfortable level at the deep end and let everybody enjoy the other 25ft of the pool :).

kimkats said:
Make sure you are talking WATER depth from floor to the middle of the waterline tile. Some do the "depth" as from the floor to the just under the coping.
Click to expand...
Good point on water depth. The drawings does have an extra 3" on the benches, steps, etc because they are measured from the ground level (e.g. baja step says 21" because I want 18" water depth). I'll make sure to give a heads up to the excavation company on the pool depth.
 
Good luck with getting dug on Monday. My weather app says 90% chance of rain. But it does keep getting pushed back. Seems like every day it was supposed to rain it didn't, and the days it didn't call for rain, it rained. We are hoping it doesn't rain Tues so we can get our deck poured. 🤞
 

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