Not as exciting as pool build or remodel, but...

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J

jdrharrison

0
Dec 21, 2015
30
Silver Spring, Maryland
I realize building your own pool is far 'sexier' than replacing equipment, but I thought I'd document my journey as a newbie.

Background: Purchased house beginning of October, closed pool 3 weeks later, fired previous owner's pool guy shortly after getting a $600 bill for closing. I began snooping in December - after 4 months, many hours of research, several estimates, a few posts on this forum, and one large credit card bill - everything is finally going in tomorrow!

As you can see, most of the existing equipment is pretty old. It all worked OK, but we figured it was time for an update.

(PS I apologize for the blurry pictures, the autofocus on my iPhone is broken!)

IMG_2608.jpgIMG_2628.jpg

We're getting a Pentair intelliflo VS, Easytouch 8SC w/ Intellichlor IC60, Rheem 406 (cupronickel), as well as some other items such as changes to the plumbing and a new electrical "rack".

A fencing company is replacing the awful fence the day after. :p

IMG_2611.jpg

This is similar to what is going to be put up



Tired of looking at this too! Bring on the warm weather!

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JD,

I think you will be very happy with your choice of equipment. Make sure to take some pics of the finished product to share with us..

Suggest you make sure they install your new pump with unions so that it can be easily removed, if necessary. The pump does not come with unions, so unless you ask they will just glue it right in place. What size input service (amps) do they plan to run to your new EasyTouch? The bigger the better as you never know what you might want to plug in at some future date.

Oh!! You will love the ScreenLogic system.

Jim R.
 
They came today, unfortunately they weren't able to finish everything in one day. They'll be back on Thursday to redo the electrical stand, add the EasyTouch system, and open the pool. I took a few pictures of the progress so far.

Maybe someone with plumbing experience can chime in? I'm not sure how well of a job they did or didn't do.

By the way-I did not realize how BIG this heater would be, it's at least 50% larger than the old one.





And here is the old heater, about to get trashed. Totally rusted out on the bottom!

 
Finally almost done. The pool company took several days longer than originally expected- apparently they used this as a training 'refresher' course since I was the first person this season to have an installation.

In retrospect, I wish I had them rearrange the equipment pad. I got lucky that the fence company was able to coordinate with the pool guy, because they had to add a gate where the EasyTouch was installed. Also, I was unable to be present the second day and was surprised to see them building a fence that looked different-and was taller-than what I wanted. I'm actually really glad it's taller!! But some of the other details I had wanted were missing.

I hope staining it in a few weeks will change the look even more. I'm really bummed it didn't turn out like the picture I previously posted, but I don't dislike it.

Don't mind the mess- it's a little too cold to start spring cleanup. I have a LOT planned...





All the equipment is pretty much good to go.



I mounted an iPad to the wall in the kitchen and wired it in. Works with Screenlogic, Nest, Sonos, and I can watch TV on it using my Dish Anywhere app. Pretty cool!

 

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Pretty cool?????? Nope! It is VERY cool! I love it!

Now get some roofing felt and put it down under and around the equipment with river rock or such on top of it to make it pretty and keep weeds out. Maybe some pavers for barefoot walking.

I can't wait to see what else you do. If it half as good as what you have already done........it is going to be GREAT!

Kim
 
tommyd123 said:
Nice setup! I wanted to add a comment about your plumbing, since you asked for it. I do not see unions anywhere n your plumbing. How are you to remove equipment without cutting the pipes? Perhaps I am missing something.
Click to expand...

I do see them on the salt cell, the thing on the left and the heater, just not the Neverlube. They are black and gray and sort of blend in with the equipment they are attached to.
 
Thanks for all of your comments! It won't look so drab once all of the leaves grow back.

Here's the link to the iPad frame. It is very high quality, sturdy, and wasn't toooooo bad to set up. I plan on buying another one for the master bedroom too. I should have gotten a black iPad for it instead of white, it would have looked better with the silver frame.

http://www.vidabox.com/kiosks/vidamount-ipad-metal-wall-frame-mount.html

kimkats said:
Pretty cool?????? Nope! It is VERY cool! I love it!

Now get some roofing felt and put it down under and around the equipment with river rock or such on top of it to make it pretty and keep weeds out. Maybe some pavers for barefoot walking.

I can't wait to see what else you do. If it half as good as what you have already done........it is going to be GREAT!

Kim
Click to expand...

Thanks! I actually ordered some super-bright white pebbles that I plan on putting there.

The previous owner did a weird thing with the patio 3 years ago. They did a really nice (and HUGE) concrete slab between the pool and the house, but they put those weird stones you see in the photo in 2 areas. They're actually not too bad to walk on, but they're not visually appealing nor totally level. Those stones only take up about 200sq ft of over 1,500 sq ft of patio space, so it's not too big of a deal to me at this point. I do plan on replacing it, but probably not this year.

The yard needs a lot of landscaping. I love that it's completely flat and open, but I want the pool area to feel more intimate and resort-like. I'd like to do that without significantly increasing the number of leaves that fall into the pool.

If you guys like that, you should see what I did to the INSIDE of the house :mrgreen:
 
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