New Build - Tucson, AZ

[Qwijib0]

Greetings all!

I am in the middle of construction of my new in-ground pool, and thought it was time to get some answers before the equipment goes in and startup begins. Why not start with some pictures.

The yard before:

Sketchup I'd been working on for years:

Some lines on dirt after everything was removed:

Where it sits today:

Tilework detail:

My goal was to have a pool that fit the 50s aesthetic of the house, hence the tiling, and the eventual decking which is going to be a monolithic acid-wash concrete. My yard has a natural slope so I embraced that, and the pool will sit 18 inches tall at the patio, providing bonus seating, and then the rest of the yard will be built up with the pool excavation material yielding a small raised grass area and some planters behind there.

I hate hate hate pool fences, and I felt a little guilty about water use so I designed the spa to be fully inset so that the whole thing can be covered for safety and water/energy savings.

Specs:

35 x 18, 106 feet linear perimeter, ~22K gallons

Min depth 3.5', Max depth 8'

7 x 7 therapy spa with 6 jets, bench heights of 1' , 1.5' , 2'

1 skimmer

3 surface returns

3 auxilary returns

Pentair CCP520 Cartridge Filter

Intelliflo VS (no further details)

Pentair IC40 SWG

Pentair 400K BTU natural gas heater (no further details)

Caretaker 8-port in-floor cleaning system

EasyTouch automation (no further details)

Pentair 5G white LED x2 for main pool, "300w" in shallow end, "400w" in deep end

Pentair 5G White LED + 2 RGB globrites for spa

Coverpools Automatic cover

PebbleFina interior - "Sapphire Galaxy"

And now some questions!

1. Are there specific models of the Intelliflo VS, heater, and easytouch panel I should make sure I'm getting?

2. Because the pool will have a cover, should my chemical balance be more like an indoor pool? I'm thinking specifically of chlorine loss due to UV that should be significantly reduced.

3. Related to #2, will startup be different than the regular plaster startup I've read about?

4. Also related to #2, should I expect that I need less turnover since the cover should keep a lot of debris out, and lack of light should prevent undesirable growth?


And one major gripe

The state of pool lighting is abysmal. I could not find, for the life of me, a warm white LED that was dimmable with the automation system. And you can get color adjustable RGB-- bit they don't have pure warm white mods. And they're bloody expensive. I finally got fed up and got the intellibrites that use a regular niche in the hopes of being able to replace them someday.

 

[kimkats]

Hi! You sure do have a jump start on the build! How long has it been since the first permit?

A cover does NOT equal indoor. The sun will be shining on the cover and the cover will be holding in the heat so..............outdoor mindset for sure. That is a great question! Good job checking.

Plaster start up is plaster start up indoor or outdoor. Have you seen the plaster start up link? If not here it is:

Pool School - Start-up New Plaster

What and when is your next step?

Thanks for sharing your build with us!

Kim

 

[Qwijib0]

First permits were pulled in October, digging and rebar happened relatively quickly afterward but when the electrical was being installed the electrician thought the lines in the easement behind the house were going to be too close for code. I was already moving my service underground since the existing overhead feeder went right over the center of the yard so I called up the electric co and they were extremely friendly when I explained my problem. The pole that my underground lines are headed to was already slated for replacement "soon" so they agreed to bump that up so that the lines behind my house would end up 2-3 feet further away getting me just a little more breathing room WRT code.

Once I knew that would happen, I told the builder to continue with the hole as dug, so concrete and tile were finished just before christmas, and the pole is slated for install later this month after which the electric can be finished, and perimeter wall can go in along with decking/plastering. I am cautiously optimistic that I'll be filling it with water before March.

 

[kimkats]

Your electric co was friendly?? and helpful??? AND willing to bump the work up??????? WOW! That is awesome and so nice to hear!

It sounds like you are the path to being able to swim when it starts warming up! SWEET!

Kim

 

[Qwijib0]

So it looks like based on the marketing materials I got when we had just started the process, I'm getting a MasterTemp heater and the Intelliflo2 VST. I see that the heater is 84% efficient, and now there's a 96% efficient unit. I don't expect to heat the pool all that much, just the spa, so I don't think paying more for the newer heater would be worth it, but does anyone have an idea of the cost step up? Philosophically, I do like the idea of being as efficient as possible.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

So it looks like based on the marketing materials I got when we had just started the process, I'm getting a MasterTemp heater and the Intelliflo2 VST. I see that the heater is 84% efficient, and now there's a 96% efficient unit. I don't expect to heat the pool all that much, just the spa, so I don't think paying more for the newer heater would be worth it, but does anyone have an idea of the cost step up? Philosophically, I do like the idea of being as efficient as possible.

Many of our pool heater experts here on TFP will tell you to get the Raypak heater, not Pentair. The Pentair automation system is designed to control pretty much any heater on the market and Raypak's are more simply designed than the Pentair or Hayward units. They are also easier to service and the spare parts are cheaper. So you might want to consider that.

The new IntelliFlo is a great pump, well worth it.

 

[Just-a-PB]

So it looks like based on the marketing materials I got when we had just started the process, I'm getting a MasterTemp heater and the Intelliflo2 VST. I see that the heater is 84% efficient, and now there's a 96% efficient unit. I don't expect to heat the pool all that much, just the spa, so I don't think paying more for the newer heater would be worth it, but does anyone have an idea of the cost step up? Philosophically, I do like the idea of being as efficient as possible.

My cost difference is $3,225.72. So probably $3,900.00 more then the Mastertemp.
It may be great and last a long time, but so will the 3 mastertemps I could buy with the same amount of money.

Many of our pool heater experts here on TFP will tell you to get the Raypak heater, not Pentair. The Pentair automation system is designed to control pretty much any heater on the market and Raypak's are more simply designed than the Pentair or Hayward units. They are also easier to service and the spare parts are cheaper. So you might want to consider that.

Down side to you is it will be covered under 1 year warranty, then if bundled with the other Pentair items would be three.

 

[Qwijib0]

Thanks @Just-a-PB, That's.... a sum of money

So I did the math and based on my expected uses of the spa, spending an additional ~$3200 would save me $20 annually, with an additional environmental impact of 220 lbs of Co2.

Which I can offset by driving 11 less miles.

So I think I'll stick with the one already included in the cost.

In other exciting news, there was brush clearage where the new pol is going when I got home so hopefully that's imminent!

 

[kimkats]

That is good news!!!! One baby step closer!

Kim

 

[Qwijib0]

Progress!

(but not with the pole yet...)

Half of the concrete went in today, the rest is slated for next week. I really really like it.

 

[kimkats]

OH that does look good! Great progress!

Kim

 

[triptyx]

How'd I miss a new pool going in in my own backyard!

Looking great so far.

When you say you're going to cover it, what kind of cover are you planning?

 

[Qwijib0]

Cover-pools automatic cover, with the track hidden under the cantilevered concrete

 

[triptyx]

Interesting - I'll be curious to see how that interacts with our dry air. This year I'm planning to test the heating difference between a blue solar cover that is left on all day and an exposed pool. My current theory is that due to the air being so dry here, you actually can potentially exceed the heating you'd get cover on, versus leaving the cover off, due to the evaporation being held in check. That said, if you're leaving the cover on constantly, I'm curious how much heating action you'd get from the sun, and I wonder about how much (if at all) you'd have to heat the pool to keep it at a decent swim temperature - even in the summer.

Just my mind wandering on the idea of "solid" covers and our climate.

 

[Qwijib0]

The interior is going to be a dark blue, so I suspect that leaving it open would actually heat it more than having it closed. I'm mostly concerned about evaporation, but near the tail end of the season opening it during the day then closing it at night might actually provide the most heat. I will definitely experiment though, I love data.

 

[triptyx]

I'll look forward to your findings too. With a classic white plaster, mid-summer, I can maintain 88-90 without doing anything - no cover, pump running in the afternoon. Once nighttime temps exceed 70, I put the sooar cover away.

 

[Qwijib0]

more concrete!

They finally dug the hole for the new power pole last week so maybe this week? Who knows!

 

[Big Will]

I would love for you guys to start a thread with your findings for the heat and these dessert temps. I'm in Vegas so our climates are similar and I'm doing a mini pebble medium to darker blue plaster.
I would love to be able to swim in late march early April without using my heater if possible

And I love the build Qw, continue to post lots of pics


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[kimkats]

LOL they dug the hole but did not put it in??? Kind of scary really...........a empty hole for someone to trip on or fall into but what do I know?? LOL I am sure they have their reasons!

Loving the decking work done! Getting closer and closer to being what you envisioned from the beginning!

Kim

 

[Qwijib0]

Patio's done!

It came out great, next steps (while I wait for pole...) are to grade the dirt behind that retaining wall and continue that stepped curve away from the house and create another retaining/seat wall at that level.