New Construction: Cathedral City CA

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For bondING your electrician will be the one to do that work.

I am going to tell you one important thing to know about PBers..........quite a few of them don't know the actually workings for a pool and the build. They depend on the subs doing the work to know what needs to be done. Saying that some do know the ins and outs. So long as they don't lie to you things will go good. You can ask anything here. Someone will know the answer and share it with you.

Now tell Bosco that Auntie Kim says it is time for his walk as Daddies head is about as full as it can get right now. Write down the things you have questions about. See ya after your walk! :hug:

Kim:kim:
 
Kim -- Google where Cathedral City, CA is. NO ONE walks outside in June in the afternoon there! The poor dogs paws would be burned off!!

Take care.
 
bdavis466 said:
Perhaps you can now see why an illegal, unlicensed, uninsured contractor can bid so low in comparison. If something goes wrong, all this guy has to do is not answer the phone.

A legit contractor has several thousands of dollars to clear before a profit can be turned. California laws in regards to construction are heavily in favor of the homeowner.
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If one is going to expect the PB to play by the rules, then the homeowner has to play by the rules too.
 
LDVPool said:
If one is going to expect the PB to play by the rules, then the homeowner has to play by the rules too.
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You would be surprised what a homeowner can do. The bulk of the issues you see with homeowners having no recourse is when an unlicensed contractor is hired - and that is truly their own fault.

I really enjoyed watching Holmes on Homes with Mike Holmes. All of the homeowners would tell these sad stories about how the contractor they​ hired screwed them over but in their next breath they say they couldn't afford the legit contractor and didn't pull permits! "I didn't know you needed a permit to add a second story on my house!?"
 
bdavis466 said:
You can't be licensed in California without a current bond. The minimum amount is $15,000.

General liability insurance is optional and can be very expensive.

If the contractor has any employees then he needs workers comp insurance as well. This is insanely expensive since it often equates to 30% of payroll.

Perhaps you can now see why an illegal, unlicensed, uninsured contractor can bid so low in comparison. If something goes wrong, all this guy has to do is not answer the phone.

A legit contractor has several thousands of dollars to clear before a profit can be turned. California laws in regards to construction are heavily in favor of the homeowner.

Have you considered doing an owner/builder?
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Great info Brian. I'm convinced that I need to go with a licensed and insured PB. Good to know that in CA licensed contrctors are required to be bonded, though 15k certainly does not seem to be very much, especially if they have multiple builds at the same time. I wonder if it is possible and/or worth it to ask for a higher bond for our job. Looks like we're looking at 50-55K job.

You mentioned owner/builder. I've heard of it, but not considered it. Just browsed a couple sites on that subject and seems that the con's outweigh the pro's (for me).

But just so I understand your suggestion, if I was to hire the PB who would do the job outside the company he normally works for, if I was considered an Owner/Builder would that have any impact that he is not insured?
 
Yorker said:
Great info Brian. I'm convinced that I need to go with a licensed and insured PB. Good to know that in CA licensed contrctors are required to be bonded, though 15k certainly does not seem to be very much, especially if they have multiple builds at the same time. I wonder if it is possible and/or worth it to ask for a higher bond for our job. Looks like we're looking at 50-55K job.

You mentioned owner/builder. I've heard of it, but not considered it. Just browsed a couple sites on that subject and seems that the con's outweigh the pro's (for me).

But just so I understand your suggestion, if I was to hire the PB who would do the job outside the company he normally works for, if I was considered an Owner/Builder would that have any impact that he is not insured?
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I don't know that there would be a whole lot of difference. No pool builder is going to let your project progress without requesting frequent payments. When doing an O/B, you are basically doing the same thing by dealing with each trade individually just as the builder would.
 

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Morning All,
Got another few days here predicted to be in ... as Big Will put it, "The Devil's Backyard" – only 119° today. I'm wondering what quality of work one gets when contractors work in this weather.

Volunteering at ShortFest this week (a local film festival down here). Probably a nice distraction from the overload of pool related thoughts. Did go out yesterday and speak with a couple nearing the end of their build. This build is one of the perspective PB's that has floated to top of the list. We also spoke to one of the references that PB gave us. Both owners say they (the owners) are (or were) on site almost 100 percent of the time, and mentioned that they caught numerous mistakes before they got too far. They also commented that the PB's first comments to these things were to blow them off, but in all cases the homeowner got what they wanted. Despite that, both said they recommended them.

I do have a new question: with a 9x30 pool is one skimmer sufficient with the elongated shape? Remember we live in an area known to have high winds at times. All the PB's we interviewed said that only one skimmer was needed for such a small pool, but was wondering what your thoughts were. If we were to only have one skimmer, would it go on one of the 9' sides (the east side), where the winds blow towards?
 
Yorker said:
I do have a new question: with a 9x30 pool is one skimmer sufficient with the elongated shape? Remember we live in an area known to have high winds at times. All the PB's we interviewed said that only one skimmer was needed for such a small pool, but was wondering what your thoughts were. If we were to only have one skimmer, would it go on one of the 9' sides (the east side), where the winds blow towards?
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Hi Yorker,

My pool is only 12 x 38 (6 feet of that length is the spa). My winds blow south to north, but due to the Baja shelf and stairs on the north side of the pool, the single skimmer had to be positioned on the northeast side, but the returns are positioned to send water east toward the skimmer. Of course I'm only about a third though my build, but my plumber is very confident I won't have issues. Your PB will make sure your returns are positioned to direct the flow, so that it goes toward the skimmer. Good Luck with your build.
 
I feel like I have been MIA forever! Numerous things stalled our contractor selection - I need to get back to selecting the pool builder AND the desired start date. Which brings me to new questions.

Some background information: To keep within our budget we intend to DIY the portions of the backyard project that fall within our abilities (pavers, artificial turf, irrigation and landscaping. We will be involved in our local turf rebate program which will net us $2,500. To get this, we must apply for it before the grass is pulled up, then we have 90 days to complete the project (pavers, artificial turf and landscaping).

Summer has arrived here full force with frequent temps between 110 to 120 degrees. Since we cannot start our DIY projects until the pool is completed, we’re considering to postpone the build start date so our DIY work could be done during cooler weather instead of the sweltering heat.

I propose two options of start/end dates (with my perceived pros and cons), and seek your invaluable input:

ONE: Start the pool build in mid Aug and end in mid Oct.
- Pro: It will be cooler to do our DIY work in Oct

- Con: We will be entering the colder months - we intend use the attached spa year around - but since we do not intend to heat the pool during those months we will not use it.

We’re both OKEY with waiting to use the pool, but wonder if we might miss out on some problem with the pool by not using until the next season, when the builder might be less attentive to repair.

- Unsure: Is good to have the builder balance the pool just before the winter months when we stop using it? Keep in mind we are newbies and intend to maintain the pool ourselves.

TWO: Delay the build to Feb and end in April
- Pro: Will still be cooler to do our DIY work

- Pro: The high temps in April are in the mid to upper 90’s and we could start using the pool at that time.

Thanks in advance!
 
Well that settles it then............ Plan ONE all the way. You can keep the pool clean and clear through the winter months VERY easy as it will be cooler. It will give you plenty of time to get the other things done. AND you will have the spa to hop into after a hard days work on the landscaping!!

Kim:kim:
 
Hi All, I've missed ya! Been missing in action for the past few months, but now that the temps have cooled down - hope to finalize the pool specs and sign a contract in the next month.

In my absence, I now see that many of the photos people have posted are replaced with a graphic that says “please update your account to enable third party hosting” with a web address Your access to 3rd party hosting is temporarily disabled. - is this new? What do I need to do to see the photos people are posting?
 

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