Finally, it is on! Southeast PA Build

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oakridge said:
Sigh...I am not sure after all the work of getting here if I can put this in hold. If plastered by mid August I am thinking it may be ok if I close late Oct.
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I was saying as long as u r plastered by sept 1st u would be good.

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oakridge said:
Jimim did you end up plastering in August? Any issues after opening the pool the next year as imagine pH kept rising? I am going with a pebble finish so not sure if it will be more or less prone to scaling and higher pH.
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We plastered 10 days ago.
 
jimim said:
I was saying as long as u r plastered by sept 1st u would be good.

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We plastered 10 days ago.
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Phew....what a relief to hear this! I will still be thinking about this, but the major issue now is whether or not we stay the course and get a slide. We are worried we will get tired of it and it will become an eye sore in a year or two (especially during the winter months). Plumbing is happening on Monday so it's now or never. Also here is a pic of the pool with the rebar in.

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The plumbers came today. They were ready to plumb everything with flex, and I made sure it was all rigid. They have to come back to plumb the floor returns and drain. They didn't have 3" rigid on the truck for the channel drain. This made me wonder about dual drains vs channel drains. I could not find much. Anyone know of the pros/cons of these two types of drains?
 
I'd get the channel drain in a heartbeat. A robot will never get stuck on one and they look much more modern than dual round drains. Wish I had one.
 
Dual drains appear to be about 36" apart and the channel is 32" inches in length. I assume the channel still has two drains underneath? They are going to use 3" PVC for the drain. My main concern is safety. I'd like the safest possible option. Maybe that comes down to maintenance more so than the drain itself, but I did see some data on flow rate and am not sure what to think.
 
This is the drain that will be used: http://www.unblockabledrain.com/ I see very little about it on this forum. It also seems one can get a pebble cover for this: http://www.poolfittings.com/channel-pebble-top/

The drain is VBG compliant and has an internal baffle in place to avoid issues when the cover is broken or missing. I think the bottom will be plumbed with two 3" PVC rigid pipes directly to the main pump. Anyone have any thoughts on this drain or experience with it?
 
What made you choose CLI gray reef pearl? I sent my PB the video of the French Gray Hydrazzo finish and he sent it to the CLI rep. The rep said gray reef pearl was a very close match. I wish I could see it first, but I chose it. They start plaster second or third week of August.
 
As far as our drain is concerned, I haven't really seen anything on the hookup for this drain. They could not plumb it out however since they did not excavate deep enough to put the drain in with rigid pipe. This makes me realize that they would have stuffed the flex in between the rebar and squeezed it underneath. This makes me feel better about the rigid choice as squeezing the flex in may have led to kinks or small holes that leaks or restrict flow. I feel like I dodged a bullet there. So I'm still hoping someone can comment on the channel drain hookup. Much appreciated!
 
That drain is what my second choice PB swore by. Wish I had it.

Compliant, sleek, pebble top, robot friendly. What other features would you be interested in?
 
Yeah, that sounds good, but I am not sure my PB got the pebble top or standard cover. It sounds like if they did, they can add the pebble on it during plastering. Does anyone know if that is true or how I can tell? The box is non-descriptive. Otherwise, I guess I have to order another cover with the pebble top on it already.
 

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This link to their catalog has all the model numbers for regular and pebble top assemblies. Or just open the box and compare to the photos.

http://www.aamfg.com/brochures/AAMFG.2016.pdf

Also see page 49 for ordering separate covers if yours is not correct.
 
elwood58 said:
We have the channel drain and love it. It goes straight to the pump via a leaf basket. The top has hollow areas that get filled with your finish, so it looks very nice when installed. This drain, when combined with pressure side venturi skimmers makes for a great solution.
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I did not research much into skimmers and so there are some out there already. I am pretty sure they are not venturi skimmers as there is no return stubbed out under the current skimmer intake. As far as the leaf basket, do you have the A&A LeafVac basket that is separate from the pump?

We are getting the Pebble Top for the drain and got a gray drain to match the finish color, CLI Sunstone Pearl Gray Reef Pearl.

Otherwise, plumbing is done and after inspections we should be getting the gunite shot. I am hoping this week so we can keep track with an end of month completion. As far as the finish is concerned, we looked into stepping up to a Pebble Finish with glass beads, but were quoted $8K. So we are sticking with CLI Sunstone Pearl instead of the Ice. Too bad....but it isn't worth that much money to me.

Plumbing All Stubbed Out!
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Sample Finish Next to Drain Color

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Oh, and we crossed the slide off the list for now. We decided that we can do it down the line. We worried about it not getting a lot of use over time and just dominate the view.
 
Looking good! You must be excited to see it coming together. Not sure what your plumber wants to run the line now for a potential slide or water feature, but I was quoted only the price of the valve and piping ~150-200 ish, a lot easier than having to trench it later.

Agreed the glass bead finish would be stellar, but that's a ton of money!
 
Yeah, maybe they quoted me high to make up on margins. I can't imagine why glass and some additives are that much more. As far as the slide, we have areas of the deck that are only 3 feet wide. We can always expand those to put a slide I rather than excavate under the patio. In either case, I don't think we will ever do the slide unless something dramatic happens to change our minds about the view.
 
The pool has been shot and now we move on to coping!

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That looks AWESOME! Did they have any ideas or tweaks while they worked?

Have you started bonding with your pool? aka watering it? LOL Need to do it 2or 3 times a day. You can use a sprinkler when you get tired of doing it by hand.

It is time for your own set of links!

Print these out:
Pool School - Basic Pool Care Schedule

Pool School - Recommended Levels

Bookmark these:

Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals

http://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html

Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry

Make sure to ask any and all questions you might have no matter how small! We have all been where you are at one point.

Now is also the time I ask what test kit your PB is providing. Let us know so we can fill in any blanks.

Kim:kim:
 

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