Our Pool and Deck Build - We're finished!

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Cherie

Cherie

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LifeTime Supporter
Jul 23, 2008
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Wylie, Texas
Here are the pool build and deck build links to photobucket. It's only been 16 months since we started this project, but it seems like it's been forever! All we have left to do with the deck is turn the step bricks in the right direction and tie-in the bottom corners of the railing. Then, next spring, I'll do the landscaping, which will be minimal, since I need to have continued access to the deck underside for treating for ants.

We had the deck professionally oil-stained and sealed on Wednesday (he finished at 6:00pm) and we had a really big, heavy rain 24 hours later (tonight). We're hoping the Behr oil stain/sealer will have had enough time to keep from washing out with the rain. Go figure in Texas. When they predict rain at 60%, we often don't get it (not in Wylie anyway). But at 30%? We get a downpour! And there are several more days on the way.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the diary in pictures. I certainly enjoyed taking them all and putting them together!

http://s586.photobucket.com/albums/ss30 ... l%20Build/
http://s586.photobucket.com/albums/ss30 ... k%20Build/

Cheers :cheers:
 
Thanks Anna. Sadly though, the continued torrential downpour of yesterday washed much of our cedar stain away :( But hey, the deck is still there and that's what matters :p Behr says to call them back after it dries out and see what it looks like and they'll see what they can do to help us out.

Butterfly, aren't you the one who lurks around on all the threads asking "What kind of tree is that?" LOL :wink: :poke: It's a silver-leaf maple, which will, no doubt, make a real mess of our pool when it gets bigger! But the tree was put there a couple years before. And we never thought we'd have another pool again, after the debacle at our house in another city. So although we live on an acre, we'd already planted trees so that we'd have a shady back yard -- NOT a shady pool! And the tree is about 12' from the pool (I think). We'll be using the back half of the yard for a garden, eventually..after we recover from the workshop build last summer and the deck build this summer.
 
Very nice. It looks like you bought every stick of lumber the local Home Depot has to make that! I can see why this summer was rough. We did not get that rain that you got - we had that 60% chance that day, so no rain.
Our build starts sometime in October. Have to add a culvert at the bottom of the property and more rock first, so prep work will take some time. We hope to be done when the weather starts getting nice (at least for Texas) in the spring.
I know you are not going to want to hear this, because I know what a precious thing trees are in Texas, but that maple is going to come back and get you in so many ways. If you have not looked at this post yet, do so and see the horrors of what a maple tree 10 feet from a pool can do to a liner. roots-growing-under-the-liner-with-pics-now-t17068.html
Yours is too close- it's cute now, but take it down before you get too attached to it, or it will just get harder and you will find more reasons to save it, and end up putting up with so much trouble on the pool for one tree. Take it down, plant another 2 or 3 further away (perhaps over by the kids' fort), and put a Red Oak or two on the property some place where it can be a grand tree about 20 years from now. I wish we had done Oaks 20 years ago when we first moved here- we would have some real trees that would be starting to get just right about now. Red Oaks do well in the blackland clay- I have 3 going now- 10 years and younger, but doing well through all kinds of weather- no where near the pool though.
We took down several mature (like 30-40 years old) mesquite to keep them out of the pool. I did not want to because they were magnificent, but one winter-spring with those things throwing junk in the pool, and that was enough to stop me in my tracks (and mesquite have thorns- imagine what they would do to a liner). We spend less time fixing tires for thorns now too.
 
Well, I've been so proud of our maple, because it isn't easy talking my husband into planting trees...or anything... in our back yard. We also have a gatavo (sp) about 20-30 feet from the pool at the deep end (I'll double-check that measurement as soon as I can backstroke out to it :lol: ) I did have a concern about the maple and voiced it as we were beginning the dig. DH refused to even discuss moving it. But now that we've put so much blood, sweat and tears into that pool/deck/railing, I will check on having it professionally transplanted elsewhere. I'll probably have the little gatavo done as well. My mother started the two gatavos for us, so they're sentimental. We also have a baby papershell pecan at the back of the acre that she grew for two-three years before passing it on to us.

I know that the maple at our other house (the one where we had the pool broken up and removed) dropped soooooo many leaves and the little helicopters. So I really don't want to deal with any of that again, especially since I'm the sole caretaker of the pool.

Just a quick update on our deck. With three days of constant rain and LOTS of standing water in the back yard now...to the tune of about 4" deep...we now have a washed out deck! We've lost practically all the cedar stain. We're not sure if that means we lost the sealer as well. I'll need to call Behr back and find out. We have had so much rain that I had to raise the pH for the 2nd time since we put the pool in last summer! And our water temp went from 98 on Thursday, to 80 as of 8:00pm tonight :rant: And we're in line for another humdinger of a downpour again beginning around 1:00-2:00am tonight.

But all in all, we're still very happy with our deck, no matter what color it bleaches out to be. And we're very thankful to the Good Lord for the much-needed rain. :p
 
Wish my pool was 80 degrees! It's a brisk 66 degrees and I'm getting ready to cover it by Wednesday. :cry:

Your pool deck looks fabulous though! I love how it wraps the whole way around!
 
Thanks Casey! Hey, does this mean we still get to tease you that our pool is a blistering 80 degrees? :party: na na na na na na..... LOL, that's like "iced over" for us Texans, ya know!

DH is so disappointed that we just got it all finished and signed off by the city and stained nicely - and now, not only did we lose our pretty stain, but we've lost our heat that we thought would keep us swimming through September! Oh well, hopefully by the end of next week, we'll get some sun and warm it back up enough to swim!
 
WHO sent us this rainy cool fall weather two months early, and will you PLEASE take it back?!
I have had 6 inches of rain since Friday, and it is still going. Monday, I was out crouched under the pump shelter, draining water from the pool using the pump to waste option, and it started raining (again). The longer I stood there, the harder it rained, until I got to the point where I realized that I was not gaining any ground. It was actually raining hard enough to fill the pool as fast as I was draining it! That is when I shut it all down, swam to the house, and sulked for a while.
My water is 79 degrees. The sun came out over Greenville for an hour yesterday afternoon- I saw it. My solar heater came on for that whole hour and warmed the pool a degree (had been 78). But, without sun, solar is not much help.
When, oh when, will the sun come back. I should have at least another month of swimming!
It's raining right now as I type this. I was out testing the pool- results are good for today, but it is pouring, again.

Cherie, on trees. I think 20 feet is okay- maybe a tree expert can let you know on the gatavos. You are going to get some leaves, but then when the storms brew and the winds blow, you are going to get leaves from 1000 feet away too. My main concern is the roots on that maple- they will make a mess. I have seen maple roots move entire sections of foundation on older homes here in Greenville in this blackland. They don't sink their roots- clay is too hard- they spread out, and boy they can find water.
 
amjohn, I'm sitting here laughing my head off at you! Our pool went from 98 to 78 since the rain came in last Friday :rant: And we were only supposed to have a mere 30% chance of rain for several days, which is why we had our deck professionally stained/sealed on Thursday! :rant: But hey, we have to be able to laugh at the bad stuff, right? :p

Scott now agrees with me that we will have the Maple transplanted when it goes dormant. We may also have the gatavo moved out a bit as well. We've had Maples at our other homes and know how big they get, but didn't notice the roots on top of the ground or close to the top. But we've both worked very hard on our pool/deck to chance a tree ruining it. So thanks for info and link on the root damage. I sent it to Scott and there was no doubt, after seeing the damage, that we would be doing a transplant!

Maybe we will get some sun next week and get the heat back in the water. I know we were looking so forward to some days in the pool once we finally got the deck done. And wouldn't ya know it? The very weekend we get it signed off on, that's when the rain hits!
 

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Want to let you all know that even with the temps here being in the low 80s last week and the 70s this week my pool is still at 82 with the solar panels on during the day and the solar cover on all day as well. I am thinking that if it is even in the upper 70s this weekend I am going to swim...At least get in and clean...But the Fafco Solar Bear panel 4X20 and solar cover works so well! I am impressed with it.
 
Well Cubby, even 82 is too cold for us! We have discussed solar panels. But that will a project on down the road. I think next summer, we're not even going to build the pergola onto the deck. I think we'll just take the summer off and SWIM! But hey, who knows? It depends on how the winter goes and whether it revives us or not! :shock: But this summer was so hard, that we're both a bit burned out now. Not to mention, I'm really struggling with teaching the kids now, because I spent the entire summer building the deck with Scott and didn't have the time/energy to put my lesson plans together :(

But I'm very happy for you (and envious) and hope you get to keep swimming all the way into October. We're still getting rain here. So I haven't even checked the pool temp today :roll: It's been nothing but rain for nearly a full week now. Needless to say, the cedar stain on the deck that was done one day prior to the rain hitting ...
 
Solar panels and solar cover are not much help in the rain. Our rain totals for the last week: 8 inches, usually in 1 inch per hour downpours alternating with spitting drizzle. My pool went down to 76 degrees from 92. But today- the sun! the sun! Maybe I can make it to 80 or more today. Tomorrow is supposed to be even warmer and sunnier. I sure hope I'll be swimming (in the pool, not the yard) this weekend. I am going into withdrawal. I was swimming twice a day when the rain started. Gotta vacuum, too. What a mess a week of rain makes- the wind blows all kinds of junk into the pool.
 
Cherie said:
Well Cubby, even 82 is too cold for us! We have discussed solar panels. But that will a project on down the road. I think next summer, we're not even going to build the pergola onto the deck. I think we'll just take the summer off and SWIM! But hey, who knows? It depends on how the winter goes and whether it revives us or not! :shock: But this summer was so hard, that we're both a bit burned out now. Not to mention, I'm really struggling with teaching the kids now, because I spent the entire summer building the deck with Scott and didn't have the time/energy to put my lesson plans together :(

But I'm very happy for you (and envious) and hope you get to keep swimming all the way into October. We're still getting rain here. So I haven't even checked the pool temp today :roll: It's been nothing but rain for nearly a full week now. Needless to say, the cedar stain on the deck that was done one day prior to the rain hitting ...
Click to expand...

Cherie,
You guys need that rain don't you? As for me...My mermaid (11 year old daughter and I we will swim as the weather and weekend activities allow...Pool still in the 80s...but I realize we are a little different up here...I grew up on Lake Michigan with water only ever really getting into the 70s...I think pool water should be refreshing in the heat of the summer. However when the air is in in the upper 70s, I still want the water warmer then the air temp...We may make October...I just saw the long range...as if that is accurate...we are supposed to be in the upper 70s low 80s much of the time. So we shall see. I will probably close the first of October unless it stays warm.
 
Cherie said:
Here are the pool build and deck build links to photobucket. It's only been 16 months since we started this project, but it seems like it's been forever! All we have left to do with the deck is turn the step bricks in the right direction and tie-in the bottom corners of the railing. Then, next spring, I'll do the landscaping, which will be minimal, since I need to have continued access to the deck underside for treating for ants.

We had the deck professionally oil-stained and sealed on Wednesday (he finished at 6:00pm) and we had a really big, heavy rain 24 hours later (tonight). We're hoping the Behr oil stain/sealer will have had enough time to keep from washing out with the rain. Go figure in Texas. When they predict rain at 60%, we often don't get it (not in Wylie anyway). But at 30%? We get a downpour! And there are several more days on the way.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the diary in pictures. I certainly enjoyed taking them all and putting them together!

http://s586.photobucket.com/albums/ss30 ... l%20Build/
http://s586.photobucket.com/albums/ss30 ... k%20Build/

Cheers :cheers:
Click to expand...

I could only dream about a deck like that Cherie...that is fantastic..you guys did good!
 
Thanks Cubby. We won't ever take anything like that on again, though! Our marriage survived the deck build...barely :oops: Now maybe if we didn't live in WYLIE, it wouldn't have been so bad.

And yes, we desperately needed the rain. The cracks in our back yard (which has no landscaping at all to help keep the ground together) were big enough, literally, for our furkid's leg to fall completely into. Needless to say :p , they are filled in now! But we are thankful for all the rain, no matter that it washed our pretty stain away.

It's still raining here, but we got about five minutes of sunshine a little while ago. If we're done for the season, we're done. But now we can really look forward to next season. And with all the help from this site, we are in complete control of our pool and things are great - THANK YOU TROUBLE-FREE POOLS!! :cheers:
 
Cherie, husband and wife building projects are bad no matter where you live. Trust me.
But we will still build a deck, though ours will be higher up since we are not buried.
Have you tried out the bermuda grass spritzer method yet? With all this rain, I bet you will get a chance to kill some weeds that grow up through the deck. We are still mowing, for goodness sake! Or would be if we had waterwings on the mower.
Watch out for the fire ants. The rain has really brought them up out of the ground. They were all around the pool today as we were out cleaning. Those things can build a mound so fast, nearly before your eyes. I would not be surprised if they have not already found the nice deck/roof you built for them to live under.
 
You wouldn't believe the nest they had in the pool equipment shed. I was shocked when I went to get the cleaner out. Then, I looked BEHIND the shed :shock: :shock: :shock: Well, I put mound killer down for all that and around the equipment pad, where the little bitty ones had already rebuilt. We had a guy come out and treat under/around the deck and pool, as well as the house. But I'm wondering now if we threw our money away.

Anyway, as soon as the water finishes soaking in back there (assuming no more rain for several days), I'll get back there and figure out a way to get the granules way up under the deck. I have some ideas already :idea:

I think we've decided to bite the bullet and have the entire back yard treated in Feb or March (with a one-year guarantee). The ants have been just horrendous this year. I was standing in the water trying to decide the best route to make it on out to the pool last week and I must have been standing where a bunch of ants were drowning. Well, they found my clogs and before I new it, my entire left foot was black with ants. Needless to say, I have nasty bites all over my feet right now. I left the clogs right where I was standing and took off running!! I still can't wear a shoe on my right foot!

Our water was back up to 78 today, with the wonderful sunshine! :party:
 
You got sunshine Saturday? Really? Wow- how nice. We got about an hour of sun and then more rain.
Today (Sunday) we got several hours of sun, but it also rained! Crazy! With solar heater running full out, we got to 84 degrees water temp. We swam- it was refreshing, but worth it.
The fire ant dance-I know it well. You never actually stand still in Texas, keep moving before the ants get you.
I have never heard of any service being able to guarantee against them. But we are much more rural than you. We do have the house and shop sprayed spring and fall most years, but that is more for wasps, roaches, scorpions, crickets, house ants, etc. I don't think they do anything for fire ants, and they will only come out if it is not going to rain for a couple days and is not super wet (like right now).
So far, my system is to use broadcast fire ant bait (large bags of whatever is on sale at Home Dept) throughout our 2 acres as soon as we start seeing activity in the late spring. Feb-March seems early- more like April is when I start, and then a couple more times during the summer. I broadcast using a hand crank fertilizer spreader. Some brands need to be watered in, I use those in the spring when it is going to rain. Others need to stay dry- those are good for deep summer.
Then I use the Amdro granules for mound treatment when it is dry. We have some areas that they really like (the pool now being added to that list) that I really keep an eye on, and mound treat as soon as I see activity- once you see a mound, they are well established. I treat about double what the bottle says, and buy fresh supplies each year. Eradication is not possible: chasing them into the pastures around us is the goal.

Hope your foot gets better fast. We use a light solution of ammonia in water to take out the sting- about 1 parts ammonia in 10 parts water, give or take. It won't stop the later itching, but if you treat the bites right away, it will reduce the swelling and stinging. Works on wasp stings too.
 

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