Filling will take forever with a hose. Get a truck. When doing/contracting the electrical, don't forget the bonding, particularly the rebar in any concrete deck.
Newbie returning from Afghanistan needing help with project!
- Thread starter pzmotorsports
- Start date
pzmotorsports said:But if this is not feasible I am willing to re-schedule this project until the beginning of April when I am home for good, I will just hate to have the kit sitting in the garage and the kids upset.What do you think I should do??
Hey there sports...Have you deployed before? If so you know about the transition "issues" when you come back home. I can't imagine combining that with the stress of building a pool! But I know different personalities can deal with that kind of stress better than others. If your wife and kids are behind you and you REALLY want to build a pool while on leave, then I say go for it!
I am an Air Force wife by the way. My family also appreciates you and your family. We pray for the troops and your families every night!
This is in response to a pm pz sent me AND the rest of this thread
There is so much to try to tell you about your build, I can't possibly do it in one post I'll keep this, mostly, to what you'll be doing on Mon & Tues.
It takes 0 time from my schedule to assist you, I unwind after a days work by coming here and dealing with pools I don't have to 'see'
The most important thing on digging the pool is that your excavator friend know what the bottom is supposed to look like, then you have to trust his 'eye' and skill. What we do, after the 44" bed is set, is to put rebar pins in the corners and run a string to define the pool area. Then we put pins at the break/ transition points, pull a string and mark the line with paint or lime dust, this let's the operator know where NOT to dig past. Having pins at every 'defining point' lets you pull a string and use the laser transit to see if there is enough, or too much, ground removed. There will be a lot! of 'hand trimming' needed, as this is his first pool dig Don't be afraid to run strings to see if you're high or low! - of course you'll have to remove them while the machine is digging, but getting a closer dig will save on materials when doing the floor! If you have areas that are over-dug, you can fill them with either gravel or the original dirt, compacted. If for any reason, you have mud (squishy to step on) on the bottom when you go to trowel the vermiculite, dig it out and fill with gravel.
Rake out and hand level the line on which the walls will rest, the closer you get that, the easier it will be to have the walls ~ level when you put them together!! - use the laser transit every 1' to insure that the ground on which they will sit is level. We always wait until the walls are up and the collar poured before doing the 'final touches' to the bottom on the rough dig. After bolting the panels together, square up the pool to whatever reference point you're using. I don't know how detailed your instructions are, but you need to insure that the pool is level, squared and the walls are straight, before you pour the retaining collar!! Use wooden shims to support every seam, so that you know that the top of the pool will be level!
There are just a couple other things I want to address before I leave for ~ a week:
Your time frame isn't taking into account a number of things, including:
#1 time for the backfill to compact!!!!! - up here we don't do the deck for at least 6 weeks after the backfill - having voids under a deck is just asking for future problems! As your wife works for a crete company, you can let the backfill settle and then have them do the pour.
#2 inspection for the bonding of the pool/ pool light before running the pool - this one could kill your plan, if like up here, the inspector has to sign off on the light before the pool is filled - inspectors work on their own schedule (and I've noticed their schedule doesn't jibe with anyone else's)
#3 I don't see anything about installing the coping or doing the 'pre-liner drop' floor prep.
There's other stuff, but it can wait until I get back from MV. (I'm gonna send you a pm with my phone #s, in case something comes up)
p.s. Dave, the company I work for has done 3 pools/ week (start digging the first on Mon and have all 3 ready to swim in by Sat pm) 2x - although that was with a big crew, 6 people, and (ahem...) I was on the construction crew
pzmotorsports said:
There is so much to try to tell you about your build, I can't possibly do it in one post
I'll keep this, mostly, to what you'll be doing on Mon & Tues. It takes 0 time from my schedule to assist you, I unwind after a days work by coming here and dealing with pools I don't have to 'see'
The most important thing on digging the pool is that your excavator friend know what the bottom is supposed to look like, then you have to trust his 'eye' and skill. What we do, after the 44" bed is set, is to put rebar pins in the corners and run a string to define the pool area. Then we put pins at the break/ transition points, pull a string and mark the line with paint or lime dust, this let's the operator know where NOT to dig past. Having pins at every 'defining point' lets you pull a string and use the laser transit to see if there is enough, or too much, ground removed. There will be a lot! of 'hand trimming' needed, as this is his first pool dig Don't be afraid to run strings to see if you're high or low! - of course you'll have to remove them while the machine is digging, but getting a closer dig will save on materials when doing the floor! If you have areas that are over-dug, you can fill them with either gravel or the original dirt, compacted. If for any reason, you have mud (squishy to step on) on the bottom when you go to trowel the vermiculite, dig it out and fill with gravel. Rake out and hand level the line on which the walls will rest, the closer you get that, the easier it will be to have the walls ~ level when you put them together!! - use the laser transit every 1' to insure that the ground on which they will sit is level. We always wait until the walls are up and the collar poured before doing the 'final touches' to the bottom on the rough dig. After bolting the panels together, square up the pool to whatever reference point you're using. I don't know how detailed your instructions are, but you need to insure that the pool is level, squared and the walls are straight, before you pour the retaining collar!! Use wooden shims to support every seam, so that you know that the top of the pool will be level!
There are just a couple other things I want to address before I leave for ~ a week:
Your time frame isn't taking into account a number of things, including:
#1 time for the backfill to compact!!!!! - up here we don't do the deck for at least 6 weeks after the backfill - having voids under a deck is just asking for future problems! As your wife works for a crete company, you can let the backfill settle and then have them do the pour.
#2 inspection for the bonding of the pool/ pool light before running the pool - this one could kill your plan, if like up here, the inspector has to sign off on the light before the pool is filled - inspectors work on their own schedule (and I've noticed their schedule doesn't jibe with anyone else's)
#3 I don't see anything about installing the coping or doing the 'pre-liner drop' floor prep.
There's other stuff, but it can wait until I get back from MV. (I'm gonna send you a pm with my phone #s, in case something comes up)
p.s. Dave, the company I work for has done 3 pools/ week (start digging the first on Mon and have all 3 ready to swim in by Sat pm) 2x - although that was with a big crew, 6 people, and (ahem...) I was on the construction crew
Thanks to vejadu and waste for the last post. I have a very supportive family and I believe the less I can do for them is build this pool to somehow make up for our time apart as we enjoy it together, vejadu thanks for your prayers we really appreciate them. Waste also provided me some good hints concerning the dig aspect. I will make sure we are running our stings and that every step of the dig is properly measured and leveled. I will have the construction people decide as when they believe it will be a good time for the backfill to be settled. In my area the ground is made of what they call black soil and clay, very little rock; we will be doing the backfill with sand that I will be getting for free. As far as the electrical goes, I do not need to have an inspector verify the work, because I am outside of the city limits. The electrician taking care of my pool was referred to me by a company specialized in selling and install of the same type of pools, I am expecting him to know exactly what to do, but I will remind him about the bonding. One question about this, I was told earlier by JohnT to ensure the electrician takes care of the bonding particularly the rebar in any concrete deck. What's involved in bonding the deck? This way I ensure he is not doing an in-complete job since I won't have an inspector to check it?? Will the wire run from the deck to the pump body? As you already seen in the news, TX is getting allot of rain which should be over by Sat. I arrive home on Sun and Monday is the big day, well things are not looking too good since their is only 3 days with no rain (mon, tues, wed) and from the middle of the week up to next Sat the forecast calls anywere from 40 to 60% rain. I believe we can have the dig and walls up with the concrete around the collar the first 3 days, but the pool bottom will not be done if the rain comes our way. I am wondering, if I can get this far in 3 days, all I will have in order to be done with the pool (not deck) is another 3 days.
Do you guys see it possible for me to get a heavy duty tarp to cover the pool, set it higher in the middle so the rain does not settle, then get center blocks or stakes to hold it in place? If all that fails then I will have this kit sitting in the garage for about half a year until I return home.
I hope that mother nature is in our side and this will be possible during my trip home.
Once again thanks to all in advance! Two days to be home :-D
As far as the electrical goes, I do not need to have an inspector verify the work, because I am outside of the city limits. The electrician taking care of my pool was referred to me by a company specialized in selling and install of the same type of pools, I am expecting him to know exactly what to do, but I will remind him about the bonding. One question about this, I was told earlier by JohnT to ensure the electrician takes care of the bonding particularly the rebar in any concrete deck. What's involved in bonding the deck? This way I ensure he is not doing an in-complete job since I won't have an inspector to check it?? Will the wire run from the deck to the pump body? As you already seen in the news, TX is getting allot of rain which should be over by Sat. I arrive home on Sun and Monday is the big day, well things are not looking too good since their is only 3 days with no rain (mon, tues, wed) and from the middle of the week up to next Sat the forecast calls anywere from 40 to 60% rain. I believe we can have the dig and walls up with the concrete around the collar the first 3 days, but the pool bottom will not be done if the rain comes our way. I am wondering, if I can get this far in 3 days, all I will have in order to be done with the pool (not deck) is another 3 days. Do you guys see it possible for me to get a heavy duty tarp to cover the pool, set it higher in the middle so the rain does not settle, then get center blocks or stakes to hold it in place? If all that fails then I will have this kit sitting in the garage for about half a year until I return home.
I hope that mother nature is in our side and this will be possible during my trip home.
Once again thanks to all in advance! Two days to be home :-D
The bond wire is a continuous loop that connects the pool ladder sockets, hand rail sockets, steel pool walls, dive stand, slide stand, light housing, pump motor housing, heater housing, deck rebar plus anything else conductive that is within 5' of the pool or contacts the pool water. The rebar connection seems to be the one most often skipped, as most posts you see from people with electrical shocking issues involve standing on the deck and touching the water or a ladder.
Hey there. We were just thinking of you and your family. Hope you have a safe trip home.