I did that test with it a couple inches from full, so it's certainly not a few hundred pounds on each leg.
26' Intex - Planning, Install, Upgrades, and Landscaping Thread
- Thread starter jseyfert3
- Start date
Wow looks like a great project @jseyfert3 !!! I'm a long time lurker, first time poster, and your project looks almost exactly like something my wife and I would like to do. I was wondering if you could let me know how much you spent all together on the fencing project, as that is something I think I would like to tackle this summer? Again, looks like great progress!
Thanks!
I'm actually not certain at the moment. With all the pool and fence I got behind on the detailed financial recordkeeping I generally do. Once I catch up with that I should be able to tell you though. Somewhere between $3000-$4000 I believe...and a lot of help from friends!
One tip: GET THE AIR NAILER! We had somewhere around 260 feet of fence to build, which needed somewhere around 580 pickets. At six nails per picket, that's about 3500 nails just for the pickets. I'm very glad I decided to get the air nailer from the start.
Okay, so as I said, the legs were sinking into the foam. Some perhaps by up to 1/4 inch, so I decided I was going to put wood under, which was my original plan until very hot and tired I changed it at the last minute.
Problem is, the pool is full. And it's already up to a nice 68 °F and climbing. My wife doesn't want it drained, and I don't really want to spend a day draining, a day filling, and have it be cold for our 4th of July pool party. So I decided to do it with the pool filled. I've heard of people using a car jack, and that would certainly likely work, but I felt with the ground it would be difficult to use and prone to slipping. I've been thinking about this and decided to build a crane of sorts. I decided that one side would sit in the pool and out outside the pool, and I'd use a ratchet strap to lift the pool edge.
I had lots of scrap 2x4 sections left over from building the fence. With a miter saw and the air nailer in no time I had it built. One side has a large footprint, for the pool, so it doesn't dig into the liner or imprint the foam. The other side is whatever, but I added some angled pieces so it was more sturdy.
I would need some feet to go under the pool, so I cut one of the 2x12x8's into 1' sections.
I taped foam on the bottom of the pool side so it wouldn't damage the liner and hauled everything down to the pool.
With four large concrete bricks, I was able to get the pool side to sink. It isn't very heavy underwater and can be moved fairly easily. It's a hot day and I needed to get into the pool to position it...darn!
After positioning I quickly set up the other side and the cross 2x4 and using a ratchet strap, I lifted the pool edge. The foot popped out once I lifted it enough. The foam trapped them from sliding (much) and so the bottom was "tucked under" the liner a bit, all the legs had a curve to them due to this.
Detail showing the leg after lifting.
Detail showing the ratchet strap and how I ran it. If anyone else attempts this, use caution that you don't run it over the white locking pieces...you really wouldn't want this popping apart while lifting...
At this point it was pretty easy to use a knife and a screwdriver and cut/pop foam out. I cut in as far as I could reasonably get with a utility knife.
I slide the wood block in all the way. The leg at this point was further out than pictured. It looked too far out, very angled outwards at the bottom. I pushed it in until it was at the middle of the wood block. I don't know if this is the ideal angle, still pointing outwards, but it seemed better than setting it down as is, and certainly where it was was too far in. It seemed "about right" to me, so I held it in place as I released the ratchet strap.
And that's it! One block done. Only 25 to go...
SO, would I recommend this? Well, I can't say that I do. It worked, for me, on at least one leg. There is quite a bit of force on this though, and there's a risk things could break or tear. I would say do this at your own risk! The safer, and easier, way would be to drain the pool. If you haven't yet put up a pool, get your blocks in place before filling.
Anyway, I'm off to do at least a handful more before calling it for the night. I hope to get a majority, if not all, done before the end of the day tomorrow. I have some river rock and I'd like to start putting it down to see how it looks, and getting the rest of the landscaping done before it starts getting to 90 °F or more every day. That's the days to float in the finished pool, not landscape!
Problem is, the pool is full. And it's already up to a nice 68 °F and climbing. My wife doesn't want it drained, and I don't really want to spend a day draining, a day filling, and have it be cold for our 4th of July pool party. So I decided to do it with the pool filled. I've heard of people using a car jack, and that would certainly likely work, but I felt with the ground it would be difficult to use and prone to slipping. I've been thinking about this and decided to build a crane of sorts. I decided that one side would sit in the pool and out outside the pool, and I'd use a ratchet strap to lift the pool edge.
I had lots of scrap 2x4 sections left over from building the fence. With a miter saw and the air nailer in no time I had it built. One side has a large footprint, for the pool, so it doesn't dig into the liner or imprint the foam. The other side is whatever, but I added some angled pieces so it was more sturdy.
I would need some feet to go under the pool, so I cut one of the 2x12x8's into 1' sections.
I taped foam on the bottom of the pool side so it wouldn't damage the liner and hauled everything down to the pool.
With four large concrete bricks, I was able to get the pool side to sink. It isn't very heavy underwater and can be moved fairly easily. It's a hot day and I needed to get into the pool to position it...darn!
After positioning I quickly set up the other side and the cross 2x4 and using a ratchet strap, I lifted the pool edge. The foot popped out once I lifted it enough. The foam trapped them from sliding (much) and so the bottom was "tucked under" the liner a bit, all the legs had a curve to them due to this.
Detail showing the leg after lifting.
Detail showing the ratchet strap and how I ran it. If anyone else attempts this, use caution that you don't run it over the white locking pieces...you really wouldn't want this popping apart while lifting...
At this point it was pretty easy to use a knife and a screwdriver and cut/pop foam out. I cut in as far as I could reasonably get with a utility knife.
I slide the wood block in all the way. The leg at this point was further out than pictured. It looked too far out, very angled outwards at the bottom. I pushed it in until it was at the middle of the wood block. I don't know if this is the ideal angle, still pointing outwards, but it seemed better than setting it down as is, and certainly where it was was too far in. It seemed "about right" to me, so I held it in place as I released the ratchet strap.
And that's it! One block done. Only 25 to go...
SO, would I recommend this? Well, I can't say that I do. It worked, for me, on at least one leg. There is quite a bit of force on this though, and there's a risk things could break or tear. I would say do this at your own risk! The safer, and easier, way would be to drain the pool. If you haven't yet put up a pool, get your blocks in place before filling.
Anyway, I'm off to do at least a handful more before calling it for the night. I hope to get a majority, if not all, done before the end of the day tomorrow. I have some river rock and I'd like to start putting it down to see how it looks, and getting the rest of the landscaping done before it starts getting to 90 °F or more every day. That's the days to float in the finished pool, not landscape!
And the lesson is...............put the wood under before you fill! BUT I do have to say you do good work! I would keep the "crane" as you never know when that may come in handy for something else!! Well done sir!
Yes, so much yes! I said it was an "experiment" when I made the decision not to do it. Well, experiment said do it!
So I got about 8 blocks done yesterday, and worked on the rest today. I was relaxing in between adding blocks and someone wanted to play.
Making lots of sawdust as I finish cutting the wood blocks.
After going through TWO small ratchets (they aren't made to cycle continuously under the loading I had) I bought a extra heavy duty one. I still used the small ratchet strap, as the bit one would have had trouble fitting under the rail and would have hit the button locking the beams to the posts.
I had a helper all day. He's got the collar as he got neutered earlier this week.
Picture showing how much some of the feet had sunk. I'd say it was up to halfway through the foam, or 1/2". Definitely need the blocks!
And we're done! Well, with the pool install. I need to order a better ladder, add rock and edger blocks around the pool, slope the dirt and plant grass seed, and clean up the rest of the yard which has become a mess due to the fence/pool install and not having time because of the fence/pool install.
Water is up to 72 °F today. It'll be hot all week, the water will be nice and warm for our 4th of July pool party!
SWEET!!! You nailed it again! Now we can point to your thread when someone even thinks about not doing the blocks.
LOL on the pillow head. That is what I thought was going on. I LOVE those pillows instead of the cones. Cones HURT when they hit your legs!
LOL on the pillow head. That is what I thought was going on. I LOVE those pillows instead of the cones. Cones HURT when they hit your legs!
It's not perfect, he still can contort and reach it, but he rarely does it and if I see him and say "NO" he stops immediately and doesn't try again when I turn away. It seems to be healing very nicely.
Also, I have some timelapse videos coming up once they upload to YouTube and I edit them a bit.
We got a lot of rain really fast while I was at work. I estimate 2.5-3" at least. The pool started overflowing.
Everything around the pool, being low as I haven't had time to start filling it in, filled up with water.
Magnet dog.
I backwashed the filter since I had water that needed to drain, but eventually I just switched and pumped to waste, as it was faster than running through the backwash. I need to pick up a long hose I can run out back past the fence into the drainage ditch behind our property.
So much water.
Everything around the pool, being low as I haven't had time to start filling it in, filled up with water.
Magnet dog.
I backwashed the filter since I had water that needed to drain, but eventually I just switched and pumped to waste, as it was faster than running through the backwash. I need to pick up a long hose I can run out back past the fence into the drainage ditch behind our property.
So much water.
That is a LOT of rain!! I would look into piping it with hard PVC as we do not want doggy to run into it while playing! Put unions and valves right under the return and skimmer.
He stuck his head in the backwash stream coming out of the pump, jumped back, and looked all shocked he got soaked!
Skimmer, ha! I do really want one. It would keep a lot of things off the floor of the pool by catching them before they sink. But there's only so much time in a day... I'm trying to prioritize different tasks. One is to level the dirt around the pool and get rocks down so I stop stepping in rock/mud whenever I need to walk around the pool.
Skimmer, ha! I do really want one. It would keep a lot of things off the floor of the pool by catching them before they sink. But there's only so much time in a day... I'm trying to prioritize different tasks. One is to level the dirt around the pool and get rocks down so I stop stepping in rock/mud whenever I need to walk around the pool.
I'm finally going through receipts now. I have a rough number but I need to reconcile everything with my bank statements as there's probably a few things missing. Keeping in mind this total includes some stuff for the pool, like the foam and wood blocks, and also tools (auger and air nailer being the big ones) purchased for the fence, we're up to $4900. And we thought we got such a good deal getting the pool for $450!
I haven't yet stained the fence, but my rough estimate was $800 in stain and a $400 airless sprayer...
Once I get everything reconciled so I know I'm not missing things, I'll re-check the total and try to break it down into some rough categories. Such as fence materials, tools purchased/rented, things specifically for the pool, etc.
Thanks for all the great information, and keeping everyone up to date on your progress! Whenever I start a new project my wife always ask how many new tools is this going to cost us. I seem to have a garage full of them now!I'm finally going through receipts now. I have a rough number but I need to reconcile everything with my bank statements as there's probably a few things missing. Keeping in mind this total includes some stuff for the pool, like the foam and wood blocks, and also tools (auger and air nailer being the big ones) purchased for the fence, we're up to $4900. And we thought we got such a good deal getting the pool for $450!
I haven't yet stained the fence, but my rough estimate was $800 in stain and a $400 airless sprayer...
Once I get everything reconciled so I know I'm not missing things, I'll re-check the total and try to break it down into some rough categories. Such as fence materials, tools purchased/rented, things specifically for the pool, etc.
kne
Gold Supporter
- Jun 26, 2015
- 428
- Pool Size
- 7600
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-30 Plus
This is a great build thread! Now when you see people asking if they can put the foam under the legs of their pool, you can reply firmly, with experience and forum evidence for proof that it is not a great idea. I, like you, skipped the blocks and put my legs on the cover I was using (anti-fatigue mats from harbor freight) and sunk it did. I'm not even in a wet state, but the pressure of those legs are intense.
So, I need:
The pool came with a garden hose powered vacuum on a pole. That has several issues, namely it is 4" wide, the mesh bag is tiny, it needs a garden hose, and the pole is 4' too short to reach the middle without jumping in. The latter part being okay now, but not in the fall when leaves go nuts...
At $75, I was going to do the pressure side auto cleaner Intex sells, but problem is it, like most Intex stuff, is out of stock. Most robots are too.
We'd like a light, as we tried night swimming and with the warm water it was nice, but the Intex light I wanted is likewise out of stock...
In other news, having a pool is AMAZING! The water temp was 84 in the morning over the holiday weekend, reaching almost 90 by the end of the day. At that point I started thinking of a fountain to cool the pool, or at least a waterfall you can float under once in a while! Crazy how fast it heated up. It was 64 when we filled (I think I said 54 but we read the thermometer wrong) and was 85+ less than two weeks later!
Anyway, still work to do, but at least I can cool off during my breaks!
- A proper skimmer.
- A robot or other auto cleaner.
The pool came with a garden hose powered vacuum on a pole. That has several issues, namely it is 4" wide, the mesh bag is tiny, it needs a garden hose, and the pole is 4' too short to reach the middle without jumping in. The latter part being okay now, but not in the fall when leaves go nuts...
At $75, I was going to do the pressure side auto cleaner Intex sells, but problem is it, like most Intex stuff, is out of stock. Most robots are too.
We'd like a light, as we tried night swimming and with the warm water it was nice, but the Intex light I wanted is likewise out of stock...
In other news, having a pool is AMAZING! The water temp was 84 in the morning over the holiday weekend, reaching almost 90 by the end of the day. At that point I started thinking of a fountain to cool the pool, or at least a waterfall you can float under once in a while! Crazy how fast it heated up. It was 64 when we filled (I think I said 54 but we read the thermometer wrong) and was 85+ less than two weeks later!
Anyway, still work to do, but at least I can cool off during my breaks!
It looks like Walmart has the Intex Auto Pool Cleaner. Not sure why they are so expensive at over $100 there, I got one last year in the mid 60s...
That pool cleaner is the best thing I ever purchased for the pool. Yes it is probably cheap junk compared to the expensive ones but for the price it does a great job and saves so much time.
The next best thing is a Hayward skimmer, the kit is about $45.
That pool cleaner is the best thing I ever purchased for the pool. Yes it is probably cheap junk compared to the expensive ones but for the price it does a great job and saves so much time.
The next best thing is a Hayward skimmer, the kit is about $45.
I forgot to mention the ladder is a high priority upgrade. After looking at some threads here on TFP I bought a Confer Plastics 7200 plus the required ladder adapter kit for rigid soft sided pools. Found the ladder for $275 shipped from intheswim and the ladder adapter kit was $58 from Confer directly. It should hopefully be much better than the Intex one.
Same with the pool light. I wanted the Intex magnetic pool light with the inside and outside pool lighting. It is $70 from Intex. Out of stock everywhere except a few places where I saw it from $120-$240. The $120 light then sold. The $240 one is still there, for now...
COVID. That one isn't sold by Walmart, but a 3rd party on thier website. Everyone has bought pools this year, and accessories, and the factories are shut down or working at lower output. So all the normal channels are sold out, and the only thing left is "scalpers" selling for significantly more because they know they can. That cleaner is $75 straight from Intex, and Walmart lists it as $50 from them, but both are out of stock. I had seen that $110 one, but not sure I wanted to support the scalpers...
Same with the pool light. I wanted the Intex magnetic pool light with the inside and outside pool lighting. It is $70 from Intex. Out of stock everywhere except a few places where I saw it from $120-$240. The $120 light then sold. The $240 one is still there, for now...
OH YEAH! One of the friends we had over for the weekend asked if there was chlorine in the pool! Obviously, there was, but unlike commercial pools, you can't smell it.
That, and water clarity, are probably the two best things about TFP pools.
That, and water clarity, are probably the two best things about TFP pools.
The downside to water clarity is you perfectly see all the junk at the bottom of your pool!
