We have a bid in on a house with a pool (it is a short sale, the seller has accepted our offer so we are just waiting on the bank and VA to agree to it) and I stumbled across TFP searching for pool info trying to get smart should the deal go thru. I have been looking thru a few of the new owner threads as well as reading most of the pool school posts that apply (it is an inground pool, I don't know the size or surface yet) and I have a couple of questions that I haven't found answers to yet.
1. I am pretty sure that there are a few things missing in terms of equipment such as leaf rake, skimmer, etc. Is there a checklist of absolute minimum equipment that I will need to maintain the pool that I can use during inspection, etc. to build up a shopping list to get me started?
2. The pool has not been maintained for some time and the water is seriously green and I know it will be much worse by the time we close. We tried to make it a condition of the sale to have it cleaned prior to closing but they shot that down (but did agree to additional money back at closing). I don't think that it is out of deception, but simply not being able to afford it (the house is in pre-forclosure). We have spoken with a local pool service company about cleaning it and they gave a quote of $350 + chemicals, but could not be more specific without looking at the pool (we tried to get them to come out and give us a better quote but never returned the call from our realtor to schedule a time). My question, then, is since I am a pool noob would I be better off paying a professional to do the initial cleaning and get myself started on the right foot or is it still reasonable for me to do it myself?
1. I am pretty sure that there are a few things missing in terms of equipment such as leaf rake, skimmer, etc. Is there a checklist of absolute minimum equipment that I will need to maintain the pool that I can use during inspection, etc. to build up a shopping list to get me started?
2. The pool has not been maintained for some time and the water is seriously green and I know it will be much worse by the time we close. We tried to make it a condition of the sale to have it cleaned prior to closing but they shot that down (but did agree to additional money back at closing). I don't think that it is out of deception, but simply not being able to afford it (the house is in pre-forclosure). We have spoken with a local pool service company about cleaning it and they gave a quote of $350 + chemicals, but could not be more specific without looking at the pool (we tried to get them to come out and give us a better quote but never returned the call from our realtor to schedule a time). My question, then, is since I am a pool noob would I be better off paying a professional to do the initial cleaning and get myself started on the right foot or is it still reasonable for me to do it myself?