This all seems very daunting...

[nazran]

I was thinking about getting an Intex Ultra Frame pool 16' or 18' so I came here and did some research... wow, the leveling process is very in depth! Can some of you ballpark the costs associated with preparing their yard to accept the pool? Leveling, sand, pavers, foam, tarps, etc. I need to know how much more to add to pool cost for budgeting purposes.

 

[Bama Rambler]

Welcome to TFP.

A lot of it depends on how much of the work you can do yourself. If you can level the ground yourself and install the pool, about the only real expense you'll have beside the pool is the pavers or boards to put under the legs. You can add foam if you want but that's completely optional.

 

[jblizzle]

Greatly depends on your yard ... how level is it?
And how much of a DIY are you? ... after all, if you level it yourself, the only cost is a shovel, a wheelbarrow and a level if you do not already have them.

If you can provide more information and maybe some pictures of the site, someone should be able to help offer estimates.

 

[nazran]

Yeah I am cheap and the DIY kind of guy, but also really overweight and need the exercise. The area is fairly level and sort of resembles a dinner plate (high on edges lower in center) probably 6" elevation change from bottom to lip of 'plate'. This shape makes me wonder if a previous owner had an AGP. There is currently a swing set with three compacted 3" grooves where kids feet land under the seats in the middle of this "plate".

 

[Richard320]

If you watch the videos on the intex website http://www.intexcorp.com/index.php/home ... l?manual=1 it looks like all that really matters is that the ground is solid and level. Fill in those groves and soak it so it settles, carve out your flat spot, set up the pool, and be the hero.

 

[superman0604]

I just recently installed an 18' intex on a sloped back yard so I'll just throw out the numbers that I have.

Neighbor rough leveled with tractor. (dug out the high side)---------------------------------------------------------Free because he is a nice guy.
Assuming you have shovel, rake and a few tools.-------------------------------------------------------------------$0
Plastic edge molding to make circle to separate clean sand from dirt-------------------------------------------------$40 from lowes.
3 cubic yards of masonry sand-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------$200
12"x12" paver stones for under legs (I bought 30 to have a few extra but you need at least one for each leg)----------$1.30 each from lowes.
Ground tarp that came with intex pool------------------------------------------------------------------------------$included with pool cost
I also bought an 18' gorilla ground liner-----------------------------------------------------------------------------$80
Weed killer (i was paranoid grass would grow through liner)----------------------------------------------------------$5-$10
Having a TroubleFreePool for years to come-------------------------------------------------------------------------Priceless. just had to say that.

 

[linen]

Welcome to tfp, nazran

Sounds like previous owner might have a had a traditional agp with a deep center? What diameter is the the current pool area? Most likely it is already level, though you may have to lower the whole area to match the dished center...or maybe you could fill the dished area in since no support legs would be on it.

 

[poolgranny]

If you have access and can haul the sand yourself -- you will save big bucks.

We hauled 7 ton for our pool (don't know how much that equals to yards) and it was really reasonable. We hauled 3 pick-up loads in a short bed Toyota, then brother gained access to a one ton flat bed which he then hauled the sand on that. I was thinking about $10.00 a ton approximately or so, but that was 5 years ago.

 

[cramar]

Don't underestimate the effort to remove 6" of soil, especially if there's a clay component. Levelling a pool site may not be the first place to start the effort to get some needed exercise, especially if you decide part way in that it's too much and leave the site not fully level and put up a lop sided pool.

Watch some on line videos for site prep, even if for a steel walled pool, and then assess how comfortable you are with the site prep.
Doesn't hurt to call someone in and get a free estimate for site prep.

 

[techguy]

I had the grading done by a guy with a tractor and it was a good investment in relation to how hard my ground is and that it was done in two hours...not two months of back breaking effort. The little money up front saves years of little fixes and "i'll deal with it". The couple hundred I spent on the grading, over the number of years of fun my family has had in the pool, makes the cost less than my cold beverages for the same time period.

If you do buy a larger Intex, be sure to get a sand filter. the 2650 seem popular or forego the Intex filter completely and buy a new or used filter/pump for a steel wall AGP.. Like a Hayward or similar. It will help you to maintain the pool. I see to many people focus on the upfront cost without looking at the long term benefit.

 

[frogabog]

It is likely there was a pool there at some point. A lower center in a round pool makes for easy swirling of debris and collection in the center to vacuum out.

It would be best to take the whole "plate" area and remove sod and dirt down to the level of the feet area under the swings. Filling in and compacting the grooves actually could be doable because you're not leveling the pool by filling them in, but I'm afraid you'll end up with some grooves in your pool floor this way.

It can take a day's work to level an area for an Intex pool, but in your case I think you may have a significant amount of it already done for you assuming the area is level to begin with.

Were it me, and this is not exactly recommended nor authorized... lol... I might try filling in the grooves depending on the soil. We have clay and have filled in a number of holes from tree removals, including an 8' deep one to the sewer. The ground sunk... about 3" total in 20 years. We've done a lot of filling and stomping to level areas of the yard and smooth out the ground under the pool. That being said, I wouldn't want grooves in the pool, floor, I prefer the dirt to collect in the center. If you're going to take it down at the end of the season though, it might not bother you so much this year and you can add more soil for next year. Your mileage may vary, always.

My blue Intex metal frame pool is on leveled dirt, then sand, with the liner on two or maybe even three tarps, the legs are on cedar fence boards, cut at about 5". We didn't have the information here when we set it up 3 years ago but we'd used the space for Intex bag pools in the past so the area had already had the weight of the water on it a few seasons. It's working well, and was not too expensive to prepare. We don't take the pool down over the winter.