New Pool Build - North Dallas in Allen (East)

Jump to latest Follow Reply
M

mjworthy

0
Dec 31, 2013
90
North Texas
Hello! I came across this website and forum over a month ago and it has been extremely helpful in my research on building a pool. I appreciate everyone that contributes to this forum as it significantly helps people like me who do a lot of research. Thank you to those that have helped me through PMs over the past month.

Well, I have finally come to a decision after interviewing and going through two meetings with six different PBs. It was painful at times, but extremely insightful and, at the end, gave me a lot of leverage as I narrowed it down to the final two.

Here are the general specs (edited):

Freeform IG gunite diving pool
Size: 18' x 40'
Pool Perimeter: 104 lin. ft.
Spa Perimeter: 22 lin. ft.
Area: 654 sq. ft.
Depth: 3'6" x 9'
Gallons: 30,656
Spa: 7 ft. circle with 6 jets
Tanning ledge with 2 bubblers
Two benches in deep end
Deck: 504 sq. ft. Roman Slate textured
Coping: TN flagstone
Interior finish: Stonescapes (either Tahoe Blue or Midnight Blue)
Water feature: stacked stone raised wall (two levels 9" and 18") with three 12" scuppers
Salt diving board

Equipment:

Pump: Pentair IntelliFlo VS + SVRS
Filter: Pentair Clean & Clear 520 Cartridge
Heater: Pentair MaterTemp 400k
Blower: Polaris QT 1.5 HP
Cleaner: Pentair Prowler or Kreep Krauly Platinum
Sanitizer: Pentair IntelliChlor IC60 SWG
Chlorinator: Rainbow 320 Chlorinator
Lights: 2 LED in pool and 1 in spa (either Pentair or ColorLogic)
Control box: Pentair EasyTouch 8
Automation: Screenlogic2

We still have to finalize some of our selections (tile, finish, stacked stone, etc.), but we can do that over the next couple weeks during the permit process.

Questions:

Cleaner: I am having a hard time choosing (robotic or pressure). Any suggestions on a cleaner for a pool this size?
Lights: Pentair IntelliBrite or ColorLogic? Does the ColorLogic integrate with the Pentair EasyTouch?

Does everything look okay so far? Am I missing anything?

I have a meeting with my PB to sign the contract tomorrow! I will upload design pictures soon.
 
Everything looks good... except the Rainbow 320... its not needed when you already have the Salt Water "Chlorine" generator. Also, if not not required, you should switch out the SVRS for a standard Intelliflo VS. My take on the LED lights.. stick with Pentair Intellibrite, since you are already going with Pentairs Automation system. Also, get a full sized Intellibrite for the spa... ie.. 5G instead of spa 3G fixture. LED's aren't as bright as halogen lights, so the extra light looks better... especially with colors like red or green.
 
I have a pressure vac with booster pump. I see no need to go with this setup. I think I would be equally well served by a robot. The pressure w/ booster is an extra piece of equipment, extra electric, extra noise, extra hose to wrap up and mine (Pentair Kreepy Krauly Legend) doesn't climb the slope very well. It always wants to circle back to the deep end regardless of the adjustments to the thruster nozzle. Thankfully we have an autocover and clean environment so the pool stays pretty clean by itself.
 
Thanks for the replies and recommendations.

I lean towards the robot as I have read they do a better job cleaning, but I know they can be expensive to repair and don't last as long. I still need to do some more research to find the right fit.
 
The contract is signed!!!

I made a few changes:
  • Changed the deep end to 9' (reduced from 9'6"...I am scared of rock as my neighbor directly behind me hit rock on their pool)
  • Added a 6th jet and a second level to the spa
  • Lengthened the raised wall

I thought the pool was perfect Tuesday night when I signed the contract...however, I received the revised 3D pictures today (see below) and I still have concerns about the raised wall not being long enough. It was 17' and I had him stretch it to 22' and thought that would be long enough. It is two levels, the first level is 9" tall and is 3'6" long on both sides and the second level (middle section) is 18" tall and is 15' in length. With the pool just under 40' the raised wall extends a little over half the pool.


12351550143_b3e8ae0666_c.jpg


12351375415_6b2492a61a_c.jpg


12351550753_1b74ef2360_c.jpg


Let me know if the pictures don't show up.

Maybe it is just the angle of the last picture, but it does not look long enough across the back of the pool to me.

How does it look to you?

My other concern is the layout. I tried to show my wife how it was going to fit in the backyard today did not look right.

I called my salesman and he is going to send me some more pictures including one from directly above the pool and give me all of the dimensions to get me comfortable with raised wall and layout. He is being very patient with me...so far. I want to make sure we get everything right before we get too far into the permit process.

Let me know if you see anything else in the design that does not look right to you.
 
I like the design. I do think the raised wall would be better longer, but does not look bad the way it is. You could always compromise on height if budget was a concern with making it longer.

You shouldn't worry about patience with your sales person. You are paying a lot of money, and if you're like me, this won't be the last time you change something. Make sure you are satisfied, and don't worry about what they think.

For placement, I had them send me the 2D drawing, and then I imported it into a free SW program called Sketchup. Then I sized the picture to make the measurements in Sketchup match. Then I could use it to make measurements, trace / move the pool, etc.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Readyforapool said:
That's going to be beautiful! If money is not an object I could see where you might want to extend the wall but it's beautiful like it is.
Click to expand...

Thanks Readyforapool.


bhargraves, how long is your raised wall? It looks like it is going to run along the majority of the back of your pool and looks really nice.

I am definitely going to ask him to extend it. I am thinking it should run at least 3/4 of the back of pool.

Another question: do you like the placement of the light in the shallow end? Would it be better under the tanning ledge pointing at the water feature? We do have a neighbor directly behind us...not sure if the light would bother them.

Thanks for your help.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
To weigh in on the cleaner question in the initial post, we have a robot. We'd talked about trying to revive our hardline port during our reno but now think we will just stick with the robot. If I had my choice, I'd have a backup robot (maybe not as fancy as my Polaris 9300 main robot) for when the main robot has to have repairs. It was a PITA to wait for parts and warranty repair for over a month - you get used to the luxury of dropping the 'bot in and coming back to a clean pool! My 35K gallon pool is in a very leafy area, so the environment will dictate the best robot for your usage, just make sure that the cord and reach of the robot is good for the size of your large pool. Ours plugs in on the porch and the cart stays there, and then the low-voltage line that runs the 'bot has to go across the deck and into the pool, so measure from the power source to the farthest reaches of your pool and make sure you have a little slack.
 
Thanks Mia.

I would like a robotic cleaner because I have read they do a better job cleaning. My concern is they don't last as long and my PB won't plumb a return line for the pool if I go with a robotic cleaner.

Per my PB, my options are:
Pressure side cleaner - Polaris 280 with booster pump
-or-
Robotic cleaner - Pentair Prowler (or something similar)

The reality is that the Polaris 280 would probably work just fine and I could always get a robot later.

Decisions, decisions...
 
We have the Polaris 280 and it's done an amazing job, took care of a lot of leaves and crapola that they dropped into the pool while trying to find the leak. Let me tell you that little puppy can move, had to rescue it from the skimmer when it climbed the wall! I'm sure there's some adjustment I need to make but at the moment since we can't swim, it does provide some pool entertainment! Seriously need warm weather!
 
It is officially off to the city and HOA for permits and approval!

We made a few decisions:
  • Extend the raised wall to 30' in length (see the updated 3D pictures below)
  • Cap the existing patio with new decking
  • Polaris 280 cleaner
  • Keep the second light in the shallow end where it is to light up the entire pool

12471285874_94e28dd52e_c.jpg


12471285204_c9c3470489_c.jpg


12471285694_a1d7eaf9d1_c.jpg


I like the raised wall length better now.

My sales rep sent me a drawing with all of the measurements so I could lay it out in the backyard to show my wife the foot print. We happy with the layout but we are going to have a little less side yard than originally thought...so now we are selling our jungle gym!

After doing more reading on this forum and additional research, we are going to bite the bullet and finish out the backyard all at once instead of breaking it up over multiple projects. So, we are going to add more deck, put in an outdoor kitchen, do the landscaping around the back of the pool and get some quality patio furniture...the budget has been blown away now. The outdoor kitchen will be two heights and will include a green egg, grill and frig. We are adding more deck around the back of the outdoor kitchen for bar stools. It is way too easy to spend money with this project!!!
 
Congratulations! It looks like you have done your homework and made some great choices. The raised wall really adds to the character of the pool.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh Yea. You have a diving board!! Neat!:cool:
 
Well, I got a call from our PB yesterday to ask if this coming Friday works for our dig. I said yes, with a little hesitation because we don't have the permits or HOA approval yet. He said he is not worried about it and thinks we will get them this week. Any concern here? I won't let them start until we have the proper permits and approval.

We have made a few decisions:
  • Neck Roll for the spa - thanks for the idea christopertx! Link to christophertx's neck roll
  • Small tile for the spa (upgrade...of course)
  • Waterline tile
  • Stacked stone for the raised wall and veneer on the outdoor kitchen
  • Purchased grill and refrigerator for outdoor kitchen (I bought it on Friday and it will be delivered on Monday!)

Waterline tile and spa tile

12720585325_5f84012cde_c.jpg


Raised wall and ODK veneer

12720581855_7a5139d237_c.jpg

We went back and forth on the veneer choices 5 or 6 times.

The A/V guys came to the house this weekend and explained to me the possibilities of Sonos! He thinks we should have three zones in the back (one for the TV and covered patio, one for the tanning ledge area and another one for the rest of the pool). It seems really cool as you can control the volume and play something different in all zones...all from your phone or tablet. He is going to send me the quote, but I think I will have the prewire the whole thing and have to do it in stages. This pool thing is expensive!!!

Does anyone have Sonos and use it for their outdoor area and pool?

I sold the playhouse/swing set! It sold for $500 (we paid $2,400 for it back in 2008). Now I need to sell my old grill. Any $$$ to go to the pool fund helps!
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply