Hi friendly folks!
I am finally getting around to opening and setting up a new Summer Escapes 19'x52" that we've had in our basement for 3 years.
I have some questions about it and would love some feedback from the experienced.
First off ground preparation, after reading some other threads I really like the idea of using rigid foam instead of sand under the pool. I'm thinking of using 1.5" thick foam and would start by laying it down and joining it with gorilla tape. Then we would erect the frame of the pool and cut out under the posts to set in 1.5" pavers. Do you think 1.5" thick material is appropriate? As you can see from the pictures, the yard was sloping into the corner about 8" over 20' so I've been digging down the high side and moving it to the low side. It's looks pretty ugly currently because I was out there in the rain today skimming down some of the high points. It was so much easier when wet and what a leg work out with 10 pound of mud on the boots! Anyways, when it drys up I expect to clean it up with a rake. The ground is a mixture of clay and rock. When the pool is installed I don't think there will be much access to the pavers on the sod side of the pool to make any adjustments if necessary. Should that worry me?
Secondly, the Summer Escapes pump/filter seems to be an inferior product. I haven't yet opened up the box to confirm the size of the pump but if it's similar to what other SE owners have started out with on their smaller pools I'm definitely going to upgrade it. What would you guys suggest? I friend suggested saltwater over chlorine so would I be looking for a saltwater system that includes a larger pump? Any specific make/model? How much should a decent system cost? Excuse my ignorance here if these questions are dumb, I'm in elementary pool school here never having done this before.
That's it for now, I know I'll have more questions later.
Thanks so much!
Ron
I am finally getting around to opening and setting up a new Summer Escapes 19'x52" that we've had in our basement for 3 years.
I have some questions about it and would love some feedback from the experienced. First off ground preparation, after reading some other threads I really like the idea of using rigid foam instead of sand under the pool. I'm thinking of using 1.5" thick foam and would start by laying it down and joining it with gorilla tape. Then we would erect the frame of the pool and cut out under the posts to set in 1.5" pavers. Do you think 1.5" thick material is appropriate? As you can see from the pictures, the yard was sloping into the corner about 8" over 20' so I've been digging down the high side and moving it to the low side. It's looks pretty ugly currently because I was out there in the rain today skimming down some of the high points. It was so much easier when wet and what a leg work out with 10 pound of mud on the boots! Anyways, when it drys up I expect to clean it up with a rake. The ground is a mixture of clay and rock. When the pool is installed I don't think there will be much access to the pavers on the sod side of the pool to make any adjustments if necessary. Should that worry me?
Secondly, the Summer Escapes pump/filter seems to be an inferior product. I haven't yet opened up the box to confirm the size of the pump but if it's similar to what other SE owners have started out with on their smaller pools I'm definitely going to upgrade it. What would you guys suggest? I friend suggested saltwater over chlorine so would I be looking for a saltwater system that includes a larger pump? Any specific make/model? How much should a decent system cost? Excuse my ignorance here if these questions are dumb, I'm in elementary pool school here never having done this before.
That's it for now, I know I'll have more questions later.
Thanks so much!
Ron
