New Pool - Deck Build

[mrramsey]

Now that the pool is installed I am building the deck. Not going too large since my existing deck is already 22x34. For our first Pool we went with a 24' round AG for a few reasons. First off was resale of our home. Since homes is north eastern Ohio with pools are a relatively low demand I didn't think it would be appropriate for our current home. Our yard is fairly flat so the site prep was minimal and only required about a 5" dig to level. I would have liked to have done a partial inground option but thinking again about resale I opted to keep it simple. The deck design in fact is an overlay onto our existing deck and the support beam at the pool will be free floating.

My design of the whole project makes removing the pool and deck a very easy process in the event that the new owners would not want a pool or required the removal of the pool as part of the deal. So by removing some bolts and anchors, tearing down the pool and spreading 5 yards of topsoil the house returns to its original state. Hindsight being what it is I wish I would have dug about 4" deeper for the pool. That would have eliminated one step .

Pics coming in the next post.

 

[mrramsey]

Pics

This is not my most recent drawinig but you get the idea. It is ~12'x~14'

 

[Casey]

Looks good! Keep the pics coming!

 

[mrramsey]

Wasted 2 hours of my day wiring up a new digital timer for the pool. It turns out it was a defective unit. Should have just stuck with a mechanical unit.

 

[Casey]

Hate wasting a day!

 

[mrramsey]

Its all fixed up now. I am running 3 4 hour cycles on low speed.

My little tower of power LOL

 

[Casey]

Tower of Power!

 

[mrramsey]

Re: New Pool - Timer

Well the Timer seems to be doing its job. I heard it turn on at 8:00am just like it was supposed to. It is now running 12 hours per day instead of 24. I upped my chlorine rate on the dispenser to compensate for the 12 hours until this trichlor cartridge is empty then switching to bleach and the TFP method.

The lumber gets delivered today so I can start building the deck. Oh how quickly we tire of the rickety a frame ladder that came with the pool. I imagine I will have a good part of the framing done today barring any weather disruptions.

 

[mrramsey]

Pre deck construction pics.

 

[mrramsey]

Forget building today... Rain and a late delivery of material. This is when I really miss owning a truck.

 

[R.J.]

"until this trichlor cartridge is empty then switching to bleach and the TFP method." If you know what trichlor is, how it affects your pool and when to use it, you're already using the TFP method.

 

[mrramsey]

Got the joist all installed.

Not to add blocking and then decking.

 

[Mike59]

Love seeing construction pictures. It's coming along great!

 

[mtucker]

Looks good. Just saw your message aqnd replied.

 

[Casey]

How's the deck coming along?

 

[mrramsey]

How's the deck coming along?

Progress was a little slow this week, had a birthday party and s dinner with friends. I did get the decking started yesterday.

 

[mac.dblues]

Looking good. Can't wait to see it finished.

 

[Augie56]

Nice pool and design for the deck.

Couple of questions, though....

What is your clear span for your floor joists? They are 2x8's? By your sketch, looks like the span could be close to 10'.....you might not like the up and down "play" you get with that much span for a 2x8. The solid blocking you installed halfway down the span will help distribute the load, though.

You have one beam near the pool, but where's the other beam? Looks like you hung the joists using metal hangers (good) on the front face board? Also, are the short posts on the front side sitting on the original deck posts/beams?

Also, I don't see much in the way of anchoring.....there doesn't look to be much holding the deck in place. You wouldn't want the whole thing scooting up against your pool wall, or even worse, coming off the ground in a bad wind/rain storm?

Don't misunderstand my comment.....I don't mean to be pointing out possibly negative things or deficiencies, but these are areas that should be addressed so that you're happy with the finished product and that the finished product doesn't damage your pool or anyone nearby.

 

[mrramsey]

Nice pool and design for the deck.

Couple of questions, though....

What is your clear span for your floor joists? They are 2x8's? By your sketch, looks like the span could be close to 10'.....you might not like the up and down "play" you get with that much span for a 2x8. The solid blocking you installed halfway down the span will help distribute the load, though.

You have one beam near the pool, but where's the other beam? Looks like you hung the joists using metal hangers (good) on the front face board? Also, are the short posts on the front side sitting on the original deck posts/beams?

Also, I don't see much in the way of anchoring.....there doesn't look to be much holding the deck in place. You wouldn't want the whole thing scooting up against your pool wall, or even worse, coming off the ground in a bad wind/rain storm?

Don't misunderstand my comment.....I don't mean to be pointing out possibly negative things or deficiencies, but these are areas that should be addressed so that you're happy with the finished product and that the finished product doesn't damage your pool or anyone nearby.

Hi Auggie, Thanks for the comments. I am a carpenter by trade though now work in the estimating software realm. You are correct that I used 2x8 joists and the actual span is about 11'. The mid span bridging makes it much more solid and brings the deflection to an acceptable limit. If I decide I need more I can add another beam to stiffen it and post directly on top of another set of posts which are below the blocking. The short posts are directly on top of the existing posts. If you notice the original deck (whom ever built it) applied the rim joist to the face of the posts . I went directly on top so as to eliminate any additional shear load. The posts are anchored to the original structure (not all installed yet). The sides of the new structure will be solid down to the ground / existing deck thus minimizing the uplift potential. There will be additional cable anchors from the beam back to the original structure.

 

[Griswald]

Do you have to have that deck inspoected? A lot of places are putting a large emphesis on deck safety and any deck needs to be inspected. Yours wouldn't pass...not where I am.