Hello/ about to renovate!

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JonathanD

JonathanD

0
In The Industry
May 20, 2015
57
Cape Coral, FL
Hello TFP, I am Jonathan, my wife and I purchased a house (our 2nd) in Cape Coral, Fl with a pool (our 1st). Finally have the money and are ready to get the ball rolling on renovating the deck (river rock :ncool: ) and resurfacing the plaster which is pretty rough. Have a few estimates I am happy with...well as happy as you can be writing a check, around $5k for the pool (roughly 18k gallons) and tile, and around $3k for the large deck area, which will be stamped concrete. Have a couple of questions, well I have a million, but I will start with these.

1. The PB uses Florida Stucco pool finishes and quoted me with their petite finishes. He highly recommended staying away from anything without a white cement background. That narrows me down to the petite pearl, petite silver, and the mosaic as a small up charge which I am leaning toward. Has anyone had experience with these finishes or company?

2A. My pump and cartridge filter are around 15 years old if not older, is it worth footing the bill now when the pool will be fresh for a new pump and filter system?
2B. Is it worth a VS pump or is a 2 speed enough? It is a one return system, main "drain" does not do anything, no waterfalls or anything but 3 jets and a skimmer. Currently has a 1hp Century Centurion motor..not sure of the pump.

3. The current pool is set up is in this order. River rock, to a 2x6 cap til,e to a waterline tile, to the pool finish. I hate this, I do not want a cap tile (unless someone can show me it done right). I would much rather the concrete extend to or over hang the waterline tile. Is this a lot more labor, or worth it? Would a border of pavers be cheaper?

4. Tile, pool finish, and deck colors may be the end of me....help, pictures appreciated with similar set ups. No glass tiles to custom rock deck pictures... not for another 20 years.

Ill stop here with the questions to keep it somewhat organized. Thank you all for the help and suggestions.
 
A picture is...can we see a pic please? To see what you are starting with? You know what it looks like, we don't.
When you say cap tile, do you mean coping, the border of stone or brick usually seen around the border of the pool and around 12" wide?
Cantilever decking is what you mention that you like where the concrete is the decking and goes right over the pool wall. It will always be cheaper because it eliminates a labor intensive step and uses a material typically cheaper than the coping.
On item 1 above, the PB may be suggesting only using a plaster type finish with a white cement because darker finishes of any type have a higher chance of being streaky or having mottling. Though the chance may not be that high overall and is reduced by the quality of the installers.
 
Will snap and post pictures tomorrow afternoon. Its dark now and will be dark when I wake up and go to work lol. Understood though!

Yes I mean the coping, its a few inches tall, curved, and around 6 inches long. Between the river rock and the waterline tile.

I dont know why I never thought about the costs canceling each other out, its either one or the other. Cantilever or tile :neutral: Its past my bedtime.

That is what the PB was suggesting...I will roll with it because I do not really want a deep color anyway.
 
Welcome to TFP! Renovation threads are so fun! I enjoy it being so different from what I'm doing - a new pool build.

I can't help you with any of the technical aspects, but I can at least welcome you! This is such a great place to get information, support, and encouragement. And fun, too!

There's something that really strikes me about your pool. I'm not sure what it is that appeals - maybe the lines, the color of the water, or that it's somewhat retro. But I'm really drawn to it.

And the house looks really cool, too! I love all those aches across the back. I hope you guys are having fun fixing things up and putting your own stamp on everything!

No worries about the pups in the photos. Most of us would agree, those are our favorite pictures.

Do the dogs like to swim? I can't wait to see more! Take care. Suz.
 
Jonathan -

I am relatively new, so please take my advice with a grain of salt.

As bmoreswim mentioned, the edge that you are looking for is called a cantilever. You can Google "cantilever edge pool" and look at the images. Cantilever edge are much cheaper than other type of coping because it's poured as part of your deck. Then they form it to the shape. One thing you might want to ask your pool builder is what shaoe they have for the cantilever profile.

When I had my deck poured, rebar and remesh were not included in pricing of the concrete deck. They PB was going to charge me $1/sqft for rebar that was 30"x30" grid. I ended up putting in my own rebar at 18x18 for about $350 in parts. If you do go with rebar, watch when they pour the concrete. In my case, they kept on stepping on the rebar, which push it down. I had to keep reminding them to pull the rebar up. BTW - I asked both the project manager and the concrete guy - if it was their pool, would they go with rebar. Both of them said that if it was their pool, there would be no question about putting in rebars.

When I moved into my house, the pool equipment (pump and filter) were very old. I can tell you that when I upgrade my pump (single speed) and filter (much larger filter) - my electricity bill dropped and the pool stayed cleaner. I used to run my pump for 3 hours per day. For my current remodel, I am going with a VS pump but using the same filter. I am guessing that I will be running the pump for a longer period of time.

For my concrete finish, I went with stamped concrete. The stamp on the cantilever edge and the stamp on the rest of the concrete were different stamp - just to make the cantilever edge stand out a little. It's actually pretty subtle difference.

If you want to see more of my pool build, it's at http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/92224-Pool-Remodel-in-Northern-California
 
I have to say I like how your pool looks now. A power washer and some bleach would clean it up just right.

The filter looks small but I am not an expert of filters so......

Do you have a good test kit yet? That is the first thing you should buy for you pool. I know the poo store will test your water for free but is it really free if you end up buying all kinds of stuff to "fix" your pool. Look in my siggy for a link to the test kits we use.

Here at TFP the thing you will buy the most of will be bleach/chlorine and maybe muratic acid. Here is some reading to help you understand the whats and whys.

http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/123-abc-of-pool-water-chemistry

Thanks for the pics of the dogs. We love pics and if they have a dog it is like a bonus! LOL

Kim
 
Thanks guys!

If you look at the waterline, just below it is a slightly darker line all the way around the pool. That is where the pool finish eroded, I believe from the previous owner who left the pool to die. From what I can figure the water was low for an extended period of time. There are also some good size chips off the finish by the stairs, and a shoddy patch job around the jets. Also, the river rock is shot, you cant walk out there without shoes. So....new it is!

I will be getting a bigger filter, and most likely a VS pump.

I will be getting the tf pool test kit as soon as we get the project rolling.

There is a leak detection company in the pool right now, seemed easy insurance for my worried mind before they pour a skim coat over the river rock and plaster the pool.

I would say "likes" to swim is an understatement, but his favorite thing is to jump in. Over and over and over....

 

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Hi JonathanD, just wanted to welcome you to TFP! I just gotta say I have a real good feeling about a guy named JonathanD. It's just a great name, really a fantastic name overall ;)

Anyway, I wish you luck with the renovations. Some of the most knowledgeable people in the pool world are on this forum IMO, so don't be afraid to ask for questions or opinions. I can promise you the requests for pictures won't stop so don't hesitate to pull out the camera.

I know right now you are mainly worried about getting things up and running, but if you get some downtime you should definitely check out the Pool School to get an idea what we are all about on the chemical side of things. It will help you keep the water looking as fantastic as your upgraded pool will!
 
Thanks for the welcome guys. I can only wonder what your first name is Donldson!

I cruised through pool school, great amount of information, so nice to have it all in one place. I wouldn't say I graduated but I will get there once I get to physicaly testing. I have a basic Taylor kit I have been working with, but will start using a more comprehensive tf soon.

As for the pup, Jackson. He just jumps for the heck of it. Non stop, no toys needed. Jump, splash, swim one lap, and repeat until exhaustion. He is the lifeguard also, he doesnt leave anything or toys floating without rescuing it to the deck. The little one figured this out and constasntly pushes toys in just to watch the big one reacue it. Hours of entertainment.
 
That's terrific! What a great fit the two are together. The little one can probably push toys in the pool endlessly, and Jackson loves saving them over and over! And me? I could watch the two of them all day long! What a great dog to have! Definitely Man's Best Friend! Have a great weekend! Suz.
 
Well it looks like I am going to have to deal with the cap tile, since the deck will be poured over the river rock as a skim coat, the cantilever edge is out. I am going to try and match the color of the deck to the color of the cap tile. For the waterline I think we may be leaning toward this one http://luvtile.com/index.cfm/product/413_22/qrz-blue.cfm with a pool finish that is white plaster with blue accents.

But the idea of this tile http://luvtile.com/index.cfm/product/907_210/iso-elba.cfm with a finish with a silver or sand accent (which goes with the green a little better) is growing on me, would also save me $500 on the "upgrade" to the blue mosaic finish.
'
 
BOTH are SO pretty you could not go wrong with either one!

Have you thought of NOT matching the color of the deck to the cap tile? If you go darker or lighter in the same family that would be good.

See I am worried if you try to match it...........it will not match and not look as good. So go for a contrast.

Just an idea.

Kim
 
I have thought about that too. I am kind of blown away that I can only find ONE pool on the internet that is set up the way mine is. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Feandmpools.com%2Fcap_tile&ei=BgBmVZnzG8HxsAX1noGoCg&bvm=bv.93990622,d.b2w&psig=AFQjCNGVG0pO7mOcgT0ZNyeqlTWUpw23vQ&ust=1432834440387474. 2nd picture down...that now wont expand.... Of course my concrete company is very against concrete coping or anything else besides bringing the deck to the "cap" tile (remember, its a skim coating over river rock for the deck). I need multiple examples, does anyone know of anyone with this "style" pool.
 

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