Advice on buying an above ground saltwater pool…

Water Melon

Member
Mar 24, 2024
5
Westchester NY
We have three young grandchildren (toddlers) that are learning to swim every Saturday at our local pool. We would like to purchase a high quality above ground saltwater pool to enjoy this coming summer. We have no experience with pools and are looking for recommendations. What type of saltwater pool might be recommended for newbies to enjoy with young kids? And where might we buy the pool?
 
What type of saltwater pool might be recommended for newbies
There's no difference, it's all marketing. The liner seperates 99% of the water from ever touching the top rails or pool shell. Some splashing will never matter for the rest. 'Salt pools' are only a little higher salinity than 'chlorine pools' and 10x less than the ocean.

Now. Any surface imperfections or scratches in the finish on any metal of the pool, or any leaks on 'either' pool, and it's a one way ticket to Rustville.

So there is traditional all metal pools, hybrids with resin top rails/posts and metal walls, and full resin pools that cannot rust ever. Hybrids and Full resins will probably be referred to as saltwater pools and it's all marketing.

If going through the trouble of setting up an above ground pool, full resin is the only way to go IMO. Especially with little kids, you want a guarantee the pool sees them go to college. It might be the only reason they stop by as teens. Lol.

P.S. many members liked their 'saltwater aurora" pool
 
It makes sense to buy the all resin pool so it will stand the test of time
The budget doesn't always allow it, so there is that. But in a perfect world, rust would be a long in the past problem.
What size and shape would you recommend that we buy?
That's too subjective. Circles have the most sq ft to swim in, but ovals allow a couple swim lanes better if you're into structured swimming.

I'm into big pools and would personally go 28 or 30 round, but it all depends on how much pool you wish to care for.
 
We have a one acre yard and we would like to get a pool that will be enjoyed for many years. What size and shape would you recommend that we buy?
Here's a tip for you. Use google earth and find your house. Use the dimension tool to measure your house and property in the backyard. Then use a design or sketch app or graph paper and draw the back of your house and backyard, and make a bunch of copies if it's on paper. Include any big trees, flower beds, sheds and whatnots.

then sketch in different shapes and sizes of pools until you find fits nicely into your yard and what makes you happiest. This is important as a poorly designed pool that is considerably out of scale with the landscape or poorly placed can lower the market value of your house if you decide to sell it. Contrarily a well designed on just might make your place more desirable to a new buyer who wants a pool.

Keep in mind also if you intend to build a wooden deck around part or all of it. If you do, you might consider an oval or rectangle and just deck just one side of it. You can do that with a circle too, but if it's gonna be a good size deck its more labor and math intensive which will cost more money.

Or as some people do, they get a spool of rope and lay it out on the ground to mimick where the pool will be and about the size, then go on top of the house and see how it looks from above. Make any adjustments that you want. Repeat until you are happy.

I say go with 100% resin or composite. It's a no brainer unless keeping cost down is a major factor.
google "above ground pools near me" for dealers in your area. Get at least 3 quotes, but to be consistent, ask each company to quote the same size pool with same equipment and include the installation. Don't worry about brands, makes and models, just consistent specs. And remember, just because a quote is the least expensive does not necessarily its the best value for your money.

Once you have that, everyone here at TFP will be chomping at the bit to help you tweak it until it's perfect. :)
 
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@Divin Dave thanks for sharing your thoughts. Our back yard is large and already fully fenced. We live in Westchester County, NY so the pool season is a short 3 months. Backyard pools are fairly uncommon around here. In our neighborhood, a few people have fancy in-ground outdoor pools and even less have an indoor pool. I don’t know of any neighbors that have an above ground pool, but we want to install something that takes less time and that could be removed at some point years in the future when we decide to sell the house. I would guess that an above ground pool would very likely reduce the market value of a house in this upscale neighborhood, so removal prior to selling would likely be the path that we would want to follow.
 
The chiming in, all good advice upto this point. One other aspect not mentioned is the equipment to keep the pool sanitary and pretty and that's where the above ground pool customers fall short. To keep price lower they'll give you sub-par equipment which doesn't always make pool care easy so, along with the list of quotes get an exact detailed model numbered equipment list for us to advise with.
 
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We are thinking an oval shape, 15’ by 30’ is what we might choose. And all resin so it will last.

We are looking at the:
15'x30'x54" Saltwater Aurora Oval Pool with Resin Composite Wall $7,121.00
From The Pool Factory

We need to decide on the liner, the skimmer, the filter and the all the other accessories. Where do we get advice on those decisions?

Is this pool durable and reliable? A reasonable choice?
 
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