Are Doughboys the best AGP?

Jump to latest Follow Reply
M

mattsarah04

0
May 28, 2018
12
Illinois
Lol! I don't mean to upset anyone....It just seems in my "research" online there is a lot of talk about how great Doughboys are. We are currently replacing our 27 ft. Ester Williams pool that came with the house when we moved in 4 years ago. It has been difficult to find information online to compare brands.

1. are they much different from Embassy or Lomart, both made by the same company as Doughboy?

2. Would replacing a 27ft with a 28ft pool be a huge undertaking in terms of excavating? our current pool is about 6 to 12 inch in the ground. We plan to have someone install it, but are wondering about cost

3. Can all pool brands handle a 6ft dig out in the middle...our current pool has one and we love it!

4. What about Resin tracks and top rails? Do I need to worry about them cracking? We live in Illinois and our winters can get brutal.


Thank you in advance...so many questions! and I know this is just the beginning of them ;)
 
I am no help in comparing Doughboy with another brand since this is our first pool 5 years ago, but have had 1 issue.

After 2.5 years the liner had a major seam separation in early spring , 2 areas of 6 inch release.
Doughboy said it was due to excessive chlorine amounts, should be no higher than 2PPM.

Did not warranty, installer from Cedar Rapids Iowa replaced liner with percentage off.

My FC level at the time was kept 9 ppm with CYA at 80ppm, Doughboy wanted no part of it, although pool store sells Biogaurd silk sticks to throw in skimmer each week?
With the TFP method CYA/FC relationship, I have no hope in ever getting warranty out of a liner fail though they claim many years warranty since FC levels will always be higher than 2PPM.

No problems whatso ever on structure of pool, all metal.
No rust, manual says one thing, but they do add a separate sheet of paper disclaimer that says no salt generator or all warranty is void.
They don't play games. If you will be using Doughboy sold equipment, such as Aquaview sand filter, and the pump they sell, you will have to buy most repair parts directly from them, and only from Doughboy dealers in your state.
 
Doughboy has a history of making some very strong long lasting pools, as pointed out above they are not without theirs faults but really every company has something to complain about.

I don't know if any above ground pool is "The best." As a brand doughboy is probably is one of the ones towards the top of the list.

Another brand at the top of the list would be Radiant Pools. They are another easily identifiable brand.

Otherwise brand names can be very confusing with pools. There are a lot of "brands" that are sold by pool retailers that are actually the same pool made by the same factory just with different paint. So saying one is better than another can be difficult.

In general with above ground pools you will get what you pay for. A more expensive pool frame should be better built and last longer. The cost of the pool its almost directly related to the quality of the materials used to make the pool. There is some marketing and brand premium mark up here and there but you can separate that out by shopping around.
 
CJadamec said:
In general with above ground pools you will get what you pay for. A more expensive pool frame should be better built and last longer. The cost of the pool its almost directly related to the quality of the materials used to make the pool. There is some marketing and brand premium mark up here and there but you can separate that out by shopping around.
Click to expand...

I'll give you a fairly decent example of shopping around for significant price differences. I had spent a few months researching for "the best" above ground pool and found Doughboy, Radiant, Swim'n Play, Intex, Wilkes, etc. After looking into it more and more, I decided to go with Swim'n Play because they had a fairly solid reputation and the prices were more reasonable that the Doughboy models we looked at. So we starting shopping for a 24' round Serenade model.

But after getting a quote from three official Swim'n Play dealers in my area, the prices were WAAAAY different. My local store in Fuquay was $4499, the store about 25 miles north was $4199 and the store in Sanford (about 30 miles west) was $3599. Even though the installer that the Sanford store normally used said he couldn't "come out that far", I bought the pool from the Sanford store and brought it home in my wife's Ford F-150 last week. That's a difference of $900 just for driving 45 minutes out of my way. Like my momma used to say.... "We ain't rich!"
 
Doughboy- Pearl River
Aqua Leader- Quantum
Vogue- Revelation (Aluminum)
Sharkline- Heritage
Lomart- Silver Sierra


All of these are 27' except the Doughboy it's 28'. We have an existing deck, but it looks like that will be replaced. Our existing pool is several inches in the ground. Would a lot of extra excavation need to be done if we go with a 28'?

Any of your thoughts on these pools would be wonderful...it's hard for me to tell if we are comparing apples to apples. The Doughboy is the highest...by far...quote we have gotten. Pool, heater, liner, vac head, backwash hose, skim net, pool brush, thermometer, filter and cove came in at $10,200.

I just want to get the best bang for our buck for our family and not have to do this again anytime soon;)
 
Doughboy- Pearl River
Aqua Leader- Quantum
Vogue- Revelation (Aluminum)
Sharkline- Heritage
Lomart- Silver Sierra


All of these are 27' except the Doughboy it's 28'. We have an existing deck, but it looks like that will be replaced. Our existing pool is several inches in the ground. Would a lot of extra excavation need to be done if we go with a 28'?

Any of your thoughts on these pools would be wonderful...it's hard for me to tell if we are comparing apples to apples. The Doughboy is the highest...by far...quote we have gotten. Pool, heater, liner, vac head, backwash hose, skim net, pool brush, thermometer, filter and cove came in at $10,200.

I just want to get the best bang for our buck for our family and not have to do this again anytime soon:wink:
 
The Doughboy sounds way to expensive you didn't mention it but I hope that includes the pump. Also what type of heater? Also the extra digging for the doughboy will not be a small undertaking. An extra foot of digging is roughly the same as digging a 90ft long trench 1 foot wide and as deep as the pool is currently sunk into the ground.

All of the other pools are perfectly fine. The doughboy is too but 10k sounds expensive. My pool which is totally made from aluminum with a heat pump and all the other stuff was around 6500 installed.

I could see 10k for a radiant pool but they have panelized and insulated walls.

The sharkline is popular but is also the least expensive I'm guessing.

The other 3 I'm guessing were all in the middle close to the same price with probably the Vogue being the more expensive because of the aluminum wall.

If it were me I would go with either the Aqua leader, Vogue, or Lomart. They all have higher end materials which will help them last much longer.
 
I went back and found my invoices
electrical install,2 power posts from house, 2 GFI each,
to pool, 2,025.00
gulfstream heater, 3,195 delivered
pool installed ' copper canyon" with equipment as in my signature. 10,646

roughly 15,000 for everything
when done.

Not as much competition in the Midwest
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
A little late on a reply but I am very partial to Doughboy and have never had any issues. On my 2nd one. First one was a used one we bought for $300, moved from that house, 2nd one in my new house was also used off Craigslist, $1,000. (you can see my build in my signature) My next door neighbor has a Doughboy that he found in a barn over 20 years ago. It was probably 10 plus years old then. It's still going strong. I'm sure there are other great brands out there and I'm no expect but Doughboy does have a great reputation of build and longevity. I probably wouldn't own anything else.
 
Like MRDBBD above - CERTAINLY no expert, merely been reading voraciously on here for the past year from which I claim zero authority, just a bunch of ideas and information the EXPERTS and SEASONED owners put out there for us.

But like MRDBBD above we 'acquired' a Doughboy that was who knows how old, abandoned, left to die in someone's back yard (it came with their house).
But they DON'T seem to die. We dismantled it, drove across town, left the pieces in the yard for a year for the scrub to swallow (Sulphur Springs in NE Texas - the weeds don't play nice), then built it last year.
Fantastic. Love it. No problems. Would never have had a pool without those circumstances. Now have a 24' round Doughboy, strong enough to take a person's weight sitting on the wall, for $2000 :whoot::swim: (liner, sand, underfloor pad, digger (recessed into the higher side of a steeply-sloping 'back 40').


ON the digging front:
The 90 foot trench a foot wide you need to take 27' up to 28' - and I'm sure I'm late and you've done your pool by now! - at a 1 foot depth involves shifting a further 40 or so cubic feet of dirt. Of course, 6 inches would be half that.
 
Resurrecting this thread.
Local Great Escape sales guy told me their top of the line (Seascape Pool Terrain Series) is made by parent company of Doughboy (Hoffinger Industries) and is just as good, but is more compatible with 3rd party components (eg filter baskets, fencing), I wouldnt be tied to JUST using Doughboy parts/dealers.
Any comments on the above, appreciated! thanks
 
  • Like
Reactions: Eldemac
My DB Desert Spring 16'x24' is supposed to go in this weekend. (replacing the Zodiac Muskin that was here when we bought 11 yrs ago).

After quite a few trials and tribulations, I went directly to DB and asked for their recommendation on dealer.
I'm not replacing any equipment as everything I have is <5yrs old (except the stairs... like new)
For the DB installed, upgraded skimmer, beaded liner, foam cove, foam bottom, painting walls at bottom (moisture blocker)… I'm at well under $6K
That includes multiple Jandy valves for the plumbing. I would guess with the size difference between our pools & you needing to buy new equipment you could still get the job completed for ~$8500

I'm in the Chicagoland area as well. Best of luck in your search.
Respectfully,
 
Pablo,
I suppose your point of single source of supply is valid to a point. However, having parts "made to fit" can be a benefit as well. In the last 11yrs, I've gone through my own share of pool equipment; some manufacturer specific & some not. Some times it was worth it but, often it was not. Many of the generic items bought on Amazon or local pool store was just garbage (skimmer baskets that didn't last a day, return eyeballs that wouldn't hold a position are just a couple examples)
Often times the actual parts that need replacing aren't with the pool at all but, the other equipment (heater, filter, pump) and often they are manufacturer only... guess I just don't see exactly how much one would save by having a pool that accepts generic parts.

As far as The Great Escape representatives story. I have 2 neighbors and a immediate family member that have purchased & installed pools with TGE within the last 3 yrs... the issues that they all had, were the single most important factor in me opting for a DB.

Glad you're satisfied with your pool... in the end that's all that matters.
Respectfully,
 
Panzer said:
Pablo,
I suppose your point of single source of supply is valid to a point. However, having parts "made to fit" can be a benefit as well. In the last 11yrs, I've gone through my own share of pool equipment; some manufacturer specific & some not. Some times it was worth it but, often it was not. Many of the generic items bought on Amazon or local pool store was just garbage (skimmer baskets that didn't last a day, return eyeballs that wouldn't hold a position are just a couple examples)
Often times the actual parts that need replacing aren't with the pool at all but, the other equipment (heater, filter, pump) and often they are manufacturer only... guess I just don't see exactly how much one would save by having a pool that accepts generic parts.

As far as The Great Escape representatives story. I have 2 neighbors and a immediate family member that have purchased & installed pools with TGE within the last 3 yrs... the issues that they all had, were the single most important factor in me opting for a DB.

Glad you're satisfied with your pool... in the end that's all that matters.
Respectfully,
Click to expand...
Can I ask what issues your neighbors have had with TGE? My 5 year old aqualeader sentinelle, 33' round has major issues. 3 small rust holes, all the way thru pool wall. Drained it, cut liner to see if it was worth fixing wall and installing new liner. There's rust spots and white flakey areas all over pool wall. I'm so disappointed.
 
Lsjanjan said:
Can I ask what issues your neighbors have had with TGE? My 5 year old aqualeader sentinelle, 33' round has major issues. 3 small rust holes, all the way thru pool wall. Drained it, cut liner to see if it was worth fixing wall and installing new liner. There's rust spots and white flakey areas all over pool wall. I'm so disappointed.
Click to expand...

(2) had issues during the installation. Installers trying to 'pad' the install fee. Things not lining up properly.
Family member had skimmer leaking into wall from the start. No failures like you've stated but of those (3) pools I mentioned only (1) is >3 yrs old.

I wish you luck in getting yours repaired .
Respectfully,
 
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