Backyard Renovation - The Fun Begins

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Well, it happens, should have prepared better.

This is what it looked like by about 11am this morning:

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And by about 5pm:

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I can't find any permanent damage, so I got out okay on that one. I filled up the deep end tonight, but there are way too many wrinkles. The water comes out of the well at sub 50 degrees, which makes the vinyl a little less pliable. I'm going to get the sump pump out tomorrow, drain it down a bit and see if I can get it a little warmer to work with. Plus I have a sunlight bottom, which makes for another challenge in getting things all lined out...
 
Well, once the walls are up, it's a bit of a "you have to keep going" kind of thing, so I did that today throughout the day...

Drained the water I had in the deep end and started over. What a difference the sun makes...a warm vinyl is an easy to work with one.

Observations:

1) If you want a deep end, go with a SINGLE color liner. I originally ordered a swirled liner that was supposed to be all the same, but they shipped the wrong one and made me an offer I couldn't refuse (basically, I got the liner for 30% of (not off) retail.) Trying to line everything up perfectly was pretty hard.
2) The Shadebuilder procedure for doing a deep end works really well, even for a guy like me who has never done it before. This is the page I used: http://www.shadebuilder.com/Expandable-Liner-Installation.html
3) With a deep end you WILL have wrinkles, but using the method above and being patient, you can control them. I ended up with a fairly large "fold" I made on the corners of each side where the deep end starts and then 2 small ones that I negotiated right to the front of the pool (this is where the stairs will be, so they'll be covered. I've got one area where the wall is being little fussy, but I'm hoping I can work that wrinkle out when it gets more filled.
4) The 1" snow foam I used feels great. The deep end was a huge pain, but it all worked out. I used like 12 full 4x8 sheets, so about $120. I only used about 6 wheelbarrows of sand for basic leveling and that was it. I also used the same stuff I put on the walls (the aluminum wrapped bubble insulation) to smooth out the seams.

All in all, I'm really happy so far as it fills up. Coping strips are on, 2nd skimmer (for solar heater) is cut and return installed, retailing rails in, so just the final railing to do, and plumb it all up.

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1zuggy said:
Oh, I forgot to ask - should we rent some equipment to move the hot tub from the curb to the backyard? I was planning on recruiting about ten guys to assist, or maybe even hire a professional installer who could move it to its proper place. What's your suggestion?
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Our current spa is pretty big, 8' X 8' and fairly deep. We can't get any heavy equipment into the back yard. Two guys from the spa co. rolled it (it was well braced and rolled on its side) across gravel drive and narrow sidewalk around two sides of house and through a couple of very narrow spaces between the pool and house and then up on to the deck (step up is about 8") (our Trex deck has plenty of support as the underside is 12" centers, steel pier and beam). They used several PVC pipes as "rollers". When one or two roll out the back place them in the front, and so on and so forth. I used this idea when I had to move several 1/2 ton banana plants, in big containers, all by myself. I used large pieces of cardboard on the gravel driveway but I think they used 2 X 4s.

I think the main issue is unloading it from the delivery truck. In our case the actual manufacturer delivered it as they are located in our area. So they are well set up for the loading and unloading. I can't remember how much ours weighed, but I know it was really heavy. It has two 5 HP pumps, one circulation pump, and the big blower, all adding a lot of weight.

If you get too many people "helping" someone is probably going to get pinched/squashed fingers/hands/toes/feet. :cry: :wink:

I can't remember how they lowered it from being on its side. :scratch: On the Trex deck I can scoot it around a bit myself, when it is empty.

gg=alice
 
geekgranny - thanks so much for your advice...I think we may just utilize this method for moving the hot tub. It was ordered on 6-3-10, and we're still awaiting word from Costco that it has been shipped. We ordered a bar to place right up against the hot tub (I'm not crazy about the appearance of hot tubs' cabinets), and it will be delivered tomorrow. I'm pretty anxious to receive word on the hot tub deliver. Below is a link to the awesome bar we ordered...we'll not be using it has a two-sided table since it will be right up against the side of the hot tub (notice the flames in the middle of the granite counter top):

http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.as ... 96&topnav=
 
That bar is pretty cool. Just remember that you'll need to be able to move the bar out of the way to get to the access panels in the tub (the sides.) That was an issue for me as I design/build the deck. The panels come off pretty easily, but I wanted to make sure I can get under there. If you're doing permanent piping for the flames, just make sure you allow enough slack so you can move the bar when needed.
 
Nice, 1zuggy. Congratulations. :whoot: Our spa surround is cedar. We didn't get a stain on it when we ordered it and have let it go natural and only use Thompson's water protectant that allows the wood to grey. But I still have to scrub it every couple of years which lightens it again to a faded cedar color so........ I'm thinking about giving it a really good scrubbing and putting a medium grey, penetrating stain, non-opaque, to finally get it the right color. We've had it for 8 years now and the wood won't do what we want "naturally".

At any rate I like our wood surround as we are pretty rustic here. Not sure I'd like a synthetic surround, even though it is sitting on a grey Trex deck. Is your new spa synthetic surround?

We had a cedar table ledge added to one side of the spa surround and it really comes in handy for drinks, ashtrays, small hand towels, etc., etc. The ledge does get a little in the way when cleaning the spa and putting on the top if done from that side (steps on opposite side). When I'm ready to get out of spa I usually run the microfiber "hand towel" around the water line and ledge, so the side with ledge table doesn't need cleaning often, but it is a little more hassle when I drain and clean the spa, every few months. During warm weather I just get in the spa but in winter the hose water is too cold. A microfiber mop helps.

We look forward to pictures.

gg=alice
 

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beartoothweb - thanks for the access panel reminder. we are allowing the hot tub to be 6 feet away from our fence, and figured we'd put the access panel side toward that area. Please tell me that we only need that one side for access? Either way, the bar can be moved, but I did originally plan on that 6 feet of room for repairs, etc. The gas for the flame is coming from a propane tank stored underneath the bar cabinet, so this will not be a permanent fixture in our yard. Please keep your pictures coming...it's giving me hope that we'll be done at some point, and I love seeing the progress.

geekgranny - yes, the spa is synthetic, it is the exact same model shown in beeartoothweb's pictures, purchased from Costco. I like your way of thinking; I also originally wanted a table ledge along the side, but then I found the bar at Coscto.com and thought it would make a nice addition.

I was working on our landscape plan today...we had it professionally designed (I just had a few choices to make). This is getting me sooooo ready. I simply cannot wait for our pool build to be finished so I can enjoy my yard again.
 
1zuggy said:
beartoothweb - thanks for the access panel reminder. we are allowing the hot tub to be 6 feet away from our fence, and figured we'd put the access panel side toward that area. Please tell me that we only need that one side for access? Either way, the bar can be moved, but I did originally plan on that 6 feet of room for repairs, etc. The gas for the flame is coming from a propane tank stored underneath the bar cabinet, so this will not be a permanent fixture in our yard. Please keep your pictures coming...it's giving me hope that we'll be done at some point, and I love seeing the progress.
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All four sides have access panels (2 each), I'm sure you could access most of what you need through one or 2 sides, but only if you're a spelunker...it would require you to crawl around in there. The electrical and major systems are all one one side, for the most part, but I'm planning for relatively easy access to all 4 sides.

Finished the assembly of the pool, but had to do some drywall work in the basement, so I'll wait for deck materials to show up.

I just have one skimmer operating right now through the solar, and it's heating up nicely, actually. Need a bunch of plumbing materials to finish the plumbing.

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Just when you think you're making progress...

I had a bit of a major accident tonight. Thank God I wasn't hurt, but now I know how to get out of a vehicle if I ever drop one in the lake. I was digging the post holes for the deck at the time.

I was more than 3' from the edge, which should have been plenty, but it wasn't. the right rear tire went, and off I went, 5' down and into the pool. The pool actually broke my fall, which was a huge blessing.

Some would say this is an argument against burying the pool, but I'd disagree. If the pool hadn't been buried, and something similar happened, there'd be 12000 gallons of water in my basement home theater and workout room right now.

I'm hopeful that the liner isn't totally torn. The outward appearance isn't a huge deal as the whole thing is going to be covered in a deck, so as long as it's structurally sound. I'll get the liner out tomorrow and see what it looks like.

Pics:

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How we got it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FaGjmGvfHo
 
I tell ya, those little harbor freight sump pumps are amazing. Woke up this morning, all the water is gone from the hole (except what's in the mud), and all things considered, at first glance the pool looks to be fairly easily repairable. The wall has a fold in it, but a little sheet metal massaging, and I think I'm in business. Still can't see the full liner yet, but it appears to have survived as well. Once I pull the liner back/out, I'll have a better idea of what's under neath, but I was able to walk around a bit this morning without too much issue.
 

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