Concrete pool up north

[duraleigh]

I can't decide though if I should apply the plaster very smoothly or try to get a slightly more roughly appearance on it.

Hi, Mats,

I always consider the maintenance of a finished surface. Will the smoother finish be easier to keep clean? Normally, a roughened surface hides dirt very well but that may be a problem.....do you have mold (mildew) in your climate?

Aesthetically, I think I would prefer a somewhat textured surface but you can probably tell much better than we can what would best blend with your surroundings.

I think Casey should respond and explain "younz" and "stinkeye" :lol: :lol: :lol:

There are many, many people here in the US who don't know what they mean (my wife didn't) so it may be a revelation to many.

It is certainly exceptionally descriptive.....does anyone know the origin of "stinkeye"?

 

[Casey]

I think Casey should respond and explain "younz" and "stinkeye" :lol: :lol: :lol:

haha!

Younz is slang from Pennsylvania...

Younz have to go get more beer! Younz'll ruin yer dinner if younz eat all that candy! Younz means you all or you guys... least in Pennsylavania. There is another variations like yinz. Yinz are crazy!

Stink eye is just another name for the evil eye.

My boxer gives me stink eye when I tell her it's time for a bath! :lol:

I don't use younz and yinz alot online but in real life, I maybe guilty. :lol:

 

[Henry Porter]

I will adding it to my dictionary right away Casey I can use a new word or two in my vocabulary

grog today and pool building tomorrow, can life be better
See if I can excersice the camera again tomorrow. It can be a nail or two that I've forgotten to show you , do I have to say that I have been sippping a little tonight

And remember that you should never regret anything you've say or do while you're on the influence. wrote that for myself
c:ya pool friends

btw! Came to think of this few lines a genious has written. "funny that people who suffering together have stronger connections than people who are most content. I don't have any regrets, they can talk plenty about me when I'm gone"

I leave it with that.
Good night

 

[cancuntom]

Mats,
Regarding your planned pool side outdoor kitchen w/ smoker:
My BBQ master Ray stopped by and I showed him some of your posts. He gave some advice about cooking/smoking baby back pork ribs. Here are some of his suggestions. First of all make sure if your rack has that silver skin on the back of it that you peel it off so that it won't inhibit the transfer of the fat juices in the meat. If using a rub, smear yellow mustard on the meat. The vinegar in it will help tenderize the meat. Then apply your rub, the mustard will keep the rub powder in place to do it's magic, he says "to spank" it into the meat. Put it in the refrigerator overnight so the meat can absorb the goodness of the rub and mustard and tenderize itself in the process. The next day make a mixture of: one shot glass of water and a cap of vinegar and pour over the meat in a glass (if possible) pan and tightly seal with tin foil and cook it in your inside kitchen oven for 2 hours at 93ºC (200ºF). This is done because you have to make sure pork is done to the bone. When you remove it uncover it and put on your smoker for 4-6 hours at 93ºC (200ºF), at the area where the meat actually rests while being smoked. Remember that the creedo is "low and slow".........."low and slow".......
This is where is will get that crisp outer texture and smokey flavor cooked into it. Best of luck to you.
Tom

 

[dlduvall]

Jeez, now I'm hungry. :? :lol:

 

[Henry Porter]

Intresting Tom, to first cook the meat in the owen. I will definentely try that in our new bought Weber together with mustard, thanks mate.
I haven't checked you homepage in a while now. We use to check your page every now and then when we want's some inspiration to our own cooking Speaking of cooking Tom! I put myself on the scale today and I have lost 30 pounds sinse I started with this build. I have visible veins on my stomach now
I have worked very hard that's for sure but it has not been a strain for me. I guess that's has to do with I'm still so inspired about the project and therefor can I work 24-7. But I had a second thought when I realized how much weight I have actuallly lost and I decided to slow down a little or at least be aware that I need to increase my eating. They say that you can't be burned our on something unless you not burn for it, if you know what I mean. And I belive that is true.
hehehe it sounds like I'm dying but it was just a weird feeling to see the scale showing 81kg when I once upon a time was at 105-107kg and after I quit training I have been steady at 95kg.
What I really want's to say is that I will take advantage of the 30 pounds lost next summer on the poolside. Time for party!!!!

I have rented a machine this weekend to cut out for all the elctrical tubes that I need in the walls to supply the lamps in the wall with current. Awesome machine, nice and straight lines in the wall which means there will be no problems to get the cables in them, If someone in the future needs to replace any of them(see pic). There will be 9 uplights on the top of the wall placed on that side away from the house. 5 down lights on the outside of the wall placed on the side near the house and into the entrance of the poolare. 8 regular lights on the inside of the walls. Those will be steared with a remote controll togheter with the lamps in the pool. Three different channels so I can choose not to lighten the whole area if I not want's to :lol:
I had to do that before I could start with the stukko on the walls. And I also needs to finish the bench to the kitchen since I need to connect all the tubes below the kitchen sink where the supply cable runs up from the machineroom.

New weber grill was bought yesterday together with a sink, I'm just waiting for the steakboard(wokpan) to arrive so I can form for them on the kitchen bench. The ferric oxide powder I need to colour the concrete was hard to get hold of. I found a webpage a few days ago that sold it but I'm unable to find it again

From now on I will try to keep the quality of my post up a little bit. It have been a little embarassing from my side here lately

Take care![attachment=2:2mve8082]RainIMG_6320.gif[/attachment:2mve8082][attachment=1:2mve8082]RainIMG_6323.gif[/attachment:2mve8082][attachment=0:2mve8082]RainIMG_6319.gif[/attachment:2mve8082]

 

[Henry Porter]

And one last on the formed kitchen bench.
[attachment=0:6xd2lxac]RainIMG_6322.gif[/attachment:6xd2lxac]

EDIT: I forgott to mention that my neighbor was tearing down his old garage the other day and guess what was hiding there in that old roof of his?
Old timber logs. A little out of shape but I can make a very nice roof over my kitchen out of them, so I took them all. I just have to find three logs out of bigger dimensions now. Sometimes you're lucky despite the constant raining

 

[waste]

Mats, please don't EVER think that the quality of your posts is lacking

You have given us a great place to post and have documented your build and progress in a way that is unequaled

You are the poster boy for doing a DIY pool correctly!!

(If I had your patience, perseverance and attention to detail, all the 3 year old holes in my sheetrock would have been fixed 2 years ago :lol: )

 

[cancuntom]

Mats, That machine to cut the grooves in the cinder blocks is a revelation. Here in Mexico they call it "chipping" and that's exactly how they do it...............with a hammer and a chisel and NO eye protection. If two terminal boxes are closer together by going on a diagonal they will chip away a groove in on the diagonal. The problem is they don't make any drawings of where they made the runs and once the stucco goes over it, it's anybody's guess where they were actually run. It makes it interesting when trying to trace a faulty circuit or hang a picture on a wall..............ZAP!

 

[Gooserider]

Mats, That machine to cut the grooves in the cinder blocks is a revelation. Here in Mexico they call it "chipping" and that's exactly how they do it...............with a hammer and a chisel and NO eye protection. If two terminal boxes are closer together by going on a diagonal they will chip away a groove in on the diagonal. The problem is they don't make any drawings of where they made the runs and once the stucco goes over it, it's anybody's guess where they were actually run. It makes it interesting when trying to trace a faulty circuit or hang a picture on a wall..............ZAP!

This is known as Murphy's Special Law of Magnetic Attraction - "Copper, plastic and other materials that are normally considered non-magnetic can be made to atract objects under certain conditions; namely that the non-magnetic material must be in the form of electrical conductors, or gas / fluid lines, and the atracted objects must be sharply pointed, such as a nail, screw, or cutting tool. The level of attraction generated increases as the square of the amount of damage that puncturing the atracting object can cause, and the difficulty of making repairs" (or in lay terms: )

Gooserider

 

[Henry Porter]

Countertop is finally poured. Turned out darker than I thought it would, but since I have mixed the mold with a lot of aggregates I expected it to lighten up considerably after I have grinded the surface.
I will continue with this counter all the way to the shower but only 12" wide I think that will be sufficient to have that place to put food and beverage on while having a party. This black concrete will also be poured all the way around the walls to string together all the blocks at the top and also protect them from rain but this will only be a little wider than the finish stucco outside the blocks. I hope the white and black conctrast will turn out nicely.
Beside from that, have I mounted in speaker cables in the wall to the four speakers that we will have out there.

That about it for now
//Mats
[attachment=1:wfronf9k]countertopIMG_6345.gif[/attachment:wfronf9k][attachment=0:wfronf9k]countertopIMG_6356.gif[/attachment:wfronf9k]

 

[mirage]

Hey Mat's

I continue to watch your totally awesome pool build!

You almost make me feel like building something. Almost.

Mirage.

 

[Henry Porter]

Thank you very much Mirage
I can say the same thing about your thread, which I've read over and over many times and have given me so much inspiration.
Me and many others are waiting for more pictures my friend

I'm sittning here and have almost decided that I will extend that part of the counter that I haven't poured yet, so we get a small bar counter. Even Eva thought that "could" be a good idea :lol: (It's a good sign When she's not completely against it from the beginning )
I will give it today and then I have to decide so I can pour it this weekend. The plan is to grind the surface next weekend, I'm a little curious how it will turn out. What I have seen on other counter tops is that they have very little aggregates in the mix to create a smooth surface but I have gone the other way and poured with extra aggregates in order to get a living surface. I will post a pic(or two) of the outcome, surprised??
Have to get back to work
c:ya
//Mats

 

[Gooserider]

Thank you very much Mirage
I can say the same thing about your thread, which I've read over and over many times and have given me so much inspiration.
Me and many others are waiting for more pictures my friend

I'm sittning here and have almost decided that I will extend that part of the counter that I haven't poured yet, so we get a small bar counter. Even Eva thought that "could" be a good idea :lol: (It's a good sign When she's not completely against it from the beginning )
I will give it today and then I have to decide so I can pour it this weekend. The plan is to grind the surface next weekend, I'm a little curious how it will turn out. What I have seen on other counter tops is that they have very little aggregates in the mix to create a smooth surface but I have gone the other way and poured with extra aggregates in order to get a living surface. I will post a pic(or two) of the outcome, surprised??
Have to get back to work
c:ya
//Mats

I think the added bar space is a good idea - my experience is that it is next to impossible to have "to much" counter space - the amount of food prep will expand to fill all available room!

The high aggregate concrete sounds like you are doing what is called a "terrazzo" finish in the US, very popular in the southern states as a floor treatment - most common is a light concrete with a lot of different colored aggregate stones in it, (other combinations are possible) that is then ground down to expose the stones for a random multi-color look, very pretty and quite durable....

Gooserider

 

[Henry Porter]

I think the added bar space is a good idea - my experience is that it is next to impossible to have "to much" counter space - the amount of food prep will expand to fill all available room!

Thanks for you're opinion Gooserider! I certainly need a little push in the right direction
See if I get the time to do the framework tomorrow.

//Mats

 

[Henry Porter]

Had a half day off work today and almost finished what I had in plan for today. I took the time and made steel brackets. I have use for them later on so I thought that was worthwhile. The benefits using these instead fo wooden is the many variables I can adjust so I can get everything exactly in the right position.
I made a rough plan yesterday and came to decision that a radious shape of the extra counter would be nice but Now when the bottom is on place I'm leaning over to keep the straight lines.
I have to vait for the goverments decision, she will be home any minute now and then it's time for my "friday night beer"
Cheers folks

//Mats
[attachment=1:1v11xtj7]steel bracketsIMG_6382.gif[/attachment:1v11xtj7] [attachment=0:1v11xtj7]steel bracketsIMG_6383.gif[/attachment:1v11xtj7]

 

[cancuntom]

Hurricane Ida passed Cancun Sunday. We had a lot of rain for 3 days up to her visit. Fortunately she didn't get too close and she was pretty much a non-event. However we noticed on Monday that our pool was losing water. I had pumped the pool down 7" in preparation for the hurricane, so I refilled in Monday morning. By Tuesday morning we lost 6" of this water, which was about 900-1000 gallons! We had a leak.
I noticed that it didn't leak down further than the two rectangular openings to the skimmers. Also the skimmers were totally dry even though about half the skimmer barrel was lower than the current level of the pool. So this seemed to indicate the leak was most likely in the skimmers or the piping below them. It was hard to detect because our ground was so saturated from Ida, so there were no noticeable wet spots because the entire garden was saturated. I decided to excavate under the skimmer closest to the pump room because when the PB did this work I was not happy with the way he piped the skimmers. He tee'd the 2 drops out of the skimmer together instead of running one down further and then back into the pool to prevent a low water level from sucking air into the pump. The tee that they butchered had broken as you can see in the following pictures. When we re-piped it we couldn't hook the second drop up so we eliminated it's connection and caped it off. There was also an electrical line exerting pressure on the piping which didn't help matters any. It pays to watch your PB closely and absolutely refuse to accept something that you believe is wrong.

The tee is cracked!

Reverse angle

Cutting the old PVC apart in order to repair it

Finshed repair

 

[polyvue]

It pays to watch your PB closely and absolutely refuse to accept something that you believe is wrong.

Truer words were never... but too late for many putting in their first pool, who'll likely come to this forum long after the PB has moved on. Thanks for sharing pics of the construction solution. I bet you're glad this was easy to diagnose and the break was pretty accessible (not 6 ft under the deck or pool shell!)

 

[Henry Porter]

Tom!
I'm sorry for the inconvenience it means for you having to redo your plumbing.
One thing that perplex me a little though is that everybody in the US persist to use those stiff plastic tubes even if they place them underground.... I woulden't dig down something like that myself. I have used a hose made out of thick material everywhere underground. That won't break no matter what happens.

I'm more than disappointed on myself. I poured the extra counter(23') without first thinking about how much overhang I can have without have to worry that it will tip. If!! someone in the future get the excellent idea that they want to dance on the counter or something like that

It's poured and I have taken off the form and it looks great. But I'm affraid that I can't trust it even if I have burden it with my body weight without seeing any movement.
So like I don't have enough job as it is, I'm now off to make an arrangement at the back on the counter to stabilize the construction. Not something that will show after I have bricked up the wall that shall go at the back of the counter. Just a drag to have deal with things like that...

I have promised the family to spend the next weekend with renovate my oldest daughters room, so no new post for while now.


All the best TFP friends..[attachment=1:2k3wr5id]steel bracketsIMG_6390.gif[/attachment:2k3wr5id][attachment=0:2k3wr5id]steel bracketsIMG_6398.gif[/attachment:2k3wr5id]

 

[dlduvall]

I really like that black countertop, Henry. It looks great! Although, I have a feeling that if anyone is dancing on the counter , it may be you! :lol: