Fiberglass IG Pool Quote Review - Am I Crazy?

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Noah382

Member
May 9, 2019
17
Richmond, VA
Hey All,
As with a lot of posts, new to TFP and new potential pool owner. My wife has always been a swimmer and we have 3 kids, so a pool makes sense. We have an opportunity to put a new IG pool in our backyard now. Everyone we've talked to (PBs) says to go with Fiberglass as this is the most reliable and less maintenance solution. I've done some research and I haven't seen anything that would discredit that claim.

We've been working with a local reputable PB to put a quote together for a pool that we feel fits our needs and wants. However, it's expensive and this whole process has been very stressful because I really don't know what I'm doing and I don't know if I'm being taken advantage of.

I'd like to get some experienced pool owners feedback on our quote/layout and make suggestions on anything we should consider.

Our Budget: $100,000
Proposed Fiberglass Pool: Leisure Pools - Ultimate (40')

Contract - List of materials/options:
Contractor agrees to provide all necessary materials and to perform all necessary labor (including excavation) in order to construct and install a Leisure Fiberglass “Ultimate 40” (non-diving) swimming pool on Owner’s property approximately 15'5” x 40', (dimensions) with a depth of 4' 3”to 7’ Choice of Color: “Crystal Blue_” with one (1) figure 4 hand rail. The said materials to be supplied include: Hayward C3030 Swim Clear Cartridge Filter, Hayward Tristar Pump SP3210X15 with 2” plumbing & 4' x 8' concrete slab for the pump and filter to sit on, 2 skimmers, 2 returns, 2 main drains and all the necessary plumbing. Maintenance Kit: one telescopic pole, vacuum head, vacuum hose, skim vac, skimmer net and 18” wall brush.

Pool Package .……………………………………………………….......$54,715.00

Pool Package does not include: Additional electrical, Additional concrete deck, stamped concrete, retaining walls, or fence.

Available Options:
3 Low Voltage Lights - (Regular Price $500.00 each).…....….....$FREE
Salt Generator - Auto Pilot (Regular Price $1,800) …………..……………...$FREE
Water to fill pool ….......................................................................$Included
4' Concrete Deck Broom Finish -to be used as sub-deck……….. $Included
$2000.00 Electrical Allowance ………………………………….$Included
Coverstars Automatic Cover - CS3000 – Color: Dark Blue .................$10,800.00
($700.00 additional electrical hook-up – paid directly to Bandy Electric)
Heat & Cool heat pump - Aqua Cal - Super Quiet 166 ………………………………$5,995,00
2 Deck Jets - Hayward ($750.00 each) …………………………………….. $1,500.00
Upgrade to larger pump - Hayward SP3210x15 , 1.5 hp …………………………………………$ 790.00
1 additional light in spa area ………………………………….…$500.00
2 Additional spa jets in spa area …………………………………$500.00

Please Note: You have a $2,000.00 allowance for electrical. Anything above this allowance will be billed separately to the homeowner.

Total cost of pool package and options $74,800.00
Additional 776 sq ft Brushed Concrete Decking $4268 ($5.50 sq ft)
Electrician for AutoCover $700
Retaining Wall $20,000
Total project cost $99,778

We are doing a concrete sub deck with the expectations of putting pavers over top in 1-2 years. We've been quoted $21,000 for pavers which is not in our current budget.

Does this all seem right? Am I crazy to drop $100k on this project? I live in the Richmond Virginia Area.

Any feedback would be much appreciated!
Pool5.jpgUltimate-40-Specs.png
 
WOW. yeah, seems a tad high to me. For that much money I'd be getting more quotes for the fiberglass option *and* for plaster and vinyl also.
Now, I love my fiberglass pool but if you need retaining walls and such I'd investigate other options. Its those *other* things that really jack up the price. Yeah, an autocover will run about $10k, but perhaps someone can play with the layout to avoid all that retaining wall??

When you do decide, you will want a variable speed pump. By next year the government will require that for all pool pumps over a certain size. This will save you a *ton* on electricity.

You can trim some costs by cutting out deck jets too. Folks use them minimally once the novelty wears off.

Have you ever sat in a pool spa? They're not all that comfy (compared to a stand alone hot tub). Also a stand alone hot tub gets hotter, is available for use year round (unlike a pool that gets closed down in the fall in your area).


My two cents-

Maddie :flower:
 
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It is very hard to go by just one quote in your area. What might be high here will be the norm for there. It is best to get at least 3 quotes if not 5 if you can.

I will say I like your design as far as the decking and pool layout. It looks very usable and fun!

Kim:kim:
 
Instead of one tall retaining wall look at doing one shorter wall between house and pool and one below the pool. Any wall over 48" I believe has to have an engineer sign off on it. That is if you are somewhere that is going to have any inspections by government official onsite
 
I dunno about that, nhanp. When we put our fiberglass pool in it was chosen in part for the smoothness of the surface but also the lack of time/effort it takes to start up plaster. Skippy had had major surgery and we wanted him to enjoy a pool sooner than later. No way could he have invested the time and effort in watering the gunnite, brushing walls, etc.
But of course we could have gone deeper (sob!) had we gone plaster.... ah well, another pool someday.....

Maddie :flower:
 
Did you give them your max budget prior to getting the quote? Seems like they fudged the numbers around to conveniently make everything work out to $99k. I would take your quote with no numbers attached and shop that around for more quotes. And tell them you are trying to scrape enough money to make it work. Then see how much it costs.

On last thing... seems like you have plenty of room to move the whole pool closer to the corner of your backyard. Putting your pool right outside your sliding door is a Southern CA thing that shouldn't be copied.
 
YippeeSkippy said:
WOW. yeah, seems a tad high to me. For that much money I'd be getting more quotes for the fiberglass option *and* for plaster and vinyl also.
Now, I love my fiberglass pool but if you need retaining walls and such I'd investigate other options. Its those *other* things that really jack up the price. Yeah, an autocover will run about $10k, but perhaps someone can play with the layout to avoid all that retaining wall??

When you do decide, you will want a variable speed pump. By next year the government will require that for all pool pumps over a certain size. This will save you a *ton* on electricity.

You can trim some costs by cutting out deck jets too. Folks use them minimally once the novelty wears off.

Have you ever sat in a pool spa? They're not all that comfy (compared to a stand alone hot tub). Also a stand alone hot tub gets hotter, is available for use year round (unlike a pool that gets closed down in the fall in your area).


My two cents-

Maddie :flower:
Click to expand...
Thanks for the feedback. You've definitely given me some things to think about. I'm actually going to start looking at if we can position the pool in a way to not have a retaining wall or have a minimal wall. This could help save us money for pavers or even a standalone Spa.
 
Killer95Stang said:
Did you give them your max budget prior to getting the quote? Seems like they fudged the numbers around to conveniently make everything work out to $99k. I would take your quote with no numbers attached and shop that around for more quotes. And tell them you are trying to scrape enough money to make it work. Then see how much it costs.

On last thing... seems like you have plenty of room to move the whole pool closer to the corner of your backyard. Putting your pool right outside your sliding door is a Southern CA thing that shouldn't be copied.
Click to expand...
I actually did not give them our budget at the very beginning. They gave us a price sheet of all the options listed and their prices. The $20k for the retaining wall is an independent landscaper from the PB.

The slope would be pretty extreme if we moved it back there. However, I'm looking at ideas to shift the pool to the west side of the yard which I'm hoping would eliminate the need for a retaining wall. That could get rid of the need for a wall and get us pavers. I'm reaching out to the PB to see his thoughts now.

Thanks for the reply
 
swimcmp said:
Instead of one tall retaining wall look at doing one shorter wall between house and pool and one below the pool. Any wall over 48" I believe has to have an engineer sign off on it. That is if you are somewhere that is going to have any inspections by government official onsite
Click to expand...
Yeah, I've considered that. However, we have guidelines that says we have to build any improvements atleast 10' from the house. I'm working to see now if we can just shift the pool and not have to use a retaining wall. crossing my fingers
 

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Thata high IMO. If you were in NJ I'd come build that pool for you in a heartbeat LOL. Look at a gunite pool because you will have flexibility in using the pool wall for a feature and eliminate the retaining wall unless you have a super steep grade change. How about a lay of land pic? Ideally the sort from dig would fill the low area and slope away. Or is it the opposite you need to hold back the dirt?
 
Okay,

I have the Ultimate 30'er.
1. No other fiberglass pool compares in thickness or warranty so no apples to apples comparison.
2. Gunite in Houston came in 20K higher than the Ultimate for same dimensions (actually shallower)
3. You have a 6ft Slope. That is HUGE. and its is 20% of the build
4. Search the Austin TX self build infinity edge. they had a major slope and it worked perfectly.
5. For us no Gunite builder would give us a lifetime structure or finish warranty.

Good luck with your project, get gunite quotes and know they will take longer, offer less warranty, read all the special finish issues here on TFP about streaking, blotchy, cannot do this or that for x period. That was 1 reason I shied away from a Gunite pool.

John
 
Mmmmm..... we are in a suburb of Atlanta, so would figure our costs would be lower, but we installed an 18x36 vinyl pool with quite a few add-ons (no spa but swimouts/benches on both long sides, and a mesh trampoline cover instead of autocover) .... with extra decking & retaining wall and other hardscaping (not fancy but structural -- the retaining wall is 5ft high at one point) .... total was well under $50k.

I was surprised at what we could do with vinyl -- it doesn't look ANYTHING like I picture a vinyl pool -- and honestly I cannot imagine how our pool could be any lower maintenance than it is. With TFP method I am totally DIYing that and it takes me no more than an hour a week.

As for features we love:
- a deep end that is deep enough so the kids don't touch the bottom when they jump in (ours is 8ft+)
- a water feature (sheer descent) w/ a step on the back, so it doubles as a jumping rock
- benches/swim outs on both sides of the pool (one toward the shallow end and one toward the deep end). plenty of space to chill or climb in & out!
- nice long shallow end
- long swim lane, the entire length of the pool. great for racing!
- built-in umbrella holders near the swimouts
 
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Hi -- I'm not technical, but if you have the ability to put your pool elsewhere and skip the auto cover -- that's what I would do. I'm working on a reno of our pool -- but my entire lifetime we never had an auto cover -- uncovering a pool takes about 2 minutes and 2 people -- and you have those and kids. and only one to pull it back on in the evening. So for my 2 cents -- I'd save $30K and get the pavers if you can reposition the pool. That is above my pay grade.
 
I am in the same area as you (roughly) and that price seems outrageous to me. Is that Bowen or Browning? For $100k I would for sure be getting Gunite. And always plan on more than the contract we were around $20k over contract price. Does that price even include automation? And where is the filter? I would also lose the auto-cover.
 
I am right in the middle of a fiberglass install. Nothing crazy different than what you are doing and the price is right in line... I don’t think it seems high at all. I mean all pool installs seem high haha, but this isn’t any different than the market (Des Moines) that I live in. I think my pool without concrete alone is 82k. That’s with auto cover, electrical, etc.
 

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