Fired our pool builder today, hopefully not making a mistake

[Creativestyle]

So after several weeks of frustration and aggravation, we parted ways with our builder. The straw that broke the camels back was the tiling and coping have been promised to start everyday day for the last two weeks, each day a different excuse as to why they weren’t here or just plain ignoring our calls or text all together, it been this way throughout the whole build.
We have already found a new masonry crew with decent prices. That came out and started the coping already. And we are working on finding a decking crew. All the equipment is here and installed.
I’ve been lurking on here since we started planning to build a pool and I feel fairly knowledgeable. so I guess my question is is there anything that I may not know about that the builder would’ve done, like set up my Pentair easy touch. I haven’t messed with it yet but hope it’s easy. Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Howdy...

What is the pool finish going to be? What are the dimensions and depths?

Are you aware of the issues with ozone and UV, especially in Texas!? How are you planning on chlorinating? Got your test kit yet??

Can we see pics of the build as it progresses?

Maddie

 

[PoolGate]

Are you owner-building or did you contract with that builder for the entire pool? Just curious how this will play out if the builder owes you any work or you owe them any money.

 

[PoolguyinCT]

Are you owner-building or did you contract with that builder for the entire pool? Just curious how this will play out if the builder owes you any work or you owe them any money.

Not well is my guess [emoji41]

 

[blazin]

...I've thought about firing my PB nearly everyday since we contracted them... They are a lovely group of people. Clearly we, the owners of pools, are gluttons for punishment that allow these companies to flourish even when they routinely act in such disrespectful ways.

If I didn't need my equipment and plumbing work completed, I'd probably kick these guys to the curb.

I have someone capable of doing the decking and the finish MUST be applied by the regional applicator.. so they serve no purpose; however, with the horror stories I've read/heard about warranty claims etc I'm treading lightly.

Something to think about.. don't want to be up the creek if a plumbing line is damaged by your new crew.. I mean unless you don't care about shelling out to fix it.

At this point I'm not willing to put in another dime if something THEY did is damaged or fails due to THEIR crew. You may have a different POV

 

[Creativestyle]

The dimensions of the pool are as follows, 50x28, 150 perimeter. 3.5-8 deep, the spa is 10’, 17x 8 foot tanning ledge6’t x 10 grotto flanked by 10’ weeping wall on each side. Pool finish will be Quartzscapes St. Maarten.
I have become aware of the issues with UV and ozone, however I had both on my last pool with no issues, I plan to keep an eye on things and add more sanitation if I need to. As far as chlorination I have a rainbow flow feeder, I think I want to change that after reading on here, ang suggestions.
My tf100xl and speed stir should be here soon
it actually was a perfect spot to part ways. No one is owed any money. And all my equipment that I already payed for is either installed or sitting in my garage.
I found some post about my pool builder online, apparently that is a continuing problem, no communication and project way over due. One person said it took they’re project 6 months and was done poorly, and other said once he’s done with your pool you’ll never hear from him again especially for warranty work. So that part of the reason we did what we did we didn’t want to be sitting here in November still waiting to swim.
I’ll post some pics when I get to a computer my phone won’t let me load them for some reason

 

[PoolGate]

Have you considered saltwater? That is a lot of water to chlorinate I would go with 2 40k units on that pool. Also another vote to lose the ozone and UV. They do pretty much the same thing whether you use them or not.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Its just a shame you paid for UV when the sun in Texas gives you plenty, free of charge. I would *not* use pucks in a chlorinator or you'll be finding your CYA up in the stratosphere and having to drain and refill to lower it at times.

Maddie

 

[Creativestyle]

Since you can’t do salt till after the startup process, would I need to do anything extra to add a swg later, lastly since I already have them, could I run a swg ozone and uv at the same time?

 

[PoolGate]

Since you can’t do salt till after the startup process, would I need to do anything extra to add a swg later, lastly since I already have them, could I run a swg ozone and uv at the same time?

You just need to ensure enough space in the plumbing to add the salt cell. Different models need different space. You need 2 generators for 50k gallons for sure - 2x40k gallons or 2x60k gallons. Some people say putting them inline is ok and others say they need to be in parallel. I would make the expense now and put them in while you are building. If you are getting automation you should get the same brand as your automation. And I think you can only control 1 with the automation and the other would be controlled at the SWCG's panel.

 

[Creativestyle]

I have a Pentair easy touch, my builder steered us away from salt due to our flagstone and waterfall. I haven’t even looked but are there different levels of Pentair swg of just by size

 

[PoolGate]

I have a Pentair easy touch, my builder steered us away from salt due to our flagstone and waterfall. I haven’t even looked but are there different levels of Pentair swg of just by size

Yes I believe up to 60k gallons rated and usually you want to double the pool size for correct sizing or the SWCG will be on 24 hours a day. 50kx2=100k so 2 x IC60 I think would be what you would use.

Keep in mind that saltwater pools have 10% the salinity level as the ocean (3.5ppt vs 35ppt) and less than twice as much salt as a standard pool. Most people cannot taste the salt in a saltwater pool. Everything you add has salt so no pool is salt-free once it has been running for awhile. Almost everything you hear about decks dissolving and everything within 10 miles of a saltwater pool rusting are myths. No modern pool should be without a saltwater chlorine generator. There are just no negatives at all.

 

[ajw22]

I have a Pentair easy touch, my builder steered us away from salt due to our flagstone and waterfall. I haven’t even looked but are there different levels of Pentair swg of just by size

IntelliChlor - Pool and Spa Sanitizers - Pentair either IC40 or IC60 size cell. IC60 costs only a bit more then an IC40, so get the IC60s.

 

[Jimrahbe]

cs,

Since you already have the Ozone and UV, I'd run them.. The main problem I see is, how do you know what if they are working?

As an example... With a standard chlorine pool, (no matter where the chlorine comes from), we can measure the level of chlorine in the water.. We can increase it or decrease it to the level we want. We have a test kit that accurately measure the chlorine levels. And we have a chart that tells us what our FC should be based upon the CYA (stabilizer) level.

With Ozone and UV, what do you measure to check if they are working or not. In "theory" they allow you to run at a lower chlorine level, but how do you know how low? I would feel a lot better about these "magic" devices if you could easily measure their effectiveness. It would be nice to know that my Ozone/UV are at this level, which means I only need this much FC. As far as I know, this is not the case.

I am a great fan of the Saltwater Chlorine Generator, but with a 50K pool, the Texas heat, and the sun, a normal SWCG would not be able to keep up with your chlorine demands unless you ran it at 100% 24/7.

Thanks,

Jim R.

- - - Updated - - -

What EasyTouch package do you have?

 

[Creativestyle]

Easy touch 8, Jim do you think 2 60 k would do or what would you recommend, I definitely want to get rid of the puck feeder

 

[JimMarshall]

Easy touch 8, Jim do you think 2 60 k would do or what would you recommend, I definitely want to get rid of the puck feeder

I think that 2 60K cells would be perfect. Each cell is rated to chlorinate 60k gallons at 100% output, 24 hours a day. Going to the 2 60K cells will allow you to lower your cells output percentage and/or your pump run time. Both things will increase the longevity of the salt cells.

 

[ajw22]

I think that 2 60K cells would be perfect. Each cell is rated to chlorinate 60k gallons at 100% output, 24 hours a day. Going to the 2 60K cells will allow you to lower your cells output percentage and/or your pump run time. Both things will increase the longevity of the salt cells.

He would run one at 100% and connect the other to the Easytouch controls and vary the % output on that one to set the correct FC level for his pool depending on pump runtime.

 

[Creativestyle]

What is the general lifespan of these generator, if I remember correctly that was one of the down side to them that my builder had mentioned that they would only last a few years.

 

[JimMarshall]

He would run one at 100% and connect the other to the Easytouch controls and vary the % output on that one to set the correct FC level for his pool depending on pump runtime.

I certainly don't know anything about using multiple SWGs with a pool, but if you are using one SWG with the Easytouch and the second with the standard power supply, would you not be able to adjust the percentages on both to match?

What is the general lifespan of these generator, if I remember correctly that was one of the down side to them that my builder had mentioned that they would only last a few years.

The lifespan on the cells is finite amount of chlorine produced. What determines that is cell size in comparison to pool volume and chlorine demand.

 

[PoolGate]

What is the general lifespan of these generator, if I remember correctly that was one of the down side to them that my builder had mentioned that they would only last a few years.

People have reported 10 years plus. 5-7 years is typical. A lot has to do with water parameters like pH. Correct water will extend the life of the cell greatly. When the cell stops producing you simply replace the cell and not the entire system however.