Inground pool hasn’t been opened in 5+ years

[marcgraham]

I ordered the Taylor 2006 test kit and should be here by Friday. I’ll post the results right away.

 

[marcgraham]

I ordered the Taylor 2006 test kit and should be here by Friday. I’ll post the results right away.

I also ordered the tool to remove the cover. I plan on pulling back some of it to get an idea of what I’m up against.

 

[kul]

Just joining this party. Looking forward to the big reveal and watching the pool get summer ready. Rooting for you!!

 

[Beerfloater]

I'm joining in on this fun post as well. I just did the exact same thing a few years ago. Bought my house in the fall of 2019. It had been closed for 3 years. There is a whole thread on this forum of my journey. I will put a link to that thread below if your interested in seeing how mine turned out. The people here are great! they helped me through it then and have helped me through many other problems and questions since. If you listen and follow the directions here you will find it is easy and rewarding to take care of your pool yourself and friends and family will soon be asking how you keep the water soo clear!

Extreme learning curve Please HELP!!!!

Ok so I decided to open my pool for the first time since buying the house last fall. The pool had a mesh safety cover on it, and has not been opened since the summer of 2018. So it is very green. I have been running the pump since yesterday at about noon. I vacuumed to waste yesterday, and...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[marcgraham]

I was able to pull back the cover to a peek at what the conditions are. The water was relatively clear and there is of course the expected black muck on the bottom. What is a little concerning is the liner appears to be pulling out of the trim that holds it in place.

I’m starting to realize the person we bought the house from wasn’t entirely truthful about the condition of the pool. It is entirely possible he never winterized it when it was last closed up. The neighbors say they haven’t seen it open in at least 10 years.

 

[marcgraham]

I was able to pull back the cover to a peek at what the conditions are. The water was relatively clear and there is of course the expected black muck on the bottom. What is a little concerning is the liner appears to be pulling out of the trim that holds it in place.

I’m starting to realize the person we bought the house from wasn’t entirely truthful about the condition of the pool. It is entirely possible he never winterized it when it was last closed up. The neighbors say they haven’t seen it open in at least 10 years. View attachment 398768View attachment 398769

 

[kimkats]

So you have a chose or three:
-cover it back up and wait a bit until you get into the house good to try to clear it.
-pull that cover back and start the SLAM with the water that is in the pool. Just find a good source of liquid chlorine. You will be using a lot of it.
-pull the cover back and drain some of the water. Leaving enough water to cover the bottom step. When you are draining you can use a hose to suck up some of the muck to get it up and out. Then SLAM when the pool is refilled.

I would start setting aside some pennies for a new liner. That pull out place can be worked with and we might be able to get it back in place when you have a nice, sunny, hot day.

 

[Bperry]

So you have a chose or three:
-cover it back up and wait a bit until you get into the house good to try to clear it.
-pull that cover back and start the SLAM with the water that is in the pool. Just find a good source of liquid chlorine. You will be using a lot of it.
-pull the cover back and drain some of the water. Leaving enough water to cover the bottom step. When you are draining you can use a hose to suck up some of the muck to get it up and out. Then SLAM when the pool is refilled.

I would start setting aside some pennies for a new liner. That pull out place can be worked with and we might be able to get it back in place when you have a nice, sunny, hot day.

Do they make a vacuum that’s not pool pump operated to suck some of that junk out? I think I’ve seen one that was electric, but it might be one of those professional equipment deals with a price tag to match.

 

[ajw22]

Do they make a vacuum that’s not pool pump operated to suck some of that junk out? I think I’ve seen one that was electric, but it might be one of those professional equipment deals with a price tag to match.

Pool companies have standalone vacuum rigs that they can bring in to cleanup a pool.

My pool company charges $60/half hour for vacuuming services.

 

[kimkats]

You can also get a syphon going with a common water hose and use that.

 

[V___25]

it's possible those liner sections can be popped back in. Mine had started to pull out of the track in the one corner last year and on a nice hot day with lots of sun on it, I was able to get it back in the track.

 

[marcgraham]

I had a pool person come out today to look at it and give me the low down. The liner has turned into a plastic shell and is brittle. This is what I had expected. He can replace the liner and get it going for us relatively cheap and quickly.

I just wanted to check and see if $4500 for a 18x36 lazy L pool liner installed is a too good to be true price? The guy seemed legit and knowledgeable but the price is way less than any other quote I’ve received so far

 

[kimkats]

References and get it in writing!

 

[newdude]

This is what I had expected

I didn't like the pics, but i rooted for you anyway. But HEY !!! We don't have to clear a swamp now.

see if $4500 for a 18x36 lazy L pool liner installed is a too good to be true price? The guy seemed legit and knowledgeable but the price is way less than any other quote I’ve received so far

Maybe he is expecting to get alot more business from you when you need more work, like the heater, so he is getting his foot in the door. Maybe he has low overhead and he is still making plenty. It's a fair price and the others are overcharging because people are paying it.

 

[marcgraham]

The other quotes were from established storefront local pool stores. They came in at $7500 to $12000 just for the liner and faceplates, jet covers etc. I am going to take @kimkats advice and check references. He is a one man show and likely has zero overhead. Does it sound plausible pricewise with no overhead and just charging time and materials?

 

[newdude]

$7500 is Modern day, grumble about it and pay it because you have no other choice..... 'fair'.

$12k is highway robbery.

$4500 is a low overhead guy with a conscience.

I am going to take @kimkats advice and check references.

She is a wise gal.

 

[Orion7319]

I had a pool person come out today to look at it and give me the low down. The liner has turned into a plastic shell and is brittle. This is what I had expected. He can replace the liner and get it going for us relatively cheap and quickly.

I just wanted to check and see if $4500 for a 18x36 lazy L pool liner installed is a too good to be true price? The guy seemed legit and knowledgeable but the price is way less than any other quote I’ve received so far

As long as the references check out. I had my liner replaced and had to have the fiberglass steps busted up and replaced. I used someone I knew that doesn’t even advertise. I paid $3000.00 for the liner and $4000.00 for the steps. All of the other companies wanted more then that to just replace the liner. They did a great job. Point is that yes if you look hard enough or know where to look you can find people that cheap that does competent work. I watched them bust up and replace the steps. That was an insane amount of manual labor. None of the other companies wanted to touch them, but they needed to be replaced.

 

[marcgraham]

references checked out so we had him out today to start measuring. He’s a nice guy and super knowledgeable regarding everything with the pool. I appreciate all the advice from all of you. I am having him replace the pump since the current one is original to the pool. I plan on keeping the DE filter.

 

[kimkats]

Let the fixing begin!!!

 

[Casey]

That is one dark pool!