October 9th:
Time for me to start my work, replacing return lines, remaining skimmer lines and backwash line. And put in a hose spigot, sprinkler and run new power line. oh and new conduit for the pool light and conduit to have power to a gazebo. I also wanted the option for some type of pool heater. I originally wanted a natural gas heater. I know it costs more to operate, but in my mind it's simpler, going to be less expensive upfront (I was wrong) and simpler to service. Plus being impatient, it would heat the pool a lot faster. But after finally getting some estimates for running a gas line that dream died. Cheapest option was to put in a second service just for the pool, but there is no discount on second services and the run from the street is about 150 feet. Upgrading the service I already have would be like 250 feet and a lot of zig-zagging (no one even wanted to give a price on that). Gas was going to be in the $10k ballpark (that buys a lot of electrons).
So I just upped the service from 240V 20A to a 240V 100A (yeah overkill, but wasn't much more than doing 60A or 80A services). I was going to do copper in conduit but that was going to pricey and pulling though conduit was not going to fun, even with 360° of bends in about 100 feet. So I changed to aluminum direct burial cable and conduit where it comes out of the ground. I just needed to trench a little deeper, that was easy with a excavator rented from the fine people at Home Depot. I only got to play with it, I mean use it for 24 hours and 7 minutes. But I did a great job of making pool area look like WWI trench battle grounds.
I did figure out this is the 5th yes 5th set of pool lines. It was a fun archaeological dig. I am guessing the original was a thin walled green PVC pipe that not crumbs if you even glance at it, next looks to have been black poly pipe (most of it looked fine, except where I probably put holes in it), then there was two sets of flexible PVC lines. The current line the interior was flaking away. I put in sch 40 PVC and each skimmer and return got its own line. And 90's were SCH 40 sweeps (not DWV) or 45's.
Worst part was trying to roll out poly pipe for a hose big and a sprinkler line. Or maybe it was dirt falling into the trench and my shoes.
This all was going well till I pressure tested and found that the return ports were cracked and leaking. Yeah I should have done them when the I did the skimmer, I did not know how easy it would have been then. So I had to find someone last minute to pull back the liner and change them. And pool lines are great for lunching test plugs and making them disappear. 25 PSI sent one 40 - 50 feet in the air and into the neighbors yard to never be found again. They also make a great geysers if there is a little water in them with just a few PSI of air. A scene right out of cartoon seeing my buddy helping out get shot in the face with a slug of water thinking that pulling a plug out with a couple of psi still in the pipe was fine. I may have pulled a muscle and/or cracked a rib from laughing (if only I video).
That would have been fun to dig by hand.
Think ahead on where you are going to put dirt so it's easy to backfill. And don't ask me for where to put it, i'll find the worst spots.
My nemesis that would not stop leaking, no matter how much glue and pipe dope I used.
