Looked at a house with an abandoned pool

[adibusprime]

Hey all! Just stumbled upon this fantastic forum and I'm blown away by the wealth of knowledge about pools. Never thought I'd be considering owning a pool myself but here I am!

Yesterday, we took a look at a house in our neighborhood with a stunning lakefront view. It's a bit of a fixer-upper but has great potential. The biggest project seems to be an abandoned pool that hasn't been used in 30 years. I’ve attached some pictures and videos for your reference.

Given that I live in Minnesota, I'm wondering how expensive it would be to restore this pool to its former glory. Our harsh winters must take a toll on these ancient equipment. Let me know what ya'll think.

 

[sktn77a]

Best case scenario is a new liner and possibly new equipment ($5,000-$10,000). Worst case scenario would be leaking plumbing requiring major surgery ($20,000 and up). Have a pool company do pressure testing on the plumbing and an inspection of the rest of the pool - don't rely on a home inspector for this.

 

[ajw22]

You will get more views and comments if you post your pictures to the Forum and videos to YouTube.

Picture Posting and Resizing - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[adibusprime]

You will get more views and comments if you post your pictures to the Forum and videos to YouTube.

Picture Posting and Resizing - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

I just uploaded some pictures on here as attachments. Couldn't add directly into the post. Was giving me a size too big error.

 

[adibusprime]

Best case scenario is a new liner and possibly new equipment ($5,000-$10,000). Worst case scenario would be leaking plumbing requiring major surgery ($20,000 and up). Have a pool company do pressure testing on the plumbing and an inspection of the rest of the pool - don't rely on a home inspector for this.

Great tip, I'm pretty sure with all the weeds growing though the concrete there will be some leaky plumbings in there.

 

[kimkats]

I agree the first thing to do would be to pressure test the plumbing lines. That will be good information to have while you explore fixing that pretty pool up to make that back yard up!

 

[Mdragger88]

If it’s really been 30 years that looks pretty good honestly. I would imagine that the liner would be shredded by now & the walls falling in. My neighbor has one that they let go a few years ago and the walls & liner look much much worse. Their liner was approximately 20yrs old at the time.
Definitely bank on all new equipment and liner. Possibly replacing the walls & the deck (hard to fully see in the pictures). Also bonding to bring it up to code because if its that old this probably wasn’t done. Basically a new pool without digging the hole.
If you can, get a few estimates & use them as an average to negotiate on the house. It’s certainly worth getting the pressure tests as suggested before moving forward if you’re serious about the house.
Also consider the ongoing increased insurance costs of having a pool- talk it over with your insurance company. Some companies have more favorable rates to homes with pools than others so quotes from other carriers may needed.
It can be easy in this current housing market to feel urgency to make a deal/decision based on fear of missing out but do your due diligence.

 

[Mdragger88]

Also, if you undertake this project keep us updated!

 

[Jimrahbe]

adi,

Unless you get at least $30K off the price of the house, or escrowed to you for pool repair, I would pass..

And.. keep in mind that I am pro-pool...

I'd also check with the City and see what their requirements are for filling in an old pool... Depending on the local rules, even that can be very expensive.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Liner is shot, walls are all rusted, concrete/vermiculite base is cracked and broken up. Unknown plumbing status. That heater is not installed properly as it appears to be set under a deck with no accommodations made for exhaust or air flow.

That’s basically a tear it all out and redo the entire pool job. You’re looking at the cost of a new vinyl liner pool. Don’t know Minnesota prices but I’d guess it’s over $50k as pretty much none of that is salvageable

 

[JamesW]

Contact a few pool service companies and get some quotes on a remodel.

We can give opinions on cost, but the only opinions that really matter are the opinions of people willing to quote prices for them to do the work.

Unless a person is ready, willing and able to complete the job, their opinion is just speculation.

 

[JamesW]

Minimum.

Refinish all walls.
Redo vermiculite.
Replace Liner.
Relocate and Replace all equipment.
Pressure test plumbing and replace if necessary.

Expect $20,000.00 minimum.

Worst case is a complete removal of everything and a complete replacement or fill in the pool.