New Build - Sacramento area - MEGA Update - Almost done, Water is in!

[Nikilyn]

Your photos answer a question I’ve had. With how our yard, gate and pool are positioned I’ve figured they’d have to have a ramp in the deep end but didn’t know if that would be ok. Guess it is .

 

[Dirk]

I can't swear this will make a huge difference, but I wish this had been done with my pad. Don't let them pour the pad's concrete right up against the house's foundation. Have them leave at least a few inches. I can sometimes "feel" my pool pump when in the house. I think a little gap between pad and existing foundation would have made a difference. Remember. the pool pump will be bolted to the pad, which makes that a solid sound connection, which will then transfer to the concrete perimeter to which your house's walls are bolted. A little gap will break the sound pathway.

 

[mguzzy]

I think you ll get more noise transmission if they attach things to the house.. not so much through the pad. But I will say this.. demand where you want the pad. I've been a part of two pool builds where the PB pushed back on the pad location. They will always want to put it where it easiest for them, not where its best fits the needs of the owners. On one they complied but I had to run the power. On the other, the pad was relocated 15yrs later in conjunction with a remodel. And the owners grumbled about it for that long... I was that owner.

Also make sure its big enough to accommodate the equipment with room to service it. There is nothing worse than not having enough room to work on things, whether you are a DIY kind of guy or a tech you hired.

 

[Turbo1Ton]

I can attest that putting an equipment pad against the house will transmit noise. I haven't noticed it with the pool pad, but my HVAC pad, for sure, I should have put an expansion joint board between the pad and the house.

I located my pool pad right next to the HVAC pad. It was an easy location for utilities. Having never had a pool before, I did not think about the noise from the pump. The pad is just outside of a bedroom window, and when the pump is running higher speeds, it is crazy noisy. On my next pool, or when I remodel this one, I will move the pad away from the house to a far corner of the yard. This way no noise will be transmitted to the house, and I can build a shed for the equipment. Live and learn.

--Jeff

 

[Dirk]

+1 and +1 for over-sizing the pad and locating it as far away from the house as is practical! VS pumps are very quiet at low speeds, but you don’t always run them at low speeds, depending on what you’re using them for...

 

[Turbo1Ton]

Meant to add that making the pad as large as humanly possible is a plus! Need as much space as you can get for maintenance and ease of use.

--Jeff

 

[Nikilyn]

Who puts the pad in? I need to confirm it in our bids but want to know whose to look at.

 

[mguzzy]

The PB puts the pad in. Some will put pour a concrete pad, if so make sure they don't pour around the pipes. Some will use premade resin/plastic pads. On my moms pool they just put it on the dirt, I made them at least take it out and put down a layer of gravel for drainage and support.

 

[Nikilyn]

The PB puts the pad in. Some will put pour a concrete pad, if so make sure they don't pour around the pipes. Some will use premade resin/plastic pads. On my moms pool they just put it on the dirt, I made them at least take it out and put down a layer of gravel for drainage and support.

We're doing owner builder .

 

[TexasRain]

We're doing owner builder .

I've seen some get poured with gunite and some when they do the decking.

 

[mguzzy]

We're doing owner builder .

Ah.. then you put the pad in... Ya know, I can't remember which contractor did the pad on the last pool I was a part of the build process.

 

[Nikilyn]

Do you have to have a pad? My husband doesn't remember having one at our last house. He thinks there was just gravel around it.

 

[mguzzy]

Yes.. My pad is a story too.. The owner of the house that put in the pool told us they were never happy with the location of the pad. it was out in the middle of everything and was always a distraction when the pumps and heaters were going. They told us that the pool builder insisted on putting it there. I didn't like it either, and after we were in the house for 5 yrs or so I decided it was time to replace all the pool equipment. At the same time I relocated the pad to an unused back corner of the yard behind the garden area that forms the back drop of the pool. It was all of 30 feet of distance from the old to new pad. The shrubbery provides a nice barrier for the noise and view. And when I put the pad in I made sure I had enough room around and on it to service all the equipment. I brought the pipes up next to the pad, and made sure there was good drainage. The old PVC on the old pad when into the concrete and made a challenge to service when someone kicked a pipe and it fractured right at the point of going into the concrete. I have seen where people put their equipment on cinder blocks or pavers, but I would expect there would be too much shifting that would put stress on the pipes. Since relocating the pad, that area is now the vegetable garden.

 

[Dirk]

Right, nothing should penetrate the pad (pipes, conduit, etc). Those should all go in the dirt surrounding the pad. Then you can add gravel there if you want to keep the dust down. In addition to being able to servicing everything, you want the pad big enough so that you don't have to cram all the components together. They can be installed so close that should you ever need to change one out, you have to change out a slew of perfectly fine ones just because they were all glued in too close together. You want a decent amount of PVC between each component, so that should you need to swap one out, you can cut the PVC, and then glue the new one in using PVC couplers. Maybe even twice. I'm talking about everything, not just the pump and filter, I mean the valves, too.

Here's a read:

File:Equipment Pad Complex.jpg - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

And here:

Equipment Pad Pictures.... Lets see them

Post a picture of your pool equipment layout and plumbing. I'm looking for some layout ideas and would love too see what people are working with. Any issues with your current layout you'd change?

www.troublefreepool.com

Check out some of the pic's in the second link. In any given pic, look at a valve or pump or filter, and see what it would take to replace it, and you'll see what I'm talking about. Some you could cut out, and glue back in with one or two PVC couplers, other's you'd have to replace an entire manifold, including replacing multiple valves, just to replace one. You'll see a lot of pics where they located a valve way too close to a PVC elbow, for no reason, making replacement unnecessarily tough.

But in order to leave enough PVC between everything, you need a big enough pad to accommodate all that, which was the point. And of course you'll need to work this out with the plumber, because they don't usually think about this notion, they just get'er done and leave you with the consequences.

 

[steved76]

The equipment pad input is really helpful. In our case, moving it back is going to be really beneficial, it will stop the equipment from blocking windows to a 1st floor bedroom, and instead occupy more "utility" space alongside the wall of the garage. We are spec'd for a 12' long pad, so I'm guessing plenty of room too.

 

[steved76]

Update for today -- They finished the steel. It rained pretty hard in-between days but no real issues with cave-in. They spread dry cement before the rain and I think that may have helped. Overall it looks good to my untrained eye, but obv. let me know if you see anything.

I've raised the backfill of the dig ramp with the construction manager, and we'll see what the plan is. He mentioned backfill with gravel, so i'll keep an eye out. I'm also curious to get thoughts on the steel work behind the waterfalls. They angled it up behind the notched beam, but i'm not clear if the plan is to have the gunite pad be angled taht way, or if they just didn't grade enough space into the lawn behind the area.

Plumbing and electrical starts tomorrow.

Pictures:

 

[Dirk]

Don't be shy about asking questions about how the gunite is going to work, how the rebar works, whatever. Stuff at this stage does get overlooked (shapes, depths, dimensions, plumbing fixtures, you name it), especially if the PB is running multiple crews and overseeing multiple on-going builds. Let him know you're keeping an eye on things. Let him know you're expecting them to do the same. Ask him how far from the dirt the rebar should be, and then see that it is. (Rebar too close to the surface of the gunite, inside or outside of the pool, can cause problems after a time.)

Now's the time to double-check dimensions, and you might need the PB's help in determining from where to where you measure and how to allow for the thickness of the gunite and the plaster. My neighbor's new pool looks to me to be about 18" higher than it should be, so now he's got steps up to his coping. Was that intentional, or oversight? I doubt he ever checked on the height, and so now the official line is that's the way he wanted it... 18" higher than his patio... uh... right....

Identify all the penetrations and double-check they're all there: skimmer, auto-fill, overflow, returns, drains, suction or pressure port for vac, lights, bubblers, etc.

 

[steved76]

Cross posting this here, and will have an update to follow now that plumbing and electrical is done(!).

Tested Fill Water - Now what?

We are in the process of a new build, gunite scheduled for next week. I got a TF-100 kit and couldn't help myself so I tested the fill water last night. Here's what I got: pH: 7.6 FC: 0 TA: 140 CH: 150 Interested in any thoughts/advice re: what to be prepared for when we hit the fill stage...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[steved76]

Ok. Last week the PB finished up the plumbing and electrical, using a subcontractor that I really liked. They put 5 returns in, worked with me on light placement, and were hard working and respectful of the yard and our existing landscape (to the extent possible). Only hiccup was they only plumbed one run to the waterfall, nobody updated them that we would have two water feature pumps. They came back out on Saturday and fixed the issue without any problems. Here are some pictures:

Before water feature fix:





Autofill plumbed using one of the prior sprinkler "zones". Had the valve cut out and this is now dedicated water for the af.



After second day, electrical in and waterfalls fixed, and the landscaper's sleeves to run under the deck are placed:

 

[steved76]

Finally, after the long holiday weekend, we are expecting the gunite crew first thing tomorrow! PB thinks it will be an all day shoot, so I'm planning on being as present to observe as my work schedule will permit.