New DIY IG Pool Build Pittsburgh PA

If they won't do it, could you reduce the depth of the deep end to compensate, or is there a "rule" for that too?

Depends if he wants it to be a "Diving" pool.

There are standards for depths and slopes of diving pools.
 
All the walls are now in my garage.

My kids didn’t know of the pool plans until the material started to arrive. We kept it a surprise.

My 4 year old “can we swim tomorrow?” :D

Ran into a few issues when unpacking and doing inventory check.

Liner track is two different colors and textures of grey. Also a portion is scratched. IMG_9758.jpeg

Also, the cantilever coping forms are two different profiles.

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I submitted the One Call with PA today. Looking like dig day is 5/31/2024. I am renting a machine for a day, and they let you keep it for the weekend and still only charge you a day rate. My FIL has a bobcat skid steer to help move the dug up dirt out of the way. A coworker let me borrow his laser transit. All coming together!
 
Dig day over the weekend. Hole is in! We ran into a ton of rock in the deep end and had to rent the jackhammer attachment for the excavator. All the shale made the tapered portion of the hopper not perfect, but we can fix that later.

Now I need to get rid of the dirt. It looks like a bomb went off.

Pool Dig 2.jpgPool Dig.jpg
 
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Congrats! This is the one thing we hired a contractor for. The dirt went straight into dump trucks and the site was left spotless afterwards. Plus they did an incredibly accurate job, although we have very sandy soil here so not as challenging. It was definitely worth every penny we paid.
 
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I got all the walls up finally. It was a little nerve racking getting the final few wall sections set. I started in 1 corners and went both ways, I was nervous it either wasn't going to bolt up or all my distances were off. Thankfully everything is good.

I don't know if Royal ordered me too few A-frame braces, or I used them too closely together. Either way, I had to order 4 more. I would rather have more bracing than less I suppose. I placed the order on Monday this week, and they have still yet to ship.

Next steps are to get the last few A-frames installed and rough-in the main drain. Then I can get ready for the concrete collar.
Pool Walls Complete.jpg


My supervisor overseeing production:

Pickles.jpg
 
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These 2’ panel sections would not go straight along a string line. As soon as I turned the turnbuckle the other end would flex slightly.

I found some scrap angle iron at work and had one of our welders punch out some holes in the ironworker.

Straight as an arrow now.

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Ok I'm getting ready for the concrete collar, trying to have that done on Friday this week. A few questions:

-I've watched a few videos on the collar concrete install, and it looks like the majority arent using rebar. Is that right? I'm probably going to add rebar just to be safe. To keep it simple I'm probably going to use fiberglass rebar so I dont have to worry about bonding the rebar to the steel walls. I would need to have the inspector come out twice if I used metal rebar in the collar.

-I'm going to have a main drain, but I don't have any of that done yet. Am I OK to just run a larger piece of PVC (let's say 4") to act as a sleeve that will go through the concrete collar? That way I can pour the collar then worry about the main drain when I do all my plumbing work.

-I have a few spots where the walls aren't perfectly touching the dirt and uncured concrete will be able to get under and flow into the pool. Assuming I can just use 2x4's and stakes to shore them up until the concrete cures?

Anything else I need to take into account before the collar? Thanks!
 
Have you confirmed with your Inspector what he is looking for to meet the NEC 680.26 requirement for Perimeter Surface bonding?
 
Have you confirmed with your Inspector what he is looking for to meet the NEC 680.26 requirement for Perimeter Surface bonding?
I just reviewed my documentation that I sent over for my permit, the backfill detail just says "Min 6" thick concrete collar required at base of the all panels". Just to be safe I'm going to call the inspector to make sure he's good with using fiberglass rebar with no grounding. Better to be safe than sorry!

-Kevin
 
Just to be safe I'm going to call the inspector to make sure he's good with using fiberglass rebar with no grounding.


... using fiberglass rebar with no grounding perimeter bonding.

If you don't ask the right question you will not get the right answer.
 
The bottom lip of the panels should have holes for rebar "spikes" to hold the panels in place as you're pouring concrete. Should be at least one per panel. My kit (polymer) came with these. They were maybe 2' long at most. Otherwise, I think horizontally laid rebar within the collar would be a luxury that probably isn't necessary, but nor would it be terribly expensive. Definitely can't hurt.

I assume, you've measured ten times or more for square, plumb and level? I used a 360 laser level at dusk to make sure I was right on all around. I was out of square by about 5/8" but by all accounts, that's acceptable and it hasn't caused any issues.
 
The bottom lip of the panels should have holes for rebar "spikes" to hold the panels in place as you're pouring concrete. Should be at least one per panel. My kit (polymer) came with these. They were maybe 2' long at most. Otherwise, I think horizontally laid rebar within the collar would be a luxury that probably isn't necessary, but nor would it be terribly expensive. Definitely can't hurt.

I assume, you've measured ten times or more for square, plumb and level? I used a 360 laser level at dusk to make sure I was right on all around. I was out of square by about 5/8" but by all accounts, that's acceptable and it hasn't caused any issues.

I'm good with being level and square. My digital transit I was probably +/- 1/16th all the way around the pool.
 
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