New DIY pool build - NW Austin, TX (filled!)

[seanmcgary]

Hello everyone! We're just getting started on a new pool build at our new house in Austin, TX. After following so many threads here on TFP and learning a TON, we decided to go the BYOP route and I'll be managing the build (and possibily doing some of the work myself where it makes sense) rather than hiring a pool builder.

Here's what we have so far:

• Pool Size: 18' x 32'
• Pool depth: 4' to 6' (depth from middle of waterline tile)
• Tanning ledge: 7' x 21', 9" deep (from middle of waterline tile)
• Spa: 8' x 8'
• Total volume: ~11k gallons

We've got our 3D design finalized (which I'll attach) and I just got our pre-engineering plans the other day (site layout).

Here are my outstanding questions that I'd love some advice/feedback on before I send them over to be finalized:

1. We're planning on a salt water system and going with all Pentair equipment (the site plan attached doesnt reflect that yet). I know the common wisdom is to pick a cell that's 2x your pool volume, so it seems that would put me in the IC20 range, but I only see Intellicenter bundles that come with the IC40 or IC60 cells. Am I left with buying the IC20 and Intellicenter separately (or maybe there IS a bundle and I just missed it), or should I just go with the (likely oversized) IC40?
2. They spec'd a 400k BTU propane heater. We're only planning on using the heater for the spa, so is that overkill? The main deciding factor here is if I can get a 2" propane line to the pad, which is what the site plan is calling for. I know I can get a 1" line over there which is what I saw as a requirement for the 200k BTU heater (looking at the Pentair Master Temp 200k propane model)
3. Is it worth it to run electrical and plumbing for a chiller? We're in Austin; it's been over 100 degrees here for what seems like forever this summer. Those of you that put one in, was it worth it? Would love opinions on Glacier chillers vs. a heat pump system.
4. Number of skimmers: current plans only spec out 1 on the top right corner of the pool. Is that sufficient or should another be added?
5. Im planning on using Pentair microbrites. They've spec'd 5 total: 4 in the pool one in the spa. This seems like it should be sufficient.

Total equipment list Ive come up with (all Pentair):

• Intellicenter with IC20 or 40 salt cell
• IntelliFlo3 VSF 3.0HP pump
• MasterTemp 200k BTU heater
• Clean & Clear Plus, 420 Sq. Ft. Cartridge Filter
• Microbrite color LED lights (x5)
• Pentair IntelliValve actuators (however many I need...)

Need recommendations on:

• Check valves (Pentair? Jandy? Other?)
• Diverter valves (Jandy never lube? Pentair? Other?)
• Blower for the spa
• Anything else I might be missing

And now, for the pictures!

 

[HermanTX]

Hello everyone! We're just getting started on a new pool build at our new house in Austin, TX. After following so many threads here on TFP and learning a TON, we decided to go the BYOP route and I'll be managing the build (and possibily doing some of the work myself where it makes sense) rather than hiring a pool builder.

Here's what we have so far:

• Pool Size: 18' x 32'
• Pool depth: 4' to 6' (depth from middle of waterline tile)
• Tanning ledge: 7' x 21', 9" deep (from middle of waterline tile)
• Spa: 8' x 8'
• Total volume: ~11k gallons

We've got our 3D design finalized (which I'll attach) and I just got our pre-engineering plans the other day (site layout).

Here are my outstanding questions that I'd love some advice/feedback on before I send them over to be finalized:

1. We're planning on a salt water system and going with all Pentair equipment (the site plan attached doesnt reflect that yet). I know the common wisdom is to pick a cell that's 2x your pool volume, so it seems that would put me in the IC20 range, but I only see Intellicenter bundles that come with the IC40 or IC60 cells. Am I left with buying the IC20 and Intellicenter separately (or maybe there IS a bundle and I just missed it), or should I just go with the (likely oversized) IC40?
2. They spec'd a 400k BTU propane heater. We're only planning on using the heater for the spa, so is that overkill? The main deciding factor here is if I can get a 2" propane line to the pad, which is what the site plan is calling for. I know I can get a 1" line over there which is what I saw as a requirement for the 200k BTU heater (looking at the Pentair Master Temp 200k propane model)
3. Is it worth it to run electrical and plumbing for a chiller? We're in Austin; it's been over 100 degrees here for what seems like forever this summer. Those of you that put one in, was it worth it? Would love opinions on Glacier chillers vs. a heat pump system.
4. Number of skimmers: current plans only spec out 1 on the top right corner of the pool. Is that sufficient or should another be added?
5. Im planning on using Pentair microbrites. They've spec'd 5 total: 4 in the pool one in the spa. This seems like it should be sufficient.

Total equipment list Ive come up with (all Pentair):

• Intellicenter with IC20 or 40 salt cell
• IntelliFlo3 VSF 3.0HP pump
• MasterTemp 200k BTU heater
• Clean & Clear Plus, 420 Sq. Ft. Cartridge Filter
• Microbrite color LED lights (x5)
• Pentair IntelliValve actuators (however many I need...)

Need recommendations on:

• Check valves (Pentair? Jandy? Other?)
• Diverter valves (Jandy never lube? Pentair? Other?)
• Blower for the spa
• Anything else I might be missing

And now, for the pictures!

View attachment 521359
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View attachment 521351View attachment 521353View attachment 521354
View attachment 521355

Welcome to TFP.
The design Looks great.
Answers to your questions
1 - going bigger on a SWCG has never hurt anything. The package with IC40 may be equivalent to purchasing separately the IC and the IC20 so just do some research.
2 - a 400k BTU will heat faster but agree you need to weigh the cost of laying lines vs the convenience of a faster heating of your spa.
3 - a cooler is a good consideration for the summer. I have a friend that has a Glacier cooler that enjoys it but it is hig and bulky.
4 - definitely go with 2 skimmers and have each independently plumbed back to the equipment pad.
5 - lights - others will have input.

Great pump and filter selection.
Have you thought about a cleaner? Will you go with a robot? Other alternatives are either a pressure side or suction side cleaners.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Sean,

Go with the IC40 IntelliCenter package that also comes with 2 valve actuators.. The bigger the cell the, longer it will last.

Make sure that your pool builder is told not use any "ball-valves".. Valves need to be Jandy style valves. (The brand does not matter)

If you had asked me last year if I thought a chiller was needed, I would have said no.. This year, my answer is YES and I live well North of you in DFW.

I am a big fan of two skimmers no matter the size of the pool. One on the long wall and the other on the short wall.

I have to ask, because I always do... Have you ever been in a Gunite Spa? If you have, and liked, it great!! If not, then I suggest that you try one before you buy one. About half the people that have pool/spa set-ups, never use there spas as they are just not that comfortable.

I love your design...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[seanmcgary]

Welcome to TFP.
The design Looks great.
Answers to your questions
1 - going bigger on a SWCG has never hurt anything. The package with IC40 may be equivalent to purchasing separately the IC and the IC20 so just do some research.
2 - a 400k BTU will heat faster but agree you need to weigh the cost of laying lines vs the convenience of a faster heating of your spa.
3 - a cooler is a good consideration for the summer. I have a friend that has a Glacier cooler that enjoys it but it is hig and bulky.
4 - definitely go with 2 skimmers and have each independently plumbed back to the equipment pad.
5 - lights - others will have input.

Great pump and filter selection.
Have you thought about a cleaner? Will you go with a robot? Other alternatives are either a pressure side or suction side cleaners.

Appreciate the input! For the cleaner I think Im leaning towards the robot. Seems like thats the most recommended option rather than a pressure/suction side cleaner and probably the easiest/most fool proof options.

 

[seanmcgary]

Sean,

Go with the IC40 IntelliCenter package that also comes with 2 valve actuators.. The bigger the cell the, longer it will last.

Make sure that your pool builder is told not use any "ball-valves".. Valves need to be Jandy style valves. (The brand does not matter)

If you had asked me last year if I thought a chiller was needed, I would have said no.. This year, my answer is YES and I live well North of you in DFW.

I am a big fan of two skimmers no matter the size of the pool. One on the long wall and the other on the short wall.

I have to ask, because I always do... Have you ever been in a Gunite Spa? If you have, and liked, it great!! If not, then I suggest that you try one before you buy one. About half the people that have pool/spa set-ups, never use there spas as they are just not that comfortable.

I love your design...

Thanks,

Jim R.

Thanks, Jim!

I fully plan on taking the no ball-valve approach and want to use the Jandy style valves. Good to know that any valve in that style should work.

Ive definitely been in a gunite spa before (at a friend's house also here in Central Texas) and I definitely didn't find it uncomfortable. I actually don't think I noticed anything really; felt like a pretty normal hot tub to me lol.

 

[TEOTWAWKI]

Wow, if your pool ends up looking anything like the images, you're going to have one helluva backyard space! Beautiful.

 

[kimkats]

I am so in for this one!! LOVE the desgin!

 

[KevMo]

Is it worth it to run electrical and plumbing for a chiller? We're in Austin; it's been over 100 degrees here for what seems like forever this summer. Those of you that put one in, was it worth it? Would love opinions on Glacier chillers vs. a heat pump system.

If you think you might install a chiller, you should pre-plumb and ensure there is capacity in the load panel. Look at the installation manual(s) of the option(s) you might choose and make sure that whatever you do will accommodate each. Do not skimp on the equipment pad. A heat pump is close in size to a regular gas heater, but the Glacier chillers are beasts. When you look at their specs look at their diameter and not just their pad footprint. I have the Glacier GPC-210. It needs a 3' X 3' pad space but it is 42" in diameter and 54" tall. So you would really need 4' x 4' plus walking around space and plenty of headroom. Here is picture of the GPC-210 prior to install on my equipment pad.

 

[AQUA~HOLICS]

With only 1 light on the reef step you will have dark corners on both sides of the step. Add one more and have them located inline with the umbrellas so when you have the lounges in place the lights will illuminate between them and not directly to the backs of them.

Think about having a second spillway facing the reef step, this will give a nice visual look from the house along with the waterfall sound, with the single spillway facing away from the house you loose both of those aspects.

 

[davecraze]

That is a great design and looks like a ton of fun!

Just FYI - you may want to redact your name and address on the plan document you posted.

 

[jetranger]

Looks nice! Something to think about....

It seems backwards to me to have the deep end off the tanning ledge. We spend most of our time either on the tanning ledge or in the shallow end. I feel like its really nice to go back and forth easily. I can't imagine having to swim over to the shallow end from the tanning ledge. People will be sitting on the edge of your tanning ledge as a bench, so if anyone is sitting there it would make it even more difficult to go back and forth.

 

[seanmcgary]

If you think you might install a chiller, you should pre-plumb and ensure there is capacity in the load panel. Look at the installation manual(s) of the option(s) you might choose and make sure that whatever you do will accommodate each. Do not skimp on the equipment pad. A heat pump is close in size to a regular gas heater, but the Glacier chillers are beasts. When you look at their specs look at their diameter and not just their pad footprint. I have the Glacier GPC-210. It needs a 3' X 3' pad space but it is 42" in diameter and 54" tall. So you would really need 4' x 4' plus walking around space and plenty of headroom. Here is picture of the GPC-210 prior to install on my equipment pad.

Wow that thing is definitely a beast! Good to know to double check the actual size not just the recommended pad size.

With only 1 light on the reef step you will have dark corners on both sides of the step. Add one more and have them located inline with the umbrellas so when you have the lounges in place the lights will illuminate between them and not directly to the backs of them.

This is a great suggestion and I think I'll do just that.

Think about having a second spillway facing the reef step, this will give a nice visual look from the house along with the waterfall sound, with the single spillway facing away from the house you loose both of those aspects.

This is definitely interesting that I'll have to think about.

Just FYI - you may want to redact your name and address on the plan document you posted.

Thank you! I definitely made an attempt but missed a section it seems...

It seems backwards to me to have the deep end off the tanning ledge. We spend most of our time either on the tanning ledge or in the shallow end. I feel like its really nice to go back and forth easily. I can't imagine having to swim over to the shallow end from the tanning ledge. People will be sitting on the edge of your tanning ledge as a bench, so if anyone is sitting there it would make it even more difficult to go back and forth.

Appreciate the insight! Yeah it definitely is backwards from what you'd normally see. I went back and forth a bit on how to orient the deeper end of the pool. Ultimately it came down to: 1. putting the shallow end near the spa so that folks could stand near people that might be hanging out in the spa and 2. the deeper side is on the lower side of the hill, which means less to excavate (we're basically on a mountain of limestone...). The depth different between the 2 sides is only 2 feet, so maybe what I'll do is extend the amount of space allocated for the shallow end...I'll definitely give it some thought.

I am so in for this one!! LOVE the desgin!

Thanks so much!!

 

[seanmcgary]

While Im waiting on the next design revision before final approval, Im starting to look into sourcing materials and equipment. Since this is a DIY build, and Im trying to do as much of the work where I can (plumbing, electrical, pavers, etc), Id love some suggestions on best places to source things, specifically:

• Pool equipment (all Pentair, give me your places with the best deals!)
• Coping and pavers. I want to try and do these myself (Ive done tile and paver work before, so Im familiar with the process), and am struggling to find the right places to purchase them (could be that I have to just pick up the phone and call around). We're interested in both natural stone (limestone, lueder stone, travertine) and pre-cast concrete. Any suggestions on suppliers, distributors or brands that y'all have had good experiences with? I totally understand too if most places will only sell to contractors, so if I have to sub it out to get the best prices/materials, then I guess I'll just have to deal with that.

 

[jetranger]

Appreciate the insight! Yeah it definitely is backwards from what you'd normally see. I went back and forth a bit on how to orient the deeper end of the pool. Ultimately it came down to: 1. putting the shallow end near the spa so that folks could stand near people that might be hanging out in the spa and 2. the deeper side is on the lower side of the hill, which means less to excavate (we're basically on a mountain of limestone...). The depth different between the 2 sides is only 2 feet, so maybe what I'll do is extend the amount of space allocated for the shallow end...I'll definitely give it some thought.

No worries.... As I sit out by my pool as I type this, I honestly can't imagine having the deep end off the swim deck.

Perhaps if the goal is so people can comfortably stand next to the spa, you could put in a shelf to stand on or a bench to sit on along it.

That of course doesn't solve your excavation problem, but that seems to be kind of a 'buy once, cry once' scenario.

Hopefully others will chime in... Best of luck

 

[Jimrahbe]

Pool equipment (all Pentair, give me your places with the best deals!)

Sean,

Here is my go to place... If nothing else they are a great reference... You might find things a few bucks cheaper, but that is a false savings in my mind.

Welcome to Polytec Pools

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[seanmcgary]

Turns out when you're building a house, septic design plans aren't 100% exact. Since our drain field ended up a bit too close to where we wanted the pool, we had to go back and shift everything 10ft to the left. Not a problem, but just ate up a few weeks going back through the design process. As of last week, we're officially waiting on permits!

In the meantime, Ive started calling around to subs to get bids, and holy Crud is that a grind tracking people down.

Ive also started trying to wrap my head around the plumbing and would love some feedback:



I wasnt entirely sure which sections needed check valves and which dont, so I might have gone a bit crazy with them.

One of my main questions is: does the ordering of the chiller and heater matter at all? We're doing a heater (just for use in spa mode) from the start, but being in Central Texas, I want to account for space to add a chiller later on since it gets so hot here.

Otherwise I think everything is pretty standard. The spa has an overflow back into the pool, so from what Ive gathered, in "pool" mode, suction will only be from the pool main, but will return back into pool as well as the spa to get the overflow effect and circulate water through the spa. In "spa" mode, the pump will only pull from the spa and return to the spa. Do I have that right?

 

[HermanTX]

The only check valve needed is before the pipes to the spa returns as you have shown. Not sure if you need one on a chiller.
However, I would recommend putting in a heater bypass which will require a CV on outlet side of heater (Not 2 as you show)
See

Heater Bypass - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

You have dedicated spa returns on the pool side of the return plumbing. This will cause your spa to be in constant spillover mode. Is this what you want? Constant spillover will create aeration which will cause the pH level to rise. We do not recommend that.

There are 2 options. One is to only have 1 dedicated spa return on the pool side but put a valve on it so you can shut off that spillover.

The preferred option, if you are using automation which appears you will, there is a setting called SPILLOVER. you can schedule it to run for 20 mins (or longer) a day to refresh your spa water. You would remove both spa return lines on the pool side plumbing.

Therefore you will have 3 modes
Pool Mode - suction from pool skimmer/main drain and return to pool returns ONLY
Spa Mode - suction from spa main drain and return to spa returns ONLY
Spillover Mode - suction from pool skimmer/main drain and return to spa returns ONLY. In this mode, the 3 way valve on suction is open to pool and closed to spa but the 3 way valve on return is open to spa returns and closed to pool returns.

Since you have lower and upper jets, you may even want to select which set gets the flow in SPILLOVER mode.

Hope this helps.

 

[seanmcgary]

The only check valve needed is before the pipes to the spa returns as you have shown. Not sure if you need one on a chiller.
However, I would recommend putting in a heater bypass which will require a CV on outlet side of heater (Not 2 as you show)
See

Heater Bypass - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

You have dedicated spa returns on the pool side of the return plumbing. This will cause your spa to be in constant spillover mode. Is this what you want? Constant spillover will create aeration which will cause the pH level to rise. We do not recommend that.

There are 2 options. One is to only have 1 dedicated spa return on the pool side but put a valve on it so you can shut off that spillover.

The preferred option, if you are using automation which appears you will, there is a setting called SPILLOVER. you can schedule it to run for 20 mins (or longer) a day to refresh your spa water. You would remove both spa return lines on the pool side plumbing.

Therefore you will have 3 modes
Pool Mode - suction from pool skimmer/main drain and return to pool returns ONLY
Spa Mode - suction from spa main drain and return to spa returns ONLY
Spillover Mode - suction from pool skimmer/main drain and return to spa returns ONLY. In this mode, the 3 way valve on suction is open to pool and closed to spa but the 3 way valve on return is open to spa returns and closed to pool returns.

Since you have lower and upper jets, you may even want to select which set gets the flow in SPILLOVER mode.

Hope this helps.

Appreciate the feedback, HermanTX! All of that makes complete sense. Thats pretty much exactly what I was trying to go for. I had completely overlooked that aeration from the constant waterfall could cause pH issues.

 

[seanmcgary]

Excavation has finally begun! We're currently on day 3 of digging. Day 1 was spent jackhammering through all the limestone ledge to make room for the pool deck. And yesterday (day 2) they started digging the actual pool. Pretty sure the operator busted something on his machine at the end of day 1; he spent a good 3 hours with a welder doing something yesterday morning before getting started. Between these guys and the guys that dug our septic, our yard has caused a few problems with machinery...

Day 1



Day 2

 

[seanmcgary]

End of day 4:

Crew pretty much finished up excavation, including the details for the retaining wall. They also started putting in the forms today for the pool, so Im guessing steel will likely follow tomorrow or early next week.

It's amazing how different it is seeing everything dug out vs. just paint on the ground. It feels MUCH larger than it had when we painted the outline.