New Pool Easy Set 8' leveled by magazines

[asxetos]

Hello everyone, I am new here, this is my first post, from Athens, Greece.

I read somewhere (or maybe saw it on Youtube) about someone who used some old magazines to level his pool, thought of doing the same with old newspapers, catalogs etc. I kept these for many years, finally I found some use for them, here are pics.

Pool looks level enough for the moment, however this kind of pool can be damaged easily, a cat can rip the air ring, some mouse can eat the liner, ants can eat the liner if they feel like it, lots of things can go wrong here, so I have no idea how long this thing will be up.

I have some fish in there too, also use a mature biological filter from another small pool I had in the yard, no chlorine of course. I will have to share the pool with the fish if it gets too hot, already done that, so far everything OK.

The pool is not full, intentionally, I wanted to make sure it would make it through the first night, will fill more if no cats appear for a couple days.

The included filter model 604 makes a little noise so I insulated (sort of) with some old Styrofoam I had lying around in the yard for some years, it did cut the noise a bit. I have to run the pump 24/7 because of the biological filter, I expected such a cheap pump to make some noise but it turned out this one is noisier than I predicted or maybe I was used to very quiet pumps until now.

The whole setup is in a temporary state yet, if all goes well I will fix that return line in a better way, maybe fix it to the wall, I have to think about that, the wall is in perfect condition and I do not want to damage it (joking).

This is all from me, I really enjoy this forum, very valuable information in here, thanks everyone for that.

 

[poolgranny]

The only thing is that when they (newspaper/mags) get wet won't they compress down and make things very slippery under there? When you take the pool down they are sure to get wet and will be hard to clean up I would think, plus being very heavy to move.

Otherwise a very neat idea.

 

[1380ken]

It is hard to tell from the pictures . How much did you build up with the magazines ? I would trust an Intex metal pole pool without the blow up ring due to the fish in the pool. Around my area racoons would be trying to get the fish.
I personally would not want to swim in the nasty smelly fish pool. It would be more like an episode of fear factor than an enjoyable swim.

 

[mpacheco72]

I think it would make an effective weed barrier. Not sure that it would really help level. And although it wouldn't be my first choice, swimming with the fishies might be ok. I mean people swim in lakes, rivers, streams and oceans all the time.

 

[asxetos]

Thanks everyone for the comments.

I had to level 1" to 2" at some places, this was a drainage slope (maybe too much of it). I had a lot of magazines / newspapers to use, and could use even more. I have used 4 stacks of printed material, each stack was about 10" high.

To be honest, a metal frame pool was my first choice but the smallest round one would not fit in the space available, and the smallest rectangular ones did not have a filter, so I went with this one, knowing I take a huge risk with this inflatable ring thing.

Only time will tell what will happen to this one, I also have an emergency repair plan for that ring, that is after a cat destroys the ring, tearing it open at places and inserting large diameter cylindrical foam (I sourced two types locally, one used for insulation and another type used for furniture manufacturing), then patch ring again. The foam insert will provide buoyancy until the ants find and eat the foam inserts.

No raccoons here, but if the pool was exposed from above large birds could try to get at the fish. Hopefully there is enough shadow covering by grape vines, so birds cannot see the target, although I do get a lot of small birds in the yard at some watering stations I keep. Largest bird that comes in the yard to drink water is the collared dove.

 

[cramar]

I'm glad I'm not your neighbour.

Levelling with newspaper, keeping fish in your pool, a cat can destroy the pool, sorry, I personally can't take that seriously, it's ridiculous.

 

[Durf]

I'm glad I'm not your neighbour.

Levelling with newspaper, keeping fish in your pool, a cat can destroy the pool, sorry, I personally can't take that seriously, it's ridiculous.

I'm sure he is equally glad.

 

[techguy]

I think your pool looks nice. I have never seen a clear, bubble plastic, EasySet.

Are you using the fish to eat the pool's organics?
How do you plan on taking care of the fish waste?
What type of fish are they?
Are they pet fish or something else?

 

[poolgranny]

I live in a small community of 20,000 in the midwest so we are mainly rural. The nearest big city is approximately 70 miles away, with Kansas City being 100 miles to the west of us.

We have racoons, opposums, a couple of groundhogs, snakes, rabbits, feral cats, and who knows what else that roams our neighborhood and I am in the middle of town. A few years ago, my brother that lives in the next block had a deer in his fenced in back yard.

We swim in the creeks, streams, lakes, rivers, etc. around here. It is really pleasant when you have been swimming and decide to walk the bank for something to do and round a bend and find a bloated dead cow floating. Did it stop us? Nope we didn't swim anymore that particular day, but yep we went back. We have had snakes swim by us catching us by surprise, had fish nibble on us, etc. Part of the experience. :lol:

I love the way your pool looks, I hadn't see that particular pool with the clear patches. It looks good. I would be more worried about the confined space and swimming in the pool upsetting the chemistry for the fish.

I wonder if you couldn't take the wet paper once you are done and till into the ground for compost?

 

[asxetos]

Thanks everyone for the comments.

The fish are Koi, the big ones are a breeding pair, the smaller ones are their kids (1st generation). I keep 2nd generation separate, they are too small to be with the big guys.

The way this pool works is the way a Koi pond is supposed to work. A mature biological filter completes most part of the Nitrogen cycle (up to Nitrogen Trioxide) and water changes take care of the rest. Algae will probably cover all available surfaces, the fish keep it trimmed, it is part of their diet. The improvised biological filter in the pool was servicing this exact bioload, in a much smaller water volume, for many years and is up to the job, the 4" PVC pipe contains plastic biocubes for surface area plus a coarse sponge mechanical filter on each side. The included pool "filter" has no filter cartridge in it, it is only pumping water.

This is a stable system than can run for decades and keeps water clean and healthy, much in the way nature does in streams and lakes. The biological filter needs cleaning only when water flow is reduced significantly, given the volume of water this could be more than a month.

Human presence in the pool does not upset water chemistry at all, the system can handle easily ten times the bioload, given all the available surface this pool has for gas exchange. Of course, the person entering the pool should not introduce unwanted chemicals like sunscreen, perfume etc as this is a live system and needs to be treated accordingly.

 

[techguy]

In your mind... Is this primarily a fish pond that the humans use occasionally? or a swimming pool shared with fish?

 

[asxetos]

It could work both ways, during a hot spell this could be a human pool, at other times it would be mainly inhabited by the fish.

As these fish know me well, I have kept the older ones for 12 years, this might work just fine, but I am using the pool myself more and more, so the balance might tilt to "human pool" at least for summertime.

 

[frogabog]

Swimming pools and fish homes are two different beasts. To be managed with the same high regard for water chemistry, yet very different water chemistry. Clean fish house water is not the same as clean pool water, but it's still clean. Biological filters provide clean water so the fish don't die, highly unlikely it'll hurt a human either.

I love how this pool looks, and I imagine the Koi like it as well. It's very pretty. The magazines probably won't get that wet anyway, without kids splashing around all the time. Now, if Intex would make a metal frame pool out of this stuff I'd be thinking about replacing the pool!

 

[1380ken]

Sorry for my stinky nasty fish reply but we have a fish tank at work with large Koi fish in it. Last week five of the six fish were dead and I had to remove them from the tank. Very stinky and gross.

 

[asxetos]

I am sorry to hear about so many Koi dying, something must have been very wrong in that aquarium, since Koi are very hardy and can outlive most people.

Could have been low dissolved oxygen, this can happen in hot weather when fish get larger and their life support equipment is not upgraded accordingly. Warmer water can hold less oxygen and fish are larger than last year when nothing bad happened during hot season, but this year the situation is marginal and we have no clue about it.

Can't really think of any other way to kill Koi that have been living in an aquarium for years, got large and died during summer.

 

[phonedave]

It is really pleasant when you have been swimming and decide to walk the bank for something to do and round a bend and find a bloated dead cow floating.

Downstream I hope.

I too swam in many lakes, streams, "criks", and other assorted bodies of water as a kid. I still do from time to time (my parents have a summer house in a rural part of Vermont)

As for the OP's pool. There is a reason in the construction trades that organic material (wood, vegitation, PAPER) is not allowed in fill - it rots and then sinks.

Using paper as a pool pad - maybe, if the ground was level below it - but come removal time, it is going to be pretty nasty.

I personaly would not use it to level a pool base, it will decompose. If the pool is on a slope (and of course it is, if you are leveling it in the first place) any rainwater is going to run under the pool into the paper. It is going to make quite a mess. With the temp pool that the OP has, that may not be that much of a problem.

As for swimming with the fishes, I don't know if I would want to with such large fish in such a small pool - but to each their own. My youngest daughter would not go anywhere near that. She HATES swimming with any sort of fish. I am going to guess that without a gravel bottom, and some regular brushing and circulating of the water, that pool should stay pretty clean.

-dave

 

[asxetos]

Thanks everyone for the comments.

I addressed the issue of pump noise today, since the temporary insulation, using whatever material was available in my yard, did cut the noise a bit, without bringing it to an acceptable level though.

So, I bought fiberglass insulation material, did two full layers over the filter, plus one semi-layer with the leftover material.

This did the job, now the pump is very quiet in there, here are some pics.

 

[zaxs]

Interesting mod on the pump. I would just check that it isn't getting to hot. I think the pump is air cooled. If it get's to hot the motor will not last long. Cool Idea with the fish. I grew up swimming in the bay off Green Bay Wi. and believe me it's called Green Bay for a reason. I remember walking through thick layers of rotting algae to go swimming during the two weeks that the snow melted. Swimming with fish has been done since Adam and Eve or Org and Unga depending on your beliefs.

 

[asxetos]

Regarding temperature in the pump and filter housing, if the pump and filter is installed with no insulation, then internal pump - filter temperature is a function of both pool water temperature and air temperature.

As water contains more heat energy, it is mostly water temperature that regulates pump temperature. This is why this specific pump has an upper limit on pumped water temperature, this limit is 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit).

With insulation in place, during summer, when air is hotter than water, this will help minimize the effect air temperature has on pump temperature and actually lower the pump temperature, bringing it closer to water temperature, which in my pool is 26 degrees Celsius (79 degrees Fahrenheit) right now, while at the same time air temperature is more than 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit).

During winter time, air is colder than water and the use of insulation makes the pump operate at a temperature that is closer to pool water temperature, than a pump with no insulation, this creates a win-win situation, keeping pump temperature steadier all year round.

THE ABOVE IS VALID FOR THIS MODEL PUMP (Intex 604), which I dismantled and inspected before using it, it is a magnetic drive pump with passive cooling, it uses a very strong and lightweight magnet, and this is the cause of the noise, because, during operation, the magnet is rotating inside the alternating magnetic field, yet it is so lightweight that it does not have the inertia required for a smoother rotation and this produces noise in the frequency of the alternating current used to create the alternating magnetic field, that is 50 Hz in Greece, making an audible irritating noise, as the whole housing vibrates along with the rotating magnet.

I have seen other pool pumps that use forced air cooling, having a shaft extension that moves a fan, which in turn cools the motor via forced air circulation, much like washing machine water pumps do. These kinds of pumps need free air circulation and CANNOT BE INSULATED in this way.

 

[phonedave]

I will second the heat question on that pump? Is it rated for contact with insulation? It may burn out, or light that insulation on fire, burn the hose, drain the pool and kill the fish.


Edit: Ah, I see you answered it - nice work!

-dave