I plan on being here for the long haul so I’ll see if I can get the PB to change them. If not, I’m sure I can handle it. My first pool had a lot of broken plumbing that I had to fix.I saw the small size of your filter and immediately knew you were in FL.
You will regret putting in those two orange ball valves if you are in the house for more than a few years. They will stock, the handles will break, and they will be difficult to replace being glued right against the ground.
I would have your PB replace them with 2 way diverter valves now.
New Pool in Orlando
- Thread starter SchubeyDew
- Start date
Tile guys are here, prepping everything for some tile work this week. You can also see they fixed the spa.
Wow! Sorry for not keeping this updated, but the build is done now. I’ll try to lay out the process below.
After the above post they did my tile. It took a few days even with my having the same tile throughout and no complicated patterns. Here is the pool after tile:
Coping came after that:
Pavers were after that. They ordered too many and I ended up with a pallet of paver blocking one garage door for about a week until I called the PB. It took them two weeks to get rid of the extra gravel or whatever it is that they put under the pavers.
Somehow I didn’t get any pictures but the footer did go in before pavers obviously. They dug the trench, it got inspected, poured the concrete and it got inspected again. After that they drained the pool and put all of the trash in a pile to be collected later. It was a few weeks before they actually came and collected the trash and it took a little pressure from me because I told them I had sod going in and it needed to be gone.
Continued below
After the above post they did my tile. It took a few days even with my having the same tile throughout and no complicated patterns. Here is the pool after tile:
Coping came after that:
Pavers were after that. They ordered too many and I ended up with a pallet of paver blocking one garage door for about a week until I called the PB. It took them two weeks to get rid of the extra gravel or whatever it is that they put under the pavers.
Somehow I didn’t get any pictures but the footer did go in before pavers obviously. They dug the trench, it got inspected, poured the concrete and it got inspected again. After that they drained the pool and put all of the trash in a pile to be collected later. It was a few weeks before they actually came and collected the trash and it took a little pressure from me because I told them I had sod going in and it needed to be gone.
Continued below
TampaKathy
Gold Supporter
What are the bowls made of? I think my PB ordered the wrong ones (but hasn't admitted that) and the correct ones are on backorder for who knows how long! We started at the same time and I'm still not done 
I thought the same thing about my tile...took over 5 days...I think I just didn't appreciate what goes into it!
I thought the same thing about my tile...took over 5 days...I think I just didn't appreciate what goes into it!When they emptied the pool was really the point where the PB seemed to kick it into high gear. They cleaned out the pool, did the safety fence and window alarms, got the Magic Bowls mounted and travertine cap finished and I got my fence mostly installed. I say mostly because despite multiple phone calls, when the fence company showed up, they brought the wrong materials and ended up short a few top rails. They also didn’t have the equipment and/or supplies to cut the gate down so it would clear the pool equipment (remember where I said the PB put the equipment too close to the back of the house. It’s been almost a month and several more mistakes later, the fence is still not 100% done, but it was done enough to pass the safety inspection. If anyone wants to know what fence company NOT to use, PM me. Moving on, here is the pool after it was drained and cleaned, with trash collected along the back and the bowls mounted:
After that, came the interior finish. They did it on a Friday and then did acid wash on Monday. Running two hoses it took about 24hrs to fill!
After that they came to start up the pool. I also got the gas line for the heater hooked up during that time.
After that I had to remind the PB (for probably the third time), that the Magic Bowls still needed to be wired. They came and wired them and they turn on now but I can’t control anything other than on and off and they cycle between different colors. I’ve read that you can toggle between modes/colors by cycling the on off switch a certain number of times, but I’m not sure how to do that with the Jandy automation panel. Funny thing is, the PB told me the lights would only do the FireFX lighting. I think they need to rewire it so I can select a different control option as they turn on with the same control as my Jandy pool lights. Other than a possible leak, which seems common with pool builds, the pool orientation, and the final inspection, everything is done now. They came to do the final on Monday but my sod guy left a piece of sod too high and the gate caught, causing it to not self close. Hopefully they will be back out this week.
That’s nighttime. Here’s a daytime view from the back.
I’m very happy with the way everything turned out and I got to enjoy the pool with the family last weekend, which was great! The kids loved it and the wife and I got to enjoy the spa one evening as well. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it only took 20mins for the spa to go from 85-102 degrees! My old stand alone hot tub would take four hours with it’s electric heater.
I know many of you have considered or are using my PB. I honestly don’t know if I would recommend them or not. In the end, I got the pool I wanted for a good price. They did try to pull a few things on me and I didn’t see any of their direct employees until the last few weeks so oversight is practically non existent and it caused several delays. Communication happened when it was convenient for them and texts and phone calls often went unanswered. This more of an annoyance than anything until I started having to schedule sprinklers, sod, the gas hook up, etc. At those points I really needed to know when they were doing specific things and it was very frustrating to not have solid communication. They also missed the deadline by a month. On the other hand, my neighbor chose a different pool builder and signed the same week as me and they were ready to START on his about the time they were ready to fill mine with water. I’m very curious to see if his build goes more smoothly than mine did. There’s also the cost factor. This PB beat the next best price by $5k or $7k, IIRC. I can put up with some BS for that kind of a savings. I’ve heard some horror stories about other PB taking much longer than mine did and I’ve also seen Pools that started half way into my build that are almost finished. I would say my PB is middle of the road. Thank you everyone for all of your input. It was instrumental in helping me figure things out for the build and I’m very happy with how the pool turned out as well. Let me know if you have any questions!
After that, came the interior finish. They did it on a Friday and then did acid wash on Monday. Running two hoses it took about 24hrs to fill!
After that they came to start up the pool. I also got the gas line for the heater hooked up during that time.
After that I had to remind the PB (for probably the third time), that the Magic Bowls still needed to be wired. They came and wired them and they turn on now but I can’t control anything other than on and off and they cycle between different colors. I’ve read that you can toggle between modes/colors by cycling the on off switch a certain number of times, but I’m not sure how to do that with the Jandy automation panel. Funny thing is, the PB told me the lights would only do the FireFX lighting. I think they need to rewire it so I can select a different control option as they turn on with the same control as my Jandy pool lights. Other than a possible leak, which seems common with pool builds, the pool orientation, and the final inspection, everything is done now. They came to do the final on Monday but my sod guy left a piece of sod too high and the gate caught, causing it to not self close. Hopefully they will be back out this week.
That’s nighttime. Here’s a daytime view from the back.
I’m very happy with the way everything turned out and I got to enjoy the pool with the family last weekend, which was great! The kids loved it and the wife and I got to enjoy the spa one evening as well. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it only took 20mins for the spa to go from 85-102 degrees! My old stand alone hot tub would take four hours with it’s electric heater.
I know many of you have considered or are using my PB. I honestly don’t know if I would recommend them or not. In the end, I got the pool I wanted for a good price. They did try to pull a few things on me and I didn’t see any of their direct employees until the last few weeks so oversight is practically non existent and it caused several delays. Communication happened when it was convenient for them and texts and phone calls often went unanswered. This more of an annoyance than anything until I started having to schedule sprinklers, sod, the gas hook up, etc. At those points I really needed to know when they were doing specific things and it was very frustrating to not have solid communication. They also missed the deadline by a month. On the other hand, my neighbor chose a different pool builder and signed the same week as me and they were ready to START on his about the time they were ready to fill mine with water. I’m very curious to see if his build goes more smoothly than mine did. There’s also the cost factor. This PB beat the next best price by $5k or $7k, IIRC. I can put up with some BS for that kind of a savings. I’ve heard some horror stories about other PB taking much longer than mine did and I’ve also seen Pools that started half way into my build that are almost finished. I would say my PB is middle of the road. Thank you everyone for all of your input. It was instrumental in helping me figure things out for the build and I’m very happy with how the pool turned out as well. Let me know if you have any questions!
Mine are made of resin. Pentair makes a glass bowl as well, but it costs a lot more. I’m happy with how they look and they show the light well. That sucks that you are still waiting on your bowls and for the build to be finished. Someone recently told me their friend had their back yard torn up for a year and a half. And that was with a PB that previously had a good reputation but recently seems to have gone downhill. I’m very frustrated with the general attitude of contractors right now. They have so much work that they seem like they could really care less.What are the bowls made of? I think my PB ordered the wrong ones (but hasn't admitted that) and the correct ones are on backorder for who knows how long! We started at the same time and I'm still not done
TampaKathy
Gold Supporter
Based on someone else on here that had the same PB, I was fully expecting a 6 months build but was hoping it wouldn't be, oh well, so much for that! Yes, one of my neighbors, bought their house, got pool quotes, picked a PB and had the whole pool built all during the time between when I started and now but I know they had to pay a premium for that PB so I'm like you...I opted to pay less knowing it would take longer but I'm still a little jealous Yes, the bowls look nice! I like the pool color too, what is it? I'm sure you've said it before but I'd have to go thru 8 pages to find it!
Yes, the bowls look nice! I like the pool color too, what is it? I'm sure you've said it before but I'd have to go thru 8 pages to find it!
Great info and update.
Suggest you update your signature with all the details for future review and needs.
Have an enjoyable swim!!!!!
Thank you! Experiences do seem to vary even with the same PB. My neighbor two doors down started a month and a half after me and I feel like their build moved along more smoothly than mine. They also were constantly calling the PB to find out the next step, where I foolishly took a more trusting approach. Hopefully you get to that point soon where the PB just wants to be done with it and get the rest of their money, lol!Based on someone else on here that had the same PB, I was fully expecting a 6 months build but was hoping it wouldn't be, oh well, so much for that! Yes, one of my neighbors, bought their house, got pool quotes, picked a PB and had the whole pool built all during the time between when I started and now but I know they had to pay a premium for that PB so I'm like you...I opted to pay less knowing it would take longer but I'm still a little jealous
The pool color is Caribbean by Wet Edge. We are really happy with how it turned out. I know two other people with this color and although I’m biased, it think our pool looks the best. Part of it is because we don’t have a screen and they both do, but another part is the gray pavers. I noticed when looking at pool finishes that the color of the decking changed how the pool finish looked.
Thank you, we will! I will try to get everything updated this week.
TampaKathy
Gold Supporter
That color does look really nice with your pavers. Not to be pessimistic or anything but I'm half expecting my PB to say that my plaster color is backordered, haha so I'm trying to have a backup!
which type of plaster did you get by Wet Edge? Mine is Primera Stone but Blue Pacific color.
Wow that's looking great! Your view out of your back doors looks very similar to how ours should end up. Loving the water color! We also look to have the same paver selection. It also sounds like we've had near identical experiences with the PB! Glad to see it's done!
I did have that issue with tile, but not pavers. I had to choose an alternate tile but the difference was very minimal. They tried to get me to change the water bowls at one point too but I was adamant about that and they ended up doing it.
Mine is Signature Matrix Caribbean. IIRC, the Pacific Blue is a nice color. We liked the Caribbean though and it was included.
That’s cool. I haven’t entirely decided on landscaping yet, but did have my irrigation guy run som capped off lines for landscaping along the back of the yard and also behind the pool, so I have options. Right now I’m thinking Areca Palms for privacy along the back fence line and possibly replacing the Holly trees with Sylvester Palms. Still mulling all that over.
About to do pool school with my PB. Curious to see how what they say lines up with the wealth of information here. I picked up a year old Dolphin Premier robot for about half price last week and really like it.
My only remaining issue is to get the Magic Bowl lighting controllable. PB initially balked at wiring them differently as it would cause them to have to install another transformer, but after some discussion they’ve agreed to wire the bowls up separately, most likely with a smart switch, so that I can toggle between different modes. Right now they just turn on with the Jandy lights that are hooked up to the IAquaLink RS4 and cycle through colors.
My only remaining issue is to get the Magic Bowl lighting controllable. PB initially balked at wiring them differently as it would cause them to have to install another transformer, but after some discussion they’ve agreed to wire the bowls up separately, most likely with a smart switch, so that I can toggle between different modes. Right now they just turn on with the Jandy lights that are hooked up to the IAquaLink RS4 and cycle through colors.