Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

[teribble1]

Here we go….
Planning a large spa / spool here in Las Vegas and would love some feedback and I’m sure the ball busting will follow. What I can tell reading all the builds on here Kim is the grammar police and we’ll become great friends. Now to a little about me…. I’m about as cheap as they come and will do anything to save a few dollars. I’ve very comfortable in AutoCad and Revit so I’m planning on doing my own plans and trying to get them submitted to the county. I know I’ll need to get the structural stamped (Looking for structural Eng.) but I have access to plumbing, electrical, and mechanical engineering. I’ve been in my new house for a few months and I’m starting to get sick of looking at dirt. I’ll keep this first post updated with all the progress to help future builders from going through pages and pages to get build updates.

The yard / access –
Currently I have dirt and more dirt. I’m working with a 79’ wide X 32’ deep square. I have 9 feet clear on both sides of my house.

The plan / build –
To build a large spa or as the call them now days, a spool.

First Quote –
I called a friend of a friend to get a quote and base price for the spool. I talked to him about doing whatever I can to help keep the price down and told him I would provide my own equipment.
He gave me a price of 18K for the spool when he showed up to look at the dirt. I didn’t give him any drawings or anything, Just told him I wanted it to be 14’x14’ with a two foot seat/ step around and 4 feet deep with 10 jets. 3 on the two sides and 2 on the other two sides. I didn’t get a break down of what was includes in the price but as far as I can tell with the communication breakdown. I would provide the plans, permit, and he would do the work. I’m planning on calling a few contractors to get quotes to see where they fall to have a good base price. Then I’m planning on getting a few quotes from subs to sub out all the work.

Layout –
The first plan / layout Please let me know if I’m totally messed up or lost all together but here’s what I detailed up for a rough draft idea and layout to get my wife’s input.







Here’s a gate I’m building for my side yard


Pool design.


Thank you and please feel free to kick / point/ push me in the correct direction.


The finished pool

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

After finding a few spool builds on here. I think I'm going the wrong direction with the seat around all four sides..... thing to go back to cad and pay with some ideas. I'm also worried my current layout would take too long to heat with the whole thing being 4 feet deep.

 

[kimkats]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

HI!! You rang???? LOL I is not no grammer polece...............I is the BLING Now I do watch out for adult words and such as I have very sensitive eyes! blink, blink........I also watch for ANY adult drink! With my being a Kindergarten teacher I need any and all I can get my hands on some days Too bad I don't drink though hehe

teribble, once you get it heated up it will be hard to cool it down where are you are at!

Tell us what you see yourself doing in this spool? Why a spool instead of a pool to swim laps in or to lay on a large, comfy raft?

I know you know this one is coming..........pics of where this new toy will be going please :angel:

Let us pick your brain a little so can make sure to get you want you want and need!

Kim

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Kim,
Those are good questions that I should have covered. Sooooo ..... my wife is like an angle and doesn't like the sun... I know it's hard to believe when we live in a desert but she has this beautiful skin and wants to keep it that way. We're also not big swimmers and always ended up relaxing in the spa in out old house. We're just looking for something to get wet in and splash each other flirting like teenagers. I want something that we can heat quickly and enjoy the stars in while having something to jump in on a super hot day if we need a quick splash.

Here's our last houses pool/ spa. I really hated the pool equipment in the cornet and can't believe the PB put it there. Not my build but also not my problem anymore. The water slide was super fun but didn't get used very often.

Here's the current location for our idea of the 14'x 14'



The rest of the backyard.

Laid down some of the 1'x1' stepping stones so get a feel for them with the pavers.

 

[Dirk]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Can’t see any of your pics. Consider joining TFP to not only get better image posting but to support your support! You’ll more than get your moneys worth, I guarantee!

 

[kimkats]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Yeah photobucket is holding your pics hostage they want $399 a year to let you use them..........You can get the same thing here PLUS a discount on a great water testing kit by becoming a supporting member. I do want you to know you will get the same level of support no matter which way you decide to go but you will not get as many LOL The link to becoming a supporting member is at the top of the page.

Okay so you saying the above makes so much sense! Lets work on the depth some...........hold a tape measure up to you and your :angel:. How high do you think you would want the water to be on you when you are standing in the spool? You will also want to think about when you are sitting on the benches. Do you want to be able to touch the bottom when you are sitting on the bench? I also suggest you have different heights of benches/seating areas......one where you are up to your neck in water, one where it is just up to your middle, etc.

Give some feedback on the above. What do you think?

Kim

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

I've been using Photobucket forever but haven't use it in the past year or two and wow they are junk now.

Good points with the bench and I was already second guessing the depth the shape and location. Time to break out the tape measure with my wife and get these photos fixed.

 

[kimkats]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

I can hear the conversation at your house tonight. "Honey come here so I can measure you." What????" "Well this lady on the internet told me to so....."

I will be on the look out for your findings and thoughts.

Kim

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Thanks Kim for everything. I feel like a ball bouncing out of control with this backyard. I was planning on doing a spool or large spa and that idea is to the sidelines after doing some research. I don't want to wait 4 to 6 hours to get it heated in the winter and I think it'd limit the use and enjoyment. The new plan will be a pool and spa with a wet deck and some seating. With the new plans and bigger cost I need to figure out the best option to increase my budget. Any recommendations on how OB obtain financing without paying crazy interest fees? I've contacted a few PB's to get some quotes, ideas and get a baseline for what kind of savings I can get doing it myself.

 

[Dirk]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Well, I'm on a roll this morning with kooky ideas (in another thread), so now I'm spilling over into yours!

I read with great interest, how many here painstakingly design their in-pool spas (and have to question every step, never having done so before). I don't own one, and have rarely been in one, but I just don't get it. What I imagine they all end up with is a concrete tub, with a flat concrete bench all around, and a handful of jets with maybe some sort of bubble gizmo (whatever that does). How does that compare, comfort-wise, to a stand-alone spa, that has dozens of adjustable jets, contoured seating, neck/shoulder/feet/etc massage stations, and all kinds of other controls and goodies and amenities?

If I ever was motivated to build a spa/pool combo, I'd have a stand-alone spa aesthetically designed into a pool. Sunken near it maybe, or surrounded by stone work, etc. I'd have the best of both!

I appreciate the nice look of an in-pool spa, complete with waterfall, etc. And being able to sort of fall out of the spa into the pool. But worth the trade off of a really great spa experience? Not for me, anyway.

Something for you to think about. And you could buy the spa now, enjoy it while you put together the dough for the pool, then have it designed into your pool experience when you're ready...

Kooky out!

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

I had a spa/ pool combo before and it doesn't even come close to the full spa experience but I guess that's not what I'm looking for. The new standalone spas will do just about everything you can dream of... I mean EVERYTHING. I guess I'm just looking for a hot puddle of water with a few bubbles to hide my personal bubbles while I soak my rear end and stargazing follow by some time with my wife. Then I do the body roll over the spillway into the pool to cool off for a second and then back into the spa.

 

[Big Will]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Some go with secured loans from their bank and others use pool financing company’s like Lyon financial or lightstream, or pool loans. I hear some of their rates are pretty good depending on your credit. Just some food for thought

 

[Dirk]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

I had a spa/ pool combo before and it doesn't even come close to the full spa experience but I guess that's not what I'm looking for. The new standalone spas will do just about everything you can dream of... I mean EVERYTHING. I guess I'm just looking for a hot puddle of water with a few bubbles to hide my personal bubbles while I soak my rear end and stargazing follow by some time with my wife. Then I do the body roll over the spillway into the pool to cool off for a second and then back into the spa.

Cool. Sounds like you're on the right path then. Keep the pictures coming when you get started!

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Thanks everyone. Here's a quick update of where I'm at to date.

I had all the PB give me a quote for roughly the same thing.
-14'x28' pool and spa. Which includes 3 feet of spray deck around the pool. A 6'x7' wet deck and one bench. Pool would be 3'-6" to 5' in the middle then back to 4' deep with the spa being 7'x7' raised 1' above the pool.

First quote 3/26 - PB was on time and super good nice guy. He was quick to get the details and be on his way. Liked salt systems and infloor cleaners, Sub's out all work. Still waiting on price and more details.
Second quote 3/27 - PB was Early and also good guy. Doesn't like infloor cleaning system, didn't have anything to say about salt systems. Says they self-preform all the work other then the plaster. No price or details, only wanted to schedule an appointment to do the design. (which I did because I was second guessing my skills)
Thrid quote 3/29 - PB was late but notified me before hand, first time to get a rough price of 40K , by far the most detailed and for sure all salesman. Had two huge bags will all the detail on how great their company is and they their equipment is the best. They had their own infloor heads made with their logo on them that are patented and by far the best on the market in his words. He's going to get everything put into writing with all the details next week.

After talking to the 3 different sales guys I've decided to cancel the other two PB appointments for today and will be moving forward with OB route. This forums has a bunch of really good people that are willing to help and I'm not in a rush to get the project completed so if I have to push a task back a few weeks it's not going to be an issue.

Questions
1, Infloor cleaning - What should I avoid and with a 14'x28' spa pool combo is it really needed?
2, Salt systems - One PB said their more work then needed and don't work when the water get's below 50 in the winter. They're harder on your pool equipment and pool.
3,Spa depth/ Jets - What would you do differently to your spa build and any advice would be great. Our last pool didn't have a blower pump (I think that's what it's called) and sometime the bubbles would take a little while before turning on. Water would flow but not air in the system.

Thanks everyone for your help!!

 

[Dirk]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

One PB said their more work then needed and don't work when the water get's below 50 in the winter. They're harder on your pool equipment and pool

I've yet to get my SWG working, but that has more to do with the pool guy that installed and configured it than the product. Many here swear by them, and would not have a pool without one. I can only attest to the part about them not working in colder water. And the cutoff temp might be higher than 50 depending on model. I've been dosing with liquid chlorine, manually, all through the winter, and will be firing up my SWG this weekend, so where I live I'll only get SWG benefits for part of the year.

You can easily enough find your area's air temp history for the past year, and then guestimate based on that when your SWG will be working and when you'll be using some other method for sanitizing your pool water... Or maybe there's another TFPer in your area that can weigh in on that. If you're planning to heat your poor year-round, then this is a non-issue.

I think others here will chime in to say that there is no direct evidence that an SWG system is harder on pool equipment. I'm hoping that is true. Yes, it's salt water when you have an SWG, but a "fresh water" pool accumulates salt anyway, just from the chemicals you use. When I converted my pool from "fresh" to salt, the pool guy said it already had an amount of salt in the water that was just shy of the amount needed for the SWG! So I'm not so sure how an SWG impacts pool equipment...

I use a suction-side cleaner. It works fine. I can't imagine how an in-floor system would take better care of a pool than a robot, or even a cleaner like mine, but I have no experience with in-floor. How does it clean the sides or the nooks and crannies? Personally, I wouldn't want all the plumbing and valves needed for in-floor. Seems like a potential maintenance nightmare... But that's just a guess.

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

Dirk, Thank you. I love how your skin fills after being in a SWG pool vs non and that's why I'm leaning towards it. I don't plan on heating my pool year around but will be using the heat for the spa during the colder times.

I loved my robot when it worked and didn't get suck on something but the though of not having that hose and cleaner in the pool sure sounds nice. As for cleaning the nooks and crannies that's all on the infloor head placement and how many( for what I've been reading and talking to friends with them). I know they even place them on the walls but it does seem like a huge added cost and potential maintenance nightmare just to eliminate a hose and robot that can be removed in 1 min. I'm going to try to keep this build on a super tight and low budget which will most likely make infloor not an option but don't want to regret it later.

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

For reference, here's my old pool. We just re did all the decking and had the tile replaced in the spa. Then decided we wanted to move the next week and build our dream house.

 

[Dirk]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

I struggle with the cord/hose issue. The hose didn't bother me until I started discussing it here!! I was claiming that I like my vac better than I would a robot because I thought I wouldn't like that big black cord running from my house across my deck, over the coping and into the pool (tripping hazard aside). But then i started noticing my vac hose more, and realized that, too, is unsightly. Either can be easily removed from the pool when the mood strikes, or for a pool party. I still think I'd be bugged by the cord more than the hose from the various ways I view my pool. (Inside, outside, close up, farther away, morning, noon, night, etc). But my vac doesn't brush like a robot does. And the hose floats and I suspect that impacts skimming efficiency more than a robot's cord. But I don't have to clean out a robot's filter every day/week. My main filter's pressure hasn't budged for months, so I've yet to clean it. Trade offs...

So there is no perfect cleaning solution when you consider all the pros and cons. But for me and my pool I'd rank them this way: pool guy, neighbor kid, manual (me), in-floor, pressure-side, robot, suction side. I've only experienced half of those for myself, so that list is just intuition.

BTW, you can salt your pool for the comfort factor whether you have an SWG or not. You get the same silky feel, just not the "auto chlorination" factor... And if I remember right, you don't need the same amount for that as SWG, you start lower and "salt to taste!"

Isn't it the way? I spent 30+ years geeking my previous house to absolute perfection. To the point where I could actually look around and claim it "done!" I moved two months later...

Your old pool is beautiful! Must have been hard to leave. I still stand by my opinion about in-pool spas, but there's no arguing that they look fantastic!

 

[teribble1]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

It was hard to leave my old house because we just finished all of the current projects and were ready to enjoy the house until I got that wild hair and started looking for a new house. I really enjoyed the backyard but that pool equipment in the corner drove me crazy. It was all very outdated and LOUD, the plaster was starting to sheet too. We weren't ready to put more money into the house because we had some very disrespectful neighbors across from our house that ultimately was the deciding factor to sell like the good neighbors which were next to us did. They sold built a new house and had a pool put in. We followed them and haven't looked back. I've always been the pool guy so I appreciate your advice on the cleaning options.

 

[Dirk]

Re: Teribble's Vegas OB Pool / Spa

I had a beach house and ocean view, but I lived in a resort area, complete with a noisy hotel right across the street. There are no creature comforts one can add to a house that can compensate for bad neighbors!! Besides, Lowes' tag line "Never stop improving!" was targeted right at us, my friend! What would we do without our projects!?!

I toyed with the idea of building the dream home, but my new city (which I chose based on where g-kids live) is not conducive to OB. There are some developments around that must be getting some kind of package deal. But for a one off, the fees and permits and whatever put you $50K+ in the hole before you ever break ground. I would have enjoyed designing a house and pool to my spec, but I don't mind either than someone else did all the dirty work for me. More trade offs...