Vinyl vs concrete (or fiberglass)?

[manoweb]

You're right, no one wants to take on more work right now unless you are prepared to pay a hefty premium. Wait until the fall and these guys will be begging for your business.

Oh well I started two years ago looking around for quotes, and I know I will NOT have a pool this summer. I aim to be able to swim for the first time in 2020

I'd strongly recommend a gunite pool in California if nothing else for resale value.

I see, but I do not plan to sell this house (I even lived and worked far away without selling it) so while this advice is very valuable, in my specific case I have to weight it and I think I prefer the ability to get a kit and do it for cheaper now. Thank you for the insight however, I am absolutely not dismissing it.

 

[manoweb]

Well, we are coming down the home stretch on our diy vinyl pool and I call it Legos for grown ups. We had the same issue with no concrete skills and chose to do pavers. We got much more pool for our dollar doing it ourselves. My husband and I are rather handy but the internet and YouTube were life savers for so much of it.

Ahah interesting. My wife is on it as well. She really wants to proceed but I want to consider everything.

Hopefully a couple of the other diy people on here who gave us pointers will chime in. Our original plan was a rectangular but once we saw an L shape we loved it and went that route.

I have spent too much money on designers for the backyard at large - and in our case I believe the rectangle is really what fits in this particular setting. In any case an automatic cover is an absolute requirement for us so there aren't many alternatives to rectangular anyway.

 

[manoweb]

However, specific to the OP, he will be using an autocover so may have minimal UV depending on amount of cover usage and if they can handle a HOT pool if the cover is used in the summer. Maybe also consider a chiller?

Exacty the autocover is not negotiable in our design, we start with that in mind. However I must ask - the cover is vinyl anyway, is the pool liner really that much more sensitive to UV? But bmoreswim, thanks for the heads up, I will research that aspect.

 

[jimmythegreek]

My advice would be to do research on here of builds in your area. Reach out to members who GC'd their pools and find who their subs were. There are design guys out there who will engineer and stamp your pool drawings. Building your own pool is ALOT of work. More than you think and a large pool with an auto cover makes it even more so. I built mine and I'm not done 13 months later. It takes all your weekends away and all your free time. You can save alot of money managing the project and do some work when needed and the landscaping etc. Even digging the pool isn't straightforward your average excavator will make a mess of the digging pool guys have a different skill set and understanding of the dig

 

[bmoreswim]

Exacty the autocover is not negotiable in our design, we start with that in mind. However I must ask - the cover is vinyl anyway, is the pool liner really that much more sensitive to UV? But bmoreswim, thanks for the heads up, I will research that aspect.

The liner isn't more sensitive than the cover, though the cover can be treated with protectant (Aerospace 303 is recommended) to help it last longer. But the cover may only last 5-7 years in CA being used full time. So the fabric a replaceable part, just on a shorter timeframe than your liner will be hopefully. The liner will last longer without UV exposure, all else being equal.

 

[manoweb]

My advice would be to do research on here of builds in your area. Reach out to members who GC'd their pools and find who their subs were.
[...]
Even digging the pool isn't straightforward your average excavator will make a mess of the digging pool guys have a different skill set and understanding of the dig

Yes it's a very sensible advice. I fully understand. The reason I wrote here is to get educated opinions and I will fully consider each one.

Landscaping, deck etc is already designed and will not be done by a pool contractor anyway. Thank you for reporting on your own experience.

 

[manoweb]

The liner isn't more sensitive than the cover, though the cover can be treated with protectant (Aerospace 303 is recommended) to help it last longer. But the cover may only last 5-7 years in CA being used full time. So the fabric a replaceable part, just on a shorter timeframe than your liner will be hopefully. The liner will last longer without UV exposure, all else being equal.

I quoted this message in its entirety because - yes, that makes so much sense. This will prompt some more research from my part on how to mitigate UV degradation on vinyl polymers (I work in aerospace after all) do some math on my area's UV flux, compare it with other areas, get info on replacement cover and liner costs etc thank you!

 

[duraleigh]

Liner pools will never capture the west coast & southern market share.

. I can't speak for the West Coast but I know for a fact liner pools are a BIG part of Southern pools.....my guess would be over 50%

 

[PoolguyinCT]

. I can't speak for the West Coast but I know for a fact liner pools are a BIG part of Southern pools.....my guess would be over 50%

Your likely correct. I must be an egocentric Yankee,
when I said southern I meant those places with cactus growing in a dessert.
There are tons of liner pools up & down the east coast.

 

[SBall]

In TN, vinyl pools are far, far more common than gunite/shotcrete, so liner pools are far less expensive. Im gonna take a stab that in the southwest and CA, gunite/shotcrete are far more common, and likely much more comparable in price to vinyl. I DIY'ed my pool for under $25k. A builder told me he would have charged minimum $50k, and gunite would have been $75k+.