Which 14x14/15x15 pool would you buy?

[mxcolin]

I've had 2 seasons with a 14'x8' above ground pool and I realize now that it was just too small. We bought a Bestway Power Steel above ground pool:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07G341XQ9

It was/is decent, the first year there was nothing but trouble with the pump, second year, bought an Intex Sand Filter Pump and things were easier, however, the 2 biggest issues are that it's too small and it's not inviting to get into. So my new plan is to buy a 14x14 or 15x15 round pool and look for a way to add a more substantial way to get in/out of the pool, rather than the tiny ladder that came with this set. If this was/is your situation what would/did you buy? The Bestway pool itself always felt like a quality product to me, the only issue I had was that the 1.25-inch hoses always seemed too small and I felt like a 1.5-inch hose/inlet size would be better to get water in/out of the pool, although this might be purely imaginary as I am far from an expert in this regards. Any thoughts/advice or experiences that would push you in one direction or the other for a specific brand/pool would be greatly appreciated. I've put aside around $1,000 as a budget to buy the pool itself.

 

[ajw22]

Not a lot of AGP around here this time of year. If you don’t get many replies you may want to bump this thread around April as they come here for pool openings and help with green pools.

 

[Mdragger88]

If you want a better ladder/ steps be aware they will take up more space in the pool so take that into consideration. The pool factory,doheny’s, & others have a myriad of ladder/step choices - also for the budget conscious there’s buying used on fb marketplace.
The motto here w/ pool size, filter size, & swg size is always get the largest you can afford & will fit in your space.
I’ve had a couple 12ft round, a 16ft round, a 22ft round & now a 33ft round. The small ones were good when my kids were real small as they were quite shallow - i didn’t use a ladder just a stool. They were just a place to get wet
As they grew we went up in size/depth.
Even at 54” depth now my water level is around 48”. A 42” pool wall depth leaves alot to be desired in my opinion unless you need the lower water level for littles. 16 ft round is about as small as I would want to go. I felt like I could float freely in that size & the kids still had room to play.
The intex ladder is horrible as are most ladders in my opinion so I have wedding cake steps & a deck now. I just can’t do the ladder thing with my feet & knees.
Be on the lookout for a good deal - prices aren’t quite as horrible as they were.

 

[Woodstock1234]

I have an 18 ft round and if I had to do it over, I would have gone bigger, but I bought what I could at the time. There was a shortage due to the pandemic and paid twice what it was worth. But still worth it when all the public pools here closed down.
My point is buy the biggest you have the space and money for.
I built a small platform with stairs for the exterior and have a ladder on the inside of the pool that attaches to the platform. The ladder that came with the Intex was shaky and a bit scary to use.

 

[mxcolin]

I bought a 15ft round pool at 48" depth. It was the largest I could fit in the space. Now to decide on a way to enter. I'd love to build a deck but the pool is sitting on and surrounded by stamped concrete, there would be nothing to attach it to unless I drilled holes into the concrete which I won't do.

 

[PieterS]

Sounds like you're one decision down - if 15' is what fits for you, have fun with it. I have a 16' round intex and for the most part that's big enough. Agree with comments on the ladder - I've made the shaky Intex one work a couple seasons, but honestly we don't like having it in the pool so it sits just outside - the kids love making whirlpools and the ladder just gets in the way, so we try to just scramble out (which is easier for the kids then me!). I think you could do pretty well just making a free-standing platform though if you have a good concrete base. Just make sure you brace it well for lateral movement. I think I'll make some wooden steps this spring to get into the pool and not use the Intex ladder much except for those who really need something more to get in/out.

 

[Newdude]

I think you could do pretty well just making a free-standing platform though if you have a good concrete base. Just make sure you brace it well for lateral movement.

Easy peasy. One more problem off the list !!

Or any of 100 other variations so long as the legs are tied together

 

[mxcolin]

I could build a platform but I worry about it moving around if it's not fixed to anything. There is plenty of concrete below where it would be located.

 

[Newdude]

Literally 100 ways to skin this cat

 

[Newdude]

this is what our good friend @kne did.

It can be simple as can be, or you can jazz it up with lattice and whatnot.

 

[mxcolin]

Very interesting, I would need to put those deck blocks on something that wouldn't scratch up my stamped concrete but it sounds possible.

 

[PieterS]

I'm not sure I'd be too worried about it moving around too much - if solidly build with real wood, it'll be heavy! Are you worried about it damaging the pool if it moves around a bit?

 

[PieterS]

Very interesting, I would need to put those deck blocks on something that wouldn't scratch up my stamped concrete but it sounds possible.

Some sort of thick rubber might do the trick.

 

[Newdude]

I would need to put those deck blocks on something that wouldn't scratch up my stamped concrete but it sounds possible.

Double up a strip of compressed foam insulation, cut to the footprint of the footer block.

In the second Pic, the siding would be the Cross braces. Or use X's or enough /'s and \'s between the legs. Or Y's closer to the deck up top. I personally prefer the bottom rail, but they all do the same thing.

 

[Newdude]

*on a small project like yours, it will not cost much to over engineer it just for piece of mind.

 

[mxcolin]

Damaging the pool for sure and generally moving around with the kids on it. The more I think about though, some over-engineering and it might be just fine.

 

[Newdude]

If you do it right with just a skootch of over engineering, next time you'll be buying a pool to fit your deck. Just sayin.

Or a basic design that's well thought out like @kne above (post#10)