Inground Pool

[BigN8]

Thinking about getting a few inground concrete pool quotes. Who on here has one and what do you think? Do you use it much? Can you give me approx. costs you paid? I've heard there is a large bell curve with pool use. You use it a lot in the beginning and then usage falls off quite a bit.

 

[jcb1977]

Thinking about getting a few inground concrete pool quotes. Who on here has one and what do you think? Do you use it much? Can you give me approx. costs you paid? I've heard there is a large bell curve with pool use. You use it a lot in the beginning and then usage falls off quite a bit.

Have you thought about a swim spa instead of a pool? H2X Swim Spas by Master Spas

I've never had an in-ground pool but several different above ground ones. Put in a swim spa last august we use it about every other day/night including during the winter. we set it about 85 degrees during summer and 100degrees during winter. it's about 2,000 gallons so chlorine/acid usage is very small and manageable. Having a solid cover is really convenient- keeps bugs/leaves out and keeps the sun from eating all of your free chlorine.

I highly recommend. after having this, I'll never go back to any type of pool (especially in the Northern climates).

I would assume considerably cheaper than an in-ground pool too. ours was about $38,000 out the door and spent another $7,500 for concrete slab, and adding some deck around it.

 

[jcb1977]

on a slightly different note...for anyone with a pool or hot tub, I've been following the pool maintenance methods from this site...TFPC for Beginners | Trouble Free Pool. It's been working great for me for several years. the basics are stay away from test strips and get a taylor pool test kit, stay away from pool store products/chemicals. Instead use liquid bleach, muriatic acid, baking soda you can buy cheaply at home improvement store for typical upkeep.

there's a forum there much like this one that is great for any questions or unique situations that come up, along with a nice app to help track water chemistry and figure out dosages for your pool volume.

I setup a DIY automatic liquid chlorine feeder for about $50, so my maintenance routine is testing once a week and occasionally will need to add some acid to keep the PH from creeping up. water has been crystal clear since I started following this system.

 

[zipper]

Thinking about getting a few inground concrete pool quotes. Who on here has one and what do you think? Do you use it much? Can you give me approx. costs you paid? I've heard there is a large bell curve with pool use. You use it a lot in the beginning and then usage falls off quite a bit.

Buy the sailboat instead!! Non cement pond, inground pool owner here for 20 years. You know you want to...lol

 

[Michal]

We had a pool installed 3 years ago. It's not concrete, ours is fiberglass. Its a Tallman Brunswick14x32, we love it and use it every weekend we are not traveling. Its a great way for us to finish the day. Being close to the ICW and the beach, if we go and boat one day of the weekend the next would be chill at the pool. If we have company and go to the beach, normally we would stay half the day and come back home and hang out at the pool. 3 years ago the pool cost with the install way right about 51k. That same pool today is almost 70k. Its stupid how expensive they got. If you have the option I would recommend salt over fresh. I never have to add chlorine (you add salt). This allows me to control chlorine levels. In general the maintenance of the pool is super easy. At the start of the season I will adjust the chemical balance and I'm pretty much done for the season.

 

[BigN8]

Buy the sailboat instead!! Non cement pond, inground pool owner here for 20 years. You know you want to...lol

You know it. If I had water like you guys have access too I would. It's just not practical where we live. So I'm relegated to renting someone else's yacht....which is fine for now. Lukily I have a good friend network that love bareboat charters. My buddy that I co-skippered that Cat with in the Exumas has already booked a 48 footer out of Turkey in September. I'd go, but that would end in a divorce I think!! So I'm already looking at 2025 trips. I'm thinking 8 days in Grenada.

 

[WREKS]

I have one with (what used to be called), and (maybe still is), the Caretaker system. It has popups in the bottom that rotate in sequence. I never have to brush the pool unless the water gets out of balance and algae starts to form. Even then, the bottom stays spotlessly clean. We love it. If you opt for it just make sure it is not the only return and/or make sure a check valve is installed with it. I have had the pool for 18 years. I have changed the valve mechanism twice. I will post picture if you like.

 

[jlcj7]

I got 2 quotes about a year ago. One was $200k, one was $250k. Granted I live on a hill with somewhat difficult access so about $100k of both quotes was pilings and paying a premium for access challenges. I passed as I couldn’t justify those costs. Both companies told me any inground concrete pools they build start at the 100k mark. If you want more lights, water features etc. goes up quickly.

 

[AlpharettaRK]

I have lived in my house with pool for 25 years. I would never, never, never never have another. In fact we are looking to move and a pool is a deal killer. It’s really pretty but I am sure the ratio of work to use is about 10-1. The kids used it some when they were young but not a lot since. If you do get a pool invest in automated cleaner and solar skimmer. They for sure help.
My goal is a house with a dock.
Cheers

 

[Troch1]

Have had a gunite pool (25k gallons) in our current house...pool is original to house...25 years old. We re-plastered and added a sun shelf about 7 years ago. I have kids that range from 20 to 7, so the pool is in use almost every day of the summer by the kids and every weekend by my wife and I. After a day boating, we always come home and unwind in the pool. I would absolutely want a pool in whatever house I lived, especially if I could have it open more of the year like your climate.

As JCB1977 said above, pool chemistry is dead simple and does not have to be expensive. Stay out of the pool store and use simple chemicals and it's very little effort to maintain. Agree with the above comment about going salt, it simplifies the maintenance process, especially if you travel and are away from the pool for more than a few days at a time.

As with boats, options pad the price quite quickly. I would recommend some type of water feature (fountain, waterfall, deck jets) just for the sound experience. Agree with getting a robotic cleaner, I have a fully battery powered one and LOVE it. Also pay close attention to the landscape around the pool. Everything that drops from those plants/trees will end up in your pool.

 

[captainhook]

Installed a pool in 2018. This same pool now is in the six figures post COVID. It was 60 something when I had it installed, which was a decent deal at the time with everything it included. The first quote was under $50k and then I added some stuff and had to install fence, landscaping, made the patio bigger, etc. I would absolutely buy this pool again, we absolutely love it. Part of the reason I have still had the same boat for 11 seasons and not upgraded was because of this pool. There are days when it’s much easier to just go hop in. It’s used almost every day of the summer and I keep it open the first weekend in April until late October or sometimes early November. It’s not a lot of work at all as long as you spend 10-15 minutes every other day keeping up with it. If I could only choose boat or pool, it would be pool all day long but I still love boating and just have a cheaper boat instead.

I agree with several of the comments already made. TroubleFreePool lives up to its name and if my $800 robotic cleaner broke today I would buy another one tomorrow. I haven’t manually vacuumed since the year I installed the pool before I bought the robot.

 

[Ronnie]

I got quotes for an in ground pool here in NCal when I moved two years ago. The starting price for an entry level/fully unloaded model was $60k. We went with an above ground pool with a raised deck instead.

I think the usage pattern is the same for above and in ground pools. We used it a lot at first when it wasn’t a salt water pool but the maintenance was killing me until we switched to a salt water system. We also bought a robotic solar powered skimmer and a battery operated pool cleaner. We convinced our neighbor to cut down the tree in her backyard that was dropping all kinds of crap into our pool, we gave her $500 to cover about half the cost. My maintenance routine has gotten a lot better, just check the chemicals every week, use the skimmer and cleaner an hour or so before we get in, and enjoy the water. As a result we use the pool at least every other day/night. I also know that we’ve become jaded as we won’t get in unless the air temp is at least 85 degrees and if we have to choose between boating / jetskiing and using the pool, we use the pool. We can do so at night and it’s a lot less work than launching, recovering, trailering both ways (2 miles round trip). It doesn’t hurt that we don’t pay $20 to launch when we use the pool.

If cost is a concern, take a look at installing an above ground pool in the ground. There are a few YouTube videos on it. It’s a lot less expensive (not cheap) to dig a hole and fill it with an above ground pool and ground level deck than it is to install a concrete / gunite pool and deck. The limiting factor being the tallest above ground pool I could find is 52” to the water line.

 

[Thermobrett]

This is mine, 16000 gallon saltwater “sport” pool with a 5 person spa that dumps into the pool. The sport pool is shallower on the sides and deeper in the middle in the event you wanted to put a volleyball net up. I head resale if you put a pool in is $100 back for every $1000 paid, so we bought a house with a pool already. In 2012, the previous owners paid $70k to have this one out in, the bird cage and pavers. I’m sure it’s gone up since then.

 

[captainhook]

I head resale if you put a pool in is $100 back for every $1000 paid, so we bought a house with a pool already.

I asked an appraiser when my house was being refinanced awhile back and he estimated +$20k in my area in a house like mine. He said certain areas it is an expectation to have them. It wasn’t a major influencer in my decision but that helped and I do know that in my area nice backyards can help sell houses.