Murphy101 Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 We are seriously contemplating the luxury of putting in an above ground pool. About 4ft deep and 16 ft wide. Just something from Walmart that comes with a 4 star review rating. What are the btdt suggestions for getting the most and easiest use of it? This will be our #1 source of summer enjoyment for several years I hope, so I'd like to make the limited investment last as long as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Double post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 We have one--the 18 ft x 52inch version. We enjoy it very much. We put ours up in the middle of May when the overnight temps get into the upper 60s. We usually take ours down in mid-September. It's surprising how neatly it folds and stores. It IS a job to do, though. You will need a nice flat place....we put down a couple of tarps to help protect the bottom of the pool. In the winter, the ugly brown circle in our lawn becomes a fire pit. ;0) We've found that keeping the chemicals simple....sanitizer, algaecide, and shock on a weekly basis keeps our pool clean and sparkly. For a couple of years we struggled with balancing our very alkaline well water. No fun. Just keep it simple. We opted for a bigger, fancier, sand pump...much easier than changing the filter once a week. But more $$. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer3141 Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 I've been looking into these too. I want to use the salt system instead of chlorine. Anyone have experience with that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chocoholic Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 We have a 4-ft deep, 15 foot wide Walmart pool. We upgraded to a (nice, but expensive) better filter - SO glad we did. That little one it came with was more work than it was worth. And we use a salt system instead of chlorine (my son has allergy problems with chlorinated pool water). LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the salt water system. Again, more expensive, but WORTH every penny. The water stayed clear all summer, never had to do anything to it. My hubby researched the saline system online & was convinced it was the way to go. No regrets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chocoholic Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 PS - As far as BTDT advice, we rented a sod cutter, leveled the grass with lots of sand, and out a tarp on the sand before assembling the pool. Spend time making sure the ground is LEVEL. Ours wasn't 100% level last year & the pool leaned a lot as the summer wore on. We need to do a better job of that this summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 Do you have to take them down in the winter? Is it enough to just empty them and put a cover on? I hadnt look into saline systems... Links info to get me started? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer3141 Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 We have a concrete pad for a basketball court in our backyard and it's pretty level. It sounds like this is going to make the whole process significantly easier for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 Yes. Dh says he ordering a truck delivery of sand to level the area and we'll place a tarp over that before setting up the pool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 We have a concrete pad for a basketball court in our backyard and it's pretty level. It sounds like this is going to make the whole process significantly easier for us. Make sure you lay some sand or some kind of padding between the concert and the pool or the constant wear will put holes in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Um_2_4 Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Um, just a heads up, having a pool that size can affect your homeowners Insurance...If there were to be an accident/flood and you didn't tell your insurance agent about the pool when you put it up, well they may not cover anything. Depends on your state/policy. We looked into getting one, put will probably get something smaller just for the kiddos to splash in. (PArtially for ins reasons and partially because I don't want to take up the space :laugh: ). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chocoholic Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Thanks for the insurance reminder. We did upgrade our homeowners insurance - to an umbrella policy JUST IN CASE anyone had an accident in our pool. We have heard of people having strangers sneak into their pools at night or when they weren't home, etc. We just feel better with an extra layer of insurance, just in case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supertechmom Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 We leave ours up year round. Of course we swim from April to mid Sept maybe even Oct some years. Wasn't worth the hassle of taking it down . We ran the pump a couple of times each week just to circulate the water around and from time to time I would throw in some shock. We just opened it up and are getting it back in sparkly shape as the water was cloudy. Kids pretty much live in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nd293 Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 We've found ours very easy to manage. A pool cover is essential to keep it clean, to prevent water loss through evaporation and to maintain a good temperature. We do not chlorinate or run the filter pump as often as recommended, but base it more on how often the pool is being used. The pool went green once this summer - I swept the bottom with a normal broom, super chlorinated and ran the filter for 8 hrs, and it was fine by the next day. We have the cheap filter pump that the pool came with, and two filters - we take out the dirty one, replace with the clean one, then hose it off, and let it dry. We have ours on an area of brick paving, and we lay down thick builders plastic (roofing plastic?) first. Be VERY clear to the children about what is and isn't allowed in the pool. Ds jumped into the pool with a stick, causing a slow but noticeable leak. I have no idea how I am going to locate it to fix it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 Oh, I have such fond memories of growing up with an above ground pool! We leveled ours with sand. I'm pretty sure we did not have grass under it (sod taken out) but I don't really remember. Check your city laws--ours had to be fenced. I remember putting the fence in as a young girl. We had a sand filter--hassle-free. I don't think my parents knew about salt vs chlorine. We took ours down every fall (lived in OH, so snow would've bent it, probably, and ice inside could've damaged the lining also, or the walls). Get the kind that you can pull the ladder out of at night or when no one is home, even if you have a fence. The sturdier the ladder, the better. And be really clear about rules. Have a blast!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer3141 Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 Chris, how hard are they to take down? We live in northern Michigan. We just got rid of our snow. :laugh: I am pondering this one: http://www.amazon.co...ve ground pools Or this: http://www.amazon.co...ve ground pools I've got to decide between rectangle and round basically. My concrete pad is a giant square so I'm guessing we will go round but DH is willing to pour more concrete if the rectangle one would be more fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 We leave ours up year round. Of course we swim from April to mid Sept maybe even Oct some years. Wasn't worth the hassle of taking it down . We ran the pump a couple of times each week just to circulate the water around and from time to time I would throw in some shock. We just opened it up and are getting it back in sparkly shape as the water was cloudy. Kids pretty much live in it. We leave ours up year-round too. We have this one. We don't use a cover because when it rains in Florida, it really rains. The cover sinks and water pools in the center of the cover and makes it hard to take it off. We could get a hard cover, but haven't found a need so we didn't bother. Like a PP, we also got a better pump and it has made a huge difference. We do use a chlorine system. It's not a huge pool for "real" swimming, but we love it anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 Are any of you owners on well water? Did it cause you concern, running your well so much to fill it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 After we built our house, we considered buying one of those, but we have a lot of dogs and probably the combination wouldn't have been good for the above ground pool. A family we are friendly with (they live about 1 block from us) had one. I seem to recall that it lasted for 5 or 10 years, which seems remarkable, because we live in a Tropical Valley, where it was under hot sun almost every day. The Mean temperature here is 79 F. There is a brand I believe sold by a company based in Long Beach, CA, USA, that is sold here and they seem to "own" a lot of that market. Can't remember the name of the company, as I write this. It is a temporary solution, but far less costly than an in ground pool. Friends in Texas built an in ground pool with a Plastic Liner, and I believe they had to replace the liner, periodically. Buy the best pumps and filters that you can and be sure that replacement parts are available, in case you need them. Get the one with the best (and longest) guarantee and enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 <snip> I am pondering this one: http://www.amazon.co...ve ground pools <snip> Intex. That is the brand that is sold here. I don't know about in the states, but here, they "own" the market for these. Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 Are any of you owners on well water? Did it cause you concern, running your well so much to fill it? Possible alternate to that is to pay your local (volunteer) fire department, to fill up a tanker truck and come to your house and fill your pool. A couple of times, in the rural subdivision where we live, I saw fire trucks here, to fill up new pools. There are very few fires here (concrete construction), so it is always rare to see a fire truck, when it is not parked in the fire station. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 With these pools that are really just liners on a frame, do you worry about neighborhood dogs and cats putting holes in them with claws? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted April 25, 2013 Author Share Posted April 25, 2013 Intex. That is the brand that is sold here. I don't know about in the states, but here, they "own" the market for these. Enjoy! That's what we are looking at from wackomart! It comes highly rated. We have 2 dogs, one of which is a small pony sized dog. (an English mastiff). We plan to actually level an 18 foot circle for the 16 foot pool and put a garden edging of some type around it and back fill between the pool and the edge with mulch that critters don't like digging in the hopes of protecting the pool. Honestly I'm more worried about The Squirrel Swindler and The Mole Mafia than my dogs. :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 These are the ones I see around here: http://www.sofpool.com/ They do leave them up all winter (covered - not in use) they must freeze solid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Are any of you owners on well water? Did it cause you concern, running your well so much to fill it? I water my gardens and lawn a bunch so our well doesn't know the difference. Filling the pool takes about eight hours. It's about 6000 gallons. With these pools that are really just liners on a frame, do you worry about neighborhood dogs and cats putting holes in them with claws? One of the neighbor cats perched on the side one morning last year....when he realized the other side of the big blue bubble was WATER, he left it alone. Our dogs are not invited to swim with us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarfoot Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Oh, I have such fond memories of growing up with an above ground pool! Me, too! Ours lasted for years and years. We took it down when my mom sold her house. It was about 16 years old and still fine. We left it up year-round and just put a cover over it in the winter. This was in MO, so definitely cold! It had a smallish sand filter; I took care of the chemicals. We leveled the ground and put down sand. Our 2 large dogs never bothered it. We had a mole one summer. Once when I was mowing, I saw a large snake creep out of the ground and back in under the pool. That really startled me! It was such a great thing to have. You'll love it. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Possible alternate to that is to pay your local (volunteer) fire department, to fill up a tanker truck and come to your house and fill your pool.... I checked into the alternatives last year and none were feasible. The fire department doesn't do it and the water companies were going to charge something like $300. So we'd have to use our well. Thanks though! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 I water my gardens and lawn a bunch so our well doesn't know the difference. Filling the pool takes about eight hours. It's about 6000 gallons. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2att Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 We are getting read for our 4th summer with this pool. Ours was much less than listed on the website, however--like half as much on sale at Toys R Us. We also purchased the salt water system on Craigslist. It lasted 2.5 summers. We bought a new salt water system last summer and found the new system much improved. Do not buy a pool this big without upgrading the filter system--that makes a world of difference. We also bought an automatic cleaner for above ground pools, like Wanda the Whale. With the upgraded filter system Wanda does a pretty good job, though we have lots of live oak trees and she does NOT like acorns. We live in Florida and leave our pool up all year, running the filter through the winter months to keep the water from turning green. Winter also means a leaf cover for us (keeps most of the acorns out), but we don't use a winterizing cover. It has been a great purchase for our family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 There was an above ground pool at our house when we moved in. We use it every summer. It is not one of the ones you are talking about getting, but we keep ours up all year. It is a 24' round aluminum pool. I will say that in the summer, with running the filter and buying chemicals, etc.....it does run about $80/mo. to keep up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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