New Fiberglass Pool Buyer

[Carla_IL]

I am located in IL near St Louis and I am very close to closing a deal on a fiberglass pool and I looking for opinion. Here is highlights from contract:

Pool

1. 35X15 Fiberglass pool 3'7 to 5'9

2. Owner to obtain permit

3. Machine excavation

4. Rough grading within 3"

Pool Equipment

1. Filtration: Pentair TA60D Sand Filter

2. Pump: Pentair Whisperflo ¾ hp pump

3. Sanitizer: Pentair IC15

4. Skimmers: (1) Hayward skimmer

5. Main Drain: (2)Waterway

6. Return Inlets: (3) Hayward

7. Hand Rail:(1)stainless steel

8. Coping: 16" stamped cantilever coping

9. Tile Border: Noble tile border, Sea Plaza series or equivilent

10. Led color lights with remote control

For $27,000

I decided not to get the pool company to do the complete decking because I found a concrete company that would do stamp concrete for $8.00 sqft.

Carla

[poolguy1234]

The bid sounds low to me but one thing you should do before you sign the contract is check out the company. First check the Better Business Bureau then ask for a minimum of 3 references and CALL THEM, finally see how long the company has been in business if it is less than a few years I would be skeptical of giving a large payment up front.

Hope this helps

[michiganpoolsandspas]

I am located in IL near St Louis and I am very close to closing a deal on a fiberglass pool and I looking for opinion. Here is highlights from contract:

Pool

1. 35X15 Fiberglass pool 3'7 to 5'9

2. Owner to obtain permit

3. Machine excavation

4. Rough grading within 3"

Pool Equipment

1. Filtration: Pentair TA60D Sand Filter

2. Pump: Pentair Whisperflo ¾ hp pump

3. Sanitizer: Pentair IC15

4. Skimmers: (1) Hayward skimmer

5. Main Drain: (2)Waterway

6. Return Inlets: (3) Hayward

7. Hand Rail:(1)stainless steel

8. Coping: 16" stamped cantilever coping

9. Tile Border: Noble tile border, Sea Plaza series or equivilent

10. Led color lights with remote control

For $27,000

I decided not to get the pool company to do the complete decking because I found a concrete company that would do stamp concrete for $8.00 sqft.

Carla

The price is low which should be the first red flag. The biggest problem you should be concerning yourself with is why isn't the pool builder pulling the permit? You as the home owner will now become responsible for completion and compliance with your municipality. Just a suggestion, let the pool builder provide your concrete decking. If you plan on cantalevering the pools edge your concrete company needs to have experience with it's completion. Special forms are used to keep the concrete from ending up in the pool and need to be removed in a timely fashion in order to create a smooth edge.

The best thing to do is always ask to see the contractors last three installations, not three referals. A clever contractor will never give you the name a an unhappy customer.

Good luck in your purchase,

Michigan Pools and Spas

[Carla_IL]

Ok.. I went to BBB and pulled his info and talk to 3 references all come back good. He has been in the install business for 5 years and does about 6 installs a year. The pool guys is going the cantilever coping my contractor is doing the rest. I guess I should have stayed I am GC this install. I have GC to other big remodels on my home. The pool itself is $9,000 which is why the price I think is low. The problem is it has been sitting on a pool dealers lot for 2 years because for fiberglass surface damage. The pool is structurally sound and I am getting checked out by two pool fiberglass repair places.

Carla

I am located in IL near St Louis and I am very close to closing a deal on a fiberglass pool and I looking for opinion. Here is highlights from contract:

Pool

1. 35X15 Fiberglass pool 3'7 to 5'9

2. Owner to obtain permit

3. Machine excavation

4. Rough grading within 3"

Pool Equipment

1. Filtration: Pentair TA60D Sand Filter

2. Pump: Pentair Whisperflo ¾ hp pump

3. Sanitizer: Pentair IC15

4. Skimmers: (1) Hayward skimmer

5. Main Drain: (2)Waterway

6. Return Inlets: (3) Hayward

7. Hand Rail:(1)stainless steel

8. Coping: 16" stamped cantilever coping

9. Tile Border: Noble tile border, Sea Plaza series or equivilent

10. Led color lights with remote control

For $27,000

I decided not to get the pool company to do the complete decking because I found a concrete company that would do stamp concrete for $8.00 sqft.

Carla

The price is low which should be the first red flag. The biggest problem you should be concerning yourself with is why isn't the pool builder pulling the permit? You as the home owner will now become responsible for completion and compliance with your municipality. Just a suggestion, let the pool builder provide your concrete decking. If you plan on cantalevering the pools edge your concrete company needs to have experience with it's completion. Special forms are used to keep the concrete from ending up in the pool and need to be removed in a timely fashion in order to create a smooth edge.

The best thing to do is always ask to see the contractors last three installations, not three referals. A clever contractor will never give you the name a an unhappy customer.

Good luck in your purchase,

Michigan Pools and Spas

[midwestpoolsusa.com]

Illinois does not require a contractor to have any special licensing so be extra careful when choosing a contractor. It is always wise to make the contractor pull all necessary permits to minimize risk to yourself.

You will have a lot more to fall back on should any problems occur.

[Fiberglass Pool Guy]

Be careful with a display pool if the pool was not stored right it could have a little twist or memory for sitting on the lot. The pool might not have any visible signs of stress but when the pool is installed and filled with water you may get some spider cracking from the pool being filled with water. If that should happen it normally does so fairly quickly make sure you get some sort of warranty for that before you purchase the pool. You can find compaines out there that will offer a discount for pools on the lot but you always get what you pay for, also keep in mind that some of the larger companies over-produced the pools during the housing boom and still have pools that are several years old they are trying to sell for discounts, most of the surface warranties are from date of manufacture not purchase so if you bought a pool that was a couple years old the actual warranty coverage for the pool might not be the true warranty for the pool you are looking to purchase.

[PoolGuyNJ]

I don't like less than a 3' deck.

I like to see a sump under a shell. If you ever have to empty the pool and there is water under it, it can exert quite a bit of upward pressure on the deck. Having the sump allows that water to be removed.

Scott