Finally! Got to tear out the pool.

[Powereng]

Well this was the year. We always said once the liner goes bad we're ripping that sucker out. 30 year old 16'x40' Doughboy pool with surrounding deck. Pool came with the house when we purchased it 8 years ago. The dogs have used it more over the years than we have, so buh bye.

I'm so glad I got my Kubota last year. Made the job so much easier and cheaper then hiring someone to do all the fill work. Took a total off 55 cu/yds of fill to get a area level with the existing yard. 10 yards of sand, 30 yards, sand/clay mix, and 15 yard of top soil. Had to purchased a subsoiler to rip up the hard compacted clay where the deck once stood. My back blade just skipped over the top like is was riding on concrete. I also purchased a EA landscape rake to do the final grading. What a great piece of equipment.

Here are a couple of pics of the project.

The BEAST










Scrap metal pile. I got about $80 for it at the scrap yard.



Quick brought in some sand to fill in some of the hole to make it safer to work around.





Picking up all the landscape stone. That was tons of fun. About 3.5 cu/yds of stone total.


I ended up selling the deck on Craigslist. Guy paid me $200 AND he took it down while the wife and I went to Kentucky for vacation.

Came home from vacation to this.


Got to work with the subsoiler ripping up the clay to get ready for my fill.





Then the dump trucks started arriving.




Used my FEL, rear tiller, and landscape rake to level everthing.




End result. Ready for fertilizer and grass seed.


Overall not a bad spring project. My site superintendent is a little upset, but he'll get over it.

 

[teg]

Great work, Looks like a good spot for a garden (so, you'll need more implements!)

 

[Powereng]

Thanks Teg. We already have an equal size garden on the other side of the house. This is patch is gonna be strictly grass. More seat time on the Kommander zero turn.

 

[jerrybob]

Very nice work......you won't miss that pool!

 

[747driver]

Great job !! Thats why we buy tractors and more implements !!

 

[EddieWalker]

That turned out really nice. I think that having a pool is like having a boat. It sounds like a lot of fun and a great way to relax, but they are never ending work and that never get used and just take up space. I like the grass idea a lot better!!!

 

[dodge man]

Funny I'm doing the same thing. Mine was a round pool and the deck is attached to the house. I sold the old pool for $800, it was only 8 years old. The deck is attached to the house so it stays. Mine was fully above ground but it was on a hill side so one side was dug into the hill about 2 to 3 feet deep. It looks like I'll end up spending about $400 to $600 on dirt brought in.

 

[Powereng]

My total dirt bill was $925. I'm still about $300 in the hole after selling off all the pool equipment, deck, and scrap metal. Still have few pool items to sell so I hope to break even.

 

[turnkey4099]

If I ever bought another house and it had a pool the asking price would take a big reduction.

 

[TheMan419]

First house we bought had an above ground pool. Partially dug in on one end to make a "deep" end. Also had a deck. Sold it to a guy who came and removed it and the deck. Had the hole filled and leveled. I think we about broke even on that deal. This was before we bought the 18 acres and tractor or I would have done the filling myself.

I like spending time around and in a pool. I just do not want to maintain it.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Thanks Teg. We already have an equal size garden on the other side of the house. This is patch is gonna be strictly grass. More seat time on the Kommander zero turn.

Isn't that about the size of an Olympic Croquet Field?

 

[jerrybob]

Swimming is not that good for you from an exercise standpoint......if it was good for your figure or physique......how do you explain whales?:confused3:

 

[dodge man]

Kind of the old joke that applies to a lot of things, including a boat. The happiest days of pool ownership is the day you buy it and the day you sell it. I didn't mind maintaining it that much. The two things I hated the most were keeping the pool cover pumped off in the winter and I spent a lot of time chasing leaks. That and the fact my kids are 18 and 21 meant it wasn't getting used much.

 

[MossRoad]

Well, we're on the lucky side when it comes to the pool I guess. We have a 24' above ground. We use it. We love it. We got it used for free and it lasted about 15 more years. We liked it so much, that when the steel sidewall started rusting out badly, we bought a new one on clearance in the fall and put it up in the spring. We've been on that one for about 4 years now. About 6-7 years ago, we converted to salt water. Man, what a difference. The salt water chlorine generator means you NEVER have to add chlorine on a regular basis. Only if a possum dies in the pool or a baby poops its diaper! YIKES! Then we just dump in a gallon of regular cheap old bleach and its good to go. The salt level is 3300 parts per million, 10 times less than the ocean and about half that of human tears. You feel nothing when you open your eyes underwater, and your skin feels soft when you get out of the pool. Your swimwear fabric doesn't wear out like in chlorine, either. Salt never evaporates, so you never have to add salt during the season (like you do with chlorine), unless the pool gets heavily diluted by lots of rain. Then its just a test strip, a chart, and $2.00 worth of salt.

To summarize:
In spring, top off pool water.
Remove winter cover.
Vacuum dust.
Add 4 gallons of bleach for initial sanitation.
Test salt level.
Add a bag or two of pure water softener salt.
Add CYA (chlorine stabilizer) so the salt water chlorine generator doesn't have to work too hard.
Turn on filter and salt water chlorine generator.
Enjoy for 3-4 months.
Vacuum once a week.
Test chemistry once a week.
Turn off everything in the fall.
Add 4 gallons of bleach for winterization.
Put on winter cover.
Drain plumbing.
Go ice fishing.

 

[MossRoad]

Well this was the year. We always said once the liner goes bad we're ripping that sucker out. 30 year old 16'x40' Doughboy pool with surrounding deck. Pool came with the house when we purchased it 8 years ago. The dogs have used it more over the years than we have, so buh bye.

Nice job on the removal and reclamation of the area. :thumbsup: I think I've seen your superintendent's brother on our street department around here.

 

[Ed of all trades]

I thought you were going to build a shop with a basement. :laughing: Ed

 

[Powereng]

I like the way you think Ed.:thumbsup:

 

[Gary Fowler]

My son just bought a house with an in-ground pool about 1 month ago. So far the only time he has been in it was to clean it (according to him). I would never own a pool of any type, they are just too expensive to maintain for the little use that they get. I suppose if I had young kids that liked to swim (and what kid doesn't like to swim), I might consider it if there was not other place to swim. I know of no adults that utilize a pool enough to justify the cost of ownership. My nephew just had one installed for $50K and I suppose his kids will enjoy it for a few more years. He owns a pharmacy so he can afford it, but that just isn't for me.
The only kind of pools I like have fish in them and around here, we call them a pond.

 

[txdon]

I know of no adults that utilize a pool enough to justify the cost of ownership.

Now you can say "I know of only one adult . . . . "

We have a 18'X35' aboveground pool.
After a day of working in 100˚ temps the 85˚ water is so refreshing in the evening.
We also have a "old folks", but young at heart, water volleyball games every week during the long summers that are very competitive with a finger foods potluck party afterwards.
For cool outside entertainment in a hot area it can't be beat.

If I lived in Michigan I would be doing the same as the OP.

 

[MossRoad]

There's a huge cost difference in above ground VS in ground in initial purchase and in maintenance. Our 24' above ground costs for the 4 months we have it open are about $12 for salt and $20 worth of bleach, about $20 worth of CYA (chlorine stabilizer), so we'll say about $55 in chemicals. That's it.....

Then you have to add in the electricity to run the pump and saltwater chlorine generator. My best guess is about $40 per month, so another $160 for the 12 week season.

So total is about $215 per season. About $18 per week. About $2.56 per day and about 1/2 hour per week to vacuum it by hand.