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We are providing the following information so you can know what to expect during swimming pool construction; timetables, etc. Most people have quite a few questions during their pool construction process and we hope this explanation of a typical project will be helpful.
You, the homeowner, may need to present your neighborhood Homeowners Association with pool plans to be checked and approved before pool construction which can take anywhere from 2 to 3 days to 2 to 3 weeks. The pool is staked out at this time and some homeowners mention that, prior to digging, the staked out area looks small but once digging is complete the pool looks huge. Unless we are absolutely certain that a utility is in a pool or pool construction area, we normally do not include the price into the pool contract price. We call out a Utility Coordinating Committee to locate and mark any utilities located in the yard; common utility lines to be incurred are telephone, cable television and sewer lines.
Utility reroutes may be necessary before pool excavation can begin. Utility allowances may be added into the pool contract price to be refunded after completion and payment in full if the utility is not encroached upon, hit, cut, repaired, replaced or rerouted. Lines that normally are cut or broken, or are in need of rerouting, are the lines that are in the direct path of digging and trenching machines, including trenches dug with shovels. Costs are to be paid by the homeowner directly to the utilities. If called earlier in the day, television and cable television company crews are usually out the same day. Utility companies want to be contacted by the homeowner to initiate repairs and reroutes. Some typical costs may be: telephone repair – $95.00, cable television – $60.00. We will usually be able to schedule the sewer, gas, and electric lines for repair or reroute for the homeowner. The costs for electric and sewer reroutes are typically $12.00 per linear ft., temporary sewer $95.00, and $8.50 per linear ft. for ½” gas lines. These costs are payable upon completion of repairs or reroutes.
After the initial pool stake and approval by homeowner, a $200.00 fee will be charged payable to the designer if the homeowner decided to relocate their pool.
The excavation of your new pool will normally be done in one long day. Our excavation crews generally start between 7:00 am to 10:00 am and sometimes have to work into the early evening hours.
Prior to excavation of your pool, it is very important to turn off your automated sprinkler system due to the damage that can be caused to your lawn and landscape. On a moist lawn, the tractor can produce ruts up to two feet in depth and can break water mains and more.
The tractor is typically a four wheel drive rubber tired machine that does very well over concrete drives and patios. Access to the back yard varies. An available back or side lot is an excellent option. Generally up the driveway or around the side of the home is the norm. The driveway is usually scraped clean after the dig and hosed down at the final cleaning of the pool near the end of construction. If our crews have had access over a turf or grassy area, we will level and fill with bank sand and/or soil before the completion of the pool. Expect pool construction to take anywhere from 5 – 8 weeks to be completed from the date of excavation.
Steel rebar is placed to plan in the pool excavation on or about the second day of construction. These bars are supported a few inches above the floor of the pool and will be completely encased with pneumatically applied concrete material at the gunite stage of construction.
Generally the second or third day of construction the skimmers, suction ports, pool inlet fittings and light housing will be placed into their proper places to be concreted into the shell of your pool at gunite.
Gunite is a specially mixed cement and course sand that is pneumatically applied under great pressure using heavy compressors operated by an experienced crew. During this phase of construction we will spray the gunite portion of your pool’s concrete shell into place.
Next we will begin to lay the vast amounts of your pool’s PVC plumbing. If needed, a sewer reroute will be completed around the pool shell. Pool equipment will be set sometime between this stage and the plastering of your pool. There will be a lot of trenching going on in and around the pool job site.
The pool equipment, lights, controllers and fiber optic lighting will be wired in during this stage and your pool’s electrical wiring, along with electric conduit pipe and ground wires, will be placed in and around the pool area.
During this phase of pools construction, final decisions have to be made regarding brick, tile or other decorative and finishing material selections.
The plastering of the floors and walls with our marble and cement mix and your subsequent filling of the pool is the last stage of construction. The filling process will begin immediately after the last man is out of the pool with your garden hose placed on the bottom and a weighted, cotton bag covering the end of the hose to keep it in place or, optionally, the hose placed in the skimmer of the pool at the deep end. The objective of this hose placement is to insure the pool fills smoothly from the bottom up without leaving streaking or water stains on the new plaster. Once started, continue the filling process and don’t stop until your pool water level is 3 inches from the pool’s top, main edge to ensure you don’t have “ring around the collar.”