How To Survive Buying And Building A Swimming Pool

Overstocked Pool Equipment

2009-07-25T10:40:00.002-04:00

The current economic turmoil has caused many pool builders to be stuck with excessive inventory. A new website, according to Pool and Spa News, has popped up to help move all of that stuff.

Overstocks can mean big savings to consumers with pools. That's the plus. The minus is that builders may be sticking last year's model on your pool to get rid of it. Meaning, you could be paying for an updated product but getting the old one.

If you are okay with that and they have been up front about it, so be it. But, you should keep on eye on the components being installed and check them out to make sure they are the newest and most up-to-date products. Asking your builder up front about it can be helpful as well.

Pool & Spa News - Wal-Mart Sued Over Inflatable Pool Drowning - June 2009

2009-07-25T10:39:00.002-04:00

Pool & Spa News - Wal-Mart Sued Over Inflatable Pool Drowning - June 2009

Shared via AddThis

Undersell/Overdeliver

2009-07-15T17:25:00.007-04:00

Through the years, I have heard salesmen use the phrase "undersell and overdeliver" too many times to count. There are a number of schools of thought in the selling world. No matter what they are, they are all geared towards one objective...converting you into a sale.

Understanding some of the techniques and philosophies will help you level the playing field. The undersell/overdeliver strategy is typically one of the last commandments of selling and is part of a culmination of the overall goal.

It can be difficult to determine if this is being used on you. Doing your homework helps and knowing where they are coming from will only benefit you.

In the realm of the swimming pool industry, you need to understand that there is only one objective when it comes to a potential customer. That is to turn you from potential to actual customer. Sometimes it ends there and other times the goal is to keep you coming back for more.

Underselling means that you could have bought more pool than you got. There are two reasons this is done: One, the salesman thought he was only going to get the sale based on price. Two, the salesman thought that making as few promises as possible would allow him to overdeliver.

Overdelivering means that you are a happy pool customer. That is great but what happens when you find out that there were more options or you could have got more pool?

In fairness to the salesman, he has a tough job determining how much money you have to spend. Competition in the pool industry is fierce as well. Particularly in the current economy.

You may have seen a competitor before this salesman that is much cheaper. The salesman may have an uphill battle in convincing you that his product is worth more money and may feel that you are stuck on a number. Your budget is a big factor in why you might be undersold.

The other side to the story is that the salesman wants to make sure he overdelivers on his promises. Although this is an acceptable strategy, there can be underlying agendas as well. Those agendas can be time frames to build a pool, problems the salesman might foresee in delays and so on. By keeping promises to a minimum, he can reach his target of overdelivering on the pool. Your best bet is to get him to be on the level with you so you get what you expect and what you paid for.

The ABCs Of Closing Sales

2009-07-13T15:56:00.005-04:00

Here are a couple of clips from the movies Boiler Room and Glengarry Glen Ross. This is a little insight into what you are up against in the sales process. Warning: Adult Language

By the way ABC in sales refers to Always Be Closing.

Healthy Swimming

2009-07-02T17:20:00.001-04:00

CDC Healthy Swimming

Pool & Spa News - Abandonment Issues - June 2009

2009-06-29T09:10:00.006-04:00

Pool & Spa News - Abandonment Issues - June 2009

Shared via AddThis

I have read a bunch lately about abandoned pools in California. Most of those articles related to foreclosed homes that no one was living in. This story tells about how it is not only the homeowners bailing on their pools, it is also some builders.

This is important to consider. Although your builder might seem perfectly stable, things happen. In this economy, a lawsuit, a missed payment from one customer, or a whole host of other things could send a builder into financial disaster.

So, what do you do?

Good question. No matter what you do, you may not be able to fully protect yourself but should take as many precautions as possible.

Here are a few things to consider for this situation:

Make sure you are not maxed out. If you are buying a $30,000 pool and only have $30,000, you could be putting yourself into a bind. With any construction project, it is always recommended that you have a percentage of the budget put away for incidentals and unforeseen emergencies (and pools tend to have unforeseens in general). In this economy, you should have enough put away in case your builder goes under and you have to go it on your own. You may want to add potential legal fees into this equation as well.

Fully vet the builder. There are new companies popping up everywhere right now and there are still those that have been around for years. You have to do your homework on these guys. Where are they financially? How are current customers being treated? And so on. Don't just take the word of the salesman, look up as much as you can on them. Remember, a salesman is never going to say things are bad, they will just spin it to a positive. For example, if you ask them how business is (and their sales are a 1/4 of where they should be at that time), they will say business is better than they had projected. See the spin? They avoided answering your question because salesmen are never supposed to downplay their business.

Check up with current customers who are in the middle of their projects. Keep in touch with them. The company abandoning their project can be an indicator of what will happen to you.

Renegotiate the payment terms of the contract. The builders need cash flow. Getting big deposits and upfront payments may be keeping them afloat. Although that may be business as usual, it is not your job to finance their operations. The builders will fight you tooth and nail on this but if they want your business, they will have to compromise. Your objective should be to have exactly what you have paid for in your backyard. In other words, you don't want to have 25% of the product installed and have paid for 95% of it.

Some builders will get your money and put you on the back burner as they rush to get others to a payment phase to collect cash. This is actually pretty commonplace even when the economy is good. It goes back to cash flow. This situation, particularly right now, is how they get themselves into trouble.

Pay attention to what they are doing back there. Are you getting what you paid for or are they cutting corners? The builders are trying to find any way possible to make more money right now. Make sure that it isn't going on in your yard. See the article Trusting Your Builder To Do The Right Thing. Although that situation may not be a result of cutting corners and could just be negligence or inexperience, it is why you need to watch what is going on.

Don't fret. The good news is that the builders want to get your money and get out of your yard as quickly as possible. That can mean shorter building times than usual.

Pool Picture

2009-06-28T10:07:00.003-04:00

Pool & Spa News - Seasonal Visas Meeting New Roadblocks - 5.13.2009

2009-06-23T09:58:00.003-04:00

Pool & Spa News - Seasonal Visas Meeting New Roadblocks - 5.13.2009

Shared via AddThis

If that tile crew is behind schedule, this could be one reason.

Sliding Dog

2009-06-20T09:29:00.002-04:00

Funny video of a dog and a pool slide...

Trusting Your Builder To Do The Right Thing

2009-06-15T18:27:00.005-04:00

My Spa Is Cracked!

The above forum link on GardenWeb is one of those horror stories you hear about pool builders. In this instance, a brand new spa has cracked and will have to be ripped apart to fix. There are a number of reasons that this can occur.

After looking through the construction pictures from this, it is my opinion that the builder did not install the spa correctly. Whenever a spa is raised this far out of the ground, there should be a footer under it. There are also questions as to the stability of the soil under it, how the steel was run, and so on. Attention to detail would have prevented this from happening.

To credit the builder, they seem dedicated to fixing the problem. Although, the proposed solution seems to me to be a temporary fix and I believe that the spa should be completely ripped out and built correctly. Yes, a nightmare. Either way, a brand new spa has to be torn apart and repaired.

I have seen situations like this many times. They can result from a whole host of things. Even though you are trusting your builder to do their job and to know what they are doing, being involved back there will benefit you greatly.

Since I haven't seen this project firsthand, I can only speculate as to what all of the factors were that caused the spa to crack. In all fairness, this can happen for reasons out of the builder's hands as well.

This may or may not be what happened here, but these are some examples of how things like this occur:

The salesman never designed a spa like this before, didn't talk to a construction authority about the proper design.

The company didn't look over the design carefully and question it.

Someone raised a red flag but the salesman didn't want to go back to the customer for more money. The salesman decided not to ask for more money (maybe he got the job because he was a couple of bucks less than the other guy, etc.). Maybe he hoped no one would catch it, or that they would catch it and just do what they needed to do. Salesman are good for "missing" things and hoping that construction will do what's right and at their expense. Sometimes the salesman does this with the intention of just being back charged for the mistake or taking the chance that they won't be back charged.

The subcontractors saw this, but there wasn't extra money in the job for their extra work. Therefore, they just did what was on plan. Maybe they were ticked off that day because they didn't get paid for a similar thing last week.

The supervisor was non existent or inexperienced. In the thread, the homeowner mentioned that the supervisor just came by to pick up the checks. This sounds like the pool was left up to the subcontractors to build. If the homeowner paid considerably less for the product than he would have from others and had no expectation of supervision, okay. If not, this is unacceptable. I would suspect, do to the size of the company, that he was sold on supervision and experience. Both of which, seemed to be lacking on this project.

The job was sold on a number, not on what was the right thing to do. Salesmen are in a bind with fierce competition right now. Many buyers are fixed on a bottom line and this can put the salesman into a box if he lets it. If you are fixed on a bottom line instead of what actually needs to be done, things like this can happen. Maybe other companies didn't calculate extra engineering or work into their bids and the salesman was afraid to with his for fear of losing the job by being significantly more expensive.

Construction didn't catch the design flaw. Mistakes happen but this should have been caught before any of the work was scheduled.

Whatever the case, it starts with the salesman. With most construction projects and particularly pools, once something goes wrong it can be a snowball effect from there.

As you can see, there can be a number of factors that can attribute to a disaster in your yard. It is a place where you don't want to be. If you have a question about something that is going on, stop the project and get answers. Buyers get scared of doing this because they see the finish line and often just hope things will work themselves out. Ultimately, it is you that will have that mess in your yard. You will be the one dealing with it and the one staring at it. It's your money, so take the time to supervise the supervision.

Suggestion Box

2009-06-14T09:48:00.006-04:00

How To Survive Buying And Building A Swimming Pool is looking to feature your comments, questions and suggestions in upcoming posts. Please feel free to leave anything in the comments section of this posting that you would like answered or think would be useful.

A few sample questions to think about:

1. What would you like to see addressed on the blog?
2. What questions have come up for you during the pool process?
3. Where have you searched for answers, did you find them?
4. Were there any things that you wished you knew more about before moving forward on your project?

The Swimming Pool Sales Funnel

2009-06-07T09:38:00.013-04:00

For years, salesman have used a selling system labeled as The Sales Funnel. There are arguments out there that this has become outdated but many follow this school of thought.

The basics are quite simple and can give you some insight into how you are being herded through the sales pipeline. It is a you versus the salesman principle that you need to keep in mind when purchasing a pool, or anything else for that matter. Not all salespeople are evil though but they do all have one objective: to turn you into a sale, therefore making a profit off of you.

The Sales Funnel:

picture provided by creative commons license granted by http://engineerscansell.com/ from Wikipedia Article: Sales Tunnel

Source: Wikipedia

The Sales Funnel converted to Swimming Pools...

New Opportunity
It is here that you enter the world of becoming a potential buyer. You are looking at websites, pictures and thinking about how nice it would be to have a pool. The salesman is sitting by the phone waiting for you to move to the next level.

Initial Communication
You order a brochure, fill out an online inquiry about pool contractors or call that ad you just got in the mail. The salesman now has the opportunity to get your information and convert you into a lead. Actually, as soon as you give any information to anything or anyone, you become a lead. A sales lead is a potential buying customer and you can expect to be treated as such. That means, you are going to get a call from someone that wants to meet with you. That is fine, if you are ready for this process. In this step, you will be contacted by a salesman, a lead manager, a secretary, or someone else from the pool company. In some cases, you will receive a packet of information or a brochure before a phone call but you can count on being personally contacted. That is, unless they are not interested in earning your business. The initial communication then leads to the fact finding phase.

Fact Finding
The salesman will contact you and want to find out where you are in the thought process of a swimming pool. He will want to find out the basics like your name and location but he is really looking to see where you are in the thought process and how much you potentially have to spend with him. This stage is very important to the salesman because it can dictate what his strategy for you will be. Salesman aren't in the practice of wasting time, so they want to find out if you are really serious about a pool and what it is you are looking for. The salesman is looking for as much telling information as he can get in order to convert you into a sale. Things like: have you met with other pool companies, location and how hard it is to build a pool there, if you can even build a pool in your yard, if you can afford his pool, if you are in his market, are you ready to buy now, etc.

Develop Solution, Propose Solution and Solution Evaluation
The problem is how to get you to buy and the solution is to present different avenues that push you to that point. This can be anything from showing you pictures to laying out a design in your yard. If you are being resistant to moving forward the salesman needs to figure out what your objective is and find a solution to it. For example, you don't want to buy right now because you were hoping to wait for another month or two. The salesman wants the sale so he may come up with an incentive to get you to move now. This may be a deal or it may be a statement to the effect of "now is the time to do this because we are going to be really busy in a month or two." Even though a pool is typically more of an emotional purchase, look for the salesman to play on this and to build up that it can be a rational purchase. A good salesman should have a counter to whatever your argument is for not buying. In other words, a solution.

Negotiation
You have been presented the concept of having a beautiful new swimming pool in your yard. Now, you need to negotiate. Yes, there is always room for negotiation, particularly in the current economy. You will be much better off if you have at least a couple of other proposals when moving into this phase. The salesman is paid a commission on the pool. That commission can be a minimum or it can be a home run. Obviously, the salesman isn't looking to make the minimum and you shouldn't be interested in making him rich off of one sale. The salesman will use numerous tactics to steer you towards the commission he is seeking and negotiating can help you get to a fair median. This phase can be frustrating and difficult but doing it smartly will be of great benefit to you.

Purchase Order
The contract is written and handed to you to review. Once everything is agreed upon, the sale is made and you are on your way to getting a new pool. What is on the contract is what you should be getting. You can't expect that any freebies will come your way, so make sure everything is on there that you think you are getting and make sure you understand everything that is on the agreement. Surprises down the road are the majority of complaints lodged against builders. Sometimes they are the builder's fault. Sometimes they are a salesman fault. And, sometimes they are the result of a buyer not fully understanding what they bought or confusing what another company told them with what this company told them. Whatever the situation, it is ultimately up to you to be your best protection or worst nightmare.

Account Maintenance
A good salesman provides service not only to get the sale but during and after the sale. In the pool business, there are good and bad salesmen. Although thoroughly vetting the salesman helps, most of the time it is just a luck of the draw scenario. Finding out how well the salesman services his customers after the sale is usually an indicator of what to expect. Many pool customers feel lost during the process and having a crutch, such as a salesman that stays involved is a big help.

How To Brush Your Pool

2009-06-03T17:13:00.002-04:00

Video on brushing your pool...

Swimming Pools And Pets

2009-05-28T17:01:00.005-04:00

Okay, I saw this and had to post it...
(warning: there is a bad word or two spoken in the video, so you may want to turn the volume down if kids are around)

Swimming Pool Design

2009-05-28T16:21:00.003-04:00

There are several different ways that a potential builder may deploy to design your project. The old fashion, or least expensive, way is graph paper and a pencil. The new high tech way is with a design software program. There are general CAD (computer aided design) construction/engineering programs and a couple of swimming pool design programs.

The salesmen will use this to not only design your pool but also as a tool to stimulate your senses. One of the rules of sales is to create a visualization of what it would be like if you owned the product they are trying to sell you. Since a pool is rather hard to picture in your yard, the design programs actually do the work for the salesmen.

Here is a video of a 3D design program:

The BBB And What It Means

2009-05-21T08:14:00.004-04:00

The Better Business Bureau is a good place to check up on potential pool builders. You can find out if they are in good standing, have any complaints and how they operate. Although this is an excellent source, it should not be your only research tool.

When looking at the BBB, there are some things to take into consideration. Just because they have some complaints may not be enough to run for the hills. Take into consideration how many pools they build in relation to how many complaints they have. Also, complaints may not have necessarily made it onto those reports. Of course, the pool builders will tell you that they have a few complaints but it is because they build so many pools. You will have to look into this and decide for yourself. Remember, they are going to spin it however they can. Also, see if the complaints all tend to be about the same thing.

Another thing that can come up is if the business is accredited with the BBB. If not, it could be for a simple oversight like they have not paid the fee yet or it could be for something that is cause for concern. Either way, you should look into it and address this with the potential builder.

I just did a search on a pool builder and found that they are operating under several different names (although all are very similar). This can be a red flag. Each of these could be independently owned, franchised, or set up to protect the parent company from lawsuits. In this situation, it is important to find out who you are signing a contract with and who is going to be standing behind the product. Are they being upfront and honest with you about how their business is set up or are they hiding something?

The BBB can be very useful, but don't stop there. In order to file a complaint with the BBB, you have to go through a little bit of a process. Many complainants shy away from this but still have a story to tell. The complaints sites are easy to post your disgust and do it anonymously, so many people choose that avenue. Look into it all in order to get a better perspective.

Here are some videos from the BBB about hiring a contractor. Even though they are not directly about pools, they are very relative...

These are the first two of a series. If you want to watch more, the rest are here on YouTube.

If you really want to look into a business, you can get the Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) report on them. This delves further into the operation than the BBB but it does cost money. The D&B can tell you the company's financial situation and who actually owns the company.

Doing Work Off Contract

2009-05-11T15:24:00.011-04:00

Many homeowners decide to use their own contractors outside of the pool or do things themselves. Normally, this is perfectly fine but there are some things you should consider. This could be anything from landscaping to decking.

Make sure that you have fully discussed your intentions with the pool builder. Even if you have a non pool related project going on, the contractor and the builder should be apprised of what each is planning on doing. There could be things that the pool builder expects from his contractor that your contractor is unaware of when they bid the job.

For example, you use your own decking guy. He bid the job thinking that he just had to come in, form and pour the deck. When he shows up, there are forms, rebar, etc. that need to be removed from the pool before he can start and he has no place to throw that stuff away. He now has extra work that he wasn't paid for and wasn't expecting to have to do. The pool builder's decking guy is paid a couple extra bucks to take care of this and you took the decking off contract. Now it becomes a finger pointing episode and a matter of who is paying for what.

There may also be things that your contractor needs to do the way the pool builder wants. Not doing so can comprimise your warranty.

For example, your decking guy lays pavers around the pool without putting in a foam expansion joint between the deck and the pavers. The paver guy didn't think it was necessary and that it was ugly. The pool guy thinks that is necessary because it can put pressure on the pool coping and cause problems down the road. That beautiful paver job may have just voided out part of your warranty. A simple phone call would have eliminated all of that.

I mentioned decking guys because that tends be the biggest problem area when taking it off contract. Decking guys may have done lots of jobs but not done a pool. They also may have done pools but for a different company. Whatever the situation, it is important that everyone knows what they are doing and what is expected.

Swimming Pool Waivers

2009-05-04T17:25:00.009-04:00

Here is an example of what can happen if you sign a waiver for something. The homeowner saw a picture of a grey finish pool and really thought it would fit in nicely with their backyard. They were trying to create a pond-like look. The builder handed them a waiver stating that a grey finish can have variations in color and differs from job to job. They signed it, thinking that it was no big deal. Imagine their surprise when they did not get what they thought they were getting. Unfortunately, they were stuck with it. Before you sign anything, make sure you read it and read it again. Wording like this can mean just about anything and is purposely done to protect the builder.

Complaints Sites And Forums

2009-04-30T15:57:00.005-04:00

Here are some links to a few complaints sites:

http://www.complaintsboard.com/

http://www.ripoffreport.com/

http://www.complaints.com/

http://www.bbb.org

These are good for doing searches on any of the builders you plan on talking to or have talked to. A few complaints may not really mean anything but lots of them very well could. It comes to the argument of how many pools they build. Of course, I have seen salesman tell someone that the reason they have so many complaints is because they build so many pools. That could be true but it could also mean that those were the only complaints that were reported. There are companies out there that go to great pains and money to refute these complaints and get them removed from the Internet as well. You kind of have to figure it out on your own as to the relativity.

Here are links to a couple of forums about pools:

http://www.poolspaforum.com/

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/pools/

The forums are good for posting questions about builders or in general. They usually have some disgruntled and some happy customers. You will find everything from excitement to full out misery with pool experiences. Keep in mind, these forums are watched closely by the builders. so, you may get hit with a sales pitch or even someone pretending to recommend someone (and they happen to be the person they are recommending). Overall, these are really good places to check out and even use down the road.

Here is a really good blog to check out about pools:

http://buyingaswimmingpool.blogspot.com/

Ha, just kidding...well sort of.

Have any of your own? Or something to say about these? Feel free to tell us by leaving a comment.

Update: Which Pool Builder Is Right For Your Project

2009-04-27T16:38:00.004-04:00

You have some big decisions to make about which builder is right for you. Do you like the builder? Does he seem like a nice guy? This is a start but you should be cautioned that the builders are in this for profit. They are not there to make friends. Although, referrals are certainly a good way to get business.

There are several different types of swimming pool builders and stark differences between each. Whatever direction you decide to go, they all have one objective-to get you swimming.

National
Franchise
Local
Landscapers or other contractors that also build pools

National builders
Pros-national presence, financial security, warranty, experience
Cons-deal in volume, you can feel lost in the system, lots of red tape, strict contracts, management may not be familiar directly with your project (if you have a problem)

Franchise
Pros-backed by a bigger builder
Cons-only as secure as the individual franchise, may be backed by a bigger builder but they could be in another state or far away from you

Local
Pros-they are right in your backyard, probably know lots of people in your neighborhood, tend to be more directly involved in a project
Cons-a major lawsuit, missed payment or anything financial could bankrupt them, they may not be as up to date on technology as a bigger builder

Landscapers or other contractors that also build pools
Pros-they tend to deal mostly in custom projects, landscapers look outside of the pool itself for other things that may need to be done, they may be the ones that do custom stone work for the big builder anyway
Cons-lack of general pool building experience, may be wrapped up in one project for long periods of time and unable to get to yours, may not carry proper insurance tailored to a pool, may think they know how to build a pool but find themselves in over their heads

There are many pluses and minuses for each type of builder. In all honesty, I could sit here and argue for or against each one of these. I could be working for a national company this week and tell you how much of a risk it is to go with the local guy. Next week, I could go to work for a local guy and tell you how awful the national guys are. Truth be told, many of the employees of one have worked at the others at some point. It is up to you to find out what feels right and go with your gut. Referrals are a big help as well.

Example sales pitch from national pool builder:
We have been the largest builder year after year. We have the stability of a national company. We stand behind our warranty like no local builder can. Imagine what would happen, after your pool is built, if that local guy got sued on another project and it bankrupted him. How good would your warranty be then?
The truth: warranties are only as good as the company standing behind them. The national company can file for bankruptcy just as well as anyone else. They can also merge, sell out or be taken over with conditions that the new company is not responsible for any business dealings the previous company had. Plus, they can hide behind teams of lawyers or in house legal counsel.

Example counter sales pitch from local pool builder:
Those big guys are gonna run you through the ringer. Do you want to call a person or a call center with a question or problem? Their warranty seems really great. Wait until you have an issue and spend the rest of your life in litigation with them.
The truth: the warranty issue can be argued either way.

Swimming Pool Construction Basics (With Video)

2009-04-21T12:41:00.006-04:00

The Basics Of How In Ground, Concrete Swimming Pools Are Built

This is usually broken down into phases.

Phase 1: Excavation

Phase 2: Steel

Phase 3: Plumbing, equipment set

Phase 4: Gunite (or Shotcrete)

Phase 5: Tile and Coping

Phase 6: Electrical and Gas (if applicable)

Phase 7: Decking

Phase 8: Fencing

Phase 9: Plaster

Phase 10: Start up

Phase 11: Swimming

Basically, this is how the pool is constructed. It can vary and depends on the company, the specific pool, inspections and other items. Some builders do a couple of phases at once, others do plumbing before steel, etc. In between several of the phases inspections will need to occur. That is dependent on your municipality requirements.

Swimming Pool Preconstruction Phase

2009-04-21T12:30:00.003-04:00

What to expect before any groundbreaking begins:

Design of the pool
Landscaping plan for around the pool
Access-how equipment and trucks will get in and out
Sales calls
Contract negotiation
Financing, payment schedules, deposits
Permitting, requirements, setbacks
Engineering
Pool and pool equipment placement in yard
Removal of obstructions to and from pool (fences, trees, shrubs, sheds, swing sets, etc.)
Approvals to being construction
Scheduling

These are the basics and can vary greatly depending on where you live, time of year, weather and any number of other factors. Make sure you find out what you are responsible for and what the builder includes. Ensure that this is clearly worded in the contract. Many a pool builder has pulled off day one because a swing set was in the way and the homeowner just figured the pool company would move it. The contractors (or employees) typically get paid per job by the builder, so anything out of their agreement may be something that they are not going to get paid for.

Weather Permitting And Completion Dates

2009-04-15T12:09:00.007-04:00

The weather permitting clause of a swimming pool contract is something most buyers overlook or do not fully understand. There are several factors that attribute to this: haste, excitement, vagueness, wording, etc. Whatever the case, it will save you great pain to know exactly what this phrase means to you and what it means to the builder.

Completion dates are another aspect of this area that can be confusing. You should be aware of the exact wording and the legal translation. Not taking the time to understand all of this will create a world of stress and anguish down the road.

Pool contracts normally state how long it will take (or they are allowed) to build your project. I say normally, because they should state this but some contractors find ways to leave this wide open. You should protect yourself by making sure this information is included in the agreement. Typically, it can be found on the back and usually in fine print.

Although time frames may be declared, how they are worded is the key. They can say anything from 30 days to several months. They can also have phrases to create a great amount of leeway for the builder.

I have seen customers get very upset because they were on day 31 and the pool was not complete. What they did not realize is that it said 30 business days, not 30 days. Business days are not weekends nor are they holidays. This oversight creates a volatile situation and is very simply avoided.

Another critical factor to be aware of is the clause of weather permitting. Sometimes this is clearly defined and sometimes it is about as vague as that salesman was when you asked him when they could get started. As you should probably be aware of, the weather is usually the number one factor in how quickly your project can be completed. After all, this is being built outside and the weather can pose quite a problem for builders. Weather permitting can mean everything from they won't be there today or it may be days. A good rule of thumb (although it really depends on the builder) is that one day of rain usually means at least 3 days tacked on to your project. I am going to pick on rain but you can imagine all the other weather conditions that can impact your pool (too sunny, too windy, too rainy, too cold, too hot, etc.). The reasons a rained out day can mean a delay of several days ranges from scheduling glitches to cash flow issues for the builder. In all fairness, the weather is often a factor on its own.

Remember, just because it isn't raining in your yard doesn't mean they are coming. Oftentimes, they have to make a call at 0500 in the morning. It can be rather expensive to send crews out that can't do any work.

Here are some examples of one scenario that can give numerous results:

Scenario: Crew did not show today due to rain.

What can result:
Tomorrow they have to go to the Smith's pool to finish work they started before the next crew shows up. They are scheduled for your pool the day after tomorrow.
Supervisor makes the call that (because they have to get the truck in your yard) that it will take several days to be dry enough to return.
They will be out tomorrow.
Tomorrow they have to have their truck inspected (which was scheduled weeks ago), so they will be out the day after tomorrow.
It rains for 3 days straight and there is no telling when they will be back out.
-----

As you can imagine, they are about a million different scenarios that can impact when the crew will be there. You should know that the weather permitting clause gives the builder plenty of latitude. Remember, nothing in the fine print is there to protect you (except what the law requires them to put in).

Building Permit Basics For Swimming Pools

2009-03-25T16:05:00.001-04:00

If you build a pool, you are going to need permits to do so. Don't panic though, most builders take care of getting this for you. It is typically a good rule of thumb to only deal with contractors that will obtain the permit for you. In some areas you may not need a permit and it may be something that you are required to do yourself by law. The builder should know what the deal is.

Once you have signed your contract, the pool builder will submit to the appropriate authority (usually a zoning officer) an application to obtain a building permit on your behalf. Depending on where you live, this can be approved in the same day, a few weeks or even months. It can also cost a few bucks or thousands of dollars.

The costs associated with permits vary greatly because every area has its' own quirks. You may be required to have surveys done or even engineering certification.

Included in the permit application are the design, engineering, plans and specs for your pool.

After the permit is approved (and sometimes they take several submitalls to get there), the builder will be ready to start your project. That could be tomorrow or it could be weeks. The time of the year and the schedule of the builder will dictate this.

It is important to keep in mind that some areas will require separate permits for work like electric, gas and fence. Make sure you find out what the builder obtains, what the subcontractors get on their own and what you need to do yourself before they start the project. Time and time again a homeowner finds out they need a separate permit for a fence the day before the pool is scheduled to be finished. In some places, it takes 5 minutes to get a fence permit. In others, this can hold you up for days.

Also, if you live within the limits of a major city, it is quite possible that permitting is very strict and takes a long time. Contractors may even require special licensing there that they do not normally need in other places. Most likely, if the builder is coming to your house for an appointment, they already have that license or aware of what fees they need to pay to get it.

Potential Problems And Expenses Down The Road With Your New Swimming Pool

2009-03-24T15:42:00.003-04:00

Once you have decided that you want a pool and have come up with some sort of justification for needing one, you should be aware of what you may run into down the road.

In the above picture, you can see that the tile is popping off. The pool was several years old but the problems they were having with it were premature and preventable. The pavers were installed incorrectly, shifted and starting causing problems with the pool.

This was a classic case of having different contractors working "against" each other on the project. The pool builder just built the pool. The landscaper was hungry to get more money out of the job. He figured that since he had done some paver patios that he could install coping and do a swimming pool deck. Tile is normally covered under warranty (typically for 3 years). The pool builder claimed that the pavers and coping were installed incorrectly (and they were right). The landscaper was long gone. So, the homeowner was stuck forking out just as much money to repair the deck and pool as he had originally paid for the pool. Ouch!

This is not to say that landscapers don't know what they are doing with pools. As a matter of fact, there are landscapers out there that actually do nicer work than the pool guys. Some of them even branch out into building pools on their own.

The moral of the story is that you should probably take some interest in your project and not let the contractors run wild. You are the one ultimately responsible for what is going on in your yard and you cannot always trust someone that says "no problem, I can do that."

I got off on a tangent there, let me get back to the point of this posting. At some point down the road, a swimming pool will need cosmetic work and repairs. That stuff is referred to as renovation work in the industry. If you have never had a pool renovated, you should be sitting down when you receive the quote. The most common response to that quote: "Holy C---, that's more than I paid for the pool."

The key is to make sure that you get a good builder, that those doing work outside of the pool know what they are doing and that you keep a close eye on things. So, a renovation is a potential expense down the road.

Potential problems and expenses down the road with your swimming pool:

Tile comes loose or off
Coping cracks
Plaster becomes ruff
Plumbing piping, pumps, filters need to be replaced
Price of heater operation increases significantly
Your taxes are reassessed
A new code is enacted and your pool is not up to date-problem if you want to sell the house
Your insurance provider decides to no longer ensure diving boards
and so on

Protect yourself and make sure you use a reputable builder.