When we were looking to buy our current house the pool was not an enticing feature-we loved the house but honestly were not that interested in the pool. The house was a foreclosure and had pretty much been abandoned for over a year. This included the pool. The pool had never had a cover on it (scary!) and the first time we saw it, it was 1/4 full of brown, gross, stinky water/leaf junk.
My mother HATED the pool! She did not want us to buy this house because of the pool. She thought it was such a liability. She worried about Carson (3 at the time) and having the pool in its current state. She thought we should fill it in with dirt and grow a garden.
With all the work the inside of the house needed the pool sat untouched for a few months. Cam started researching pool things on the Internet and read somewhere that if you left a pool empty of the winter it would freeze/crack/possibly lift out of the ground if the water table was high enough. This was motivation that we HAD to deal with the pool.
First we got all the "chunks" (Leaves/garbage etc...gross I know) out of the water and then started pumping out the disgusting water. Where did we pump this lovely water??? Into our side yard and down the gutter (I'm sure our neighbors were impressed with us :)Once it was empty we (99% Cam I should say) scrubbed it clean.
The cleaning process was interesting. Cam had to buy certain chemicals to clean it (hypoxy something...I will have to ask and add in later) and a special suit and mask to wear to clean it in. He looked like a space man.
Cam got tied up in another project and could not finish the pool for awhile. So we would not have any problems of it cracking or lifting out of the ground while it was completely emptied we filled it about 1/4 of the way full.
A few weeks later, Cam was ready to tackle the pool again. We pumped the semi clean water out again. Once it was clean and empty again, Cam decided that we should paint it. We bought the paint ($90 dollars a gallon x 10 gallons)! And Cam started painting it. He painted the deep end first and then covered that end with big blue tarps so leaves and dirt would not blow in and stick to the fresh paint. As he continued to paint and cover, less and less of the pool was being 'ventilated' I was always worried Cam was going to pass out in the pool due to lack of oxygen/paint fumes! Cam said I worry to much (true).
After the paint job and sealing the paint we were ready to start filling it in with some H2O. This is the interesting part. We started filling it with water and after it was about 1/2 full Cam read on the Internet about children sitting on pool drains and having severe medical issues from this (research on your own if you want to know more...:). Mind you our pool drain is on the deep end of the pool which would be under 9 feet of water if we ever got it filled, but Cam was concerned and wanted to place a grate over the drain to prevent any problems. So again, we started pumping out the water.
This time we had a constant stream running down our curb/gutter of milky white water (from the fresh paint). I started feeling really bad about wasting so much water and wondering what our neighbors thought of us.
The grate was placed and we started filling up the pool with water. How do you fill up a pool with water? The only way in our area is to use your own water from your hoses. I don't know how many gallons of water it holds (Cam would know) but it took about a week with two hoses running 24 hours a day to fill the pool. We had a high water bill that month...high enough that the water company called to ask us what was up (they thought there must have been some kind of error, too bad there wasn't :)
When the deep end was full of water, Carson and I 'slid' down the slope from the shallow end into the deep end. It was pretty fun.
After the pool was full, our backyard went into lock down mode. We were at the mercy of coverpools. Two weeks after the day it was supposed to be installed we had the pool covered. The cover is constantly locked and only Cam and I know where the key is.
We started heating and filtering the pool and discovered that the heater was kaput. We ordered a heater and Cam installed it. After a lot of work we were finally able to start enjoying the pool!
We have had many fun days swimming in the pool but it can be a lot of upkeep and cost. I like the pool water WARM but Cam likes to save money. So when Cam goes to work I turn the heater on full blast. When Cam comes home he turns the heater off. Cam thinks WARM water is actually water that is just a little bit warmer than freezing :)
Right now, I think our pool is pretty safe, it is completely fenced in with a locked fenced, and always covered with a locked cover when we are not using it. Of course CONSTANT SUPERVISION is a must. I never worry when it is us using the pool but worry when we have neighbors and friends over. I have had a few times when the neighbor kids have come over wearing their swim gear and ask to swim. I always tell them "Yes, if your mom will come swim with you." I just won't be responsible for other people's kids swimming.
Future pool plans include, replacing the brick/tile around the edge and putting in a new deck.
So here are some pics of us swimming this summer. Carson is becoming a fish and Hannah doesn't know what to think about it yet. Also, of course the day I decide to take pictures is the day when all of Carson's swimsuits needed to be washed and he is swimming in his red undies. Good thing he doesn't realize this could be possibly embarrassing...yet.
Carson jumping off the diving board. He didn't dare do this last year.
Carson and Hannah. Hannah did not want her brother holding her. Mom did not want Carson holding her so this is the best and only picture of the two of them.
Carson and his 'swim gear' This cracks me up.
