That's great! Just for comparison, what did your plumbing cost. I'll understand if you don't want to give that info.

The final bill was $3800. That included all plumbing and labor (about $2000), and equipment ($1800). For the equipment we had a Pentair TR-100 sand filter, 1.5hp Whisperflo EE model, 2hp Whisperflo EE model, 3' Jandy sheer descent fountain, 2- 2" Hayward threaded skimmers, booster pump, water leveler and crock, sand, slabs, bypass valve, and 4 Jandy 3-way valves. I can't think of anything else. If you want any other specifics I can fax you the invoice. We didn't get the pool vac through him. I think that is the only thing missing.

We just found out that the flash will require 4yds. of shotcrete for $900. I guess that's four less than we will need next week. Right? :)

Hey, houseful- I was wrong. My friend is already back. She said you can definitely see the pool. If you can give me your email address we can set it up.

Thank you. There is a link to my email on my page.

My plumbing was $3500, but I only got one pump. I still have to buy a second pump for our water feature which is separate from the pool. So it ends up about the same. My electrical was $3500, but we did lots of upgrades and added a 90 amp panel in the yard. The original bid was not quite $2000. Shotcrete was $6200 with fiber mesh.

Our shotcrete flash was completed last week, with steel being done on Friday and Sunday (I was very surprised to see them on Sunday). It is so nice to go outside and not see more rock and sand down in the bottom of the pool. Today we had the electricians come out and do their thing. They were short one of our Colorlogic lights and will have to come back and place it. The pre-gunite inspection is tomorrow. I so hope we pass! We are waiting for shotcrete until Monday. We are heading out of town for a couple of days and don't want to miss the important watering schedule! I am dreading the cost of the overbreak. We will have quite a few yards of it.

I am very excited to get past the shotcrete stage and to move on. I still have to figure out what tile to use. I wasn't thrilled with the choices at Noble and National. It's so hard to know how it will look until it's all done. We want something natural colored that will blend with our wall. I found something at Superior but it's twice the cost. I wish there were pictures with each tile to show how it looks in an actual pool.

I was also curious about our mosaics. I ordered a few from Animated Pool Tile and will be getting a few more from the Custom Mosaics catalog. The guy at Animated Pool Tile said he sends instructions for installation with the mosaics. He said it is fairly simple and many homeowners do it themselves. Has anyone else placed their own mosaics. If I could save a couple hundred dollars doing it myself it might be worth it.

Thanks for all of your feedback!

Houseful- I called your shotcrete company today and talked to Allen (VERY nice). He is going to send me a bid, but he said he is usually very similar to his dad's company. His brother had also given me a quote, but his overbreak price was too high. Funny that they are all competing for the same business. What tile did you choose? It was great meeting you today! Your kids are adorable.

Shallow end:

Kids play area:

Deep end:

Equipment:

Electrical trench through the grass :(

Looking good!! Shotcrete was the most exciting for me. It is neat to watch. I am glad you talked to Allen. I put a call in to his partner, Dick. He's the one I dealt with on my project. I just wanted to tell him what happened because I have recommended them to others.

And thanks! It was great to meet you too! I really appreciate what you did. I definitely want the Ultra Poz now. Please thank your friend again for me. Although, it may have cost me more money. The kids were very intrigued by the in-ground trampoline...

As for tile, which will be installed sometime today, I chose the Corsica from Noble with a few of the coordinating accents. I tried to post a pic, but photobucket is having tech difficulties right now. I too was not thrilled with the choices, but I went to just about every other tile store around and didn't find anything better. I wanted blue, but since you want the earthtone, you will probably find what you want outside of Noble or National. I love the color of the one I chose, but am less than thrilled with it's natural stone edge. I like that edge on a natural stone (or porcelain look-alike), but these obviously aren't natural, LOL! I am planning to do something in the bottom of the pool and I really liked your friends idea.

Which mosaics are you getting? I jokingly told the kids we were going to put that "shark bearing his teeth" under the diving board and they thought that was cool! We aren't having any, but the coolest ones I have seen are the very real looking sharks with shadows. Those look best with lagoon style pools.

Well, I look forward to more pics. Enjoy your getaway!

where in Az are you located? my wife and I are seriously considering relocating there. Chandler/Phoenix/Scottsdale areas

how do you like it?

Yeah!!! Shotcrete was finished today! We ended up with 33 yards, which was less than the 34.5 they included in the bid. They adjusted the price and we actually paid less than we planned. How about that! I was planning at least 5 yards of overbreak so it was a nice surprise. I will add pictures later. It's too bright out to get a good shot right now.

Now we are trying to figure out our water feature wall. It wasn't formed up correctly during excavation for the entire wall to be shotcrete, so we will have to add some masonry block around the areas where we want our columns. It luckily won't be too expensive to fix and it should be able to be done on Friday or Saturday. I am getting excited about these next few steps. They should be fun to watch.

Houseful- we are going to have a shark in the deep end, 3 turtles in the shallow end, and a few small things in the kids play area. I haven't figured out exactly where yet, but it should be fun for the kids. Your tile looks great! I'll bet you and your kids are getting excited. :)So do you have a date set for your Ultra Poz? I can't wait to see the finished product!

congrats!
One of my pools gets shot tomorrow. Estimated at 55yds....decent size for sure.
Shotcrete is obviously a fun phase for homeowners as it is then clear what it is going to look like.
Congrats again! and I'll be the first to say---pics!!
Tyler

Wow Tyler, 55 yds! I would say that is more than decent. :) What's the most you have ever used on a pool? I am still waiting for the "magic" light so I can go out and take pics, but I will certainly put some up. I have a quick question too, before the interior finish goes in, who cleans up all of the shotcrete pieces? A clean up crew, or the plaster company? Also, have you ever seen Primera Stone used in a pool? (Okay, I guess that is actually 2 questions). Thanks for the expert help!

Here are the pictures from today:

You're getting a shark?!? I am NOT telling my kids, LOL!

Everything looks great! Who ended up doing the shotcrete, the original company?

One more thing...do you have your diving board? You'll need the jig for the decking.

Hi Houseful- I do have the jig and will need it on Monday. Thanks for checking. Tomorrow we will have some masonry done on our water feature wall, and then a wall by our equipment. Monday and Tuesday will be the concrete pool coping. It should be fun!

We did end up using the original shotcrete company. Allen at WC never did get me a bid. I don't know if he just decided not to compete with his dad or what, but he never sent anything. I decided not to follow up again. If he wanted to do it he would contact me. Maybe I should have talked to Dick. :) I am going to check your thread now...

Today the masonry guys finished up the equipment wall and the columns around the pool. The concrete crew formed up as much as they could, but the masonry took longer than planned so they will finish forming tomorrow and pour on Wednesday.

Tomorrow we will be heading out to the east valley to see a few Primera Stone pools. I contacted the corporation and the rep. for our area was more than willing to take us on a tour of a few pools that have been done. I am excited to see a few completed so we know what to expect.

We have our plaster date scheduled for April 23rd! It's getting close. :)

Great looking pool! You must be a really nice person to have the contractors bend over backwards to help you. Great Job.

Wow, you have come so far! That is so exciting. Your pool is huge!!! You'll use all that space, too, with all the kiddos! I bet they can't wait. It comes fast... we're all done now, just working on landscaping and chemicals. It will be done before you know it.

Enjoy and good luck.

Anne

Looking great!
55yds may have been one of the largest, if not the largest to date....at least on a residential job. The owner is a world renowned athlete....but that's about all I can say.
Congrats on progress! Keep that shell wet as it heats up!

OH!- your two questions...
1- We hire a clean up crew to come out and prep the shell before final finish. They do an interior and exterior cleanup of all construction debri...and extra slumps or rebound around the pool too.
2- Never used Primera Stone. good luck!

Tyler

Thanks for the replies. :) The guys are out finishing up the forms. We added a sidewalk and concrete slab on the side of the house so they are working hard (and a little longer then they expected) out there. I offered to buy them lunch and they declined, they said the cooler of drinks was enough. Then I INSISTED on buying their lunch from Jack in the Box and left a paper outside for them to write their orders on. I go to pick it up later and there are eight, 99 cent items written down. No drinks, no fries. I told them to get whatever they wanted. I figured there are only 4 men total, so $40 would be expected, but no $8. I ordered curly fries anyway and they ate them right up. I guess they are trying to be courteous. I thought it was funny. Eat, boys, eat!

Thanks for the reminder to keep the shell wet Tyler. I seriously thought I only needed to do it for 5-7 days. I thought I was about done. Oops! My mind is racing about the local athlete you're doing the pool for. World renowned... that's big! No wonder it's such a big pool. Probably just a yard decoration. :)

I can only repeat what Mitch said....... you sound like a very nice person to work for. We are in the contracting business and the little things that homeowners do for our guys are always greatly appreciated. I like the psychology of giving them a paper to write their orders down, shows you were serious about buying lunch. We have (not many times) walked away from bidding on a project because the homeowner showed signs of being a PIA. Our best advertising is our clients and we always say we like to leave them happy. I'm sure the pool builders on the forum would agree. I've been following the forum because we are in the (long) process of remodeling our yard and pool. I make it a point to be kind and feed anyone who has done work at our house as well. I know for a fact you get a better job, Barb

swimmingin07:

It's up to you for the shell watering time allowance.
We put sprinklers on our pools after shotcrete with automatic timers so the homeowners dont have to even think about doing it.
Sometimes we will water them for 2 weeks...but sometimes 5 days or so will be fine. Totally depends on the weather and the amount of sun that your shell is exposed to.
Ask 10 builders and you will probably get 6-7 different responses, as with many things. haha

Tyler

Can't wait to see more pics!!

We watered ours for a full week several times a day. It was the middle of December and it rained a few times during that week. We didn't get any cracking. I like the idea of the automatic sprinklers or the soaker hose laid around the perimeter.

Pace13, I just saw your post. I am basically in Scottsdale. Where are you looking to move?

Swimming, anymore pics yet? We have been swimming all week but it looks like another cold front is coming. You'll be plastered just in time for the warm weather's return.

houseful, I was guessing you were in Cave Creek. I was close. I'm in Gilbert.

Yes,I am. Many people from out of state don't know Cave Creek, so I just usually say NE Phoenix/Scottsdale. Many of my friends that I still stay in contact with from HS located out in either Gilbert.

aww, the local crew is so friendly. hahaha...

Houseful- I am glad to hear you have gotten some swimming in! What has the water temperature been? What happened about that crack in the Ultra Poz? Did they come out and fix it yet?

We have our pool coping, tile, mosaics, and stone (on the RBB) completed. The pavers are more than halfway done and should be finished up tomorrow. What a job! All of the cuts involved in doing the pavers looks very labor intensive. Luckily it's not too hot today.

Thursday we have a clean-up crew coming, our fence will be installed (they have already set the posts), and the wok pots will be delivered. Friday will be inspection day, and Monday they will install the Primera Stone. I can't wait! :)

I am excited to have it all done!!! We are really happy with the way it all has come together. It is looking just the way we wanted it too. The only thing I was a little disappointed in, is the stone work on the wall. We were home when they started, but then had to leave, and when we came back they were done. If I had been home, I would have told them I wanted the stones closer together. I obviously had something different in my mind then he had in his. I learned that I can't expect the subs to be seeing the project the same way as I am, without explaining it in detail. Once it was all grouted it looked much better, but not EXACTLY what I wanted. We debated on having them redo it, but eventually decided that once the entire project was done it probably wouldn't really bother us so much. I'll have to post pictures later.

I was wondering what the big things are that they look for during the final inspection. I don't want to risk failing and having to move our plaster date back. Any suggestions?

I actually thought we were going to fail our final inspection. I was worried about the space under the fence and some other things that I can't remember now. But the inspector came out without me even seeing him and ok'ed it. I was very happily surprised. Then in a few weeks we got our permit money back from the town of Gilbert since we had the fence up. I was worried that we weren't going to since there wasn't anything written on the permit that said that we had the fence. Good luck! Hope you pass.

Oh, I could give you a 10 page list of things I would change on my project. (I'm exaggerating :) You're doing pretty well if the stonework is your only issue.

The plaster installer told me to wait a few weeks to see if the crack sort of closes up as the plaster gets hydrated. If not, he will fix it without hesitation. Our water temperature has been in the 70's but the kids don't care, LOL!

Inspectors are SUPPOSED to check for proper fence height, nothing climbable outside the fence, self closing gates, self-closing doors or alarms, etc. I was shocked at how little they really inspected, LOL! You'll be fine.

Here are the pictures from today:

View from yard

Looking towards deep end

Kids play area

Stone wall with sheer descent

View from deep end

Shark mosaic in deep end

The pavers will be done tomorrow along with the fence. On Thursday we will be at 6 weeks since the dig. I am pretty happy with that, especially considering our caving deep end caused us to delay shotcrete for 12 days. The total build time should be 6 1/2 weeks. Our friends just finished theirs 2 weeks ago. It was started in September by one of the biggest PB's in town. I thought that would have been a good time to start. Apparently not.

It looks great. I'm surprised that they did the mosaics before they did clean up. We were told not to do it before because they might get broken during clean out.

Have people told you that your kids are going to jump off the roof into your pool? I was told by a couple of different people, men of course, that we should have turned our pool around and had the deepend by the house so that the boys could have jumped off the roof. No thank you! I already have the problem that they like to jump off our block wall. They kept asking me and I told them no but then DH heard them and decided to try it. Now they all do it. I was so mad at DH because now they think it is ok since Daddy did. I do stop it after a couple of jumps though. It just scares me too much. DH grew up with a pool and has 5 brothers. You can only imagine what they did. They did jump off their roof and it wasn't all that close and was on the shallow end side. They would also jump off the slide into the pool. Their mom still doesn't know all they did. When they were talking about things one day she told them she didn't want to know. It would be better off to leave her in the dark. LOL.

Wow, that's a great shark! I had to stare at it for awhile because it looks likes it's just floating there! Did the plaster people do the tile? Are you using Sun Sparkle or Superior? FWIW, I think your stonework looks great. Everything looks great. Your pool looks huge. What are the dimensions again?

Mommyniki, that's funny about your MIL! Oh yes, Swimming, I can see your kids jumping at least from the block wall. I know mine would try it if ours was closer, LOL!

Mommyniki- I have thought about the roof thing and it better not ever happen! It's a tile roof and pretty tough to get up on so hopefully they don't try. I will have to give them some big threats as they get older though. The block wall right next to the pool....well that's another story. Thanks for the heads up :) As far as the mosaics go, nobody mentioned not to install them before clean up. The clean-up crew is coming today so I'll have them watch out for them.

Houseful- Our tile guys did the mosaics and the waterline. We still need to grout the mosaics. They didn't have black grout with them and that's what I want to use on half of them. I said we will do it ourselves. I hate it when I do that. Now I have to find time to do it ourselves! :) We are using Superior for plastering. I really hope all goes well and it's done on Monday. I am going to call today to verify that we are still on the schedule.

Our pool is 34' at the longest point, and 26' at the widest. It is 27,000 gallons. I think it looks bigger all crammed back in the corner like it is. We wanted to preserve as much yard as we could, so we really maximized that corner. We aren't ALL living on a couple of acres ;) So who did your pool start-up? A company or your consultant?

LOL! The trade off I made for living on acreage is that our house is falling apart (except for the part we added recently)! Now that we put in a pool, a remodel will have to wait :(

My consultant did the start-up for/with me. It was very easy; you can do it yourself.

Todays updates:

Pavers- Done!
Fence- Done!
Wok Pots- delivered!
Clean-up- Done!

I did however receive a call from the plaster company. No plaster on Monday.:( We have been bumped to Wednesday due to truck problems. Dang it!!! They will install the Primera Stone on Wednesday and then polish it on Thursday. We are going out of town on Friday night, so we will have to figure out someone to keep an eye on the water level. Luckily we have a nosey neighbor(I never thought I would say that)!

Your pool looks so much like my friends. They have the same pavers, wok pots, stacked stone, and similar waterline tile. What color will the inside be? My friend got a white Pebble Sheen.

Our consultant did our start-up. He added all the chems that needed to be, he marked what each of the valves were and told us what they do, and basically went over how to take care of a pool.

To fill our pool we borrowed a hose from the neighbor and then paid them $10 for their water, hooked a hose up to the washing machine spigot, then the hose from out back. We started filling at about 2 pm and about 8:30 had the neighbors turn theirs off, turned off one of ours when we went to bed about 10:30 and our pool was filled when we woke up. If you have more than one hose, maybe you can get it full before you leave.

YEAH! We passed our pre-plaster inspection! Now we must wait until Wednesday for interior finish. I hope it goes by quickly because I am anxious!!!

Mommyniki- That's funny that our pool looks so much like your friends. I guess considering we didn't do anything unusual, there are probably quite a few that look like it. We are using a product called Primera Stone. The color is called Kona Coast. I will put the link at the bottom. Thanks for the info on the start-up and filling. Hopefully we can get it filled up before we leave. :)

Here is a link that might be useful: Primera Stone

After going to their website I remembered that we looked into getting that. They had told us about it at Paddock when we went in to get a quote. I called Wet Edge and they told me that I could go look at the pool at the Buttes to see the finished product. We never went and looked and decided to just go with our original decision.

WOW~~ it's looking so great!! You are almost there. You'll be swimming in a matter of days, looks like. I haven't been on the forum due to a hectic few weeks, but it's so fun to check back at everyone's progress. Way to go!

Anne

Grrr, the plaster company rescheduled for tomorrow. Needless to say, there may have been a hormonal episode involving tears after I got off the phone yesterday. At 33 weeks pregnant, it doesn't take much to set me off;) So tomorrow is the big day, and we are ready!!!

Thanks for the note Anne. How are the kids enjoying your pool?

The crew just left and I can't believe what an interesting process it is to install the interior. VERY fun to watch! They will be back tomorrow to do the polish. I am really interested to see the change in smoothness. Right now it looks and feels like a regular pebble finish, and it supposedly will feel like plaster when they are done tomorrow. We went to see 3 demo pools, and they definitely were smooth, but I just can't help but be a little nervous because it looks SO different right now. We will see what tomorrow brings. It's been a fun morning!

Well, we made it to the first swim! :)

The pool finished filling late last night, so we let the kids have a quick swim before we start dumping the chemicals in. We are definitely going to be living in the pool this summer!

We still have a few of issues to work out:

1.The finish is not as smooth as the pools we went to look at. This is a huge deal for me, since that is the reason we ended up choosing it. The interior products' company rep. will come out this week and take a look. Hopefully he will help us find a solution. I think that the guys who polished it quit the job too soon, I mean it WAS Friday. We'll see what happens there.

2. We have pipe plugs in the skimmers, which I thought were there to prevent stuff from falling in during construction. We were trying to pull them out and noticed they are siliconed in. What? I can't figure out what happened there. Can anyone enlighten me? We never could get them out.

3. The bubblers in the 10" kiddie area suck. I think we need a different fitting. One of them causes a little mountain of water, but the other barely stirs up the surface. We wanted little fountains. I am hoping to find out how to accomplish this. The current fitting is flush with the bottom of the step.

Anyway, here are some pics. I can't wait to see the color once we get the chemicals in the water. I think it will be nice and blue. Any help with the above issues would be marvelous! Thanks for your help!!

Reading back thru the last few threads I missed, I was bewildered at you mentioning you are pregnant. I went to the first post and then remembered you were having number 5. But when I met you, you were so tiny and "normal" looking, LOL! The pool will be so awesome for you in these last few weeks! Your kids are so cute. Do you know what you are having this time?

And the pool looks great! Love the water features and it already looks pretty blue. I did think about you during the storm since I knew you were just getting it filled. I am anxious to see how that shark looks.

Sorry to hear about your interior finish and the bubbler problems. Can't help you there. The skimmer plugs must be removed, but if you don't have the special tool, it might be very difficult. My consultant brought his, but your DH might have something that will work. You just have to twist hard and then remove that silicone ring too.

Have fun!

That is too funny! You definitely couldn't miss me being pregnant now. :) We have 2 girls and 2 boys, and this one is another boy. 6 1/2 more weeks. I can't wait!

I was able to track down the tool to remove the pipe plugs. $25 for a tool I am quite certain I will NEVER use again. It wasn't too hard to get them out. I feel like taking it back, but my conscience probably won't let me. I added some of the chemicals and will add the rest later. I wonder how long before we can swim? How long did you have to wait?

Also, how long did you have to wait before you could use your pool vac? I was surprised to have to wait at all, although it makes sense. I was expecting the water to look worse than it does right after filling the pool. Maybe the color won't even look that much different in a couple of days. The shark is a little hard to see (which we had a feeling might be the case) with the color of our finish. I am glad we put it somewhere a little more inconspicous because of this. Our kids LOVE it though. It was worth adding.

I still have to figure out something with the bubblers. I might post a separate thread since this one doesn't seem to get many people reading it. I am waiting to hear back on the on the interior. I am not going to stress about it for now. I think that they will help us find a solution.

Have a great day! Happy swimming!

I love your shark. We just had our pool gunited and I would love to put that in. Can I ask where you purchased it at it looks so cool.
Connie

Hi Connie. We purchased the shark online from Animated Pool Tile. I love the way it turned out! I will say however, that I was not overly impressed with the company. It seems to be one just guy who makes them and sells them. He is very nice, but it took a little longer to receive than I expected, and it comes in pieces. It's not like the type that comes mounted on mesh. Our tile guys installed in without a problem, but it was definitely different from what they were used to. We also ordered 3 small turtles from the same company. They look good in the pool, but there were others that I liked much better from Custom Mosaics. All in all, if I had it to do over, I would have ordered the shark only. I also would have it installed in the bottom of the pool. I was working and my husband told them where to put it. I guess we need to work on our communication. :) It looks good where it is, but I think it would have been better on the floor. That is how they are pictured on the website.

Here is a link that might be useful: Animated Pool Tile

I am in AZ too, north Phoenix. Planning a pool remodel as we speak.

Swimming 07, Your pool is beautiful! Love the shark, crabs & the turtles. Very cool! My 3YO would love them. Also love that kiddie pool. I have never seen that before, what a great idea!

Nikki, I have that problem too. My husband jumps off the roof into our diving pool & now has my nephew doing it too. At my son's b-day party in July there were kids flying off the roof into the diver (10ft deep) constantly, scares me to death! Hoping it will take my son (3 years old) a little while b/f he is brave enough to do it.

You've been awfully quiet lately! Does this mean you are having way too much fun in your pool or did your baby boy arrive early? Or both!

LOVE LOVE LOVE your pool! The play area for the kids is awesome! I'm amazed that you did an owner build with four kids and one on the way, that's impressive.

We are in Phoenix and are seriously considering doing an owner build. You sound like you had some awesome subs. Would you be open to sharing any of them? I figure having good subs is probably the key!

Enjoy that pool, it is awesome.

swimmingin07, Great looking pool! Do you mind tell me about the pavers, coping, and waterline tile? i really like the choices and colors you chose. thank you very much.