Newbie Questions on Purchasing AG Pool

[tettnanger]

Ok, it looks like I have to post my questions here first, so here goes. I'm looking to buy a 'real' pool. Currently we have a 16' round, vinyl Sam's Club pool. My wife and kids are talking me into something better so we're looking at an above ground. We went to a pool store today for the first time and learned a few things. We will visit other local stores but want to learn a bit more first.

The guy at the first store (a Swin 'N Play dealer) was steering me towards a Garden Leisure Eclipse pool. I had originally said I wanted an oval but he said that a 27' round was more stable, more durable, and a pretty huge pool, not to mention cheaper. So we are maybe leaning towards a round although I'm thinking a 33' may be better; we have a huge yard.

When we got home, started researching some more about steel vs. aluminum vs. resin. It appears aluminum is quite a bit more and I don't think I want to spend more just for that. That would mean we're probably looking at a steel wall pool. So here's my question(s):

1) When something steel rusts, is it the wall I should be most worried about? Or is it the other parts like the uprights, toprails, bottom rails?

2) Is it worth our while to go resin for uprights, toprails, and bottom rails to avoid corrosion? Does this help prevent corrosion on the walls? Or is resin overrated?

3) I live in southeastern Michigan. Does the freeze/thaw cycle matter for resin?

I guess I don't really expect to get 30 years out of this pool. My kids are 9 and 11 so if I get 15-20 years out of it, I'd probably be happy. I'm sure everyone has a different opinion, but recommendations on brands are welcome.

Another local place has their prices online and I'm kind of intrigued by the Sharkline Matrix 54 (all resin except for steel walls) or the Sharkline Blossom 54 or the Sharkline Heritage 52. The last two have a resin toprail but I think everything else is steel. Maybe the resin toprail is most important? Anyone have good/bad experience with Sharkline?

Any suggestions or advice is much appreciated!

[posguy]

I can only answer #1 from my experience. We purchased a top of the line 24' round Swim n Play back in 98. It has stainless bottom rails, stainless bottom plates, stainless skimmer panel, the top rails, uprights and ledge are platic coated steel. We reloacted the pool in 02 to make room for an addition on the house and everthing was pristine except the steel wall, it had a light coating of white powder and very light signs of rust, this is on the inside, outside it was perfect. Fast foward to 2011, I have an area of about 18" square with about a dozen bb sized holes in the wall, this was my fault though. Last year I had a small leak that let water between the liner and wall, I never looked hard enough to figure out where it was. Over the winter the water corroded the steel wall and spring a nice leak which was easy to find.

I dont know how aluminum would have held out in my case, however with my recent repair I think I can get several more years out of the pool. I am inpressed with the stainless bottom rails, they looked great in 02, im my case the steel wall is the weak point and if I had to do it again, I'd probably go steel again.

If you have the space, 33' round is the way to go IMHO. A note about warranty from Swim N Play, if me wall is covered under the 35yr warranty, I would get only 25% off the cost of a pool wall which would still cost me $750. Found the exact pool on Craigslist for $299, I take down, I get the wall and everything else if in decent condition.

Good luck.

[tettnanger]

Thanks for the info! We went to a few more pool stores today. Pretty confusing trying to figure all this out. I'm leaning possibly towards a Sharkline Morada RTR 54". The structural components are mostly resin including the top rails, end caps, bottom plates, and bottom rails. The uprights and walls are galvanized steel. I'm hoping the mostly resin is a good idea?

However, when we went to the last pool store that sold Doughboy (which seemed overpriced to us?) we asked why one of their "top of the line" pools did not have resin bottom rails or bottom plates. They told us that they only do galvanized steel bottom rails because resin bottom rails can crack and break in a cold climate (we live in Michigan). Is there truth to this??!?! I had never thought of that.

thanks!

[posguy]

I was at the pool store last night and looked at pools, I see resin seems to be popular these days. I would think if temps get cold enough, the resin may become brittle but I dont know if it would crack unless something impacted it. Hopefully someone who has resin components could answer that better.

[huskerfan]

My pool is a 54" Echo Canyon II Narrow Yard 18x34 oval that I purchased online from the Pool Place in Chattanooga TN in 2005. Some components are resin on it- the top and bottom rims, seat clamp top and base and the standard boot, the rest is steel. We live in Nebraska and my pool looks as good today as the day we put it up. Our local pool stores only carry Splash pools and one steel walled pool that was not to my liking - plus were severly over priced. I do believe in shopping locally when you can, but in this case they only had one design on the pool wall that I didn't like, and along with quality I wanted to enjoy the appearance of my pool too. The Pool Place's AG pools gave me both at a great price with great customer service! Another pool forum member bought a 30' round pool from them just like ours and are extremely satisfied with their purchase too. One factor to consider: our local pool dealers would not install a pool they didn't sell to us, so if you're not planning to install it yourself, make sure you check on this before purchasing. Also, yes, there is more stress on the walls of an oval pool vrs. a round pool, but if installed correctly and level you will not have any problems with an oval pool. Make your decision on what best suits your needs - our backyard would only accomodate an 18' pool on one side- so we went 18x34 oval instead of 18' round. Love the size of ours- glad I didn't go bigger or smaller and we have a lot of my daughter's friends hang out and swim here. It's a good size for swimming plus is easy to keep track of everyone in it.

Just to chime in on the size- my brother had a 30' round pool and it was massive in size to swim in. He did say several times he was glad he didn't go with a 33' as some things like solar cover reels... were hard to find in that size.

It is overwhelming- but like everything else- price, size, quality, and appearance are your deciding factors- research and purchase what fills your needs the best. Good luck!

[CarlD]

Round vs oval? Hm....if you want to swim laps you need at least 33 feet--and that's barely enough. A 33' round will have 25,000 gallons of water. An 18x33 has around 14,000 gallons. (assuming 4'water depth) That means the round will need more of every chemical, and takes longer to "turn over" the water everyday--or requires a bigger, more-expensive-to-run pump. The middle of a 33' round is 16.5 feet from the side. The middle of an 18x33 is never more than 9 feet. If you are vacuuming manually, that makes a HUGE difference.
All pools must be level and the oval has a smaller area.

A well-built and well-maintained pool will last for many, many years. My parents' 18x33 oval lasted for close to 20 years. Actually, longer. The liner failed and Mom gave the pool to someone who disassembled it and removed it.

Yet again, a pool store guy is trying to talk you into what is best for HIM and HIS store, and not what is best for you.

Carl