Intex Ultra Frame 16' x 48" build

[jab240]

Picked up an Intex 16' x 48" Ultra Frame a couple of weeks ago but due to weather and a busy schedule I haven't had the time to start putting it together. I was able to do some research and planning though while waiting for a break in my schedule. Well... last Thursday I was able to begin my ground prep and the project is finally under way. I'm giving myself 2 weeks now as a realistic goal to have it up and filled. I worked on it Thursday evening and Friday afternoon ripping out the sod. I would have had more done but I ended up wasting a lot of time transferring some of the sod to other parts of my lawn that needed it. Couldn't do too much on the weekend but I will start leveling this week. Wish me luck Lol.

Progress so far:

(pic)

[Watermom]

Good luck! Keep us posted how things are going!

[Pappy]

If you haven't already done so, read this.
http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php/17055-Super-simple-pool-chemistry-recipe-for-Intex-type-pools-start-up-amp-routine-care.

Go ahead and order some good filters NOW! The Intex cartridges are junk.

[jab240]

Thanks for the replies guys.

Pappy - already read that a billion times and it's what drew me to the site in the first place LOL.

With all the research I've been doing, I've also been accumulating all the necessary items I'll need. I do know the Intex cartridges are not too great so I picked up 2 Unicel C-4607 cartridges to rotate. Might pick up a third.... we'll see how it goes with 2. I was lucky enough to find a local pool store that stocks them :). I don't want to invest too much money on this filter as I want to upgrade to a sand filter. I really wanted to do it now and had a couple potential deals I was eyeing but decided to hold off for now. I will tough it out with the Unicel's this year to save a little money as my start up costs are turning out to be a little more than anticipated. Instead of the sand filter, the money is going to 1" or 2" XPS Foam insulation as my base once my ground is leveled.

[jab240]

Here's the pic that goes with my original post:


http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140601_145513Medium.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140601_145513Medium.jpg.html)

[Watermom]

I can just see it now....... blue skies, clear sparkling water and you relaxing and floating around the pool on a raft! ;)

[jab240]

Well, I finally got started with the leveling this week. I have to dig down about 3" on the high side so it's that bad. But I'm also dealing with quite a bit of clay so it's a slow process. 2 days digging and I've only got about a 1/3 done. Kids are starting to lose hope on my 2 week deadline to have the pool filled. So am I.... I may have to extend it another week.

Here's what it looked at after my Wednesday evening shift at "the hole":

http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140604_155132Small.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140604_155132Small.jpg.html)

Last night I started getting into the beginning of the high side with the clay so the board didn't move a whole lot but it was definitely a lot more work than the previous night. Got the email confirmation that my solar cover is en route so I almost have everything. The sad part is the most important piece (the real test kit) is going to be one of the last things I probably get.

[Watermom]

No doubt about it, leveling is by far the hardest part of the whole installation. Keep at it. It is SO worth it! ;)

[jab240]

Not much of an update as I'm still leveling. Only got to work on it on Saturday for a few hours as it was raining here yesterday. I managed to get through the highest part so it shouldn't be much longer (I hope :tired:). I have about a quarter of the circle left to go.

Instead of another dig pic I thought I'd post some of the items I've accumulated for the pool so far:

http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140609_090832Small.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140609_090832Small.jpg.html)

Don't mind the guess strips, I only picked them up to compliment the 3 way HTH test kit to tide me over until I get my Taylor kit. I think I'm going to return the strips since with my little timeline delay there should only be a week gap between the time the pool is filled and I have my Taylor kit. I've ordered the kit and will be crossing the border on July 4th for some shopping and parcel pickups.

The few bottles of fancy packaged bleach I picked up were on sale at one of box stores and have 10.8% Sodium Hypochlorite so I may have to adjust my dosing a little.

http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140609_090859Small.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140609_090859Small.jpg.html)

Of course that would be after I get to the proper CYA level after starting up with some Dichlor. Working late tonight so no progress will be made at the dig site. What a slow process.... can't wait to have to this thing up and running.

JB

[PoolDoc]

Nice pics; nice thread: it will help other!

Thanks!

[jab240]

Thanks Pooldoc. The forum has helped me learn a lot so far so I'm only happy to try and give back.

This arrived yesterday:
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140609_215056Small.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140609_215056Small.jpg.html)

11mm 18ft SunBubble solar cover. I'll have to trim it a little but it was a definitely a good price. I seem to be getting lucky finding the good cartridge filters around here. I was in a one of our big box stores yesterday and found they started carrrying the Filbur cartridges. They are definitely a step up from Intex ones but I find the Unicel's quality is like night and day compared to the Filbur. The Unicel's have more weight to them and pleats seem more uniform.

Hopefully we have nice weather this evening so I can continue with my leveling. Between work, coaching my son's basketball team and the weather this seems to be dragging way longer than it should.

[Watermom]

... this seems to be dragging way longer than it should.
I know exactly what you are saying -- that's the way projects at my house go, too! If I think it will take a week, it'll take a month! ;)

[jab240]

I know exactly what you are saying -- that's the way projects at my house go, too! If I think it will take a week, it'll take a month! ;)

Well usually I drag projects out just to mess with my wife. The more she nags the longer it takes :p. But this time I'm actually trying to get it done sooner rather than later but it just doesn't want to work out that way. Gonna start working on it now and we'll see what I get done today.

[jab240]

I finally finished the bulk of my leveling on Thursday evening. Then it rained for the next 3 days! :mad:. I could not do any work on it all weekend. There was a silver lining on the rain clouds though. I was able to really get a good idea on how level the area is with all the water we got.
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140615_113032.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140615_113032.jpg.html)
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140615_113058.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140615_113058.jpg.html)

Those were taken Saturday morning and it shows divots and areas that can use a little fill. Yesterday evening the hole was completely water logged. I took a tape measure and measured the height of the water all around and I'm happy to say that the circle is pretty much leveled. Not your conventional water level but it worked ;). I'll spend the next couple of days now just fine tuning it with minor filling and tamping down. Hopefully the weather will cooperate this week.

[PoolDoc]

Thx.

[jab240]

Nothing but rain all week and progress is going slow. I was hoping to have the pool up this weekend but that's not going to happen. The rain will continue throughout the weekend. We had some heavy rain last night and this is what the dig site looked like this morning after about 2-3'' of water had been absorbed into the ground:
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140620_075532.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140620_075532.jpg.html)
Maybe I should just turn this into an inground project :). So how much bleach to clear up that water?

I think I'm pretty much level so my next step will be to lay out the foam. I read through a lot of builds and there are so many different ways to set up the base that have worked for people.

I think I've decided to go this way:
first layer - Landscape paper or tarp
second layer - 1" XPS foam
Then pool (maybe another tarp on foam)
Since this pool will only be used for 2 months max before coming down I was thinking I may be able to get away from using pavers. It seems just having the legs sit on the foam has worked for a lot of people especially where there is hard compacted ground in place, which I have (cement like clay). The only problem is, I don't know if I'll have enough foam outside of the pool's diameter to accommodate the legs. I know 8 4x8 sheets will be enough for the pool but does it give enough foam for the legs to move out a little? Any feedback from people that would know would be great.

[PoolDoc]

Be careful: putting foam or anything soft under a liner INCREASES the chance it will be punctured, since it enabled a sharp point to stretch, tension, and then pierce the liner

[jab240]

It will be extruded polystyrene insulation wall panels that many people use for intex pool bases. It's very strong and not exactly "soft" but still a touch softer than just ground. I haven't read anywhere yet where something got through this foam.

Here's a nice description of it:
"******* extruded polystyrene insulation is ideal for wall furring, perimeter/foundation, cavity wall, crawlspace, precast concrete, under slab, sheathing and other applications. ******** process technology makes the unique closed-cell structure of ****** insulation highly resistant to moisture, retaining its long-term R-value year after year, even following prolonged exposure to water leakage, humidity, condensation, groundwater and freeze/thaw cycling.

4' x 8' sheet
1" thick
R-5
High R-value (R-5 per inch of product thickness)
Compressive strength of 15 psi
Effective resistance against moisture, corrosion and rot
Lightweight, tough rigid foam panels are easy to handle and install
1" x 4' x 8' extruded polystyrene"

Not sure if I'm allowed to put specific product names out there so I used stars in their place.

[PoolDoc]

Putting a heavy poly tarp (black/silver type, rather than the blue) between the insulation and the pool will help.

If you to see what I mean, take a bit of the pool patch material, and set it against a wooden board, and try to poke a hole through it with a fork. Then, move it on top of a piece of your insulation and try again.

(As a rule, product names are fine, as long as you aren't selling something or ranting. )

[jab240]

I get what you're saying Poodoc. Thanks for the feedback ;). I don't see how much different it would be though from sticking a fork through the liner sitting on sand or bare soil and I've only read positive reviews about it so I think I will move forward with it but follow your suggestion about the tarp. thanks again

[PoolDoc]

I think you'll find that the sand or bare soil becomes a fairly sturdy surface after a few days of compression at almost 2 pounds per square inch (4' of water = 1.7 psi)

[robbym70]

Looking very good. Nice to see a new member who has actually read and researched before posting.

Just curious--why would you take the pool down in two months instead of covering it and treating it for winter weather?

[jab240]

Looking very good. Nice to see a new member who has actually read and researched before posting.

Just curious--why would you take the pool down in two months instead of covering it and treating it for winter weather?

I live in Manitoba, Canada and our winters are very harsh. We easily see temps in the -50F range with the windchill for stretches between January to March plus we'll see a lot of snowfall as well. Then in a blink of an eye we'll have 95F temps in July and August. I don't think the Intex pool would withstand being left out in our winters. I suppose I can get through September with the pool up as it's still warm during the days but it tends to cool significantly at night and I find the kids lose a little interest once school starts. So realistically I can probably get 2.5 to 3 months if I'm lucky.

[jab240]

Ok the weather we're getting here is really starting to get annoying. I'm pretty sure I've lost 2-3 weeks of work due to the rain we're getting. The frustrating part is that it is so inconsistent..... rain for 3 days, sunny one day, rain 4 days, sunny 2 days. The ground doesn't get a chance to dry completely. Well yesterday was one of the "not bad" days after dealing with showers for 4 days and I couldn't take it anymore and just did something. Staring at hole in my yard for a month is starting to get to me. I rechecked my level yesterday and it looks good. I then laid out the heavy duty landscape paper and this what it looks like:
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140626_191513.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140626_191513.jpg.html)

I was then starting to lay out the foam but guess what.... it starts to rain! It was getting late anyways so I packed it in. The next 4 days is going to be 60% chance of shower. I think I'm just going to tough it out and get it done this weekend regardless of rain.

[PoolDoc]

Very neat, meticulous work!

[jab240]

Very neat, meticulous work!

Thanks PoolDoc! What you and I consider "neat and meticulous" is equivalent to "painfully slow and excessive" to my wife. :)

[PoolDoc]

One of my favorite writers (CS Lewis) once observed that it seemed to him that incompatibility was one of the purposes of marriage! ;)

I assume you are the neat and organized one in your family, and your wife is the flexible one? (True confessions here: currently, I can see the wood on about 8 square inches of my 3' x 4' desk top! :p )

[jab240]

One of my favorite writers (CS Lewis) once observed that it seemed to him that incompatibility was one of the purposes of marriage! ;)

I assume you are the neat and organized one in your family, and your wife is the flexible one? (True confessions here: currently, I can see the wood on about 8 square inches of my 3' x 4' desk top! :p )

I am far from being the neat and organized one...... just when it comes to projects. But the victims of these projects (like my garage) show that I need to work on being a little neater.

Ok here's a no-update update. I got nothing done in the last 4 days due to the rain. Tried to tough it out on Saturday but the rain gods were just mocking me. Tried 3 times but all I managed to do was get set up and then have to pack it all in. Then Saturday evening we had really bad wind (40mph gusts) and it blew around all the landscape fabric. Got soaked putting rocks and other heavy objects on it to keep it down. Thank goodness though, I see the light at the end of the tunnel. We are supposed to get about 7 days in a row now of hot sunny (80-90F) of weather. Tomorrow I leave for the US to pick up my test kit and other things I've ordered online and will be back Friday evening. Saturday that pool will be up! Or else I'll be having a pool garage sale and use the sale proceeds to fund a family membership at our city pool. :tired:

[Watermom]

Good luck!

[jab240]

Pool is up and filling! Its about a 3rd full, should I add a cup of dichlor now?

[Watermom]

Probably not a full cup. Maybe 1/3 cup since it is not filled yet.

[jab240]

Thanks Watermom

[jab240]

Ok pool is finally up and filled. What a long process that I've learned a lot from actually going through it and from being on this forum. I guess it's on to the next level of fun in trying to maintain it. As much as I researched and prepared for it, I still ended up making a few mistakes. One mistake was in trying to be proactive and trying to stay ahead of any future rust, I decided to spray a few joints with silicone spray. In 90+F temps this proved to be a bad idea. Some of it dripped on my newly installed foam base and melted it almost instantaneously. I quickly aborted the silicone spray idea. My other mistake was dealing with the white band and the frame legs. That part I didn't do any research on as it didn't seem like it needed to be. Well, maybe I should have because the first 5 minutes I spent looking into it this morning tells me I made a mistake. So when I spread out the liner and and starting to put the legs together I noticed the white support band was twisted in some spots. Not a big deal I thought as it's easy to twist around. Which way though? Apparently newer Intex pools have a redesigned support band with separate loops the legs fit into, which is what I have. To me it made more sense to flip the band around so that the loops were inside the main band and thus the legs would be mainly support by the main band. It turns out (from my research this morning) that the correct way in this redesign is to have the loops on the outside of the band. I'm not sure if the white band is smaller compared to previous versions but the pool seems fine and I think I will leave it. I did notice this morning that a couple of legs have settled outward about a 1/4" and I'm pretty sure it's because my bottom rope is not tight enough. I couldn't get it tight enough with my knot tying skills in the dark while getting eaten alive by mosquitoes so I left it to try again today. I think I'm just going to pick up some ratchet straps instead and as it will be stronger and I won't have to mess around with tying the rope. Sorry for the long post but at least everyone's updated now. :D Pictures to come in a few minutes.

[jab240]

Here's what the build looked like over the weekend. I worked all weekend and my body is feeling it today :tired: .
Started around 10am Saturday and had the foam all cut and taped up around 3pm. I know.... seems kind of long but it was 90F out and I had the kids helping (slowing me down). It was so hot outside that the gorilla tape actually burnt me in some spots.
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140705_160539.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140705_160539.jpg.html)

After that, I setup the top rail and positioned it on the foam so I can cut out the spot for the pavers. I didn't actually use pavers but 1" deck boards cut in pieces instead. I also laid out the ground cloth and cut it. Sorry PoolDoc, I said I would get the thicker black tarp but I thought why not just use the one it came with for now and replace with the better one next season. Actually, I was going to skip the tarp altogether but after burning myself on the gorilla tape I was worried it might do something to the liner.
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140705_190638.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140705_190638.jpg.html)

This got me to about 6pm and it was time to start setting up the pool. Got everything assembled and started filling about 8pm. Got an inch of water in and started smoothing out the liner bottom and checking - double checking the legs. Turns out my pavers would need to be readjusted and packed it in about 10pm as the mosquitoes were assembling their troops for a full out assault. Added a 1/2 cup of bleach.
Yesterday morning I cut the foam to readjust the pavers as some were off. Started filling again and worked on smoothing out the bottom some more. While it was filling I kept checking the legs and made sure they were level. Pool pretty much full around 9pm when I turned on the filter for the first time. I added 1/3 cup of Dichlor earlier when it was a 1/3 full and added the other 2/3 about the same time I turned the filter on.
Here's what it looked like at that time:
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140706_212000.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140706_212000.jpg.html)
I ended up being only about 1/2" off level in a couple of spots so yay! You can see where I have the legs inside the loops and inside the main support band. Apparently that's not correct but it looks like it's ok. Today I will add the ratchet straps for the bottom of the legs.

[jab240]

Added the ratchet straps last night. They are 1.5" wide and it took 4 -16ft straps (although not full 16ft used on each strap) to go around the pool. What a difference they make. Intex should just include one long strap with their branding on it with all their pools.
http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww354/jab240/20140708_073344.jpg (http://s735.photobucket.com/user/jab240/media/20140708_073344.jpg.html)

[PoolDoc]

Why did you install the straps?

[jab240]

I explained it in one of the above posts....I noticed some of the legs had started to shift about a 1/4" out. Nothing too drastic and I'm sure if I was able to tie the rope tight enough it would have been fine. But my rope tying skills are horrible and the piece of mind that the straps have given me is worth the $22 I paid for them. :) Might be a little overkill but right now it's feeling like one of the best things I've bought for the pool so far.

[jab240]

**Not sure if I should start a new thread or post this info here**

My first Taylor test kit results: ( I used the HTH 3-way test kit yesterday)
FC = 3.5
PH = 7.4
TA= 70
CH = 70

Kids are in it right now and I'll add 1/2 dose of Dichlor when they're done since FC level seems in check. Or should I add a full dose? I can skip the borax I think. So far since the pool was filled on Sunday I've added 1 and a half cups of Dichlor and 1 cup of Borax.

[Watermom]

I think you are ok on pH right now so you're right, you can skip the Borax dose tonight. Everything looks good!

[jab240]

I hope I'm doing things right. I've been able to skip dosing a couple of times now but it doesn't seem right. Yesterday's levels were pH=7.4 and fc=7.5.
Did a quick check today with the HTH kit and fc is still above 3.5 and pH still looks OK. We did get a good amount of rain today so if levels look ok later I may add a half dose anyways since i skipped dosing yesterday. A week in and I've skipped twice already. Does this seem right to you guys?

[Watermom]

Your pH is fine, so no Borax needed tonight. As long as your pH is 7.3 or higher, I would skip the Borax.

Since you lost 4ppm of chlorine in the past 24 hours (since your CYA is still pretty low), you'll probably want to go ahead and add some Dichlor this evening. Don't want the chlorine level to drop to 0 tomorrow and risk algae in a new pool!

(As you use Dichlor and your CYA level builds up, you'll find that your chlorine won't disappear as fast.)

[jab240]

I actually only lost 1.5 ppm for FC. When I tested this morning with the HTH kit all it could tell me was that FC was over 3.5 (since that's the highest it goes). When I tested this evening with the Taylor kit, it showed I was at 6 ppm and pH dropped to 7.0.
I added a half dose of Dichlor and a full dose of Borax. I find it a little strange that I'm not losing a lot of FC with little CYA built up since the pool's only been filled for a week.

[PoolDoc]

Has it been cloudy in Manitoba? That would do it.

(Also, cooler water temps slow chlorine use . . . and I'm guessing your pool's water is not at 30 deg C!)

[jab240]

It's been alternating between sunny days and cloudy\rainy days. Pool is definitely not at 30 deg C. More like in the low 20's.... we haven't had a good stretch yet where the water can warm up. They say starting tomorrow we may get it though, about 5 days straight of sun and hot temps. Hopefully it happens but they said the same thing last week too.

[PoolDoc]

Cold water + lots of clouds will definitely reduce chlorine consumption.

[jab240]

thanks Pooldoc, that makes a lot of sense