Separating marketing from fact - pebbletec vs fiberglass

[jwramr]

Weighing fiberglass vs gunite and running across marketing like this:
http://www.riverpoolsandspas.com/fiberglass-vs-concrete-vs-vinyl-liner-inground-pools-/

Can I get some real world feedback on gunite pool maintenance cost, acid washing frequency, overall satisfaction, etc?

I have searched and searched and it seems everyone has an agenda...

One guy says - two speed pump is a no brainer - another that variable is the ONLY way to go. Pentair ONLY - best around...Pentair is junk..Jandy everything. One guy says oversized sand filter and another ONLY INSTALLS cartridge. Heater you say? Why heat pump only way to go, you can swim March to November in Raleigh NC and your increased electric cost will be about $500. Heat Pump????? Worthless. Why natural Gas is the only way to go...Look Jandy does not even carry electric.

ARRRGH.

Gunite pool owners wish they had gone fiberglass?

Fiberglass owners...really that cheap and easy to maintain?

Horror stories of cracked fiberglass?

Since I have a lab pup who LOVES to swim...I ruled out vinyl.

Debating currently:

Gunite with Wet Edge vs Fiberglass
16x40 3'6" to 5'5" to 3'6" sport pool VS 16x40 3'6" to 8'6" diving pool VS 16x40 gradual slope from 3'6" to 6'
Spa with spillover or no spa...anyone regret doing or not doing a spa?
Heater in NC - gas or electric - or solar
Robot vs in floor cleaning?

Anything that was the deciding factor in Fiberglass vs gunite?

Want to get digging - but don't want to make a huge mistake. HELP PLEASE!!

PS - I paid. :)

[PoolDoc]

1. The number one factor in pool quality is builder skill and dedication to task -- and that does NOT mean sales skill. Quite a few of the best builders are 'rough around the edges'.

2. FG quality depends on factory output quality AT THE TIME YOURS WAS BUILT. Companies change, and quality varies over time.

3. In-floor cleaning is a massive energy hog, and tends to break after 5 - 7 years, irreparably. Get a booster pump cleaner.

4. FG pools are easier to maintain . . . till they are not. Once the FG finish deteriorates, you have to dig it up. (You *can* epoxy it, but that's uncommon.)

5. If you are looking at a feature pool: spa, infinity edge, etc. concrete is preferable.

6. All three companies (Hayward, Jandy, Pentair) make some good equipment and some junk. Builder preference tends to be based more on company history than anything else. Best of breed equipment choices will span all three companies!

7. Dogs and vinyl don't always mix well, but lots of vinyl pool owners have swimming dogs.

8. The chart you linked was pretty bogus: here's my quick version of it:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1V8KQ4ge6tCBQy7wzQNFtAPjwc56B8TD9qiMrelSoD4g/edit?usp=sharing

. . . that's as far as I can go tonight.

[PoolDoc]

I just looked over that company's page again. I'd avoid them, simply on the grounds that they produced a very slick and not very honest marketing page: you can't trust them. (And that doesn't mean FG pools are bad -- just goes back to the #1 factor is the builder!)

[Watermom]

Thanks for the subscription, by the way! :)

[jwramr]

Thanks guys. I hope some others chime in as well. Good stuff

[CarlD]

I lived in NC back in the 70's and early 80's. You start with a five month swimming season without heating-May 1 to Sept 30. And it's pretty sunny during those months. But April and October tend to be rainy so solar would be a good choice during the five months to offset early and late season chilling.

Everyone I've known with a gas heater finds them dreadfully expensive to run, and few end up using them much.

Heat pumps have a bad rep from being poor HVAC alternatives to separate furnace-a/c units...but it doesn't really follow because when you use one for your pool, you are using it in its "sweet spot" where it is most efficient.

VS vs 2spd pumps is a balance of choices. VS pumps are more efficient, but by how much? Plus if you are subject to spikes and brown-outs, as well as lightning, you MUST have surge protection for VS. 2spds cost less, and, on low speed are very efficient, reliable, and easier to repair.

Frankly, I did not know 40' long FG pools are even made.