Pool Construction Time Lapse

[Bosch232]

We hired out the pool construction, but we built the deck ourselves.


https://vimeo.com/50960786

[JimK]

We hired out the pool construction, but we built the deck ourselves.


https://vimeo.com/50960786

Great video!

[BigDave]

Nice!

How do you like the TREX? Does it get hot underfoot?

[Bosch232]

Well, I'm torn about the Trex. It's not all that their marketing would have you believe it is. But in a nut shell, here's my assessment:

Pros:
Apparently not as prone to mold staining as other brands which have class action law suits if you Google around a bit. I was going to go with a lower end product but was scared away by the mold stain stories. This was more or less my only reason for pony-ing up for Trex.

Cons:
Astronomically expensive compared to a decent cedar. Twice the price.
It scratches easily. You have to be mindful of moving your power tools around on it or you'll scratch it.
Don't believe the marketing - it does fade some.
For $3.00 per lineal foot I'd expect some grain variation to give at least SOME impression of an organic material like wood.
It looks exactly like what it is: A plastic deck.

The concealed fasteners are not worth what they charge for them. For that 500 s.f. deck that I built they wanted (no joke) $749.00 for concealed fasteners. I can look at Grip Fast screw heads all day long for that kind of money..

But to answer your question the heat hasn't been an issue.

[BigDave]

Thanks for your insight. My better half wants a pool deck that won't give splinters (apparently a problem with our ipe deck), I've been concerned that the plastic would get uncomfortably hot in the sun. I've seen how it fades - there are sections of boardwalk at the shore decked in TREX - it smells in the sun too.

[Bosch232]

I kind of ranted on Trex, but I'll tell you we do like it. It's just the price, my God...
That deck as you see built in the video cost me $11 per sq foot total, ready for use. That's 3 times the price of a concrete slab, but with my sloped site it would have required a ton of earthwork to prep for a slab.

And then there's the issue of burying an above ground pool. We got that pool for free, it's about 7-8 yrs old. The previous owner had it only about 6 inches in the ground, and there was a fair amount of corrosion on the buried structural members, including rust on the galvanized plates. So I wasn't too hip on burying an AG pool after seeing that. B

But it's all good, we really like it and are proud of what we did this summer.

[BigDave]

You should be proud! It looks awesome!

[Fuzz1]

Loved your video. Nice looking family too. How's the Trex deck working out now that you're into your second summer?

[Bosch232]

Thanks for the kind words. The Trex is fine. It definitely fades, though, so don't believe their hype that it won't. But I'm still happy I went with it.

[Fuzz1]

I figure that very few people would care about fading... me personally, I just want the thing to structurally last longer than I do. It's the same reason why I put in steel oil pipe fence posts around our last property, and PT rails. I figure I could fix a few fence pickets when I'm old, but I'd rather that the posts and rails last longer than I do.