Newbie needing advice about buying

[Mom2Czars]

In my experience, the most horrific hidden cost was having the electrical work done. Truly horrifying. In the end, the pool itself was pretty well the cheapest part of the whole thing.

About Namco...we bought our pool package from them this time last year and got a pretty good price on it BUT they've not been great to deal with mainly because most of them don't know anything really and you always leave feeling like they've tried to sell you stuff you don't need. Just my opinion. They gave me the talk about upgrading to the 2hp pump ..plus side it's a 2 speed pump and I just use it exclusively on low.

It's great that you've found this site to educate yourself on the ins and outs before you buy.

[CarlD]

A 2 speed is great. As a point of reference, I have 20,000 gallons and a 2 speed 1hp Hayward SuperPump that is MORE than adequate, and I run it on Low 95% of the time. It even runs the solar panels nicely on Low.

If you have a good electrician, it should be OK. My setup ran about $1200, but that included GF breakers in the panel, a wired-in timer at the panel, and lots of conduit, plus wiring in the pump, the box, doing ALL the banding, and running a 40amp 240 cable in case I ever put in a heat pump. No digging, however. I paid more to have the sprinkler lines moved, and the base was a LOT more than that--check out the A/G pool pics in the Off-Topic thread and you'll see why, with all the stone work.

If you are doing electric, you'll need an electrical permit and will have to get it inspected. Don't see it as a chore--see it as another way to safeguard your family.