Every Pool Owner's Worst Nightmare

[Vinyl_Guy]

Well that's a relief things went smoothly (other then the bottom).

The numbers for the bottom sound about right.

I charged more then that and that was at least 5 years ago. He most likely didn't put the full thickness of Vermiculite down, that's one of the reasons he could give you a reduced price. Less material used. He probably didn't put the full thickness down because the 2 1/2- 3 inch depth recommended over a new pool dig "hole" is to give the Verm itself some structural soundness.

The reason for not laying down as much is, it would change the dimensions of the pool's depth too much. Having the liner already measured, ordered and delivered, it would be to risky if the cut of the liner wasn't small enough (they're all smaller then the actual hole, and stretch into place). Plus the bottom already has structural integrity with the existing bottom.

If you add up the material and labor that's not all there is to bidding a job. There's so much more. I used to ask my clients/customers, if they got a cheaper bid: "if they back into your fence at some point are they covered?" There's the liability insurance, gas for the trucks, maintenance costs, tools, power equipment, health insurance etc etc. I do the same that people did to me though." How much to take a look at my Japanese Maple tree?" So don't feel bad. I never minded people questioning the price of things. What's the alternative, they're going to accept any number you throw at them? That's never going to happen often, so it's better to be prepared to justify your price.

Yeah the vacs are loud. Pretty cool how they suck the liner into place though. I had a client who's neighbors made them shut the off via the police (I think they were feuding). I had to do it piecemeal in the daylight hours. Usually if you can shut the water off the same time the vacs fail you don't have to empty any water. But Murphy's law usually prevents that.

Just like anything it's the prep that takes the time. The actual fitting of the liner doesnt' take long. I used to always warn the customers with cameras, don't go to the store for snacks, when you get back and it could be filling.

Good job with the water. If it gets too high the water presses against what ever he has snaked behind the liner for the vacs too hard. They become "stuck" and you have to remove water to get them out safely.

Pumps do bind up. It's honest of him to tell you there's a few things they can try before replacing it. I've been to quite a few jobs where previous bids were for a new pump and I got it going again and only charged a service call. It's basically like the old sink garbage disposals/grinders. When they jam you put a broom handle in and try and free it. Same concept with the pump motor, or disassemble it and take a look for foreign objects. There's a couple different things to try for each model pump. Declaring it dead when it first jams or binds up, is never the norm for an honest pool tech.

With your new bottom, the next liner replacement should be: Pump, remove the old liner, sweep, hang the new one, and fill. So there's that to hang your hat on.

Nothing like a new colorful and brand spanking new liner (especially one you like). It's like a new coat of paint.

Good to hear things went relatively well....

[elsie]

But, this did occur to me: since he's the one who put the liner in 10 years ago, why was the bottom and lower walls so pitted and devoid of any soft fill material? It was bare concrete (rough, at that). There's nowhere for any fill to exit? Does this mean 10 years ago he put the new liner on that rough, bare concrete? I should've asked him this, but it just didn't occur to me at the time. Are you saying that the wet vermiculite he put down will then stay in place and not need replacing in 10-15 years? I'm glad you think the $450 was reasonable.

And you're right about all those "invisibles" it takes to run a business -- the office suite he rents, payroll, etc. etc. etc. As it turns out, he's maybe not as honest (or as good) as I thought, however. My beloved 83 year old neighbor, Jim (who's living with lung cancer and heart failure and still cooks for himself and keeps his beautiful acre mowed) came over last night to look at the pump. It is NOT leaking at all -- the leaking is coming from the 2ndary skimmer basket -- it does that when the pump is turned off even with fresh lube. It's never a concern because my pump runs 24/7 when the pool's open and it gets prime and doesn't leak then. It just leaks a little amount when pump is off, and not continuously either, just for a while.

Secondly, Jim knows why the motor's seized. The PVC that attaches to the pump was demolished, and the liner guy had to pry the threaded PVC out of the opening. No doubt a piece of that is stuck in the impeller. Certainly this guy should know this? It's very very evident to even me that the pump is not leaking. Since this is an insurance claim, and I've already paid him for a new pump/motor unit, I'm not going to tell him his failures here. I'll just let him replace it (hopefully today). I wrote him a note asking him to leave the old one behind, as Jim said I can use that for a "spare." Jim will tinker with it and fix whatever needs fixing, but likely there's just a piece of PVC stuck in it. And Jim said if he doesn't show up today he'll take it apart and remove the PVC from the impeller and we can fire her up tonight. It kills me to have this new pool and the water just sitting there unfiltered!

By the way, it didn't take long: the mediterranean blue pool now is nothing short of gorgeous! I'm going to hate to cover it this weekend (or maybe I'll wait until the next -- depends on how many storms are forecast). The only thing I can think of failing for a number of years is the multiport, I suppose. Are they expensive? Thanks for all your guidance Vinyl Guy -- I've really, really appreciated it so much!