re: Pool owners...regret it?

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Why are you such a miserable frick?

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26 kids will do that to a man

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Started with chlorine then switched to salt. Salt was easier to maintain. After I had to replace two salt cells (they wear out) the pool people suggested I switch back.

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Do you remember about how much it cost you to switch from chlorine to salt? I'm thinking about doing the same

Seemed like it was around $1500 but that was years ago. It is a simple install. They mount the control board to your wall, cut into your plumbing, install the salt cell, and connect the wire to the control board.

Pool maintenance is directly linked to how old the pool is and how many trees are around. If you have a new pool with more automated cleaning and no trees, its relatively little work. If its an old pool with a lot of trees, you will be out there 4-5 times a week to keep it real clean. After the leaves fall you will have a big project cleaning them out, this is where having the automated vacuum comes in real handy.

Price in my eyes wasn't bad, worse in the summer than the winter because the pool goes through the chemicals faster when it is warm.

I am super super big on the safety aspect. Personally, if I were to have people over with kids, absolutely no drinking for my wife and I or we would hire a lifeguard if it was a big birthday thing. The thing I have come to realize is that people do not pay nearly enough attention to their kids when they bring them to pool parties/cook outs, etc. Also you would think that it is safer with more people over because there are more eyes on the pool, but studies show that people become much more passive about watching their kids in that setting.

If you have trees, it will suck hard. Leaves, rain and debris will really up your maintenance and chemical load on the pool.

If you are out west like socal, NV or AZ you're golden. little rain, no tall trees and foliage. Easy to maintain with maybe $15 of chemicals per month max.

Here in FL with the trees and rain it's $50 min plus all the work to clean out the pool. Almost isn't worth it in the south east.

Back in PA pools were just stupid. Had to be covered and heated. Super expensive and with little sun no one lays out or swims that much but the elite had to have their pools for status no matter how impractical or costly. Serious you might get 6 weeks of usable weather but have the burden of maintenance year round.

I have no regrets after almost 10 years. It's only a real pain in the arse in late fall when all the leaves fall into the pool. Scooping them out is bad for about 2-3 weeks. Other than that, just make sure you stay on top of it. Take 10-15 minutes per day to check chemical levels and brush any dirt or debris off stairs and ledges. Make sure your pump runs sufficiently each day and always run your in pool cleaner daily. You run into the real headaches when you get lazy and ignore it for a week only to see that you have a big algae bloom starting. I would do it all over again.

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If you have trees, it will suck hard. Leaves, rain and debris will really up your maintenance and chemical load on the pool.

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Yes, our backyard is all concrete except for part of the fence line about 8 or so feet from the pool, which is a flowerbed. The previous owners had 6 bushes planted called bottlebrush. These things were about 15 feet tall and weren't in bloom when we moved in. After experiencing the first bloom (if I didn't empty the skimmer filter every 6 hours it would capsize on itself, that's how bad it was), I read up on this bush and learned that it bloomed several times a year. Before the next bloom they were extracted and the wife was instructed that she could only buy plants for the flowerbed 5 feet and under.

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It's only a real pain in the arse in late fall when all the leaves fall into the pool.

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I did something different this winter. I never closed my pool; I ran my pump when below freezing weather was expected and kept my pool chlorine in the lower ppm range.

When the first batch of leaves were blown into the pool, I got them all scooped out and really just scooped out a few more here and there throughout the remaining winter.

Opening my pool was a breeze since everything was pretty much clean and all chemicals remained in check throughout the winter. There are very little chemicals needed during the winter time since the water stays cold and no one's swimming in the pool.

Yea, I have never closed mine for winter, but I'm in south Louisiana. You're right. Once the water temp dips below 70 or so there is very little maintenance required.