1) Bottom drains are not required in residential pools but are very useful to have. If you ever need to dump water below the skimmer, it's a PITA without one. If, for any reason, the water drops below the skimmer, without a drain line that the pump can run off, you can't easily run the pump to circulate.

The question I have about company #1 is will they be putting in two drain pots ties together. Unless the existing drain is tied to the skimmer, that type of modification may require two drains, three feet apart. This is as the result of a relatively new law called the Virginia Graham(SP) Baker Act of 2007, or VGB 2007. This is law created some Federal requirements for swimming pool construction. One part states that there may no longer be constructed any submerged suction outlets that have a single source of suction or shall be be large enough that a person cannot block it and become entrapped under water due to suction.

Additionally, the covers for these suction outlets shall have passed a testing procedure and proven effective against entanglements, such as could happen with long hair or necklaces to a specified flow rate.

The above work can be done without it screwing up the pool's integrity. Is it easy, no. If it was, Grandma would have done it.

If the existing drain is fine, leave it and replace it's cover with a new VGB compliant cover. Since the old style is no longer available in the US legally, it does make the existing one safer. There is no requirement that I know of that requires retrofitting the new construction codes to existing residential pools except during certain repairs. Permanently sealing off an existing single main drain suction outlet is permitted. Replacing a single drain with a similarly sized one, assuming we're talking about a standard 9" drain, must be turned into a dual drain unless the single drain is tied at the skimmer so as to prevent a single source of suction underwater.

It's a mouth full, I know. Sorry, but the VGB act is a good thing in that it helps make pools and spas much safer.

2) Pebble Tec's standards and controls are much stricter. This makes it a better product.

3) Hydraulic=oil . Leaks happen and can be messy and costly. Clean up can be costly. I prefer the rope and pulley systems that pull the cover along it's tracks and then use a direct drive to turn the spindle that reels the cover back.

4) I would be concerned with how the artificial and dog pee/poop and potential staining and odors.

Scott

Scott-

Thank you for your feedback.

1. I think I will probably go with the company that doesn't recommended placing a new main drain. They plan on pressure testing the line and if it pressure tests ok.... to change the cover as you have suggested to a VGB compliant one. If it should appear to be leaking down the road, it would just get capped off and abandoned. With regard to water circulation should I have to abandon the main drain, my pool contractor said that one skimmer should be fine, don't need to install an additional skimmer (as some articles and pool folks have mentioned doing). They are putting in 4 return lines with swivel/eye balls that allows for direction of the water flow. With regard to the issues with low water levels, they are installing an auto fill. With high water levels in the pool and if my main drain is closed off, I was told the water will just run off into the pool cover vault where there is a drain that ties into the overall drainage in the backyard.

2)This is the company that uses Pebble Tec, so we're good there per your recommendation.

3) Still deciding on the pool cover.

4) The artificial turf is being installed out here in CA like crazy due to our water issues. These companies market directly to dog owners as a better alternative to real grass (no yellow spots from the female dog urine, no chemical fertilizers). Our local Humane Society even put it in their doggy park. I understand what you are saying with regard to the dog pee and poop, but picking up (as we always do) and rinsing with the hose during the summer months (b/c we don't have rain from approx. May until Oct) is supposed to do it. I certainly hope so b/c this stuff is unbelievably expensive.

My pool is the same age (1960), about the same size and also has copper plumbing. I have been going through the whole decision process on my remodel and about to make a decision. I am in Southern CA.

A few points that should be added to what the other responses have been. 1) If you keep your copper plumbed main drain, you can not use a Saltwater Chlorine Generator if that was in your plans for sanitizing. 2) Even without changing the main drain, they will already be "impacting the integrity" of your pool when they replace your copper plumbed skimmer and your copper plumbed jets and also when they put in the line for your pool sweep. Also, the pool sweep is like an easy movable main drain but it is not running as long as the main drain would be and most people do not like to have it in the pool when they are swimming. The connection points of the copper degrade over time from the pool chemicals so yours might have some minor leaks - my copper does. I too am doing an extensive remodel of the pool and the backyard - in addition to the copper, pool surface and equipment I am replacing a lot of concrete and stucco walls with RicoRock (artificial rock). So the incremental cost of the drain is not significant in the big picture. You are doing this once so might as well do it right. If possible, I would suggest first really checking out a pool that has pebble. One of my kids has a friend with a Pebbletec pool - it looks nice but if you are standing on it or sitting on it, it is not comfortable.

Good luck. Our yards will look a whole lot worse before they look better.