Sounds like your pool builder was not familiar with LED lights, or did not want to add another $500 to the cost, or did not factor in the dark plaster. My pool is about 46x20 and we are putting in 3... one at each end and one in the middle. I can always turn one off, but can't easily add another.

I am sure someone more familiar with pool construction will chime in on adding another... but if that is too difficult, I have seen some LED lighting that can be installed in return fittings... I have never seen them in person. May be another options?

I appreciate your help jscozz! Just maybe there is hope after all ?!? Anything, anything, we can do to brighten the pool at night will be welcome!

What type of pool do you have?

Scott

Hi poolguynj, its an in-ground gunite pool.

Adding another in-wall pool light would be a major nightmare for you at this point. When in doubt, have more light niches when the pool is built. Now you can add light potentially with floating light devices. Not the same, I know.

I am not familiar with the Hayward Colorlogic, however I wonder if you changed it to a Pentair Intellibrite if you would get more light. Womanowned and poolguynj should have better thoughts on this.

Uh-oh, this is sounding more & more like our only realistic option is to put a floating LED device in the pool? Maybe I'm getting too negative too soon???

This is the area where I deferred to the PB's "expertise." My husband would have gone for 3 LEDs but we were told that was overkill. I'll never understand why PB talked us out of more LED lighting ... better too much than too little, I agree.

Pentair Intellibrite lights are brighter than the Color Logic by Hayward, I believe, but I am not sure if it is a big enough difference to give you the extra light you want. I can't imagine why a PB would not put as many lights in a pool as a buyer is willing to pay for. The darker the plaster, the less the lights show up.

It should be noted that there are 1.5" threaded LEDs available but know that they will not sync with the Colorlogics.

It should also be noted that core drilling a vertical wall isn't easy either, requires dumping the water, multiple ports (the lights aren't as bright so more are needed), and fabricating the conduit to a deck box might give an inspector pause as they usually like to see one piece of conduit coming up over the water level, not the conversion.

Core drilling a wall often requires setting a bolt in the wall to hold the stand a core drill uses. That bolt, when removed, leaves a hole that will need filling and a small finish patch. This usually isn't a major issue for high aggregates like PT or Wet Edge Pearl Matrix type finishes but for just about any other, would likely be visible.

Scott

OK, in your expert opinions, Scott & womanowned, what do you guys think we should do? Live with the pool the way it is ... or is this something that can be corrected, safely and correctly? I'm sorry, but I'm still confused!

If it were your pool, what would you do? I can't tell you enough how much I really appreciate your help:)

Sellse....if it is my pool, I would never drill into the structure unless I absolutely had to. Therefore, I would go with floating LED lights. I have never used them, but Doheny makes a variety. I wouldn't stress over it.

I agree, I would not core drill just to add a light on a brand new structure, unless your builder wants to do it, eat all costs, and still provide you with the same warranty which is likely to not happen.

If you had a return that was accessible from underground and could be abandoned, you technically could run a new conduit to it, abandon it as a water/filter return, and run a Nexxus Savi melody light in through it. Like has been mentioned, it will not sync with your other LED light, but it will provide another healthy dose of light.

The only other option I can think of would be to go to a regular pool light (non LED) and put in a 500watt bulb and look at the effects of this as white, and also putting a blue lens on it. I doubt you'll love anything down this road but it may yield more light than you have now, but would be a stagnant color and non changing like LED.

I would sure be looking for a light to be switched out to be done free of charge plus the credit from non LED to a white incandescent light.

The larger, incandescent fixture won't fit in some niches. Since LED fixtures are smaller in depth, so too can the niches. The Hayward LFGUY1000 is such a one.

Scott

Ahhh, you are right. I believe all of the niches I use (pentair) would work either way.

In other words, I can't switch out my Hayward Colorlogic LED for a brighter Pentair LED?
What do you think the odds are that sometime in the future, with new advances in LED & fiber optics, that I'll be able to switch out the current light for a brighter one? That's a happy thought!

Thank you all for your thoughtful replies. If this thread can help someone avoid making the mistake we made, I'll be happy for them.

I am not definitively say that. If the builder used the older style, you might be able to. I just pointed out the he may not have.

Scott

Use the pool for a couple of seasons and see what you think. We used our LED a lot for like 2 months and now we seldom turn it on. We use flood lights to light the whole pool for night water volleyball and we like the pool just dark when it's just me and the wife swimming at night. I would have been just fine saving the upgrade cost and sticking with a standard bulb.

Ah, paradigmdawg, those were the days! Anyway, we're in south Florida, and with all the lizards and snakes around, there's absolutely no way I'm going into the pool, at nite, if its dark ... not a chance, and I do love the hubby:)

Put return lights in.. the water pressure from the return lines makes it light up. No digging no electrical work needed. The only problem is it only comes in white... you can order colored lense though...

We just had our pool installed and when we turned on the lights in the pool, we realized the slope in the shallow end is inverse and slopes downward from the middle of the pool towards the steps. This is causing a shadow in the shallow end. The light is bright enough to illuminate the entire pool yet the improper grading is causing the shadow issue. Do we have any recourse against our builder for faulty construction? Thank you for any assistance, it is greatly appreciated!

I’m surprised you had to wait until dark to turn on the pool lights before you saw that. It looks like it’s about 5 inches deep in the middle of the pool. You signed-off on this?

Practical and convenient solar lighting for pools is what most pool owners search for. If you want to end up with smart swimming pool lights, this Intex 28695E light is worth a shot. It is designed with two lighting modes: the sleek color-altering mode and the white light mode.

This product also features a 5-hour automatic shut-off for the sleek color-alter mode and a 2-hour automatic shut-off for the static mode. If you wish to form a unique and enthralling ambiance with sleekly altering colors, this floating pool light is the ideal pick that you and your family can refer to. :)

While it is not an energy efficient item, you can swap the led for a 120v halogen You will lose the ability to change colors, but it will illuminate the pool far better than the led