samcpa, I can't speak for PBs in the Humble area, but we've just had a terrible experience with Blue Haven on the west side of town (Hwy 6). Designer came out to the house totally unprepared (had the most time with the survey of all candidates), followed up almost a week later at his office, only to see a tiny, 2" pencil outline of the most uninspiring pool ever, then berated us because we didn't like his drawing. Gave him one last chance, only to be stood up today - after meeting so many other quality PBs that genuinely want to compete for our business, it's goodbye to Blue haven

We had an appointment with Starlight Pools last night and they stood us up. I also emailed Kelly from Atlantis pools for an appointment several weeks ago and never received a response.

Kelly,

There were others that I like, for example Picasso Pools and All Star pools  the issue is price. I know I canÂt base it all on price, but we are not looking for the "BMW of pools  we just kind of need the "Honda" pool. Lake Forest pools have been in business for awhile  I guess I need to keep looking and get some referrals from them before we make our decision.
Another question  some PB are telling us traditional chlorine is the way to go while others swear by salt. What is your opinion?

Thanks,
Sandra

janesm,
If you didn't get a response from my office I'm sorry.
We've had a bigtime problem with our inernet service provider for the past few weeks due to highway construction. I wasn't able to access for several weeks.
They just got it situated at the end of last week.
If you still interested try again or call my shop 281-367-5177

sam,
Picasso and Allstar are great organizations, you couldn't go wrong with either one.

Se ya,
Kelly

samcpa,
You wrote: "There were others that I like, for example Picasso Pools and All Star pools  the issue is price. I know I canÂt base it all on price, but we are not looking for the "BMW of pools  we just kind of need the "Honda" pool. Lake Forest pools have been in business for awhile  I guess I need to keep looking and get some referrals from them before we make our decision. Another question  some PB are telling us traditional chlorine is the way to go while others swear by salt. What is your opinion?"

It really isn't a question of just salt or chlorine. There is an add-on option to both salt and chlorine systems called an Ozone generator that provides another alternative. The decision on which to go with depends on your budget. Salt (which produces chlorine naturally) will be the most expensive if you consider the measures you should take to protect the stone around your pool. I have built only one in the past 2 years that was strictly chlorine on the customer's insistence (other than a community pool I built for a neighborhood in San Antonio...commercial pools are another matter), but I would personally never have only man made chlorine in my personal pool. I like the Ozone alternative and find my customers like it too. It is priced more favorably than salt and gives you the bottled water feel like salt, so it meets your "Honda not BMW" category. Not all Ozone generators are the same either, so you need to do your homework or find a pool builder you trust.

Womanowned - thank you for the info. Where do you build pools? I would love to talk to you - please contact me @ ssalvetti@hotmail.com

"Womanowned - thank you for the info. Where do you build pools? I would love to talk to you - please contact me @ ssalvetti@hotmail.com"

I build in the Houston area. Just sent you an email

Somehow I missed earlier thread. I am in Kingwood and actually start digging on Monday. We went with ELC - they have long time landscape business and brought Bruce Carlson in 6 months ago to do pools. Bruce has been in KW for 30+ years and we've gotten references from new and 7-8 year old pool owners. Like you, we wanted a pool that was a good value and not over the top. We feel Bruce understands and has recommended features accordingly.

We also talked with Bill & Todd at Eastex Pools. Again, local guys with a good product though a bit more pricey. We wanted someone who has roots in community - give local $$ and stand behind their product if they see you in HEB! Also wanted small builder who would be onsite and able to customize versus package build.

We chose to invest in salt system, but sacrificed putting in spa. A key benefit to us was the ease of maintenence and sense that salt doesn't have the quick, wide swings that chlorine does (unless there is a major problem) so adjustments are easier. We are also adding several deck sprayers to enhance the look of the pool when not in use. Our design is modified rectangle with very clean, understated lines. Theme is "laps and lazy" - long with big sun shelf!

Plan on posting build pics and details next week. Stay tuned :)

Thanks for the info kwpool - please do post pics!

Hi, I have been servicing pools in the houston area for quite a while now. As a service guy I know alot about quality and which builders build pools that are the most headache free. Please keep in mind that in most cases with pools, you get what you pay for. Not that a good pool has to be expensive, but a pool is not something to look for a bargain on either. If anyone in the houston area is looking for a quality pool from a reputable builder I would recommend Paul the owner of Aquaitc Inspirations 281-250-8600. He may not be the lowest bid, but I serivce many of his pools as well as many other builders such as platinum, fox family, picasso, etc. Not to knock the other builders, but Aquatic Inspirations quality and attention to detail is hard to beat. He also uses top of the line equipment on every build which may cost more up front, but pays off in the long run. He mostly works on the north side, but will travel just about anywhere in the Houston area. Whoever you decide to use, I wish you the best of luck.

Byshouston: are you related or affiliated with the pool builder you are promoting on many threads including this one? That is not allowed on this forum.

SPAM....I notice the same thing.

I'm very excited to see the members step up to the plate for their builders.
I'll second Paul at Aquatic Inspirations, He's a quality oriented builder. He worked as a salesman for a good competitor of mine in The Woodlands for long time before going out on his own. I remember his designs from back in the mid 90's.

See ya,
Kelly

Has anyone had experience with Flamingo Pools or Supreme Pools and Spas?

janesm,
Rich, owner of Flamingo pools, was the plumber for Paul's previous employer from the late 80's to early in the new new millennium. He's a good guy.
Jeff and Mike, owners of Supreme, are the sons of Larry who started their company back in the early 80's. Their dad stepped out of the game 4 or 5 years ago and passed the business to his boys. They're good guys too.
I'd expect them to beat Rich's price noticeably.

womanowned,
I disagree, a seasoned pool service technician is an awesome person to get insight from. They see the best of the best and the worst of the worst in finished pools every workday of the year. There's no difference in a previous customer or an industry insider providing insight as to who the quality builders are in a members area.
This quote sums it up:
"Aquatic Inspirations quality and attention to detail is hard to beat."
His reply did not come across as spam to me.
Just my .02

See ya,
Kelly

"I disagree, a seasoned pool service technician is an awesome person to get insight from. They see the best of the best and the worst of the worst in finished pools every workday of the year. There's no difference in a previous customer or an industry insider providing insight as to who the quality builders are in a members area...His reply did not come across as spam to me."

Kelly (huskyrider), I agree that this one posting is perfectly legitimate and a pool service tech can be a good source of information. I only commented because I saw the same poster resurrecting old threads from 2008 and posting the same information. This thread was just one of those. As a whole I thought there might be something fishy, but I certainly do not want to dissuade anyone from seeking the opinion of their pool service professional.

womanowned,
If there were some other past threads he resurrected I guess I missed them. I really only follow the threads I'm participating in.
I don't get in here as often as I used to so I preview the subject lines and click on them if I feel that it's something a little insight from myself might help on.
Because there are so many new threads there's no way I can click on all of them.
I completely agree about the spamming, nobody appreciates it and it's completely against the rules of membership.
I ALWAYS proofread mine to make sure that I don't feel it's spam before posting. I was kicked off this board a few years ago on my old screen name "huskyrider"
I appealed to the membership under a new screen name that should I stay or should I go. Everyone spoke up for me and the mods let me back in.
Quite honestly, my e-mail was visible in the personal statistics. However I didn't think it was spamming.

See ya,
Kelly