Renovating a pool--can a safety cover be installed on existing pool?
Comments (8)
Fori
8 years ago
Shawn Benson
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Pool Cover / Safety Net
Comments (16)We went way over the top. We had a fence and a pool cover. Our boys are now teenagers so we have gone through 3 covers. We had the solid cover ( the type you can drive a car over ) unfortunately the horses thought they were solid and stepped on the cover whilst walking past. The cover is not warranted for that. After two of those we switched to the net type. I way preferred that type. You can see your water. The dirt does not accumulate on top. When it rains you have to pump the water off the solid covers. The dogs and horses stay off of the net. Why both? When we had parties and the kids were done playing the cover would go on, but the adults are still hanging, eating, and drinking around the pool. We had a two year old come to the hospital, where I worked, who had drowned. Growing up the neighbour's boy drowned. This was during the time we were deciding what to do. It was an easy decision to go with both safety guards. It is amazing how many adults can be around a pool and yet no one is watching the children. We also started having one adult sit by themselves, in turn, watching the kids play....See MorePool cover and safety fence question
Comments (4)Cover holes are typically too close to a pool's edge to allow fun things like walk by someone, vacuuming and other pole work, etc... just as my friend, golfgeek has mentioned. Fence hole placement is a much tighter tolerance requirement. A safety cover's hole may be placed a couple inches in any direction from the ideal spot as well as permitting the hole to be slightly less than vertical where fences not only must be placed at a specific distance, but usually must be perfectly vertical. Additionally, when using Baby-Loc with fiberglass poles, a slight lean in or out may be appropriate on curves. To do this properly, a core drill and torpedo level are needed to get the angle desired and the feet of the drill stand all making contact with the deck. This is a time consuming task, especially with paver decks or stamped concrete, where the deck level is different every time you move the drill stand. Drill stands have bolts for feet that get adjusted. Grass is a real PITA to get right and is not, IMHO, a real good surface for a removable fence to be set on. There is a lot more installer skill needed for the fence to be done correctly than for a cover. Fences depend on tension and gentle curves for strength and appearance. A sloppy fence will have waves or be too hard to connect each section to the next. There I go again, rambling on. Sorry. Scott...See MoreToddler + infant = Install pool now or wait?
Comments (7)Build it now. We built our late last year and have a 2.5 yr old and a 2 month old. The 2.5 year old is already swimming under water and jumping in and we started teaching back in April. Prior to that we exposed him to the pool in the hot tub over the winter. If you will teach, then do it now. By the way, good instruction video on youtube check out Samantha from Sharks and Minnows swim school. That's what I used and its been great. We are already floating the 2 month old around the pool and he loves it. Pools can be dangerous so the sooner you teach how to float and get back to the steps/edge the better. I could imagine what we would have done this summer without our pool. We spend all day just about everyday out there whether in the water or not. Good luck...See MoreBuilt-in acrylic spa as add-on to existing pool, good idea or not?
Comments (1)These are Spillway Spas we installed between 20-22 years ago on both concrete and vinyl pools. Some were with new pools, but most are part of a renovation. They came with or without spillways. We mixed it up with materials used depending on the project. Nice product. Link to our website. http://www.mysticpools.com/hottubs.htm...See MoreFori
8 years ago
PROUser
8 years agoHi Fori,
As long as you can establish a rectangle over the maximum width and length, then we can cover it with our Hydramatic Safety Cover. We are the oldest independent safety cover manufacturer and have been installing covers since the last 70's. I've attached a photo of a very large freeform pool.
While cost is a consideration, the worst thing you can do is spend money on a product that isn't easy to use (like a custom cut manual cover), because these are so laborious to take on a off, you end up not using them (wasted money), whereas with an auto cover, the pool is covered or uncovered at a rate of one foot per second, your pool is never uncovered thus getting the full benefit of a covered pool in respect to reduced operating costs from less pump and filtration time, less water consumption, less water consumption, you will realize a true ROI (return on investment). This has been proven by an independent study by the US Dept of Energy.
Regarding safety, the statement above by Shawn is wrong (albeit his opinion), and misleading. We are third party verified (UL) that our covers exceed ASTM F1346-91 standards for safety, and because they are automatic, and are so easy to operate, that they are always "in play". In 36+ years of business as a "safety cover" manufacturer without an incident, the record speaks for itself.
Please call us at 800.262.4044 or email us at info@aquamatic.com, and we would be happy to discuss further
Fori
8 years ago- PRO
User
8 years ago Fori
8 years ago
Shawn Benson