Wife and I sat down

[IgotDANUTZ]

Every year this time my wife and I sit down and talk about what we are going to do to the yard next year. Heres a list of the things we are going to add
1. A PERGOLA that goes over the small patio. I was wondering if any of you have experience doing this. I have to attach a header to the house to run the rafters. Any tips on doing this? Like how to do it? I dont wnat to drill into my house and have ti leaking all over
2. A jacuzzi. Ten person, any of you have one and what have been your experiences
3. AN above ground pool. I know its redneck central but I cant get a inground in my backyard. I was wondering if any of you have any expereince with theses. Tips? Im going to build a deck around it and use plants to hide it.
4. A 8 x 10 shed so I can clean out my 2 car garage and start turnign it into a rec room and give the kids my basement


thanks for any help you all can give

[sunsetpizza]

1. A PERGOLA that goes over the small patio. I was wondering if any of you have experience doing this. I have to attach a header to the house to run the rafters. Any tips on doing this? Like how to do it? I dont wnat to drill into my house and have ti leaking all over


My pergola was built before we moved in, but instead of attaching it to the house, it's freestanding - with 2 of the post right next to the brick. I've helped 2 neighbors do the same over the last few years.

Come to think of it, I helped my neighbor across the street attach his to his house. I'll try to get over there tomorrow and see how he did it. I kind of came in to help after the ledger board was attach iirc.

My pergola is very sturdy. they shot the posts into the concrete patio with those concrete anchors that use a .22 charge. (can't think of the name - passload?)

[IgotDANUTZ]

i have to attach it to the house because its a run of 24 feet and cant get wood that long

[Irish]

3. AN above ground pool. I know its redneck central but I cant get a inground in my backyard. I was wondering if any of you have any expereince with theses. Tips? Im going to build a deck around it and use plants to hide it.


I just put one of these in this spring, and we always had one wherever we moved growing up. Beats the hell out of having to drive to a community pool. How big are you going? My best recommendation is to get a good filter (Hayward is a good brand), and stick to either a sand filter or DE earth filter. Stay far away from a cartridge filter, they just can't get the water as clean as well as the others. I just finished landscaping around the pool I put in, I'll post some pics soon. Best of luck.

[T]

I've got a 24' above ground pool. It came with the house. It used to be a total time and money sink. At the end of last summer I got a new filter and it is 1 million times better. I got one of the filters with the pull out cartridge filters that you hose off with a garden hose. It works great, easy to clean, the cardridges last a few years and all my problems have been minimal. There is also no backwashing required. This summer has been hands down the easiest as far as maintenance due to the filter. I also recommend getting an new winter cover every few years, especially if you live in an area that has much snow and a lot of leaves falling onto the cover. I think the majority of my opening of the pool problems(nasty ass brown water) are all directly related to the age of the pool cover and it getting stretched out over the winters with the weight of water/snow and leaves.


The pool also has a small deck. If you have small kids, you gotta get a lockable gate you can throw a pad lock on it to prevent an accident you don't want to deal with. The deck/pool are kinda stand alone and not attached to the main deck in the backyard. The deck is pretty small and only used when we are in the pool. I have no need for a larger deck.


What I would do if I was you.

Build the jacuzzi into the pool deck. Make it a walk in/walk down off the pool deck. Or possibly have a multi tier deck with the jacuzzi at the lower level, then you can go up to the pool. Obviously, if $$$ is no option, go with the fake wood deck boards. I stained my deck this year....total pain in the ass! Go with the composite decking if you can.


Don't forget you have to landscape the pool, put rocks around it, pavers bordering the rocks and all that shit. not to mention all the accessories with the pool, toys, polaris(cleaning/vacuum thingy). It is going to be a much money up front.

Hope that helps.
T

[T]

My best recommendation is to get a good filter (Hayward is a good brand), and stick to either a sand filter or DE earth filter. Stay far away from a cartridge filter, they just can't get the water as clean as well as the others. I just finished landscaping around the pool I put in, I'll post some pics soon. Best of luck.


I have to disagree with you on this one. I had a DE filter and it is a HUGE pain in the ass!!!!. I spent more money on DE for that goddamn filter in a season than I did on chlorine hockey pucks for the pool this year. I still have pucks for next year. The folks have a sand filter on their pool and works well, but you still have to backwash.

Why is DE a huge pain in the ass. Because the entire process is time consuming, messy, costly, you have to pump the filter to stir that shit up all the time, you have to back wash that shit into your yard. I probably spent more time in 3 summers farting around with that stupid DE filter, than time spent in the pool swimming. Honestly, thats no exaggeration.

This summer has been hands down the best summer in regards to dealing with my pool, all due to the cartridge filter. I had to super chlorinate the pool when I opened, due to the cover, but since then.... its been pull the filter out every 2-3 weeks or more, hit it with the hose an and good to go for a few more weeks. As far as keeping the pool clear. Never been a problem. I have one of those floating flying saucer looking things that I put 3-4 hockey pucks in and let it float around. Sometimes I'll throw one in the basket in the skimmer for some extra chlorination power straight to the filter.

Cartridge filter FTW!

T

[Irish]

Cartridge filter FTW!


I would have agreed with you until around mid-June of this year. The cartridge filter did an OK job until the weather started to really heat up. Around mid June a lot of people around here with pools started to have trouble with green algae. To prevent/kill the algae, the chemical you add to the pool kills whatever algae is there and it drops to the bottom of the pool as a fine dust. The cartridge filter couldn't filter out the algae - you'd suck it up with the vacuum and it would spit it right back out into the pool :mad:. I had to actually get in the pool with a towel and wipe it up to get it all out. Up until that point, the cartridge was great, little to no maintenance at all, which is why we bought it. Myself, my mom and a friend all bought pools this year with the same setup. Each of us has subsequently switched over to the DE filters, and the problem has gone away and we have crystal clean water.

Also to note, the newer DE filters are much better than ones from even a few years ago. They have a new feature that reduces the need to backwash the filter, which can definitely be a pain in the ass.

[T]

My entire pool was brown to brownish green at the start of the year. Pretty much looked like a pond. I realized it was the cover, and not what I was/wasn't doing correctly to close it with chemicals and what not.

12 gallons of liquid chlorine and it cleared up. Granted I had to hose off the cartridge more often. Every day for a day or 2, but once it was cleared up. Zero problems. I'm very pleased with the cartridge filter. Once it gets warm out, you may need to increase the filter cleaning, but I've never really had a problem with it.

I have a main drain in the center of the floor that creates one hell of a whilrpool that sucks a ton of crap into the filter that helps with the having to vacuum things up.

I only vacuumed the pool 1x this year. It was after the 4th of July and only had to do it because all of the shit from all the goddamn fireworks from the neighborhood. When I vacuum, I duct tape the vac hose to the pole and snorkel around the pool for about an hour. Most times the Polaris 65 will pick up all the leaves and crap that make their way to the bottom.

T

[IgotDANUTZ]

I grew up with a 17 34 inground pool and loved it. Im still not sure bout hte above ground, if i cant make it look really good (hiding it) im not gonna do it. I spent close to 30 gs on the patio and landscaping and dont want to junk it all up with a hillbilly pool. I gotta be really selective. I hear ya about putting the a cuzzi next to the pool but I want to use it year round so its gonna go next to the house so i can run in and run out in the winter. I may just bag the pool and get the jacuzzi 1st and put the pergola patio over the jacuzzi as well as the smaller patio
I also have a 3 ton sand box that my kids play in i was thinking of adding a small tiki bar

[T]

I think you could do up a wrap around deck around the pool. Plant some shrubberies around the base to hide the underneath.

I also don't see my pool as looking all that hillbilly. It is what it is, its a pool. The lack of deck stain and poor maintanance of the pool is what makes it look hillbilly. Just like a home/car/boat/camper/kids pretty much anything can be hillbilly if let to rot.

T

[Oz]

For the pergola - tie into your house and use lag bolts. Before attaching - use a shit load of liquid nails between the boards - and put it about where you are going to use the lag bolts. This shit will fill in all the cracks when you tighten it up.

Also, you could put a drip edge (Z metal) over the top of the ledger board (the board attached to the house) which will divert the water off the roof and over the ledger.

We definitely need pics - before, during and after.

[IgotDANUTZ]

so basically cut the siding away , how do i get to the back to do the lag bolts??????

[Oz]

so basically cut the siding away , how do i get to the back to do the lag bolts??????

picture of where you want to put it.

[jbwhip]

I built a pergola last year. attached to the house with glue and maronry screws / anchors. It was a small one, ran 9 feet along the house and then 7 feet out. I will post some pics.

[IgotDANUTZ]

THANKS