Spring is not here, but we’re allowed to live in full denial, right? We have to say, since our home was a total gut-out, we always joke that we purchased this house for the location, yard, and pool. If you’ve been following along for a while, then you may know it was a hot mess when we took ownership of the house. It was restored, and we’ve added a few things along the way. Here are a few FAQ’s in case you’re curious, because today we’re sharing a few little tips for owning a pool!
• Did you restore it?
That really is a nice way of putting it.
When we bought the house the owner had literally let it go the way of the wild. I’ve experienced a swim in cleaner ponds and that’s no exaggeration. We weren’t sure how deep the pool was, because the water was so bad, you couldn’t see the bottom. See the picture below, where we drained most of the water.
Did I mention there were was dead wildlife in the pool? Not just your average frog or mole, but a few floating birds as well. Clearly, the previous owner had given up. So yes, we restored it to the tune of…well, replacing everything. It was very similar to the house where the only thing we left were the studs, the only thing left with the pool was the hole and underground pipes.
Oh, and the slide. We think the slide was the one good thing left behind, in the entire house. The kids love it.
So we sprang for a new liner, a new pump, and a new filter. Wheeeee!
Do you close it down for winter? Does your pool freeze?
We don’t, for two reasons.
First, we don’t enjoy looking at a pool cover all winter, it’s just depressing. Yeah we know that means we have to scoop out more leaves and pay attention to chemicals all winter, but it’s a small price to pay, in our opinion.
Perhaps we should have gotten a swim spa!
Everyone’s biggest question about leaving it open is, does your pool freeze? Honestly, the weather has to be pretty cold for an extended period of time to worry about this, so unless you live in the deep north or lose power a lot, we don’t see it as a big concern. If you do lose power, simply opening up your lines so that if they do freeze there is somewhere for it to go, you should be ok. But we live in Nashville, so take that advice with a grain of salt.
The second reason we don’t like to close the pool leads us into the next question people ask…
Do you have a heater?
Yes, and now that we do, we wouldn’t own a pool without one.
I remember as a kid diving into a pool on a sunny day in late Winter, the cold, brisk water running over my skin and the hopes of summer not long off. As an adult, I remember putting my foot in the 82 degree luke-warm June pool water and thinking, nah bro, I’m good. Those numbers on the surface make it sound like it should be warm, right? Wrong.
What we mean is, it’s worth it, because we get more use out of our pool heater on those warm Super bowl Sundays. Who doesn’t love swimming in February in 90 degree water? Our kids were doing polar bear plunges in hopes of being able to swim, and we lasted one season without one.
We use it even more in the Spring, Summer and Fall, because let’s be honest, we like our water temps closer to 88 degrees and keeping that warmth is impossible in the Spring and Fall without a heater. This especially comes in handy later in the season, with night swims.
If you have a pool, you quickly learn that your home is the new hangout spot, and kids love swimming at night after dinner. It’s crazy how quickly water can get cold, at night. Game changer.
Because we’re asked often, we love this Hayward heater – it certainly does the job!
What kind of heater should I get?
If we can give one piece of advice here, don’t buy an electric one. They just can’t heat the pool the way a gas one does. A gas heater is far superior to its electric counterpart, and the cost to run gas over electric in most places, is cheaper. Your initial investment might be more to run the gas line and the unit, but trust us it is so worth it.
Any big words on advice on caring for a pool?
The number one thing we can tell you is that clear water doesn’t equal good water.
It’s possible to have water that looks clear, but is very chemically off. So make sure you’re using a professional to help you test it, or invest in a good testing kit, not the strips.
Also, get a good robotic cleaner. A good cleaner will save you time in vacuuming your pool.
{Ashley says invest in a pool boy. Because pool boys.}
We have more plans for this area in the future {like resurfacing that concrete and covering the coping}, and expanding the patio after this latest addition is finished. But it’s been baby steps with the entire home, and we’ve loved just enjoying this area.
As always, let us know if we can answer any more questions you may have. Pssst… if you’re curious, see more of our cabana here + our side patio here.
Have an inspired day!
I’d love to know how much it costs to run the heater. We continue to look at them but have heard stories of them being so expensive to run!