Homeowners have their ultimate pools in mind, and builders have ideas on how to make those dreams happen. What they both sometimes fail to consider is how that aesthetically pleasing backyard getaway will be serviced. A pool may be a dream come true for the homeowner but a nightmare for a service technician. Jason Broswell,…
If you’re trying to get by in the pool industry without making friends, well, you must be a newbie…or you don’t like earning new business. That’s right, we said it, but we’re not the only ones. Kevin Cobabe, president of Dynamic Pool & Spa Construction in Redondo Beach, California, says he realized early on that…
Pool stains are often associated with lackluster pool maintenance. But pool stains can surface immediately following construction if proper preventive measures aren’t taken during the build. Stain prevention begins with protecting the pool throughout construction. Jeffery Anderson, managing member of Mayan Pools & Sports Construction in Atlanta, says one of the most common errors he…
In this time of great uncertainty, swimming pools are in high demand. The closure of many public pools, the disruption of vacation plans and people spending more time at home have meant pool builders are swamped with orders. Before the current health crisis, a good day of sales leads at Bi-State Pool & Spa in…
Many municipalities across the country fail to enforce code compliance for water shape projects, but that doesn’t mean pool builders can ignore code requirements. “Just because you didn’t get caught doesn’t mean you didn’t break the law,” says Rick Chafey, co-owner of Red Rock Contractors and Red Rock Pools and Spas in Chandler, Arizona. “Liability…
Paolo Benedetti says pool owners should not have to accept cracks in pool shells as an inherent risk to owning a pool. While there is a difference between shrinkage cracks and structural cracks, says Benedetti, founder of Aquatic Technology Pool & Spa in Morgan Hill, California, “in a properly built shell, structural cracks should never…
Pool pad design is an intricate task for builders to create an optimally functional and aesthetically pleasing equipment layout. Increasingly, builders are turning to three-dimensional design programs to make this process easier. “[Designing with 3D] has multiple perks,” says Rick Chafey, co-owner of Red Rock Pools and Spas in Chandler, Arizona. “It gives us additional…
If maintaining regular backyard pools is all you know, entering the high-end luxury segment may seem risky. As pools get more complex, margins for error get smaller and the cost of mistakes heads skyward. The good news is, any person or team competent in the fundamentals can learn to service even the most complicated and…
The spillover edges, waterfalls and other goodies that lend luxury to infinity pools and other exotic builds wouldn’t be possible without powerful and precise hydraulic systems. Those systems — like everything else — require maintenance and service, but they’re complex, expensive and potentially intimidating. When you remove the mystique, however, it doesn’t take much for…
It’s not an exaggeration to say great pools demand a lot from their finishes. Pumps and plumbing have to work well but don’t have to look good. Aesthetic amenities have to look good — and not much else. Features like glass tiles and acrylic panels, on the other hand, are asked to endure the intense…
Steve Kenny says you can only achieve and maintain luxury water if you treat every pool as an individual. “I’m working on a pool right now in Montauk,” Kenny says of the famous shore town on the easternmost tip of Long Island, N.Y., where his company, SRK Pools, is located. “The customer’s desired water temperature…
Paolo Benedetti knows that today’s high-end automation equipment is far too complicated for pool service providers to maintain on their own. “It’s getting so bloody complex that even the builders are relying on a series of dedicated experts to provide the support we need,” Benedetti says. The founder of Aquatic Technology Pool & Spa and…