09-06-2016, 06:20 AM
Good to hear from Peter. I think he built my pool but I'm not sure because it came with the house. Agree on tiling -- plaster doesn't hold up here. I've seen a picture of my pool before it was tiled and it was a milky mess. It is tiled and I think the dark tile keeps it warmer, too. Make sure you give your pool good southern exposure. Mine is a little shaded in the depths of winter. Even when tiled, the tiled requires maintenance, too. I may have to have the whole thing regrouted before too long. That will be about $1,000.
As for cost, the original builder was a genius (and a very nice guy) and built it in a puka. A big puka. Do that if you can, because blasting out a place for the pool is much more expensive. I know of some pukas blasted out for pools that remain empty holes through which funds have just drained away.
Saltwater is much easier on the eyes for sure. Softer on the skin and doesn't turn your hair gray as it has mine (it is possible that age is a contributing factor). However, the salt converter itself is expensive and can be a little touchy. If you are close to the ocean, it can rust out as well.
I haven't tried the UV approach --never even heard of it (thanks, Peter).
As for electricity, I am not sure how much my pool adds but I have to run the pump for about 8 hours every day. I'd rather not. I haven't tried a solar pump yet. When this one dies, I'll look into it.
In short, it is without question a luxury. However, I use it every single day. When I look at it, I don't think "fun place to frolic" -- I look at it the way you would a treadmill. I just do laps. Sloppy laps. Getting into the water in Puna is not that easy. Pohoiki, you get sliced up by boats, sharks and dashed by waves. Kehena means "last rites" in Hawaiian or, by some accounts, "walk on painful rocks". Shipman beach is a Vision Quest with chilly quicksand at the end and Richardson's isn't in Puna, and is sometimes a giant fire ant farm. For that reason, I love my pool.
As for cost, the original builder was a genius (and a very nice guy) and built it in a puka. A big puka. Do that if you can, because blasting out a place for the pool is much more expensive. I know of some pukas blasted out for pools that remain empty holes through which funds have just drained away.
Saltwater is much easier on the eyes for sure. Softer on the skin and doesn't turn your hair gray as it has mine (it is possible that age is a contributing factor). However, the salt converter itself is expensive and can be a little touchy. If you are close to the ocean, it can rust out as well.
I haven't tried the UV approach --never even heard of it (thanks, Peter).
As for electricity, I am not sure how much my pool adds but I have to run the pump for about 8 hours every day. I'd rather not. I haven't tried a solar pump yet. When this one dies, I'll look into it.
In short, it is without question a luxury. However, I use it every single day. When I look at it, I don't think "fun place to frolic" -- I look at it the way you would a treadmill. I just do laps. Sloppy laps. Getting into the water in Puna is not that easy. Pohoiki, you get sliced up by boats, sharks and dashed by waves. Kehena means "last rites" in Hawaiian or, by some accounts, "walk on painful rocks". Shipman beach is a Vision Quest with chilly quicksand at the end and Richardson's isn't in Puna, and is sometimes a giant fire ant farm. For that reason, I love my pool.