Once the pool surface was stripped, Adams began the prep work. To bring the pool up to code, we had to have the bottom drain split into two intakes instead of the single one–and this is when we hit the major unforeseen complication. At some point in the past, the POs or someone they employed had poured something down the pipe between the skimmer and the drain that completely blocked it. The plumbers from Adams suspected concrete, as suction, acid or power flushing could not alleviate the issue.
We had two options: open up the pool shell to expose the affected pipe, find the blockage and replace the section or possibly all of the pipe; or abandon the drain and put in a side skimmer. The second option, while less invasive, would still be up to code and result in a perfectly smooth finish at the deep end of the pool. It would mean replacing the skimmer and drilling out a small section of the shell sidewall to install the components, but after doing a lot of research, including panic-calling our regular pool people for their advice (which I’m sure annoyed them greatly since we didn’t use them for the project), we decided to go the skimmer route.
So a new crew showed up and began excavating for the skimmer. They first removed the old skimmer–and accidentally damaged the pool light conduit and wires, which they promptly fixed before it could register on my “oh shit” radar. Then they very carefully drilled out a portion of the sidewall while staying clear of the existing light fixture.
It was during this somewhat crazy time that one of the foremen came to check on the job and we did a bit of pool archeology. We know the POs remodeled the pool around 1999, based on the drawings we have and the info provided by Pool Covers, Inc., who did both the cover install for the POs and the cover replacement for us. We now know that during that renovation, steps that once led out of the pool towards the sliding doors to the kitchen were deleted to make the pool a proper rectangle and allow for the cover. Once the plaster was removed, the fill and resulting scar were clearly visible.
This also means all the concrete surrounding the pool dates to 1999, except for the square pavers forming the walkway around the house, as those are original. Since one of the current projects is redesigning the entire garden area including around the pool, and we have our own excavator, we are now far less attached to the rather ugly concrete currently in place.
We also learned that the pool equipment was located elsewhere prior to 1999, although we have no clue exactly where. The old pipes we found when we pulled up the pool deck last summer were part of the old system and the POs didn’t bother to remove them; they just built a deck atop them–not surprising at all as these were the same people who built a deck over their septic tank.
During this process we attempted to sort out if we actually have a way to fill the pool that does not involve using a hose. Sadly, the answer to that question is no, as it seems the POs blocked up that pipe some time ago as well. We did discover a drain pipe from the pool equipment out to the southern slope, though. We also discovered just how totally stupid the previous owners were, but you’ll have to wait a bit for that story.
Once the excavation was complete, the pipe crew arrived in their awesome pipe truck, which had every fitting you could want with various sections of pipes stored in the middle and up top. They built out the new skimmer in just over an hour.
The next day, a small concrete team arrived to patch things and, most importantly, REMOVE the diving board base. This was probably the one item in the project I was most excited about. When we moved in, the old diving board went into the very first dumpster load. Here’s a shot of Alf standing a top the dumpster with one foot on the old board.
The base, stuck deep into the concrete, was a nuisance. It looked awful and you had to walk carefully around it or you’d bark your ankle on it. We had called a few outside contractors for a quote for removing it, but none of them knew how to approach the issue. So we stipulated in Adams’ contract for the remodel that they remove it for us, since they do that sort of thing often enough.
The concrete team brought their big saw and got to work. Here’s a short video of the event:
Then all the remained was to fill the bits in–the old drain, skimmer, and–best of all–where the diving board base once was:
At this point, we were ready to install the new coping and surface!