Anyone here have a fiberglass pool?

Seem to be a good option as long as you like one of the prefab designs.

Regular concrete pools here start at about $35-$40k

Does anyone have an idea on how much cheaper a fiberglass pool would be?

Thanks

Usually starting around $12k in the big city.

The man.

We spent several years researching pools before we got ours.
Fiberglass pools are the best choice long term.
In ground liner pool is next best option.
“Concrete” pools are the worst of the three options.

This was based on cost install and upkeep over about 20 years. We went with the in ground with liner simply because getting a fiberglass pool around here was very difficult.

The 12k mentioned will not even begin to get you a pool. Maybe a really good hot tub, but no pool.

I’d go with a concrete pool. We had one in Houston for 35 years. Never a problem with the pool itself. We did have the grout cleaned once. The pump and filters took occasional $ and work. I did most of it.

Personally, I think the concrete pools are the best option, not the worst. My old pool is in new hands and still working fine. Must be 40 or more years old now.

I also did a lot of research on pools, which included discussions with long time pool owners. What would they do different now. Learned a lot.

Get it installed in the off season, when prices are much more negotiable.

Depends on who you know and how big of a pool, I’m in the industry so I think I have a pretty good idea. But yes, most people will see numbers closer to $18-20k for small and basic. Average number probably around $28k, you can easily spend over $40k with fiberglass pre builds as well.
Not hard to spend over $10k just on equipment not including the shell.

Regardless of the type of pool, 603’s last sentence is very true. Though lots of guys are slow this year and giving deals now.

Maybe in the fiberglass industry but I know in the gunite pool world they can't build them fast enough right now.

I know a few builders here in Houston that are fairly slow right now. They are doing replaster jobs that they normally push off to the cooler months.
Though I’m glad you believe to know more than I do about my line of work.

Stock tanks, mud bottom, dirt dam, plenty of cattle feces and urine, usually in the middle of nowhere, so if you want to skinny dip that is probably safe. It also ads to your immune system. None of those nasty chemicals and you can fish it.

I know quite a few people in Dallas that have tried to have pools built during the lock down ahead of summer only to be told they could not break ground till mid-summer to after labor day.

And I know builders here that would have completed those peoples pools by now.

Which ever you decide on water treatment should be salt over chlorine

Saltwater pool is chlorine, just a different way of producing it. I say do not buy into the hype of salt and go traditional chlorine. If you do any stone work, or even grout and pool decking gets ate away from the salt.

This. We put in a pool last summer and every contractor we talked too said to stay away from Salt.

We have a concrete pool that is over 30 years old. Only major maintenance on the actual pool was a resurface about 15 years ago that cost about $7500. All the other upkeep costs would be the same regardless of type of pool.

What are the advantages of a fiberglass pool?

Sounds like I'm looking at about $30k for a decent size which is considerably cheaper than concrete.

Quote I've received for regular pool was about $40k for the very basic smallest pool.

Had a fiberglass saltwater pool. Not a problem one. Easy maintenance.

Curiosity question. Where I live w have that deep dark clay that expands and withdraws big time, during one of the droughts quite some time back a friend did not water around his cement pool and it popped up about 8".
So in very expandable soils is a Fiber Glass or Cement better?

Hey Stub, cement is a powder, add water/gravel it turns to concrete.

Point taken

I just finished my pool.


got a lot of quotes including a drop in fiberglass pool, which I thought would be a much cheaper option. While it did look considerably cheaper as a finished product, it was only about $10k less than a custom built gunite pool.


And my pool builder was slammed with work, said he couldn't pump them out fast enough. There is probably 5-6 pools being built in my neighborhood right now

We had a gunite pool for 30 years and once we switched it from chlorine to salt water the maintenance costs went way down. If I ever completely lose my mind and decide to have another pool it would be a fiberglass salt water style.

If you want to have any metal yard furniture, wrought iron fence, natural stone, or anything of the nature stay away from salt!
There are enzymes that you can add to the water to take the burn out of chlorine, and soften the water.
How it effects the shell doesn’t matter as long as it’s well kept.

Txtrophy, a lot of builders/contractors will tell you that.

Ed's right, DFW pool builders are BUSY.

Funny....my contractor said the opposite. My first salt water pool had a wrought iron fence around it and after 8 years the fence needed repainted. Nothing wrong with the stone or grout around it. I'd never have a chlorine pool.