To Pool or Not to Pool
March 30, 2008 by Deborah Ng
Filed under Around the House
I know what you’re thinking. It’s not very thrifty to own a pool. We agree, but it came with the house. We didn’t use it much the first year we lived here, my son was only a few weeks old then and my husband was commuting back and forth into the city. The past few summers we used it a lot though. While we very much enjoy our time in the pool, it’s a big expense and maintenance is a pain in the butt.
Chemicals are expensive and every year another part needs to be replaced. It’s an above ground pool and I think it looks ugly in the yard too. While I love having it, I wouldn’t mind terribly if it was gone. My husband feels the same way. My son on the other hand, absolutely loves it and so do his friends and the cousins. This year we seriously considered tearing it down but we couldn’t, not when our son enjoys it too much.
We do try to reason away the expense. We don’t go on many expensive vacations or do amusement parks and things like that. In the long run it’s probably cheaper than taking a lot of weekend trips. I know this though, if another expensive part goes, it probably won’t be replaced.
Do you have a pool? If so, do you find it worth all the time and money spent?
Image © Deborah Ng
Deb,
I think that there is a greater benefit to the pool that outweighs the cost. We belong to our town pool a few blocks away, and it is a lifesaver in the summer. It keeps the kids away from the tv and video games all day long and gives them a chance to be outdoors and get exercise even in the midst of the summer heat.
I would think that having a pool in your own yard would be a lot of work, but as your son gets older his friends will gravitate to your house. You might spend a small fortune in popsicles, but you’ll get to know your son’s friends really well and you’ll know where he is most of the time.
Some things are worth the money.
We just sold our pool. We bought it used in Virginia several years ago and we even bought a new liner and had our yard graded. Then the city enforced water restrictions and we couldn’t fill the pool. It was going to cost us a small fortune to have water brought in. We brought the pool with us when we moved here, but have yet to put it up. Last year we had water restrictions too. I finally put it in the paper and sold it (and the brand new liner) for $1300. It sold pretty quickly. It was a 24 ft round pool with a walk deck and sun deck. Just some food for thought. I know my husband would love to have a pool, but I really couldn’t see putting it up since we’re thinking of moving and I certainly don’t want to carry it to another house.
We had an in-ground pool when I was growing up that came with the house. My brother and I absolutely loved it! I can’t justify the expense (since I was a child) but the memories and fun your children will get out if it is worth it in my opinion.
As the mom of an 8 and a 10 year old who was gone on a business trip when my husband decided we needed a pool, I was not a big fan of the pool, but as my kids have grown and as we’ve found cheaper ways of maintaining the pool, I’ve grown to be it’s biggest user. Our wisest move was replacing the chemicals with a salt water system. We now use water softener salt rather than chlorine. It’s easier on the skin, the hair and the eyes and especially on the pocketbook. The initial outlay was a couple of hundred dollars, but we save that in chemical in the could of months, plus we are no longer running to the pool store to have the water tested and have them tell us to buy, buy, buy.
Our pool came with the house and is old. We’ve replace parts over the years, different parts each year, but I don’t think it’s any worse than buying a new pool. So we keep it up. One year we even replaced all the pool walls (it’s a kayak). We have two teens and their birthdays are in the summers. Nothing is better than a pool when you have kids over for pool parties. It cools tempers that might flare up from the heat. It keeps the kids out of the house and away from video and computer games. When I was pregnant, it cooled me down and was peaceful to float around. After band camp and school in August, the pool is a nice treat for the kids. My son and his friend did something dumb, playing sword fighting with the skimmer, putting microscopic holes in the liner. I found a liner on clearance because it is no longer stocked, and bought it this winter. We’ll have it to put up when the temperatures are high enough. Yes, a pool is an expense and not always beautiful, but the kids and adults have had a good time in it over the years. So for now, I’m keeping mine.
We have had above-ground pool at this house for about 15 years now. We had a smaller one at our last house too, when my sons (now in their 20s) were young.
We have replaced the liner a few times, and will probably replace the filter this year.
It has been wonderful for our kids (and us). Like Robin said earlier, your house will become popular with your children’s friends and you will get to know them and
more importantly, you will always know where your children are and what they’re doing.
It’s definitely an expense, and here in NY, we can really only use it for about 3 months, but I think it’s definitely worth it!