What Happens at an Oval Above-Ground Pool Visit
Over the last 25 years, I’ve been on hundreds of (Oval-Pool) backyard visits. I’ve encountered thousands of your questions. Today, I have compiled for you, the 10 most popular questions I get from customers during this first visit.
Top Ten Oval Pool Questions
These are the 10 Most asked Questions during a backyard oval pool installation visit.
- Where in my yard should the pool be placed and whats the biggest one we can get?
- Excavation- What does it entail?
- Base materials- What is best material to use for the pool floor?
- Landscaping- what is the best way to landscape around the pool?
- Whats the best pool liner?
- Where does the filtration system go?
- What kind of Sanitation system should we use?
- Do you handle Electrical Services?
- Should we hire a water truck to fill the pool
- Whats it going to cost?
What Happens During First Phone call?
The first question customers have is, Where is a new pool going to go in the backyard, and what is the biggest pool they can get? Before answering this question, I point the homeowners to their city or town pool permitting rules and regulations.
It is important to know your city/town’s by-laws concerning how far a pool should be from property lines, Sewer systems, Decks, Other Utilities and, even how far away from your house’s foundation.
Every city/town has different by-laws concerning how they treat pool construction. It’s important to gather this info and pass this information to the pool installer. This way everyone can have a productive meeting.
Where should the pool go and how big should it be?
Is bigger better and, where should it go? It’s always the first question. To this day I still smile every time hear this question. My answer is always the same.
Nine out of ten times the pool can go where you want it to. We guide you to the best location by first knowing your city/town’s specs.
I will look for tree roots nearby as well as a ledge or larger rocks that give us the impression that this could be a difficult area to build in.
“Every yard has a unique slope or grade, trees, rocks and or property line distance requirements. I always guide my customers to the correct location based on their city regulations.”
What Does Excavation Entail?
An Above-Ground pool has different excavation requirements than an In-Ground pool.
- Top Soil (grass) needs to be removed
- Excavated pad size will always be larger than the pool size. Example: Pool size is 15’x30′. We will cut excavate an area 21’x32′
- Lowest elevation is determined and the entire excavation takes place removing any slope in the way.
In most cases, the excavated earth being removed is placed somewhere on the property. Homeowners often have a use for the topsoil.
If your yard is too small and excavated earth needs to be removed. Then proper arrangements can be made to remove this excavated material.
Please keep in mind digging crews will need to be notified ahead of time so they can bring the proper equipment. You should also be prepared to pay for this removal.
This is something that is discussed during the visitation.
The Blue area will be what gets excavated for an oval pool. It has to be bigger to accommodate the build process.
The size of your dig will also be determined by what kind of buttresses are on the oval pool you select. Some buttress designs need to have a wider area dugout on the sides.
What goes underneath the liner?
Mason sand and stone dust are used under the pool’s liner. You may opt for a liner pad that goes over the base material. This is to protect the pool liner and give you the best warranty coverage on your liner.
What is Mason Sand?
Mason Sand comes from larger rocks like granite, trap rock, sand, or limestone. It’s crushed and then it goes through a screening process. It goes through the screening process twice.
By doing this it creates a nice smooth consistency. It feels like beach sand or what we in the business call pool sand.
What is Stone Dust?
Stone dust is a larger rock crushed into dust. Also called Quarry dust is coarser than Mason sand. It packs like concrete and creates a hard pool base. Much like an in-ground pool base. It’s used in concrete construction. A Stone Mason will use for laying pavers.
How Much Material do we need and what are the Excavation Charges?
These materials come in volumes of yards and. We have a chart that we use to know what amount we’ll need to get for a particular size pool.
The following chart will show you the amount typically ordered when installing a pool. This chart also contains minimum excavation charges and excavation sizes.
| Pool Size in feet | Excavation size | Excavation Minimum costs | Sand or Stone Dust in Yards | Sand or Stone Dust costs Mini |
| 15 Round | 18 Round | $400 | 1 | $200 |
| 18 Round | 21 Round | $400 | 1.5 | $200 |
| 20/21 Round | 24 Round | $400 | 2.5 | $200 |
| 24 Round | 27 Round | $400 | 3.5 | $250 |
| 27 Round | 30 Round | $500 | 4 | $250 |
| 30 Round | 33 Round | $500 | 5 | $300 |
| 12×24 Oval | 18×26 Rectangle | $400 | 2.5 | $200 |
| 15×26 Oval | 21×28 Rectangle | $500 | 3 | $250 |
| 15×30 Oval | 21×32 Rectangle | $500 | 3.5 | $300 |
| 18×33 Oval | 24×35 Rectangle | $500 | 5 | $300 |
What goes around the pool after Installation?
We suggest that you place crushed stones or rocks around the perimeter of your pool just after installation. It’s piled about 2-4 inches deep and goes about 2ft out around the entire pool.
This serves two purposes. It keeps water from standing at the wall of the pool. It also creates a base the pool sits in for added stability.
I like Peastone around a pool. Peastone is a small 1/4 inch smooth rock. They feel good on their feet. the last thing you need is for your company to cut their toes while jumping out of the pool.
The following chart will give you the amount needed for different size oval pools.
| Pool Size in feet | Material needed in Yards |
| 12×24 | 1 |
| 15×26 | 1.5 |
| 15×30 | 2 |
| 18×33 | 2.5 |
| 21×43 | 3.5 |
Whats the best Pool Liner?
A full explanation of pool liners can be found in the following two videos. It ultimately comes down to personal choice.
The chart gives you a liner thickness comparison between gauge and Mil. It’s always best to get this measurement in Mil thickness. Gauge is a term often used in steel and isn’t consistent with pool liner thickness.
| Gauge Thickness | 20 Gauge | 25 Gauge | 30 Gauge | 40 Gauge |
| MIL Thickness | 12-15 MIL | 17-20 MIL | 21-24 MIL | 25 MIL |
Where does the Filtration system go?
Filtration has to be located in one of the four corners of an oval pool. See the following graphic that explains the locations you can choose. You want the filtration system here so that your pool will have proper circulation.
This is where a filtration system can be placed around an above-ground pool.
Electrical Needs
An electrician needs to permit separately on their own. Most pool installers are not licensed, electricians. So they cannot provide electrical services.
Please see the following video resource on how an above-ground pool filtration system is done.
Bonding an Above-Ground Pool Lesson
The following video explains what bonding an above ground is and why it’s done.
Should we Hire a Water Delivery Service?
I often advise my customers their water hose is best. Generally speaking, it costs less to do it from city-supplied water.
Whats all this going to cost anyways?
A great deal depends on your particular package and excavation needs. The following chart gives you all the typical charges associated with an oval and round above-ground pool installation.
Different costs associated with Oval Pool Installation (Approximate costs)
| Pool Size | Pool and Liner Installation Minimum | Mason Sand or Stone Dust Minimum | Excavation Minimum | Old Pool Take Down (ask if included) | Filtration Assembly (ask if Included) | Ladders and Steps (ask if Included) |
| 15 | $800 | $200 | $400 | $400 | $150 | $150 |
| 18 | $850 | $200 | $400 | $400 | $150 | $150 |
| 20/21 | $900 | $200 | $400 | $400 | $150 | $150 |
| 24 | $1,000 | $250 | $400 | $500 | $150 | $150 |
| 27 | $1,200 | $250 | $500 | $600 | $150 | $150 |
| 30 | $1,500 | $300 | $500 | $500 | $150 | $150 |
| 12×24 | $1,650 | $200 | $400 | $600 | $150 | $150 |
| 15×26 | $1,800 | $250 | $500 | $600 | $150 | $150 |
| 15×30 | $2,000 | $300 | $500 | $600 | $150 | $150 |
| 18×33 | 2,400 | $300 | $500 | $700 | $150 | $150 |
| 18×40 | 2,800 | $350 | $600 | $800 | $150 | $150 |
How to Buy the Perfect Above Ground Pool on any Budget
This concludes the ten most common questions that come up during the backyard visit for an oval pool installation. We hope this helped you in your quest to pool ownership.
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