1st Phase of Construction

The 1st phase of the construction of your pool includes the fence removal, pregrade, and the excavation. It's important to have all the details planned at this stage so that you aren't charged extra fees for making changes.

The pool construction process is very messy, so be prepared for your yard and landscape to be torn up. Our dogs weren't very happy when they weren't allowed to play in the yard during the construction period. This can be a long process as well, depending on delays from weather or from sub contractors that are very busy.

Your pool company will start the construction process by getting permits from your city. They will be marking your yard with florescent paint to indicate the location of the utility lines.

Before they get started with this, you will want to remove anything in your yard that you want to keep, such as plants. You will want to check that your irrigation system has been capped off to prevent problems when they dig the pool.

If you don't have open access to your yard, you will have to remove a fence. If you belong to a home owners association, you will need to contact them to find out what their rules are, and to get any permission that may be necessary. If you have neighbors that share a fence with you, get their permission to take down the fence. You may have to pay to redo their landscaping if it gets ruined by using their yard as access to your back yard.

As soon as you have the fence down, you can notify your pool company to let them know that they can start the building process.

Pre Grade

The first step is getting the yard cleaned up for the construction. Grass, vegetation and rock landscaping will have to be removed at this time. The ground will need to be leveled and free from any debris. When this has been done, the materials that have been removed will have to be taken to a landfill. This process is called the pregrade.

The Layout

Your pool representative will come out to spray paint an outline of your pool. If you have any changes that you want to make, this is the time to do it. This will be your last chance to move your pool placement.

If you should change your mind and want to alter the placement of the pool, you may be asked to pay a fee for a second layout. You will also want to approve the layout before excavation starts.

Excavation

Removal of dirt should be done on the same day as the excavation. If you have any dirt that you want to keep on the site, be sure to make arrangements for this prior to excavation. Your pool representative will probably cover this with you.

You could be charged a large fee if they have to come back to get the dirt. Planning can be be very cost efficient.

If you live in a part of the country that has hard rock, calache, or some other hard soil, you will have to pay more for a "hard dig". Your pool representative will discuss this with you if you live in one of these areas.

Hard digs require heavier equipment and it takes longer to dig the pool. You will also have to pay higher dumping fees.

When I was having my first pool built I knew that we had rocky soil so I was expecting a hard rock dig. What I didn't know, is that our back yard was sitting on granite. It was a very expensive dig. I only mention this because you can't always be sure what kind of soil is in your back yard. It's good to be prepared for anything if you are on rocky soil.

Once your excavation is done, you have finished the first phase of your pool.