Pfff, some plans turn out to be a bottomless pit!

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(Edited)

Euhm, where do we start here. Last summer during the first lock-down we did buy a swimming pool. Our vacation was cancelled and we still want to have some kind of holiday atmosphere around the house. So a build up pool was purchased.
And due to the fact that our backyard is relative big, a bigger pool was purchase. 7.2 X 3.3 meters.

Swimming pool.jpg

This was placed at the back of our yard. After setting it up and filling it with water it was clear that it wasn't standing completely level. So improvements were needed.

Another thing that annoyed my personally was the stupid placement of the shed. The shed itself is/was 4.5x5 meters, but the previous owners did place it so that a part of the backyard was more or less lost.
Besides that the shed was standing there more than 20 years and it started to wear out.

Overhaul

So we decided to start a small overhaul of a part of the back yard!
The idea was to create a concrete deck of 5.5 x 17 meters, so that the pool could be set up and that we would buy a new shed. This new shed would be more like a pool house.

goal.jpg

The new shed would have 3.5 x 7 meters as dimension. With the first 3.5 x 2.5 meters as a real shed, and the rest more like a pergola. We quickly new about the style and dimension of the pool house, but then the misery did start.
It appeared that we were not the only one with this idea. Some company even didn't had time within 2 months just to make a price indication. Other were so expensive that it was not our cup of tea and so on.
Finally we signed a contract, but it will only be installed in ... euhm ... November. Sigh.

So the first hurdle was taken, the next step was what we would do with the concrete deck. Tiles, cobblestones, stone carpet or anything else.
And again we were blown away by the prices. The make the story short(er) a stone carpet has been ordered. The advantage of this above all other options is that it is water permeable, it doesn't require a lot of attention and the options go far beyond your imaginations!

Make or buy?

concrete.jpg

Okay lets get back to the basis, the concrete deck. The question was here do it ourselves or should we hire a company to do this. The basis of course has to be perfect otherwise for sure with such a heavy swimming pool on top. This means that were the deck has to support the swimming pool that it should be thick enough and reinforced.
After receiving a price indication, which was way higher than we expected, we really came into the make or buy decision. A question which we still haven't answered. While I do know that the buy decision probably would be the smartest decision, I still think that we would use safe us some money by doing it ourselves. Money which could be used for other things.
I have to honest and admit that maybe our idea how much this would cost was probably way too low and maybe a little bit naive.
Guess I will have to bite this bullet today. Because time is also an issue if we do want to set up the pool in time so that it can heat up!

But beside these costs there are plenty of other cost we have to take into calculation. Like furniture and dressing up the roofing. Probably I am still forgetting some things.

In the end the price of it all will be the double than our original idea. Of course the Covid Pandemic, the steep increase of Wood prices and the scarcity of wood for sure doesn't help us!

#Recycling

Shed.jpg

But luckily we also did some recycling. I am turning the old shed into a wood shelter for besides the house. The frame already is set up, I still need to buy some EPDM to make the roof of it waterproof and attack the roof to each other. Next up is cleaning the place where it will stand and than I can install it.

We knew that owning a house is a never ending improving and renovation pit. But it is in the human nature to change things and improve them. And once you are down with everything you probably start all over again :(
Still owning a house is one of the best investments. But unlike the stock market or crypto you aren't investing to make money, you are more or less paying to satisfy yourselves. Money investment in the house will in almost all cases never be completely recoverable if you ever sell the house (besides a complete overhaul).

Cheers,
Peter

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11 comments
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The concrete I would probably have someone do. The shed I would probably have my buddies come over and we would build that ourselves. With the concrete the excavation alone can be a lot of work. Then like you said, you have to level it and throw in your mesh or rebar. It can get pretty complex. I just had my driveway expanded last year and it was about $3000 for the whole job. Kind of expensive. I used to build sheds with my buddy in high school, so that part should be cake as long as you have a decent plan.

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The wife has decided that we are going for the buy option for the concrete.
Biggest problem for the concrete is indeed leveling the ground and the fact that it is unreachable for machinery.
Let me say that I am not the most experienced handyman in the world, although I have improved during the lock down.
So creating my shed is way out for me. Wish I could do that myself 😀
!BEER

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I think you will be a lot happier having the concrete done. Hopefully the bull market really kicks into gear and the price won't matter as much. It's something that you could probably do yourself, but do you really want to? There is quite the science to doing concrete right. Especially if you have to worry about the frost line like we do where I live.

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I'm jealous you have the open land.

I would like to put in one of those spa pools, if I had a large amount of cash laying around. But, first I would have to remove a very tall pine tree and a bunch of small trees. Then I would have to level the ground. And that's the good part of the yard. Every other part of the yard needs more trees removed or even more leveling.

Good luck on your project!

!BEER

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The open land behind the house was indeed one of the reason we did buy it.
Lots of deers there at dawn.
We had a spa pool. It came with the house but due to a lack of usage we did sell it 2 years after we did buy the house. Those things are money monsters concerning energy and maintenance. The place where it did stand is a now a sitting chilax pool 😂. Great with some pillows and a !BEER

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A swimming pool is a bottomless pit and the next house I will build my own. Honestly it is not difficult if you can dig and just buy a fibreglass shell and pay for it's installation. The house I am in now was neglected by the previous owners and is quite daunting what needs to be done. Labor is no longer cheap here and may have to blow the budget to fix this place properly. Sometimes you get the investment back if you are careful but highly doubt it in this economic climate as everything has just shot up in price. Hope you get it sorted before your summer is finished as you have a shortish window.

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It is an above ground swimming pool, so the cost of that is rather compared to a real one. The only yearly cost we do have is to fill it up with water. We try to heat the water with sun energy.
Guess labor has become expensive in most places around the world. And I do predict that this will keep on increasing.
If I do look at the educational system in my country it is focusing on high level education. Which could create a scarcity of real quality craftsmen. They is nothing wrong with being a great plumber or construction worker!
Thx of the comment. !BEER

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