Excited to get started on the pool deck, I was up early on Saturday morning. I needed to wait until 8:00 AM to start using power tools as to not disturb the neighbors. I would first need to layout the posts locations. Believe me, I spent a lot of time figuring out the height of…
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Once the pool was in place, we filled the openings around the pool with stone gravel. Nothing with equipment. Simply good old back breaking work. Once that job was complete, I could start on the pool deck. I would use pressure-treated wood for the structure. I would have preferred a more stable, man-made decking, but…
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The contractor excavated an area behind the pool where there was a three-foot hill. Before I could start the pool deck, I needed to build a retaining wall. Using 6 x 6 inch pressure-treated timbers, I started laying the base for the retaining wall. Once I had the first layer level, I secured the timbers…
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I had an above ground pool for over 25 years. Over the years I seen that green nasty algae form on the pool walls and cloud the water. The key is to manage the pool water chemistry so that does not happen, but at the same time limit the amount of chemicals in the water…
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Even though I had read the pool instructions several times, I sat down at the kitchen table and wrote out a list of things to do. Trying my best to prioritize my list, I rewrote the list a few times until I got it right. I was ready to start right away, but I would…
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Once the permits were granted, I called around to get pricing for digging the hole for the pool. Getting anybody to provide an estimate was not has hard as getting them to just return my phone call. I finally received a call back and he provided a reasonable price. I had nothing to compare it…
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When we purchased our home over 30 years ago it was always a plan to install a swimming pool. Efiwym and I probably had different visions and in retrospect, I should have considered hers. I would have preferred an inground pool, but that would be cost-prohibitive. My idea was to install the above ground pool…
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Even though it seemed like it was months putting the final touches on the garage, I plodded along checking items off my list: install fascia and soffit boards, install aluminum siding, and assemble and install the overhead garage door. These parts of the project had their issues but were mostly trouble free. The fascia board…
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Just like all the parts of this project to date, I never installed roof shingles. This part of the project is a great DIY job. How hard could laying down shingles be? The hardest part of this job was getting the bundles of shingles on to the roof. This is in no way a slight…
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When I was deciding the design of the garage, I wanted to match the garage roof to the roof of the house. The house had a hip roof, so the garage roof would be a hip roof. I had never built a roof. Based on the magazines and books I read, constructing a roof seemed…