Swimming Pool and Spa Contractors in Oahu

Why Build A Pool?

​Building a swimming pool is one of the best decisions you can make to improve the quality of your life while increasing the value of your house. Depending on the type, size, and quality of the swimming pool you build in your backyard, you can turn your property into a resort-style facility complete with a lounge area and a spa. 
A sizable investment, a swimming pool can almost pay for itself, if done right and considered from several angles, including your home ownership plans, the size and shape of your yard, your lifestyle, and your budget. 
This page is designed to assist you in making some of the most difficult decisions when it comes to installing a swimming pool on your property. Whether you are a Do-It-Yourself type or someone who delegates all home improvement projects, we have answers for you that can potentially save you and your family a lot of effort, money, and peace of mind. 

---

What Kind Of Pool Should You Install?

There are three types of in-ground pools that you can have installed: fiberglass, concrete (gunite), and vinyl liner. Choosing from one of these three types is the most important decision you will make in the entire process. It will affect how much you will spend initially, what your costs will be to maintain the pool, and how much work you will need to put in on a regular basis just to keep it clean and always ready for your enjoyment. 
Importantly, the total cost will reflect many other factors, such as how much patio you want, what materials you will choose, whether you will need a retainer wall which is needed in cases where the backyard has a slope, and whether you need a fence that meets the pool code in your area. The degree to which you will entrust the project to your contractor will also affect the price. Whether you will do a self-install, an assisted install, a basic installation, or have it done for you from the ground up will determine a large chunk of your budget.

Fiberglass Pools

Fiberglass pools have been gaining popularity in the past couple of decades due to many factors, including the vastly expanded choice of different shapes and sizes readily available to be installed. It is important to know that fiberglass pools are prefabricated, which means they cannot be manufactured to exact specifications. Instead, you are buying a swimming pool that has a certain size, shape, and depth. But since the variety of fiberglass pools is so rich today, we find that about 90% of all buyers are very happy to go with a fiberglass pool. 
Fiberglass pools have some important advantages over gunite (the more practical type of a concrete pool from a technical perspective) and vinyl liner pools that you should know about. 
First, fiberglass pools cost a lot less to maintain over time than the other two types, by a significant margin. Such maintenance items as an acid wash, cleaning service, replastering/retiling, replacing the liner, and chemical and electric usage must be factored in when comparing upkeep for different pool types. A concrete pool maintenance list will contain all of the above with the exception of liner replacement, and the total cost over a decade can reach around $27,000. 
A vinyl liner pool will only need the liner replaced, in addition to chemical and electricity usage, and can run up to about $12,000 in maintenance costs over a decade. This is a compelling reduction in costs compared to the upkeep of a gunite pool. A fiberglass pool, however, will present you with the best savings over time because its durable construction requires that you only factor in chemical and electric usage which can add up to about $4,000 over a decade. 
In other words, if you plan to live in your house for two more decades, you will save over $45,000 during this time period. That is some serious savings. Even if you decide to sell the house sooner, properly explaining the benefits of owning a fiberglass pool can increase the resale value of your home thanks to the inherent savings that come with this type of a pool. 
One important advantage of fiberglass over gunite pools is the porosity of the pool surface. The surface of a gunite pool is very porous and invites algae to make the pores their home. It is hard to get rid of overgrowth, and you never really get rid of it completely or thoroughly enough that it wouldn’t proliferate again soon. This means having to clean the pool a lot more often than fiberglass or a vinyl liner pool. 
On the contrary, the surface of fiberglass pools is very smooth and is therefore not a hospitable environment for algae, dirt, and other elements that find their way into the water. Vinyl liner pools are almost as algae-resistant as fiberglass pools but do have little nooks and crannies around connecting surfaces and materials that often harbor unwelcome flora.

​

Concrete (Gunite) Pools

A concrete pool has one main advantage over the fiberglass pools: it can be completely customized in terms of shape, size, and depth. If you are looking to install a very large swimming pool or one that has to be contoured around the intricate shape of your backyard, then a concrete pool is a logical choice for you. 
Please note that the terms “concrete” and “gunite” are often used interchangeably. This is because gunite is just a way of spraying concrete that produces a smoother surface that lacks the potential cracks between layers of concrete that often form when done by the method of shotcrete (which is the alternative method). 
Gunite is less expensive and is currently a more desirable and common way of applying concrete. Importantly, gunite requires a highly-skilled professional to do the job, and this is one of the reasons you should hire a qualified contractor to perform any part of your pool installation. 
Gunite pools are durable, have an attractive finish, and are highly customizable in terms of shape, size, depth, and the number of available features. The main reason we install more fiberglass than gunite pools is the economics of the project. As mentioned earlier, the costs of maintaining a gunite pool, in terms of money, time, and effort, especially in the long-term (a decade or longer) usually make fiberglass pools a logical choice. Gunite pools require the highest level of upkeep of all three types.

​

Vinyl Liner Pools

Vinyl liner pools are usually preferred when the budget is of primary importance and the installation of a pool would otherwise be cost-prohibitive. This kind of pool carries the lowest initial cost. However, the liner has to be replaced every 5-9 years, and the job costs around $5,000. 
Depending on how well the owner takes care of the vinyl liner pool, its lining may have to be replaced up to four times in two decades, adding up to $20,000 to the cost of the installation, compared to a fiberglass or a gunite pool. One notable advantage of vinyl liner over fiberglass pools is that, like gunite pools, they can be customized to meet your requirements of size, shape, and depth.

​

Installing a Spa

A spa, a whirlpool, a hot tub, a jacuzzi are all terms that interchangeably refer to the spot that can become the conversation piece of your entire backyard pool area. You can have one installed together with your pool or install one separately in case you already have a pool or in the absence of a pool. In terms of materials, workmanship, durability, and maintenance, similar considerations apply to hot tubs as to pools. 
Fiberglass spas have advantages over concrete hot tubs that are similar to the advantages of fiberglass over gunite pools. Because a spa is usually much more compact than a pool, the consideration of having to customize it to fit the size and shape of your backyard or existing pool is, for the most part, irrelevant. 
A beautiful fiberglass hot tub can be installed virtually anywhere in your backyard and can complement an existing pool perfectly. Note that a spa can be either spillover or non-spillover. The spillover option is more aesthetically pleasing and has the added feature of the sound of a waterfall when in operation. 
If you have considered your budget and the size and shape needs for your pool and have arrived at the fiberglass option, then you should consider installing a pool with a spa integrated within the prefab design. This is a cost-effective and aesthetically pleasing option because the entire design has already been thought through and has a history of successful installations. 
It is also a durable option that requires the least amount of maintenance, as with all fiberglass pools. In addition, the current choice of different fiberglass pool/spa combinations is vast, and if you want a pool with a hot tub, you have many styles and combination designs to choose from.

​

Swimming Pool Renovation

If you think your existing pool needs a makeover, here are several ideas and ways to give your old pool a new life. You can have a new vinyl liner put in and the rest of the pool inspected for signs of deterioration. You can have the pool reshaped to cater to your evolved taste. You can add a hot tub or even a slide. You may choose to redo the deck and give it a completely new look. And, of course, your pool may need technical maintenance, such as a new pump, filter, or a sanitizer system. 
If you happen to have a vinyl liner pool whose liner needs to be replaced, it is a good time to consider a complete remodeling and install a fiberglass pool in its place. Whatever your needs, desires, and vision, we are here to help. Learn more about our pool building process by visiting this page or call us at 808-400-8449
to schedule your FREE Pool Installation Consult.

​

---