04/27/2012 Day 19- Gate posts are in

The guys from Fremont Fence set the posts for the gate. They'll be coming back once the deck is poured to complete the job. Sounds like Monday is inspection time before deck pour.

The 3 new gate posts

The drainage was cut but will be re-attached

04/26/2012 Day 18- One small issue

I had the guys from Fremont fence quote on putting in a gate that divides the backyard from the side yard a few weeks ago. They planned to come back after concrete prep to do the install. I had to have them come in again today to go over a small issue: The old concrete had no drainage, but a pretty large slope that directed the water to the edge of the property instead. This slope wasn't easy to notice because it was over such a large run. The guys from Burkett's took a better approach to drainage and instead of relying solely on slope for drainage, the put in an actual drainage system with plumbing. The issue that we encountered by doing this is that there's a 8" step between the backyard and side yard now..and rather than trying to explain it to the fence guys on the phone, I had them come out.

The gate will span between the house and the fence 

Shortly after Matt from Fremont fence arrived we noticed the issue- the drainage pipe was run in the exact spot that they needed to put in a fence post- doh!. The Fremont fence guys agreed to cut the pipe and put in the posts and after calling Mike from Burkett's- they will re-route it. The posts for the gate will go in tomorrow followed by a town code pre-inspection, then the deck pour, followed by the gate installation. Hopefully that all gets done by next week.

Drainage pipe where the post needs to go

04/25/2012 Day 17- Prep for concrete

Got a call from Burkett's this morning informing me that another job cancelled and they'd be coming in to prep for concrete!

They prepped for a semi-seamless concrete coping similar to a cantilever edge around the pool. This will give the impression that the concrete runs right to the edge of the pool with a slight overhang, however since we live in an earthquake zone, a concrete coping divider will surround the pool. That way if the concrete cracks, only the areas that cracks needs to be replaced rather than the whole slab.

One welcome addition to the remodel is proper drainage. Burkett's plumbed in a drain line to the street with drainage throughout the backyard. They will also re-pour the planter that runs around the perimeter of the backyard.

The area for the hot tub was measured so that the tub will drop right in.

I guess the next step is re-bar, inspection, then concrete pouring. Not sure if they'll be back tomorrow, but I'm impressed with today's progress.

04/23/2012 Day 15- New plumbing and electrical

Today's work included new plumbing, electrical, and an updated modern skimmer. I had the guys check out the connections to the hot tub and made sure that they pre-plumbed the feed and return lines in the optimal location for entry into the hot tub cabinet.

They also did a pressure test on all of the current plumbing which all passed, however they were surprised what they found at the main drain in the deep end. Looks like someone had filled it in with plaster - which was a sign of a potential issue however, the pressure test was fine and the Burkett's guys couldn't think of any reason not to use the drain.

A new modern skimmer was installed in place of the prehistoric concrete box skimmer that was there before and new electrical to an outlet near the hot tub and new electrical to the pool light.

Hot tub feed, return and new electrical

Lines back to pool shed

New electrical for pool light

New skimmer

04/20/2012 Day 12- Tile day

Not sure why they do things in a certain order, but that's why the remodel company are the experts and I'm not. The guys arrived early this morning to start the tiling of the pool. After using a laser level and filling in the area that the demo guys chopped up, they got to work. The were here until about 5:30 and put in a full day of work.

They'll be back on Monday to start running new plumbing to the hot tub, electrical and a new skimmer. All in all, good progress for 2 days.

Platforms installed to walk around inside of pool

Finished tile near the skimmer

Finished tile in the shallow end

04/19/2012 Day 11- Demolition day

The heavy equipment, jackhammers and workers arrived today to start demolition. I was blown away at just how much they were able to do in such a short time! Looks like they'll be back tomorrow to keep going!

Workers Arrive

Demo begins

Progress by Lunch

End of the day

Entry into patio area

The completely empty pool

A view from the shallow end

04/17/2012 Day 9- A chance to pick colors

No workers again today...but we did choose the colors for the plaster and the tile. Because we live within a few miles from the southern-most tip of San Francisco Bay we get frequent afternoon sea breezes that normally drop the temperature rapidly in the late afternoon and early evening. We need to conserve and promote ever possible degree of solar heating and solar energy retention in the pool. Keeping this in mind we chose to go with the darkest colors possible (with the exception of black) to keep the pool warm. Here are some pictures of the final choices:

Dark blue plaster chip compared to current

Nicely textured tiles that will compliment the redwood fence and  lava colored concrete

04/15/2012 Day 7- Backyard is clear

Moved all of the patio furniture and plants out of the backyard. The backyard is now a blank canvas ready for the professionals.

Empty backyard

04/14/2012 Day 6- The hot tub arrives

The hot tub arrived today. It's a Calspa Gen I730 5 Person with 30 jets. Really looking forward to get this put in. For now, it will wait in the garage.

Just off the truck

Close-up view

Comfortably in the garage

04/12/2012 Day 4- Noticing some cracks

Now that the pool is drained I've noticed a few potential issues. There are some cracks that are visibly showing water penetration, lots of peeling paint- which is one of the main reasons why I'm getting the remodel done, as well as a leak from the fill hose.

Crack in the wall

Peeling paint 

Noticeable crack on bottom

Fill line leaking

04/11/2012 Day 3- Draining complete

Looks like the pump is done emptying the pool- at least for now. They leave a bit in to ensure that the pool doesn't heave and lift out of the ground. I didn't get a call from Burkett's today (the remodelling company) so I don't anticipate that I'll see them tomorrow. At least it will give me some time to start moving the patio furniture into the garage.

Pool drained to the deep end

The pool feels bigger with it empty

04/10/2012 Day 2- Draining....

Still draining....

04/09/2012 Day 1- Let the draining begin

Let the draining begin

The pump is setup and draining the pool into the toilet in the pool shed.

04/09/2012 The pool remodel starts today.

The pool remodel starts today.

After living through a year of cracked and heaving concrete, paint peeling from a pool that was painted by the previous owner (which never should have been) and a general desire to create a backyard oasis, the pool remodel is about to start. I'll be doing daily updates in my blog to track progress.

Here is a panorama image of the pre-remodel to see what the backyard currently looks like:

I also shot a video file:

Here are some other images:

One last swim before it gets emptied