Wise pool planning will prevent disappointment

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33051, 19 October 1972, Page 19

Wise pool planning will prevent disappointment

With the approach of summer the swimming pool industry in Canterbury is gearing up to meet the swiftly growing demand for domestic pools in town and country.

While it is a good time for prospective pool owners to finalise their plans it is also as well for them to be very careful before they spend any money. They probably realise they are planning to invest a lot of money if they intend sinking a permanent pool. They will be lucky to get out of it for less than $l4OO for a fairly modest pool.

That is a lot of money in most people’s language and it should not be spent in such a way that the pool owner will wish he had never gone ahead with the project.

Putting in a pool is a job for competent, professional people. But there are quite a few amateurs operating under the guise of professionals. In Christchurch there have been, and probably still are, the inexperienced and incompetent operators offering their services. Hence it is wise for anyone thinking of building a pool to take note of these points. • Make sure that the company you are dealing with is a reputable one with plenty of experience and financial backing. • Do not be afraid to ask pertinent questions about the organisation, its structure and history. • Establish that the business is not a newly-formed one operating from a rented office somewhere. • Ask to be shown a variety of pools the company has already constructed. Don’t be satisfied after being shown one or two—see four or five. • Ask the owners of the pools if they are satisfied. We have heard complaints from at least four pool owners who say they accepted the word of builders and now have pools that leak. If you anticipate spending $2OOO to $3OOO on a pool you have a right to know something of the firm which is going to do

the job. It is too easy in New Zealand to set up in business as a pool builder. All that is needed is a telephone number and an advertisement.

Even when you have satisfied yourself about the competence of the firm you intend to engage, make sure you realise that the

completion of the pool is not the end of the spending. You will have to pay for pool surrounds and more important for filtration equipment which alone runs into several hundred dollars and is essential expenditure. The names of the reputable pool builders may be found in the yellow pages of the telephone directory.