The following is an outline of what you can expect during the construction of your in ground pool, a process that can take from as little as 2 weeks to as much as 6 months, depending on the scope of the project.

1) Initial meeting and consultation - The owner of Avoca Pools & Landscape Inc., Shaun McDonald, will come out to your home and meet with you to discuss your wants and needs and give you advice and information regarding your intended project. He will listen carefully to your ideas with a view to incorporating them into your own personal custom design. If warranted, and dependant upon the size and scope of your project, he will then ask our Landscape Design Architect to meet with you for further discussion.

2) Project design, approval and cost estimate - This is where we take your ideas and wishes and meld them into a pool and/or landscape design worthy of your property. Once we have a completed scale drawing, we will send it to you for your approval. Now is the time to make any changes to the design. Once approval is given by you, estimation of cost will commence.

3) Permit approval and signing of Contract - Once we have priced your project and this has been accepted by you, a contract is drawn up outlining every aspect of the job. This contract must be signed and once this is done, permit approval from the relevant city department can be pursued. Depending upon municipality, this can take from 1 day to 4 weeks.

4) First payment as per Contract due and payable

5) Layout of pool and Environs included in contract - Once all applicable permits are obtained, the location of the pool is marked to scale on the existing ground. Any other areas that require excavation will be laid out at this time, as will any trenches etc. required for plumbing and electrical. This is the last opportunity to make any changes as the following day excavation will commence. The layout of the pool will be exactly 2' larger than the finished pool itself due to the need for a 24" over-dig.

6) Second payment as per Contract due and payable

7) Excavation, steel wall placement, concreting - The excavation is the messiest part of the whole job and it can sometimes concern clients who are not familiar with in ground pool construction. This only lasts for a couple of days at most so please don't get discouraged. In order for the liner to be installed successfully into the finished pool without any wrinkles, the hole has to be excavated very precisely to exact specifications. Whilst the hole is progressing the steps and heavy steel walls of the pool will be erected, squared and leveled. The slope inside the pool from the shallow end to the deep end as wall as the ones in the deep end bowl are trimmed and finished and the pool is ready for concreting.
For the footing material placed around the walls and under the steps, as well as the 2" rough coat we trowel onto the whole bottom of the pool, we use fiberglass reinforced 25mpa concrete. The fiberglass is mixed in with the concrete and gives it a huge amount of additional strength, equivalent to that provided by 4" wire mesh. The rough coat on the bottom of the pool provides both protection for the slopes from wet weather and increases the structural integrity of the pool, ensuring that you will get the best return on your investment for years to come. The pool will now sit for at least one day for the concrete to set up prior to back filling.

8) Backfilling and Plumbing/Electrical - After the concrete has set up, braces are placed across the width of the pool to prevent any movement of the tops of the walls whilst backfilling takes place. Granular material is then brought in by the truckload and carefully placed and compacted around the perimeter of the pool. Once backfilling reaches the level of the skimmer and returns (and any other accessories such as underwater lights) plumbing lines and electrical conduit are run to the area where pump, filter and electrical outlets will be located. Avoca Pools & Landscape Inc. takes great care during the backfilling process to ensure that no settling takes place at a later date. This process takes approximately 2 full days to bring the fill up to final grade; this however is dependant upon how much fill is required. (determined by how level the existing ground was prior to pool installation)

9) Coping Installation - Dependant upon the type of coping you have chosen, this can take from half a day to upwards of 3-4 days.

10) Pool Deck - Once again, this depends on what type of pool deck your design calls for. If 36" poured concrete with brush finish, one and a half days will see it formed, poured and finished. However, choosing more elaborate pool deck surrounds such as interlocking brick or natural stone will increase the time it takes to finish this part of the project.

11) Landscaping/ Entertaining areas/ Fencing - The time it can take for this aspect of the job varies widely depending upon how much is involved. Your contract will spell out terms and conditions relating to your specific project, including the approximate duration of the construction period.

12) Final grout coat on pool floor - This is the final procedure before installing the liner and filling your pool with water. A 1"-2" layer of smooth cement/vermiculite grout is trowelled over the rough concrete coat to the exact elevations and measurements as required by the liner specifications. This creates the hard, smooth bottom of the pool that you feel under your feet when you are swimming. This takes 1 day however, if wet weather is forecast, this will be delayed until more favorable conditions are anticipated.

13) Liner Installation - Preferably the day of the liner installation should be sunny and warm in order to help stretch the liner into place. Once installed into the retainer track running around the perimeter of the pool a large vacuum is placed between the liner and the wall in the deep end. This vacuum pulls the liner into place and at this stage water trucks start filling up the pool. The vacuum is not removed until the water is at least 6" into the shallow end. Return and skimmer face plates are attached and the liner is cut out. Water is then brought up to start-up level. (about half way up skimmer opening)

14) Pool Start-up - Once water is at start-up level the pump can be primed and started and the pool can begin operating. The water will be initially treated with chemicals or salt (if salt water chlorination system is installed). Please note; if the electrical work is not included in our contract, this must be done by this stage so that we may operate the system. Personal instructions will be provided to you on your pool, pool equipment, pool maintenance and water chemistry.

15) Clean up - Our crews will leave your property the way it was when we first arrived. We will grade and sod or seed all access areas if included in your contract. All construction waste will be removed and disposed of. Streets and driveways will be swept clean. Dust from construction will be cleaned off the outside of your house. We endeavour to make it appear as though we were never there.

16) Final payment - The final payment as per the signed contract is due at this time. There will be no holdback unless stated otherwise in your contract.