And It Is Done

At this point, it wasn't full yet, just getting to the shallow end...took forever to get the water up to the right level where we would turn off the vacuums that are sucking the liner to the sides until it fills up enough to stay put.

You can see how dark the new bottom is but it makes the water so much more blue and quite lovely.

Just about there...only a few more inches to go but they still take forever even with two hoses running.

Finally full, the water looks so much better. Can't wait for it to be balanced and ready for swimming!!

The Bamboo Lagoon Project Continues

So the pool was empty but then we got some rain and it filled up the bottom a bit. I wasn't sure if I should run the pumps more with the water so low so I held off.

You can see all the different tears but these happened after it was empty from the pull of the liner and the fact that it was dry in the sun.

Doesn't even look that big when the liner isn't pressed into the sides from the water. I can't wait to see the new look and have the pool clean and usable again.

The Bamboo Lagoon Project

Empty dirty pool looking towards shallow end

So it begins...the liner has been a problem for some time now. The breaking point was this last fall when a raccoon got into the pool and couldn't get out and tore a hole in one corner. Then this winter, one of the railings started to come loose.

I tried to patch the hole a couple of times because the size of it and the location made it very hard to keep the pool full enough to filter correctly but I couldn't keep a patch over it. It was just too big to really stick.

So I talked to the pool company this winter about what my options were and then once we warmed up, made an appointment to have it looked out.

On Thursday, Bill came out and gave it a look, gave me a quote and helped me start draining the pool. It took about 9 hours to completely drain it, and then Bill came back today to do all the measurements for the new liner.

The reason it looks so dirty is because I didn't do any maintenance through the winter (would have been a waste of money) knowing we were going to dump the water this spring.

Looking towards the deep end

It will take about 3 weeks to get the liner in before we can start replacing it. For now, we leave the old liner in just to protect the framing from the weather. Bill said that because we don't have groundwater issues (the yard is sloped and the pool is actually behind and above our house), it should be an easy refit. They don't replace the steps (and to do that would cost almost the same as the liner) but they replace all the other plastic parts and the drain when it is all said and done.

Cayman/Prism

This is the motif that I picked out. One thing I wanted was a simple design that would go well with our deck and landscaping. The dark blue bottom will make the water look awesome. The brown section in this motif is less orange in real life (I was able to see a sample of the vinyl) and will look nice with our weathered redwood deck...now to replace some of the boards on the deck...the list never gets any shorter.

I will update as the project progresses. I am hoping to be off work on the days when Bill is here doing the replacements so I can see the process and take photos.

Bamboo Lagoon Work At The Bamboo Lagoon

This is where we started with the mess that the raccoon did to the liner this last fall and why our hand is being forced on having to replace the liner this year no matter what.

Leaf Net Trial Season

With the net on

Last year, the leaf drop from all the trees planted near the pool was pretty massive. Even with my preventative trimming to limit the amount that branches reach over the deck, there was still a lot that was carried on the wind. At one point, there were so many oak leaves on the pool, the leaves came up to the edge of the deck. It took me almost two hours to skim them all off.

This year, I decided to see if a leaf net would be a better option (at least for keeping the leaves from dropping to the bottom of the pool). I got it on sale and in the mail a few days before my annual trip to the midwest this year and decided to put it over the pool before leaving just in case the leaf drop came early.

It covers the pool pretty well, but pretty much used up every bungee strap we own...LOL. The other option was to buy the water weights but those are expensive and I am only trying this out and want to try to do it as inexpensively as possible.

Preventative Work At The Bamboo Lagoon

While out working on the pool yesterday, I discovered that the wasp/yellowjacket population is already trying to get out of hand. I haven't found but one or two nests (which were immediately sprayed and destroyed), but there is a weed in the backyard that kind of looks like a pea plant and there are tons of wasps on them.

So yesterday, I bought two wasp/yellowjacket traps to hang in the backyard so I can get them under control before they take over. It has gotten so warm here so fast, that some things feel like I am already behind...but I am hoping that we get a lot of rain in May. If we don't, we will be hurting so bad for water later in the summer.

Anyhow, so I put out those traps this morning, and also set a bomb off under our front porch (where the spiders like to live) so I can work under there later this week. I have to put in some joist hangers as well as put in some ventilation holes and I don't want to be worried about black widows.

I watered a bunch of stuff that was in the shade and then got up on the roof so I could check the upper portion of the solar panels (which look great). I haven't tested them yet...still waiting for it to warm up just a bit more.

I want to get out and take all those pea looking weeds out, but I can't tackle it while the bees are out there, so I might have to see how the traps do and try to get to them when I see not as many bees. I don't want them going to seed so I need to do it before the flowers are gone, that is for sure.

I bought some 3 mil black plastic yesterday to lay down along the backside of the pool in a row that I don't want anything to grow in. It just creates a bunch of weeds right near the pool so I want to cover it up and hope that I can kill it all off, then treat it with vinegar and see if I can keep it clear.

As always, a ton to work on...and it never ends.

Pool Maintenance

Multiport valve on pool pump/filter

Last year, it became evident that there was something going on with the multiport valve on the pool pump/filter. This made it so that I pretty much didn't vacuum, backwash or rinse for the last 1/2 of the season because getting the pool to stop draining was an ordeal. I managed to keep the pool pretty clean with filtering, brushing, skimming and scooping, but it is not how I want this season to be.

I dreaded doing this fix because I was sure it was going to be super hard (to get parts, and to do the actual fixing). I prepped by taking pics of the multiport valve and checking out the possibilities online. I then went to the pool supply store that I use and found out what I needed to do. They were awesome with instructions and gave me confidence that I would be able to do it without needing help or any crazy tools.

So today, I decided that not only was I going to get the multiport valve done, I was also going to get the pool pump's electric box secured to the post like it should be. I had already looked at the hole in the back of the electric box and measured for a carriage bolt I could put through the box into the 2x4 behind.

Electric box bolted to post

I killed the power to the pump, and gathered up the tools needed. I held the electric box into place and drilled a hole through the post to match up the hole in the electric box. I put in the bolt and tightened everything down, and with a small screwdriver was able to open the two zip ties I had used to temporarily hold the box in place.

I opened up the skimmer basket on the pump to relieve some pressure from the system and then started working on the 6 bolts surrounding the valve. As I started to loosen them, I could hear the water moving around. Once I took them out, I was able to lift on the handle and top of the valve and see the gasket that needed to be replaced. As soon as I opened it, it was obvious why it was leaking after vacuuming, backwashing and rinsing. More than likely, the renters weren't turning the valve in one direction like they were supposed to and messed up the gasket.

The bad news was that the gasket I had in hand, was not the same as the one in my valve, so I gathered up the handle/top, the two gaskets (one new and one old) and headed over to the pool supply store. I thought I might have to cut the gasket to fit like it should but I wanted to get a professional's opinion first. He recommended the same thing but first wanted to check their stock for the right gasket. My valve is pretty old so getting parts is hit and miss. Fortunately, he had the exact gasket I needed hanging in the supply room and it was 5 bucks cheaper than the first one I bought. He took the other one back (this is why I save packaging...LOL). I double checked on a few details and headed back.

Open valve with gasket removed

I put the gasket into its slot, and screwed everything back into place while keeping the edge gasket from pinching. Went down and turned on the power to the pumphouse, and turned on the filter to check for pressure and leaks. Noticed that there is a small leak from the pressure gauge, but I am planning to replace the gauge soon (just don't have the right one), so I am not going to worry too much about it right now. The leak is super small.

I cleaned the pool (not vacuuming, but everything else) and checked the chemicals. Still need to vacuum, fix some deck boards, set up the tiki torches, paint and assemble the deck table and clean up all the chairs but I felt good about knocking out these two maintenance issues that I was worried would be way harder than they turned out to be.

Pool Outlet At The Bamboo Lagoon

It has finally been nice enough that I could finish off this task. I needed to be able to get under the deck and pull some wire. So it needed to be dry enough but not so warm that spiders or other creepy crawlies would be an issue.

I climbed under the deck for the slack, and while I was on that side of the fence, I also pruned the barberry that I thought was dead but is actually coming back (yeah!). I cleaned the pool, reset the timers and took out the lightbulb from the pump house since it is warm enough it doesn't need to be in there anymore.

I started to disassemble this outlet in the fall (in fact it was one of my first electrical projects at the bamboo lagoon along with fixing the pool light) but wasn't able to finish it before the weather turned. Today, I finished it, and tested it with my lagoon lights...now I can utilize this outlet to get some work done in the deepest parts of the backyard.

Old loose socket

With plate removed

Pulled out, rusted

Corroded wires (this is where I stopped last fall)

In order to put this new outlet in, I had to splice the 12 gauge solid ground wires together and then piggy back them to the outlet. I had to clean the corroded wires up so that I could use them without having to cut them off (since I was a little short on wire to work with). Then I had to shove with all my might the six 12 gauge wires back into the box and then screw it into place. They did not want to go in.

New outlet installed

New cover installed

At the end of it all, I turned on the power and the outlet works, and is grounded properly. I didn't test to make sure the circuit worked to the pool light switch but I have to assume it does as well.

New Bamboo At The Bamboo Lagoon

So excited about this new bed. Cleaned it out during the massive cleanout for the other beds. It was filled with a bunch of random neglected stuff and I am so thrilled to find a great purpose for it.

Bed from top (before)

It is a little triangle of a bed that borders our front porch and the driveway. It gets a lot of sun.

Bed from driveway (before)

I got these clumping bamboos from the same guy that I bought the other three from last season. He had a couple other plants I got today too but they don't have ready homes just yet.

Bed from top (after)

Anyhow, I had to dig to fairly big sized holes for these two guys. Used the shovel instead of the trowel just to make the work go quicker and to beat the rain which started to come down right as I got the second one planted.

Bed from driveway (after)

I think they look awesome, and will be very happy in this spot once I get some mulch on them.

Solar Panel Work At The Bamboo Lagoon

As you might know from previous posts, we have solar panels on our deck roof that heat the pool during the summer time. Last year when I first got here, we tried to turn them on, but one of the pipe junctions broke and water came shooting out of it. So I turned off the pump for the solar panel, and didn't use the panels for the season.

I met up with a technician from the solar panel company and purchased replacement parts for the pipe junctions, but never got around to fixing it before it became too cold to use the pool.

Deck roof and panels with pinestraw (before)

Deck roof and panels without pinestraw (after)

In the meantime, the two Ponderosas that we have in the backyard left a ton of needles on the back deck roof and solar panels. The back deck roof is corregated metal and figuring out a way to get on the roof, while not damaging it or the solar panels, prevented me from attacking this project until now.

I finally was able to have a nice day, where the needles weren't super wet, and got on a ladder to look at the structure up close to figure out my best options. Once I could see where the studs were, I was able to get up on the metal roof from a different spot, and while using a soft deck broom, was able to sweep most of the needles off the roof and solar panels.

Ponderosa before pruning

Ponderosa after pruning out lower branches

While up there, I pruned the Ponderosa hanging over the roof so that there is some clearance and maybe a little bit more light hitting the solar panels. I spray painted all the cuts to keep the tree from getting infected.

Lastly while I was up there, I put the new gasket and pipe junction in where the old one broke. I wasn't able to test the system just yet since we are still freezing at night, but I am hopefull that it will hold. I inspected the other lower junctions and they all looked okay. I have to get on the roof in a different spot to check the upper ones, but I will do that on another day but before we turn the system on for the season.

Broken junction

Fixed junction

The amount of pruned limbs and pine straw filled the yard bin up to capacity. Overall, it was a very productive afternoon.

Three And A Half Hours In The Yard

Yard day was coming up and that meant getting out into the yard and filling up the bin for Monday's collection. Little did I know I would be filling the equivalent of the yardwaste bin twice.

Steps (Before)

The right side of the yard still had a ton of oak leaves that I just hadn't gotten a chance to get to. I think that some of these leaves had been there for years. We have steps that go up the right side of the backyard that allows access to the terraced area behind the pool but when I started out, you would not even know that there were stairs there.

Steps (After)

End of Pool Deck (Before)

End of Pool Deck (After)

Juniper and Path (Before)

Of course once I got up to the top, I realized that I needed to do some pruning on a large juniper we have near one end of the pool so that we could keep overhang into the pool area to a minimum and allow access to cleaning up leaves along the backside of the pool deck.

Juniper and Path (After)

Top of Stair Area (After)

Because of the incline, it is impossible to bring the actual yardwaste bin up, so I opted to fill up a smaller 32 gallon trashcan over and over and just bringing it down and dumping it into the big bin. At the end of the day, I had filled the smaller can at least 8 times (I think I lost count). I filled the yardwaste bin to the very top and then had 3 more trashcans filled with more yardwaste that would have to wait until after the pickup on Monday.

Bottom of Steps (After)

As soon as the pickup was over, I dumped the other trashcans into the yardwaste bin basically filling it to the top again.

Next is starting to prune back some of the stuff in the backyard before the growing season starts so we can get some new plants in to replace the ones the renters killed from lack of watering.

Siphoning The Bamboo Lagoon

Almost touching the wood

We have had some serious rain in the last few weeks. Even though the weather is colder, the pool still has a certain amount of evaporation each week so I haven't been too worried about the rain...figured it was just a cheaper way of filling the pool...haha. Anyhow, the other day, it was about 7 inches of rain and it raised the pool level to within a couple of inches of the deck, and definitely over the height of the skimmer basket. I still wasn't too worried until we found out we were getting another two inches of rain over the next few days.

Supposed to be middle of skimmer

This summer, the multivalve on the pool started acting up and each time I did a rinse or backwash, it would take several tries before I could get the valve completely closed so it wasn't dumping water from the pool. I didn't feel like dealing with the valve, so I decided to just siphon off some of the water using one of our garden hoses. Since the pool is on the hill above our house, gravity was in my favor. We have a trenching system that runs along our back deck to keep water from the hill running towards the house and I decided to use that trenching system to get rid of the water from the hose.

Running down the trench

I didn't even have to suck on the hose to get it started...the physics of putting it in the pool and then dragging the other end downhill was enough to get it started. I had to let it run for a few hours (it would have been faster to use the pump but then much more hassle) but mission accomplished and now there is some wiggle room for the rain coming this week.

Pool Work at the Bamboo Lagoon

This is the first home we have owned that has a pool. Five years of renting the house out and having to rely on inconsistent renters and somewhat lazy pool companies meant that the pool was a big project for me when finally moving to the house. As you can see from these first two pictures, the pool was covered at the end of the last season by the pool company but it wasn't done very well. They took parts off the pump and filter and "hid" them, which means it is halfway amazing that the pool is even functioning without us having to spend a small fortune to make it happen.

We were hoping that the water on top of the tarp would evaporate but no such luck. Mom and I had to unscrewed boards that were fastened to the deck on all sides of the pool, and then pull the tarp from both sides down towards one end of the pool. Foolishly we thought we were going to be able to pull the water and debris on the tarp up onto the deck and keep it all from going into the actual pool water, but reality was that there was no way, we were going to be able to pull the equivalent of a water bed up onto the deck. We did skim most of the debris off and we unfortunately didn't think of siphoning the water off until after the task was completed.

Once we got the cover off, we realized that the water beneath was in pretty reasonable condition. The pool was not filled with algae and the water was clear. It was very low so first off we had to put the hose in it to start filling it to get it to a level that would let us turn on all the equipment and see where we were on things. It took almost two days of running the hose almost non-stop to get the pool filled to the skimmer basket. I am terrified what that water bill is going to look like...LOL. Once the pool got to the right level, I went to check out the pump house and noticed water pouring out of the bottom of the pump from two different spots. I opened up the pump skimmer area and found two black screw in plugs beneath the basket and used them to close the two spots. Next, I tried turning on the system and realized that there was a cap of some sort missing from the top of the filter dome. I searched around some more in the bottom of the pumphouse and found another cap and put it on the filter dome. This reduced the water squirting out but didn't completely fix the issue (meaning there was probably a missing o-ring). I decided my best bet might be contacting a new pool company to have them come out and show me how everything is supposed to work so I didn't accidently mess something up.

Later in the week, my cousin came over and I turned the pump back on so he could see what I was talking about regarding the water squeaking out, and at this time, we discovered the leak in the solar heating system. We turned the system back off and I waited until my visit with the pool company. Joe came out and showed me how to run everything. He tested the water, found that it was pretty well balanced but obviously needed chlorine. He added 6 lbs of chlorine to the pool, gave me an o-ring for the top plug on the filter dome. We discussed vacuuming, skimming, brushing, testing and chemicals. As we were getting ready to close things down, he noticed water coming from another spot at the bottom of the filter dome. Turns out there was yet one more plug that the old pool company removed and "hid" from us that was missing. We managed to locate it and close that hole and everything seemed to be working well.

Since then, I have been running the pump as I should, testing the water, skimming, and vacuuming. The water is pretty good, while there still is a bit of debris on the bottom that I am working on getting rid of. It is a maintenance job on a weekly basis but for the most part, it has come along really well. Fixing the solar heating is next on the agenda and I am eager to see how warm the pool will be after that is done. I still have not swam in it, but that is coming up this week for sure. I am looking forward to getting the last of the debris out of it so it will be clear and clean!

Purchasing the Bamboo Lagoon

Okay, honestly, it isn't the Bamboo Lagoon yet....we can call it the Grey Lagoon or Blue Lagoon I guess if we want. The house is greyish blue and we haven't even seen it empty yet. We saw it with the realtor and with the building inspector but the owner's stuff is still in it.



We weren't really even looking to buy another rental as we are going to be living far away and don't really want to deal with a rental again, but finding blank land in our price range is just not happening. We need to put the money from the house in NC and the house in WA somewhere so we think this will be the answer. We have family in the area so hopefully the hassle of it won't be as bad as before.

We have already talked to a property management company to handle the rental and maintenance aspects of it. I am hoping that the pool maintenance isn't going to add a new twist complicating things. Our last house in WA had a lot of vines planted in the yard, and that was a LOT of work.



The house is a split level with a tiered back yard and has a solarpanel heated pool. There are three bedrooms, this weird little "office" room, and two bathrooms. It has a fireplace, a balcony off the front and a big deck in back. It has a two car garage and a laundry room.



We think it will be a good rental and then perhaps a nice place for us to "land" when we move back to the area down the road...