Above Ground Pool Installers in Florida

How to choose an above ground pool installer in Florida

Buying an above ground pool is the easy part. How long it lasts comes down to the install: the pad it sits on, the way the ground is leveled, how the water moves, and what the crew does when Florida soil and weather push back. Here is what to look for and what to ask before anyone digs.

Level by cutting down, not filling up

The pad has to be level and compacted. A good crew cuts the high side down to meet the low side instead of piling fill on the low side, because fill settles and a pool that settles goes out of round once it is holding water. Sand drains well, which suits a pool pad, but it also settles, so it has to be compacted in layers. Ask every installer how they level your yard and how far off level they allow.

Ask about a main drain

Most above ground pools only have a skimmer and a return, and both sit high on the wall. That plumbing moves the surface and barely touches the bottom, which is where dirt settles and algae starts. A main drain is set into the base and plumbed under the pool before the liner goes in, so the whole pool turns over. It cannot be added later without draining the pool, so ask on the first call whether the installer puts one in.

Match the pool to the yard

Near the coast, a resin frame stands up to salt air better than steel. If you want the pool partly in the ground, the high side gets cut in and the low side stays above grade, and not every model is rated to be buried, so the installer should check the model before quoting. A good site visit covers slope, access for the crew, the septic system and where water drains after a storm. If you bought the pool already, ask whether the installer will set up a kit they did not sell, and on what terms.

Know what the price includes

Quotes vary most on what they leave out. Ask whether the price covers the ground work and hauling away the dirt, the sand or base material, the pump, filter and ladder, the hookup of the equipment, and the cleanup. Ask for the warranty on the labor in writing, and ask whether the pool maker's warranty needs a professional install to stay valid. Florida's pool safety law covers above ground pools too, so plan for a ladder that locks or lifts out.

Questions for the first call

• How do you level the yard: cut the high side down or build the low side up?
• Will you install a main drain?
• What goes under the pool, and how is it compacted?
• Which pump, filter and ladder come with it?
• Is there a written warranty on your labor, and for how long?

Each listing here shows what the business says it does: installs above ground pools, sells pool kits, preps and levels the site, replaces liners, builds decks, repairs pools. A check mark means the business states it. Anything not stated is folded into one line, which means the business has not said, not that it does not do it.