Above ground pools - worth it? And which one?

[Shuffalo]

The last two summers my two DC have basically lived in the inflateable, not massive pool we had (it died a death at the end of the last summer). To replace it I'm thinking about getting a sturdier and bigger above ground pool as I know it would definitely get used, but is it worth the hassle, and are they difficult to maintain?

The inflateable pool I used to use chlorine tablets and put a cover over it at night. I'm imaging a more structured and larger above ground pool would need a pump?
If anyone has any experience would you recommend getting an above ground pool? And any recommendations? Cheers!

What’s your budget? And are you on a water metre?

I'm willing to shell out for something decent as I know it will be used. The inflatable pool was the grand sum of £30, just 3m by 1.8m, so I know a better pool will cost considerably more. I'd probably go up to £300 as I know they will use it. And yes I'm on a water meter.

Yeah, a pool will be about £200 or so (depending on size). Then you’ll need a pump (around £100), the cheaper ones won’t pump the water that well so you’ll need to stir it up a bit. Get a fishing net to hoik out larger things like leaves. You’ll need a chemical starter kit (£30 ish). Pool steps if you don’t want to hop in and out (£70 ish?). A pool cover - either a standard one or insulated. Basic is maybe £40, insulated £100+. Then heat pump if you want warm water, start at around £400 if you want an energy efficient one. Then huge water bill! Calculate the water you will need and the cost.

We used to have one of the ones with the inflatable top ring, 20ft x 12 £500 but you can get smaller ones for much less. If you look after the water properly you’ll only have to fill it once when you first put it up

Downsides are that it took up a lot of storage space over the winter and it was a big effort to get it emptied, dried and put away

We absolutely LOVED it though, only sold it because we bought a caravan and are away most weekends. We’ll definitely have another when we’re retired

We’re child free so they’re not just for kids 😃

Look for the rigid frame pools. You can get rectangular but I think the 12ft round intex steel one would be perfect. Plenty of room with the budget and you can still afford to get a ladder and possibly a solar heating panel too. Set up a foot bath to go under the ladder so they don't walk dirt into it and stay on top of the chlorine levels with a floating multi function tablet and dispenser and you will only need to top it up every few weeks.

I'm also following as I have been debating doing this too!

We had one of these a few years ago:
amazon.co.uk/Intex-28120-Above-Ground-Swimming-Diameter/dp/B00XUCU406/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=above+ground+pool+intex&qid=1617132589&sr=8-4]]
But it's not really wide enough or deep enough to swim, even for small kids. Also I think the inflatable ring is a bit vulnerable to punctures.

Now we have one that's more like this:
intexcorp.com/products/above-ground-pools/prism-frame/16ft-x-8ft-x-42in-prism-frame-rectangular-pool-set/
...which is a lot better, and possible to swim even for larger kids and adults (though I wish we had got a longer and deeper one). Just getting ready for the second year with this one.

Either way you need a filter which may or may not come with it. At the bottom end you get a paper cartridge filter, but I find these a bit of a pain, they block easily and need replacing often. For a larger pool a sand filter is much better because you just back-flush all the crud out of it.

If you invest in a better filter and keep it clean, you don't use so much water - I didn't change the water in mine all summer (late May to early October). I'm not in the UK though, it's warmer here!

Putting a cover on really depends on whether you get a lot of leaf fall - in my back garden it was necessary, in the front garden I found it just didn't need it.

We have an 18' round one. Best thing ever. Fill it up once, run the filter every day for a few hours, check the chlorine levels every day or two. The kids learnt to swim in it. We never have to leave the garden. I swim on a tether. Nothing better than swimming looking up at the sky in your own garden!

Definitely get a rigid frame pool. We went through two of the large inflatable top ring pools last summer because the foxes ate them. We also had to rescue baby fox cubs who managed to jump in and got trapped under the solar cover (usually at 3am, the noise was awful). The flooding in garden after those episodes wasn't great, and now my water bill is huge. The replacement rigid frame one was brilliant, pump/filter was included, and it's pretty easy to get the chemical balance right with testing each day. The kids loved it, were in it every day and it was a godsend in lockdown. Can't wait to put it up again this year, particularly on a day like today!

Oh and the ladder wasn't necessary once you get the hang of swinging your legs over carefully. Might be useful with small kids, but you could just lift them in and out as they would need constant supervision anyway.

To anyone who is considering getting one, honestly do it - they’re great 🙂 get one now before everywhere sells out

Definitely get a rigid one not one of the ones with the inflatable ring . We had one of the huge inflatable ones and after a slight mishap it was like a tsunami heading towards the patio .