Pools by Design

Pools By Design: The Good, The Bad and The Very Ugly

The Good: The workers on average are OK, a select few good, though none great with the exception of Raul as pool service technician. Most show little initiative to do a better job over the low standards set by this company. There is little good that occurred over a year's time on my $75,000.00 pool job with mistakes, errors, omissions, and even breaches of contract. As such, I deeply regret ever hiring this company.

The Bad: In a word, Management. One of the worst run service companies I have seen in a long time and they don't seem to care it is run that way. They are also way over extended with little supervision on each job. Meaning you probably won't see the owner or salesman much on your job. I did not.
Here is a list of just some of the bad that I selected.

1. They use no 3D software to give you an idea what your pool, waterfall, pavers etc. will look like. Just a simple 8.5 x 11" piece of paper with some boundry lines to satisfy Building inspection requirements, not yours.

2. The owner on a number of occasions called his salesman an "idiot". No argument here. I had to remove him from my project because he (as well as the rest of the company) does not take notes or write anything down. To wit, my pool spa was to have two benches (doubling as a wading pool) , not four. The spa was laid out for the owner and him on my living room floor with tape. Yet, the idiots still installed 4 concrete benches. "Oops, my mistake, so sorry".

3. It's not what they say, it's what they do not say that you have to really worry about.

a) This is a very standard type pool building company. For example, they don't ask you about paver grout color, size of rise of pool steps, color or shape of handrail, the list goes on and on. Since they don't offer these options, he is free to select what he wants. If you don't like it, too bad. I had to order my own white handrail because your only choice with them is Taupe. I had to have my own tile man replace the dark gray sand they used on my ivory colored travertine. You like grout to match your tile? Or a different color than dark grey? Not with them!

b) Essentially the owner thinks this is his project, not yours, except that you pay him! Thus he feels free to substitute another material without asking or informing you. In my case, my contract specified Padre Brown (lava look) boulders for the waterfall. I only hired this guy because he claimed he was the only one who could get them. So sorry I believed him in the beginning! He showed up with some small Padre Brown rocks and substituted Franklin Red rocks instead of Padre Brown on the rest of the rocks. His excuse lie claims both types are exactly one of the same. Yet any geologist like at NMSU will tell you they are different in color, texture and compostion. I mean really, even a six year old can tell you the difference between red and brown!

c) They will sell you on Quartscape plaster that comes with a long guarantee but neglect to tell you if done incorrectly, can cause splotches, blotches and uneven coloring in the plaster seen on the floor bottom. In my case, the pumps, vacuum, electric hookup etc. were installed a full month AFTER the plaster job. They also ordered the wrong pool cover color (correct color was indeed in the contract!). During the windy season here in that one month's time accumulated 1/8" sand on the bottom of the pool. This caused the plaster to cure incorrectly. So too, they wanted to plaster my pool the first time around in January when it was 23 degrees outside. It's a pool plaster no no for it to be installed below 40 degrees. In an alternate world of fact by the owner, he actually turns it around to blame me for the uneven color at the bottom of my pool for not having the job done at 23 degree so to cover for his mistakes!

d) The company uses PJ Plastering of El Paso as a subcontractor for the pool plaster work. These people dumped and buried their excess plaster in an area on my 2 acre property. They also dumped cement and liquids over some very large and expensive decorative boulders. Thinking I would never uncover it or see it, boy were they wrong!
The Very Ugly: The Owner. This guy will be nice to you so long as you do not argue, question or complain about the work and/or money. If you do, then his total lack of anger management kicks in instantly with his bullying, threats, insults and lies to cover his mistakes, errors, breaches of contract and overall very mediocre work. This guy stooped so low to proclaim my Business Law degree was not worth crap, though he still does not know to this very day the pool job specs on my contract! He bears little to no personal financial responsibility for his company errors and mistakes.