I think I can, I think I can…

[Newdude]

Home Depot and such rent smaller digging machines at reasonable prices. This would be worth every penny for the time saved *and* what it saved your back. You would probably be done in an hour even with the time spent getting used to the machine. With a generous allotment of an hour each way for travel and loading, the 4 hour rental should be no problem. If you ended up needing more time, it's only $98 for the second 4 hours.

 

[VinnyinNJ]

If the ground is that unsteady I think there's more work than just laying blocks. With dirt, I did a small retaining wall that stayed OK for about 15 years and then decayed. I did not do it properly and they did shift around before then. I would recommend watching a YouTube video of what to do for sand ... I imagine there's got to be one.

It's a lot of work for sure. We bought a new pool and decided to put river pebbles around the pool with a black plastic edge. We are in our 60s and all those bags took their toll on us. My wife was a trooper helping carrying those bags! But at the end of the day, it's worth doing it correctly.

 

[MN-CJ]

If you are not set on a retaining block wall, I would recommend using treated 4x6 timbers, rebar, and ground cloth down first. I had a slope I needed to deal with. Once I got the blocks level, it ended up being 3 timbers high and stepped down from there. You can buy precut rebar at Home Depot (or Menards or Lowes I believe) or you can get a cheap angle grinder from Harbor Freight and make your own lengths. I used 3/4 inch and had it probably 1.5 feet below the bottom of the timber I was pounding it in....I'm in MN and our area is all sand too but also the ground freezes. Mine has not moved (knock on wood) since 2017.

I have 2" foam under my pool. Since mine is 30ft round, I ran mine out to the retaining wall so they could not shift. I used Gorilla ducktape for all the foam seams and staggered the joints (think like a brick wall.) What happens when you have 105 tons or so of water on top is it indents in no matter how tight and with the ducktape but....it makes it easy to vacuum dirt out as the dirt just goes in those straight lines. Tradeoffs.

Already covered is the top of the 4 inch blocks need to be flush with the foam. Spend the time to get the blocks level to each other as this is the foundation of your pool. Once filled, you can measure the water height to top of the pool on one side to the other but it is too late then. If you can rent a laser level for a couple of hours after you think you are set, that would be best. Set it up and get it level at any height....say waist high on outside of pool. Take a 2x4 with a level on it to insure plumb in both directions and put it on the furthest block on the side you are not digging down and mark the laser height on the 2x4. Now move that 2x4 to each block and get each block level. Try not to add any sand under the blocks to get level....best to only remove.

More questions or if you want pictures to better explain, don't hesitate to ask.

 

[VinnyinNJ]

If you are not set on a retaining block wall, I would recommend using treated 4x6 timbers, rebar, and ground cloth down first. I had a slope I needed to deal with. Once I got the blocks level, it ended up being 3 timbers high and stepped down from there. You can buy precut rebar at Home Depot (or Menards or Lowes I believe) or you can get a cheap angle grinder from Harbor Freight and make your own lengths. I used 3/4 inch and had it probably 1.5 feet below the bottom of the timber I was pounding it in....I'm in MN and our area is all sand too but also the ground freezes. Mine has not moved (knock on wood) since 2017.

I have 2" foam under my pool. Since mine is 30ft round, I ran mine out to the retaining wall so they could not shift. I used Gorilla ducktape for all the foam seams and staggered the joints (think like a brick wall.) What happens when you have 105 tons or so of water on top is it indents in no matter how tight and with the ducktape but....it makes it easy to vacuum dirt out as the dirt just goes in those straight lines. Tradeoffs.

Already covered is the top of the 4 inch blocks need to be flush with the foam. Spend the time to get the blocks level to each other as this is the foundation of your pool. Once filled, you can measure the water height to top of the pool on one side to the other but it is too late then. If you can rent a laser level for a couple of hours after you think you are set, that would be best. Set it up and get it level at any height....say waist high on outside of pool. Take a 2x4 with a level on it to insure plumb in both directions and put it on the furthest block on the side you are not digging down and mark the laser height on the 2x4. Now move that 2x4 to each block and get each block level. Try not to add any sand under the blocks to get level....best to only remove.

More questions or if you want pictures to better explain, don't hesitate to ask.

This would be much easier than building a rock wall! Years ago I built a patio using 6x6 PT lumber as a frame and then filled it with all the stuff needed to make a concrete block patio. Drill a hole a little smaller than the rebar and pound the rebar in with a heavy hand sledge. They sell drill bits that are a foot or two long that work great for this.

 

[phonedave]

If you are not set on a retaining block wall, I would recommend using treated 4x6 timbers, rebar, and ground cloth down first. I had a slope I needed to deal with. Once I got the blocks level, it ended up being 3 timbers high and stepped down from there. You can buy precut rebar at Home Depot (or Menards or Lowes I believe) or you can get a cheap angle grinder from Harbor Freight and make your own lengths. I used 3/4 inch and had it probably 1.5 feet below the bottom of the timber I was pounding it in....I'm in MN and our area is all sand too but also the ground freezes. Mine has not moved (knock on wood) since 2017.

I have 2" foam under my pool. Since mine is 30ft round, I ran mine out to the retaining wall so they could not shift. I used Gorilla ducktape for all the foam seams and staggered the joints (think like a brick wall.) What happens when you have 105 tons or so of water on top is it indents in no matter how tight and with the ducktape but....it makes it easy to vacuum dirt out as the dirt just goes in those straight lines. Tradeoffs.

Already covered is the top of the 4 inch blocks need to be flush with the foam. Spend the time to get the blocks level to each other as this is the foundation of your pool. Once filled, you can measure the water height to top of the pool on one side to the other but it is too late then. If you can rent a laser level for a couple of hours after you think you are set, that would be best. Set it up and get it level at any height....say waist high on outside of pool. Take a 2x4 with a level on it to insure plumb in both directions and put it on the furthest block on the side you are not digging down and mark the laser height on the 2x4. Now move that 2x4 to each block and get each block level. Try not to add any sand under the blocks to get level....best to only remove.

More questions or if you want pictures to better explain, don't hesitate to ask.

Precut rebar is so much more expensive. I needed 2' lengths for something recently and went to buy some. I needed 6 pieces total. A 2' length of rebar was something like $4.50 give or take. A 4' length was $4.64 - 14 cents more for twice the rebar. I think a 10' stick was under 6 bucks. (#3 bar, not the #6 you used)

You can grind it, Sawzall it, rebar cutter it, burn it, or break out the hacksaw and give yourself a workout.

 

[MN-CJ]

You can grind it, Sawzall it, rebar cutter it, burn it, or break out the hacksaw and give yourself a workout.

Hack saw will definitely be a workout and sawzall will too when not clamped tight. Grinder was a mess but was glad I bought a HF one so I did not suck all that black dust into the air intake of my good one.

 

[VinnyinNJ]

Hack saw will definitely be a workout and sawzall will too when not clamped tight. Grinder was a mess but was glad I bought a HF one so I did not suck all that black dust into the air intake of my good one.

Harbor Freight tools can be great for people who need a tool once in a while. I bought a grinder and a oscillating multi tool from them. I think I paid $20 each for them ... they did the job they needed to do. If I was using them for a trade - I'd buy the big named tools.

 

[Newdude]

Careful with HF. I needed a cheapo angle grinder and it did the trick for $15, but it had no oomph whatsoever and I could easily stop it from cutting.

For my one time small job I dealt with the sweet time it took to cut a 4 inch square, but if the project was larger, i would have wanted a more powerful medium cheapo tool.

 

[VinnyinNJ]

Careful with HF. I needed a cheapo angle grinder and it did the trick for $15, but it had no oomph whatsoever and I could easily stop it from cutting.

For my one time small job I dealt with the sweet time it took to cut a 4 inch square, but if the project was larger, i would have wanted a more powerful medium cheapo tool.

One of my sons is in the plumbing trade, at one time he was in residential plumbing and needed to supply his own tools. I'm a firm believer in getting the best tools for working with them every day. He settled on Milwaukee Fuel 18 volt tools. Every single one of them are beasts at what they do. His co workers at the time had lesser quality tools and always were impressed with how well they worked. Now he's in industrial/commercial plumbing and they supply the tools ... sometimes not the best ones at that!

 

[MN-CJ]

Hi Vinny, I’m in Florida and the ground is sand. Between humans and dogs walking, the sand is already collapsing. Something has to hold it back or it will become a mess.

How is the project going @Leener?

 

[phonedave]

Harbor Freight tools can be great for people who need a tool once in a while. I bought a grinder and a oscillating multi tool from them. I think I paid $20 each for them ... they did the job they needed to do. If I was using them for a trade - I'd buy the big named tools.

There is a time and place for HF tools. If I am looking for something that is going to last a long while, then I don't go there. Same thing for something that needs to be accurate - I would not buy a trim saw from them for example.

However, for things I am planning on abusing, or not using again, they are my go to. I have an oscillating tool from them that owes me nothing. I used to it cut a LOT of cement siding. That poor thing "inhaled" so much abrasive dust during its life. It still works too, but sometimes you have to smack it to get it started (seriously). I too paid about $20 for it, and when I bought it they asked if I wanted to spend something like $14 for the extended warranty.

I also have an electric cement mixer from them that is worth well beyond what I paid for it. I think with the old 20% coupons they used to have, I got it for just north of $100. I have put more bags of concrete and mortar through that thing than I care to remember.

 

[Leener]

Well, it has taken some time. Still a lot of work to do. Going to pick up the gravel to create drainage under the retention bricks. Had to take days off to recuperate. Researching leveling next. The pool is still in the box, hope it’s not damaged because the return window has passed.

 

[TinFoilHat]

I feel ya, man. I have to go back to work on Mondays just to recover from the work I do at home on the weekends.

 

[Leener]

Hope all is well. I’m back in the game. I had to do the digging by hand. Tonight when it cools off I’m going to assemble a leveler.

Going to pick up draining gravel in the morning to start the retaining wall. Have the retaining bricks and landscaping adhesive.

Also have the poor quality ground tarp that came with the pool.
My plan from bottom to top is the included tarp, 1/2” XPS foam, then a black felt pool liner from Amazon, in that order. If this seems incorrect, please let me know!

Also have the thick pavers for under the pool legs.

This project is much bigger than I had imagined.
The stress is mounting.

I have unpacked the pool box and read the manual. It’s all jibberish to me, I find YouTube videos more helpful.

Just ordered the TFpro salt. I sure hope I can set up the filter, pump and salt water attachment. Haven’t even begun to research this part of the project.

Any thoughts/encouragement are appreciated, I’m overwhelmed

Also work part time and maintaining a house. Feeling impatient because it’s already been 90 degrees in central Florida and the pool is not up!!

 

[VinnyinNJ]

Hope all is well. I’m back in the game. I had to do the digging by hand. Tonight when it cools off I’m going to assemble a leveler.

Going to pick up draining gravel in the morning to start the retaining wall. Have the retaining bricks and landscaping adhesive.

Also have the poor quality ground tarp that came with the pool.
My plan from bottom to top is the included tarp, 1/2” XPS foam, then a black felt pool liner from Amazon, in that order. If this seems incorrect, please let me know!

Also have the thick pavers for under the pool legs.

This project is much bigger than I had imagined.
The stress is mounting.

I have unpacked the pool box and read the manual. It’s all jibberish to me, I find YouTube videos more helpful.

Just ordered the TFpro salt. I sure hope I can set up the filter, pump and salt water attachment. Haven’t even begun to research this part of the project.

Any thoughts/encouragement are appreciated, I’m overwhelmed

Also work part time and maintaining a house. Feeling impatient because it’s already been 90 degrees in central Florida and the pool is not up!!

Removal of the stuff means you're 1/2 way there! Take water breaks and sit in the shade as needed. Doing work when tired will just get harder and mess ups will happen more frequently. When we put the pebbles down around our pool we did it by bag, I think each bag was 50 lbs. My wife who is in her 60's helped carry the bags from our driveway to the back yard which is probably about 40 feet ... she took a bag and I filled the wheelbarrow with 4 bags at a time and I'm also in my 60's. Don't be stressed as there's always tomorrow if you can't do it today. People don't realize how hard being a laborer is, many people in the trades are done by the time they are in their 50's due to how physically hard this type of work is. Slow and steady wins the race!

 

[Leener]

So true, didn’t get to do the level tonight, in too much pain. I’m also 60. I agree, most of the hard work is done. They’ll be filling the back of my truck with gravel for drainage around the wall, that should be the last huge haul. That’s if I’m up to it tomorrow. I’m using five gallon buckets to remove dirt . Luckily I have a 19 year old son who’s been be quite helpful with unloading the brick and digging/relocating the dirt. Thanks for the support.

 

[VinnyinNJ]

So true, didn’t get to do the level tonight, in too much pain. I’m also 60. I agree, most of the hard work is done. They’ll be filling the back of my truck with gravel for drainage around the wall, that should be the last huge haul. That’s if I’m up to it tomorrow. I’m using five gallon buckets to remove dirt . Luckily I have a 19 year old son who’s been be quite helpful with unloading the brick and digging/relocating the dirt. Thanks for the support.

When I was working I repaired medical equipment. It's not a back breaking job but it is physical at times. Toward the end of my work life I noticed that it was getting harder to get up off the floor. From my 20's to early 50's I was bouncing up off the floor. One of the last big jobs I did I had done numerous times before and it took me in my early days about 4 hours, the last time it took me 8. Most of the time while doing the repair I would get onto the floor do something, get up move to the other side do something and it went on from there. The last time after about 3 times I physically had to pull myself up from the floor ... I pretty much knew I was done doing these types of jobs alone. My wife took a photo of me laying the pebbles around the pool and trying to get up - sent it my sons to get a laugh out of it. It is pretty funny but unfortunately that's what happens!