Wednesday, June 07, 2006

The Pool from Hell

What a waste of nearly an entire day! (Insert gut-wrenching wail here)

I got an Intex pool at Target the other day (you know, the Pool-in-a-box) where you pump up the big rubber rim, and then as you fill the pool it rises and about 17 hours later, Voila! you have a family-sized pool complete with debris cover and filter pump.

WELL, that's what's supposed to happen, anyway. It's been 95 degrees here every day this week, and my kids have been whining for me to "set up the pool." (Little do they know that the one we had in Wisconsin got so nasty by the end of summer the best I could do was wad it up and put it out on the curb for the Garbage Man.)
So, I bought a new one at Target, and set it all up. Of course, pumping up an eight-foot diameter innertube with a manual pump (because you're not supposed to use an electric one) in 95-degree heat is no small chore. Thing One and I took turns pumping, and by the time we finally got the durn thing inflated it was 45 minutes later and we were FRIED, I tell you.
The sun is so much more damaging when you're 6000 feet in the air. :-P

Okay, so I stick the garden hose inside and we go about our business. Three hours later, the pool is looking pretty good. Then I realize that I forgot to hook up the water filter, before filling it. Luckily the pool wasn't all the way full so I hurriedly turned off the water, and spent the next 30 minutes frying some more in the sun while I tried to figure out all the hoses and the pump, and the plus/minus in/out ports, etc.

I got it working, and turned on the filter pump. Then the pool continued to fill, and I put in a dash of Chlorine granules, and we were getting excited.
Another hour went by, and the pool was full! But I told the kids that the water was too cold for them to swim, we needed to wait a little longer for the water to warm in the sun.

THEN, (and here's the kicker) two hours later I go outside to test the water, and notice that there's water on the concrete around the pool base. So I walk around the pool, checking for leaks, and lo and behold I find TWO.
I was LIVID. I mean IT's A BRAND NEW $%^&**!~! POOL FOR #%^&*@! SAKE! What the #$%^! are TWO @#$!! HOLES DOING IN A BRAND-NEW #$%^!! POOL??????!!!!!

SO, I had to run a hose all the way through the back and front yards and out into the street, and drain the pool, so I could patch it.
Well, that was yesterday. As of 8am this morning, the pool still isn't all the way drained. AND, after I patch it I have to wait TWELVE hours before I can fill it again, so we won't be swimming in it until FRIDAY, at this rate.

And yet, I'll go through it all again, because it's so dang hot. We need the pool.
One of my friends tells me that this isn't typical weather for Denver. It's usually about 10 degrees cooler. Hubby is in heaven. He's happy. So, we'll deal.

Time to go patch the pool...

2 comments:

Lara said...

I would, if it didn't say on the box in big letters "DO NOT RETURN THIS PRODUCT TO THE STORE!! CALL OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE NUMBER!"

--Yeah, I'd rather patch it then wait weeks and weeks for a new one.
HOWEVER, if the patching doesn't work, I'm definitely calling.

Lowa said...

I was going to say. It is not Target's fault. It is the manufacturer's bad. So Target likely won't do much, if anything.

That is horrible, though. Every year we buy a decent sized pool and swear we will care for it properly. EVERY YEAR my husband leaves it molding and sliming all winter somewhere in the yard.

Last year I asked him to get a more expensive one that came with all the stuff you talked about. He refused all summer and finally MID AUGUST bought the dern thing. He seemed surprised that by that time in the season, there were not many to choose from?? MEN!!

So, he set it up, the kids had a blast in it for about 2 weeks and then what happened?? IT SAT IN THE YARD ALL WINTER GETTING RUINED!?!?!? He insists he can "clean" it and it will be fine.

ARG!

Hope it works better for you today and the kids have a good time:)