Aquatic Technology Pool & Spa, "Creating Water as Art."™

Aquatic Technology Pool & Spa, "Creating Water as Art."™
Pools as an art form - the way it should be!

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Don't rely on the CSLB Swimming Pool Expert Witness

Why you don't want to use the expert witness provided for free by your state's contractor's licensing board... it's simple, they ARE not the best available!

You get what you pay for!

The most experienced forensic experts in the swimming pool & spa construction field, pass on the frequent invitations from the State to become an expert witness.  

There are a multitude of reasons.. the first is the pay.  It is peanuts compared to what these experts can make in the private sector inspecting projects for insurance companies, wealthy property owners and contractors.

The second major reason, is that if the findings from the State arbitration is appealed to a civil court, the expert is not compensated by the State.  The expert will find themselves sitting in depositions, hearings and a court trial for FREE!

Finally, they are not compensated for the time it actually takes to complete a thorough report.  The report for a complex project (vanishing edge pool) may take 20-40 hours to research and prepare.  The State simply does not have the resources to investigate your case thoroughly.

Limited Scope of Investigation 

The State's expert is limited in what they can investigate.  If the State's expert is only licensed to build swimming pools, then he may not be able to comment on other work that may be deficient.

Additionally, the State's expert is not allow to  completely investigate the project's compliance from "heat to toe."  They are limited to only commenting on the issues in the homeowner's complaint.  In other words, they are not allowed to analyze the entire project - only those items that the homeowner is aware or complaining of.  Most homeowners are not experts, so they may not be aware that there were problems with the soils, shotcrete (gunite), plumbing, electrical, concrete deck steel, etc. 

Though there may be more serious underlying problems - the homeowner will never be made aware of them.

An independent expert will issue a thorough report that addresses the entire project.  That report can be included in the homeowner's complaint to the State Contractor's Licensing Board.  That is usually all that will be required for them to issue a finding.

Should the dispute ever progress to litigation, the expert will be compensated for their time.  And, if the homeowner prevails in court, they may be entitled to reimbursement by the contractor for the costs associated with the expert witness.

So, don't you deserve the most thorough evaluation of your project possible?  It may disclose structural or safety issues that you weren't even aware of!


Paolo Benedetti - Aquatic Artist
 "Creating water as art."™ 
Aquatic Technology Pool and Spa 
©www.aquatictechnology.com

Monday, January 14, 2013

Infinity Edge Swimming Pool Expert

Why does a vanishing edge swimming pool require a dedicated edge pump and filter?

Cleanliness

The edge of an infinity pool functions as a gigantic skimmer weir.  A normal pool with wall skimmers only has 8" of skimmer weir (per skimmer).  A vanishing edge pool may have 20-50 FEET of skimming weir. 

When the pool is in the "spill-over" mode, all of the debris in the pool flows over the edge.  This explains why the catch basin is always full of leaves, bugs and dirt.

Without a filter on the pump that returns water from the catch basin to the upper pool, this debris would be ground up and recirculated into the upper pool.  Negative edge pools that do not have a filter(s) on the edge pump, turn cloudy the instant this debris is pumped back into the pool.

Besides, who wants to swim in a cloudy pool full of ground up bugs, worms, tree frogs and leaves?

Energy Efficiency 

Filtration of the pool can usually be performed with a small energy efficient pump.  Usually a 1/2 to 1 horsepower pump is sufficient.  Large volumes of moving water are not necessary.  Water clarity is improved at slower velocities with longer filtration cycles (longer run times).

The pumps required to create the "flooded edge" effect are usually much larger than what is required to merely filter the pool.  Pumps of 2 to 5 horsepower are not uncommon.

To design a vanishing edge pool, that combines the edge pump and primary filtration system into one system is foolhardy.  Though $5,000 - $7,500 might be saved on the initial project cost, the expense of operating this larger pump to filter the pool will quickly exceed any initial cost savings.

The edge pump really only needs to operate for two hours daily, when the pool is in use or when the flooded edge effect is desired.  Therefore excess energy will be consumed daily, to merely achieve the necessary filtration turnover rate.
 
Don't step over dollars to pick up pennies!

Paolo Benedetti - Aquatic Artist 
"Creating water as art."™ 
Aquatic Technology Pool and Spa 
©www.aquatictechnology.com