I know it’s a bit premature (since the side yard is nowhere close to being ready to install the pool) but we went ahead and got ourselves a 10 foot galvanized livestock tank.
We were planning on restoring and painting the garage doors on my single day off this week, but since it’s been a 100 plus degrees for some time I think my brain may have got a little fried from being overworked, overstressed and totally overheated. Pretty much I just said fuck it, there is no way we sanding and painting garage doors in this heat and we aren’t driving two hours to the beach and I need to swim RIGHT NOW.
We went over to the local tack and feed store to pick out a tank and I was super disappointed to see that the 8 foot galvanized tanks were gone. The owner informed us that there was no chance of getting another shipment in for months and months and months…shit.
I had recently gotten a couple quotes from BH Tanks to have a custom tank made like this one; at about $1,300 – $1,500 it was out of our budget. We settled on this 10 foot biggie and at about $500 it was a little bigger and more expensive than we originally planned. We had to go home and remeasure the side yard to make sure it would fit – and with the yard at 16 feet wide the 10 footer is going to be a better fit.
Until we get the side yard cleaned out and ready to go, plumb out the tank and order our salt water pump and filter we are just going ahead and filling that bitch up. Total ghetto Hemet style our above ground pool out on the back patio. No filter, no chemicals, just an old fashioned cowboy style dipping trough. When the water gets too filthy to stand we are draining the tank into our sad and overheated grapefruit tree.
The Boy even went more ghetto style and brought in a folding plastic chair to sit in while in the pool. Classy.
I must have spent three hours soaking and swimming around in there and it was AWESOME. SO AWESOME. Seriously worth every penny – that’s how happy I was. I haven’t been that elated or relaxed in a long time – the Boy got his TV and I got me a pool. Now at least when we are doing projects outside in the 100 plus degree heat we can jump in the tank for a little cool down and get back to work.
I’m betting that we can get the side yard going since, big announcement, the long arduous battle that has been the exterior painting is ALMOST DONE. So close. So very close.
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53 Comments
I LOVE that you went ahead and got this. How deep is it? It looks like a pretty decent depth there.
This heat is a killer, isnt it?
I dont know how much you want to reveal, but what job do you have that only allows you one day off? I remember you mentioned your job once- I think it was on AT when I first found this blog- but man, I imagine it must be so hard to only have one free day to yourself.
Anyway, that pool looks so cool and inviting. Awesome choice.
this is frickin awesome. i want one.
Any plans of putting in a pool shower?
We live in AZ and today’s high is 114. I have been promised a pool in the next year
Love it and am happy you found a good price. Did they deliver it?
Good on ya….glad you got some relief from the heat! It looks like it’s going to be perfect.
COMPLETELY worh it.
Congratulations. I would love nothing better in the TX heat than to be up to my neck in water.
I live in Texas and we haven’t hit 100 yet. Just a matter of time.
Showed your tank ideas to my husband. He loved it.
So now we gotta go get a tank.
The water looks tranquil and blue.
Awesome!
Flippin awesome! It looks so refreshing!
I’m so happy you got your pool! and I’m glad you got a bigger one than you thought you were gonna get!!
NICE
hey…on another topic….just noticed the redwood fence that divides your house from the grey one. that fence looks really..REALLY close to the grey house!!!!!
Love it! I want one of those super bad.
That is epic!!! We were going to do the Big Lots special above ground pool, but this is so much better.
how awesome! a salt water pump? i’d trade you our pool for your salt water one any day. smart choice. the chemicals make the skin feel so awful. enjoy. and yes, you’ll crank through the outdoor projects faster with a pool. it seriously cools you down and pumps you back up to continue laboring in the triple digits!
can’t wait to follow along on this and hear how the semi-shallow pool does, and the filter. awesome.
Omg! It’s so awesome and I need one. Now.
Woo Hoo!
May I just say that I too live in the desert and I’m pretty sure my brain is melting. Not Bullhead city where it was 121 yesterday, but as long as I can fry an egg on the sidewalk the deets don’t really matter, right? Stupid ass desert. Not stupid ass, however, is this KICK ass tank. Wonder if my association would mind if I put one in the patio. Or the parking lot. No shame in my game.
The extra 2 feet were so worth it. That tank is PIMP!
Oh yes! Love it. I can imagine how awesome it would be out there in the desert. Definitely worth the expense.
The folding chair is perfect!
when are you free?! i want to sit in that thing and drink a beer with ya’ll. xoxoxoxoox
b
never. ever ever.
maybe late august…and maybe it will be filtered and installed by then.
I am so envious. Does it come with a drain spigot or how do you plan on draining it?
it has a drain.
in all the reference pics i see of these kind of pool I don’t see the filter system. Do you remove it when in use? How does it work?
suhweet.
Well, the filter thing is the puzzler. Some people do it different ways.
We are attempting a more permanent solution for ours with the salt water system – but we haven’t worked out all the details yet. There will be a DIY in the future for sure, but first we gotta figure out all the kinks.
that pool sure looks like fun, and probably pretty easy to drain and clean. When you put in salt water, where do you plan to drain? since the salt will probably kill whatever it oversoaks.
as an alternative to salt… maybe you could use a recirculating pump with this attached?
make it into a fountain/waterfall!!
http://www.appliedozone.com/pz_series.html
“an that’s uncle Joe,
He’s a movin’ pretty slow
At the junction.
Petticoat Junction”
Love the pool!
Can’t help it. That’s
What I bear in me head when I look at them. Those and the water tanks on the rooftops in NYC.
F- ing spellcheck
Would give anything for a tank like this right now. LoVe It.
it hit 104 here in the Ojai Valley….it was 94 on my porch…IN THE SHADE…
really want one of these tanks but have to get the pea gravel first to cover up our dirt pit (aka the yard)
love all your ideas..thanks
This is an essential purchase for your climate. It’s right up there with air conditioning! I love it. Also, love your blog
Yes!
Congrats.
I was just talking about this with my husband an hour ago. We had an in ground pool (technically still do) until our house burned down three weeks ago.
We’re taking a couple of days away for a little R & R and we’ve had uninterrupted time to talk and think about what we want to do next. A traditional pool can be a lot of work and our old house was a fixer upper, (that we’d almost entirely fixed up) with a huge yard and we had kids; all very time consuming activities.
We’re up in the air about having a pool again and, reading about this sort of pool seemed like a good solution if we don’t rebuild on our current land which has our existing pool.
I’m so glad you took the plunge. (sorry) And be ready sooner, rather than later to drain/refill it. Algae is a fast moving monster.
Best shelter blog ever.
Bless your heart! I actually whooped with joy for you when I saw you got it! You guys work your asses off and deserve a little R & R. Good for you!
I want one too, off to the feed store to price one.
this is incredible! beat that heat!
We live in Dallas and made a stock tank soaking pool out of a 6′ tank about 2 months ago. It’s the best thing! Ours is covered so it stays aroun 82-84 degrees, almost too chilly. I’m curious how warm yours gets in full sun. We considered a salt water system but found that the salt might react with the zinc that most tanks are coated with to prevent rust. We determined that it might shorten the life of the tank so we went with a small 1500 gallon/hour filter pump and I sanitize with pool shock (31% hydrogen peroxide). It’s worked great. I think I’m going to upgrade to an 8 foot next year. Keep up the good work!
That thing is amazing, ghetto style or not. In fact, I may totally need to borrow the idea in the future, as the Florida heat has been brutal.
SO AMAZING!!!!
Popping back in to say that I totally added this idea to our DIY wishlist in this post: http://hernandohouse.wordpress.com/2010/09/06/diy-wishlist/
I want one flippin awesome! It looks so refreshing!
There is a LOT of non-functioning links on this page…
Love it! Going on my “to-do one of these days” list.
Howdy. LOVING your blog. I spent a couple hours researching saltwater chlorinators after seeing this post, ’cause it seems like a GREAT answer to installing a “pool” for a reasonable price. However, after all the research I’m concerned with a salt water system really wreaking havoc on a galvanized or zinc-coated livestock tank.
It’s been a couple years since you posted this, and it seems like you still have the tank in all your “side yard” posts, but there is no DIY post for the pool. Have you installed a filter yet, or are you just filling and emptying it as necessary?
I’d really love to know more about your experience, as the summers here in Colorado exceed 100 degrees on a regular basis, and we just had a kiddo who already loves to swim. This seems like a great idea, and I’d love to do it, but I’m hoping to learn a little more from other people’s experiences first.
Thanks!
Oh, please…might you give us an update on what you have learned about the practical matters of these pools? It would be so helpful. I love the aesthetic and am right on the verge of buying a tank this weekend, but it would be helpful to know what you have learned about maintaining them.This landlocked Kansas girl needs a pool!
Would love to put one of these at my house wondering were to get the tank at & how much they would cost? Would like it 21′x48 Please let me know as soon as you can. My pool broke & would love to do this instead of a regular pool.
Thanks,Darlene
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