Vanguard Swimming Pool Contractors

I'd recommend Juan and his team with no reservations and have passed his info onto my friends and family. Why? Because he's an honest, easy to work with, talented and hardworking guy - and the same can be said of his crew. The project to 5 months to complete (one month longer than anticipated - but we added a couple components and some materials were late) and was $700 over budget - that's less than 1%. He developed the designs, put the plans together, got it though the city - and once we got the permit, there were only 7 days during the whole process when someone wasn't working at the house. The quality has been beyond expectations - the pool, the walls, the paving stones, integrating the new construction with the existing house and garage. He's really easy to communicate with via text or phone - and they guys kept our yard as clean as can be expected considering the total transformation. Probably the only area where things weren't above and beyond was that the planning process took a couple months longer than we had hoped - but that's fairly typical when going back and forth with the city planning department. We had other quotes that were less detailed and more expensive - we're totally pleased that we went with Juan and would had done it exactly the same way if we were to have started again.

During our initial due diligence we called several pool contractors including Swan, California Pools, and Mr. Carlos Pools. Swan and California pools never called us back while Mr. Carlos only dealt with us over the phone and sent us proposed 3-D drawings. On the other hand, Vanguard (Juan - Owner), was very attentive from the start and showed a sincere interest in helping us build exactly what we needed. Juan came to our home, took initial measurements, provided rough drawings on the spot, and gave us a price. Juan seemed just as excited as we were in building our new pool since it would include a 50 ft. lap lane and a contemporary style. We decided to go with Juan and signed a contract with him soon after meeting him and conducting a bit of research on Angie's list. Construction of our pool took approximately 3-4 months. Juan was there for the majority of the build and took an active part in doing actual hard labor which was good to see. He was very responsive during the build and gave us a great education on the different stages of the build. There were a few surprises (e.g. additional grading, concrete, etc.) during the build that increased the original contract price and caused a bit of stress but Juan helped us through it. The only area that I wish went smoother was the inspection process with the City of Walnut which caused us to spend several hundred dollars for a ridiculous "pool cover" that we threw out immediately after inspection. We had a hard deadline of June 6th due to our daughter's 8th birthday which we had advertised as a pool party and Juan and his crew worked very hard to ensure that the pool was ready to go by then. In the end, the pool and backyard look absolutely amazing and we are more than 100% satisfied. Juan was great to work with and I would not hesitate to recommend him to family and friends.

After meeting, he told me he'd take the measurements home, and we'd be in contact shortly after he priced out my project.

Emailed once; left phone messages twice. No response. Still in business? Not the experience I was led to believe from previous posts.

Left email and several phone messages...never returned call or email. Other reviews were all A's - not trusting all of the reviews.

JUAN ARRIVED ON TIME AND WORKED ALONG SIDE HIS CREW UNTIL PROJECT WAS COMPLETED ...ALL DONE IN ONE DAY. THE PROJECT REQUIRED TALENT AND VISION AND LOOKS BEAUTIFUL AS WELL AS FUNCTIONAL. I WAS TREATED WITH RESPECT AND FELT I WAS IN GOOD HANDS SHOULD MY PROJECT NEED FURTHER ATTENTION IN THE FUTURE. EVERY DETAIL WAS ATTENDED TO PERFECTLY. NO MESS. I LOVE THE INTEGRITY & HONESTY SHOWN BY JUAN AND HIS CREW. I FELT VERY COMFORTABLE HAVING THEM IN AND AROUND MY HOME.

Prior to meeting Juan, we had interviewed four other pool companies over several months time. When we were ready to move forward, we weren't totally comfortable with any of the pool companies, so we went back on to Angie's List and reconsidered getting a quote from another pool company. We contacted Juan Arana. After interviewing him both of us were convinced that he was the best option. He was extremely professional, listened carefully to what we wanted to accomplish, made sound suggestions, and was up front with us on what he felt was the best direction to take and the cost involved depending on the choices of service we decided on. His price was not the lowest, but came within a few dollars of the other quotes. He started on time, was thorough, and supervised his crew throughout the entire job. And even the men he brought to work in our yard were very polite and conscientious, taking special care to move or cover anything that might be damaged in the process. We had a diving board removed and he actually removed and saved the trim tile from that for us. We did not want to replace our existing 15 year-old tile around the pool as it was exactly the look and color I wanted. He offered to hand clean the tile around the pool, but ended up bead cleaning it. It is absolutely beautiful. It looks like new. We were extremely impressed with the care and quality of the work done by the man who built the new pedestal. It is exactly what I asked for. And he even replaced several broken bricks on another wall beside our front driveway without our asking and without extra charge. Juan has communicated with us throughout the entire process, always asking if we are satisfied with each part of the restoration process. He has followed up after completion, including start-up of pool water chemical levels, making sure everything checked out okay. Juan never asked for payment prior to completing each step of the contract. We cannot say enough about this company - Yes! we do recommend him.

We found Juan in our neighborhood on the way to a client meeting--we saw his truck and flagged him down. We already had 4 swimming pool contractors come out to bid and it just seemed outrageous (what they were suggesting and the $$). Juan gave us his personal cell phone number and told us we can text him, so we did. He came out as soon as he was available. We loved that Juan did our bid right there on the spot on his ipad (other guys took up to 2 weeks!). Juan's price was excellent (best by a land slide) and we just "felt good" about him doing the work. We gave him a deposit right then and there (remember, we had already had 4 contractors out so we knew what we needed!). Juan started the work immediately, and was always suggesting ways to cut costs without compromising the quality of the job. Every crew he has was professional, on time, and did great work. Juan always answered phone calls and texts (or returned very promptly) and genuinely wanted the job to be done right and for us to be happy. Juan was always showing up, inspecting the work, bossing his crew around, and doing work himself on a regular basis. Since we never owned a pool before and bought a house with a pool that needed replacing, we needed someone we could trust knew how to build a pool right. He's the guy. And by the way, all those guys that told us we needed to completely re-plumb because "copper was everywhere" were wrong and Juan was right. I can't even begin to tell you the money he saved us. The other guys were going to completely rip up our hardscape! Juan is all about giving the customer the best service at the best price. I" should also mention that Juan is a lovely family man. He takes his work seriously and is infinitely kind. We got to know him a bit because he was ALWAYS AT THE JOB! How many people can say that about their contractor?! Anyway, we had him do our driveway too, another excellent experience and he will be the guy we call when we renovate the interior of our house. Our neighbor came out when they were doing the driveway and stated, "I wished these guys did my driveway; they are doing a much better job that the guys I had." And i just nodded and smiled.

Juan responded to our home and provided us with a quote for a new pool. He arrived on time and was informative on the process of the installation as well as the costs involved. He emailed the quote to my husband when he said he would. We appreciated his prompt reply and professionalism.

I called Juan of Vanguard Pools for an estimate on re-plastering the pool at our mid-century house. Juan arrived on time and was very friendly, professional and efficient. After taking some measurements, asking some questions and making some calculations, he gave me the estimate on the spot. We got a few other bids, but I liked Juan from the start largely because he owns and operates his company and consequently takes real care and pride in his work. He's not just an employee of a larger firm: his reputation and livelihood is on the line with each job he does. On the day he arrived for the estimate, he noticed some salt that our pool service guy had spilled (and not cleaned up). Juan pointed out that making a mess like that was unacceptable and unprofessional. I liked such attention to detail. Although his bid was not the cheapest, I felt he would do the best job. We agreed on a date to start draining the pool, then the demo would take a day and the plastering would take another day. Juan also arranged for and picked up the appropriate permit from LA Dept of Building & Safety. The draining, demo, plastering and re-filling and start-up went off without a hitch. The crew (including Juan) worked tirelessly and were meticulous in their job. In the demo, they were able to cut below the tile so that not a single tile was harmed in the process. Both my husband and I take a lot of pride in our mid-century house--it's a bit of a time capsule that we have spent a lot of time and effort maintaining--and so aesthetics are really paramount. We were worried something would go wrong--plants trampled, paint chipped, redwood siding dented, etc--but as soon as they were finished, everything looked exactly the same. Except the pool! Which was even more sparkling and glorious than before. After the pool was re-filled, Juan came out three times (including weekends) to check the levels and vacuum the bottom. If he also did regular monthly servicing, we would hire him for that too. My husband and I were really impressed with Juan's work. He clearly takes an enormous amount of pride in his job and it shows. We have already been swimming several times since the work was completed, and the plaster (or quartz) makes such a difference. All projects of this scope (especially those involving demo) are nerve-wracking. You basically take a leap of faith with whomever you hire and hope that nothing goes wrong and that he delivers as promised. With Juan, he went above and beyond. I would not hesitate to hire him again, and I unequivocally would recommend him to anyone looking to re-plaster their pool.

It was such a pleasure working with Juan (the owner). He was very patient and detailed in explaining every process of the replastering and tiling the pool and how the equipment worked together. He sat down with us and explained the pros and cons of regular plaster versus quartz. We opted for the white quartz. He did not try to sell us anything we didn't want or need. He's a professional and throughout the project he continued his professionalism. He delivered on everything he promised. He started the job on time and in fact finished prior to the deadline. He and his crew were puntual and worker bees, and cleaned up after the demo incredibly well. One thing that stood out in Juan was his ability to give you his undivided attention - we felt we were his most important customer. I had questions and was very pleased to be able to pick up the phone or email him and he would quickly reply or answer my question even if they were not directly related to the pool or work he was performing. He went beyond the call of duty. Juan is an honest man and these days that is hard to find. Our pool looks beautiful. I would definitely recommend Juan. In fact, he can feel free to use me as a reference and use the before and after pictures of our pool. Thank you Juan for driving the long distance to our home and making our pool beautiful. What a difference in our backyard!

Wonderful! Couldn't be happier. New plaster, deck, plumbing, salt system

Juan is very easy to work with. He is very professional, courteous and helpful. He or his crew always showed up on time and cleaned everything up before they left. We are so happy with our new pool and backyard. have already referred him to friends! Juan Arana (Vanguard Pools) did a fantastic job. Our pool was old and in need of new plaster and coping. When completed, we added a baja bench, new plaster and tile, new coping, plumbing, drains and pump. We also added new decking and planters around the pool with great results. Juan did a great job designing and coordinating the entire job. He was always on site available to answer our questions and keep us updated on progress. We are very happy with our new pool and backyard and will use Juan's expertise again. Paul and Nancy

see above

Juan was a pleasure to work with. The job ran on time. The quality of the work was fantastic. Everything was cleaned up. Couldn't be happier.

They were excellent. I would absolutely use them again in the future.

Updated 7/24/12 - Beware this vendor. Unable to contact via cellphone OR e-mail. Would not want him to touch my pool again anyway. Considering legal action, but difficult. When Juan asks if he can "coordinate" startup with your regular pool guy, what he is really looking to do is walk away, and have someone else to blame for his ugly plaster. Be sure to check out the attached picture of what the plaster now looks like. Updated 6/22/12 - BEWARE - six months after install... MAJOR problems still pending. Proposed resolutions do not make sense. I regret my original review - not sure this is such a good vendor. MORE TO COME! Updated 4/30/12 - four months after install - starting to get a lot of discoloration on our plaster, and the vendor is suddenly difficult to contact and quick to point fingers at my pool guy that I have been using for 15+ years. More to come - beware. This is the original review (almost - xxx) as written: Overall, a xxxat experience with this vendor. A bit crazy on timing as the work was around the Christmas & New Years holidays. Everything went well thru demo, inspections by LA City, Tile & re-plaster. Problems with the conduit for the light could have been a conflict for the deck resurface that we had scheduled, but NO! Right after the New Year holiday, a crew was on site & DONE to clear the way for our scheduled deck re-surface. This vendor was right on about what was required of the LA City inspector where other vendors wanted a lot of money for drain and skimmer upgrades that were not actually needed. Two flippers xx !

They have done a good job. The contractor Scott is good. They are responsive. The quality of their work is good. I would use them again in the future.

Juan, the owner of the company, spent lots of time with us in the beginning as my wife and I tired to figure out how we wanted our pool remodeled. He answered many questions by email after the initial consultation. We also spoke frequently by phone during the time the job was being performed. Juan is personable and very easy to work with. He is well organized. The work started and finished when Juan said it would. There were no surprises regarding price quoted and amount paid. His staff worked hard. The overall result is fantastic! The concrete walk looks great. The plaster job is beautiful. The brick work (along the path and for the aforementioned wall) is excellent. The variable speed pump Juan recommended is so quiet you don't know it is on. Because of this work, our backyard has had a major facelift. Overall, Juan demonstrates all the qualities I would want in a contractor, or anyone I do business with. I highly, highly, highly recommend him.

I have a very good relationship with him. They took out the old plaster in the pool. This guy knew exactly what was happening and he was very informative. He was very timely and never had me waiting for anything. My experience with him was absolutely positive. I had another estimate and I think his prices are comparable.