Mr Pool

Took 6 weeks to finish but did fine job. Cost was in line with expectations.

unknown

Story told above.

It is challenging for us because it is difficult to get somebody out here. We had a few problems; I was leaving out for a meeting when they came, I did not knew when they were going to come, so I guess one of the most difficult thing is not knowing when they are going to come. They did get in and they did worked out the problem that it had.

In early October 2010, my husband and I entered into a contract with Mr. Pool with the understanding that the primary responsible party, Terry Monroe, had in excess of 30 years of experience building and maintaining swimming pools. We are first time pool owners and needed someone with extensive experience to guide us throughout this process. The pool was completed within four weeks. There were minor problems throughout the experience including a) they cut down bushes in our landscaping to get heavy equipment into our backyard without discussing this with us. We had made prior arrangements to have our lawn care contractors come and temporarily remove them with the plan of replacing them as the plants had grown to considerable size such as would have been difficult to replace. When asked about this, Terry assured us that he would replace them. Later, he did make good on a mutually satisfactory arrangement. b) Throughout the experience with Mr. Pool, they have come onto our property at random times without notification and many times when we were not at home. While we were not comfortable with this, we felt we could trust Mr. Pool and its employees and since we did not want to hinder the progress of the process, we did not complain about this factor. However, at a later time, when other vendors were subcontracted by Terry, he directed them as to how to gain access to our backyard without our specific permission. This was not acceptable at all. In January of 2011 (only 2.5 months later), the pool/spa heater quit working. We attempted to contact Mr. Pool at both the office number, and Terry Monroe directly on his cell phone. He was not available to respond to our request for one week. Once contacted, he had been out of town. he said he would come out the next day to check on the problem. When he came out and inspected the problem, he said he had to order some parts. Then it was another week and he had an illness. Then he had to come look at it again because he just wasn't sure what was wrong with it. After more than 3 weeks, my husband finally contacted the manufacturer to inspect the problem. We were particularly concerned because of Terry's delays and excuses and because there appeared to be considerable rusting on the external surfaces of the heater and suspected there was likely more on the internal aspects of the equipment. The manufacturer sent a representative out and informed us, after careful inspection of the equipment, that the installation of the heater was improper on many levels including the fact that it was placed too close to the external house wall, too close to the pool pumps, and too close to an AC unit. Additionally, they informed that the fence built to enclose the equipment should have been ventilated (which it was not) and that the entirety of the problems had created the "perfect storm." Due to the faulty installation of the heater, the warranty, which should have been valid for one year from installation, was voided. Mr. Pool/Terry Munroe was notified of this in mid-February. It took until mid-March for him to complete the work and was difficult and, at times, impossible to contact him. The only way we successfully accomplished the replacement of the old heater with a new one was to threaten legal remedies. Finally, Terry wanted to "repair" the old heater "temporarily" until the new one could be delivered from California. A plumber had to be employed to make the necessary hook-ups when the parts were replaced. This had to all be done again when the NEW heater arrived. So, subsequently, there were two separate bills from this plumber. When we submitted these for reimbursement to Terry, he refused to pay one of them saying that the reason for the first bill was that they had connected it up incorrectly the first time. This was not the case. Terry had made an early claim that part of the problem which resulted in the malfunction of the original heater was due to faulty installation back in October. Our position on this matter is that it was Terry's responsibility to oversee the proper hook-up of the gas lines by the plumber ... the plumber not being an expert on pool equipment installation. Prior to the second hook-up by the plumber (which was necessary for the temporary "repair"), Terry provided written instructions (he did not do this the first time) which the plumber then followed. We do not intend to pursue this further. Under threat of legal action, our heater has been replaced, one of the plumber bills was paid, and Terry personally sub-contracted with a man to replace the fencing which had to be partially torn down and reconstructed to appropriate specifications. This sub-contractor got the job done in a less than professional manner, leaving a very unfinished look on the interior of the fence. Furthermore, he apparently tried to use one of our patio table as a saw horse when we were not there to supervise, and broke our table. Never-the-less, we are glad to have this nightmare concluded. In summary, while the pool that Terry/Mr. Pool built was aesthetically pleasing, the complications and the lack of responsiveness have been ridiculous. I would have paid another $10,000 to another company had I had any idea of the hassles we would encounter not to mention the fact that we missed out on the enjoyment of our hot tub for almost three months of the winter. Completely and totally unsatisfactory and VERY stressful experience.