I had an 18 x 36 vinyl pool at my home in Pensacola from 1978 to 1982 and I maintained it myself. We didn't have birdcages, all pools in Pensacola and Ft. Walton Beach area just have fencing around your yard but no aluminum birdcage screen. I don't understand what all the costs are that come to $100 a month maintenance.
My biggest expense was the pool filter electricity, which ran a $1 a day, $30 a month on the electric bill. SECO here in Sumter County is much cheaper, we had extremly high bills in Escambia County. My normal routine was I would go outside and check both skimmer baskets everyday, just empty them out on the ground if anything was inside. Without the birdcage we did have leaves and one time a water moccasin, that a nice surprise. I had an automated chlorinator attached to the filter and I would buy cartridges at Walmart for about $12 and each one lasted about 3 weeks. I would also buy a 50 gallon drum of raw chlorine that I would dump a good amount into the pool every spring to shock the pool. I would run the hand held net across the top of the water to pick up any loose leaves or pine needles, etc. The Kreepy Krawler would sweep around on the bottom and I would backwash the pool filter about once a week. I would check the ph levels about once a week or whenever it might look a little bad, which was really never. I think vinyl pools are inherently clearer because only vinyl is touching the water. I maybe spent 10 to 15 minutes a day of my time, and this is when I had a job and not retired.
My pool looked very similar to this vinyl pool. You can see a white coping edge around the top of the pool, that holds the liner. I like the looks of a vinyl pool because they usually come with a tile border, which is imprinted in the liner, and you can even get designs for the bottom. The sides of the pool are constructed with 4' high plastic panels that lock together and they insert foam padding on the sides as well. The bottom is sculpted using vermiculite which runs up the sides in the deep area until they reach the side panels. Once it's completed the liner is much more comfortable on your feet as you walk around the pool. The sides are softer in case you hit your knees because of the padding. The pool stays clear much easier and retains the heat longer. In 1978 I had the pool installed with one ladder, steps, a diving board and one underwater light plus a good amount of decking for a total cost of $7,800. How times have changed.
