Local Love. Daniel Armstrong chats about his recent pool build with Cronulla Pools.
I’m someone who cares a lot about what others think. Sometimes to my own detriment, I can often perseverate over the opinions of others and where Cronulla Pools is concerned, I am no different.
Every single one of our clients, in my mind, is a good friend. Someone who has allowed us into their homes, trusted our advice and ability and that means so much to me. We are all here to do our very best for each and every one of you - to impress you not only with the beautiful pool you’ll be sure to get at the end of your project but also with the genuine care we carry around in all that we do.
This story is special for many reasons. Thank you to Dan for choosing us to build your pool. And thank you to Josh, our kindhearted and hard working project manager - the end result is nothing short of amazing.
Here i chat to Dan about his recent pool build with Cronulla Pools.
I’d been living in the UK for the last fifteen years and our ambition was always to have a pool in our backyard when we moved back to Australia. Our daughter really wanted a pool, and this was the motivation for us initially – we haven’t been able to have one because obviously it wouldn’t make sense to have a pool in the UK!
In terms of design, we wanted a pool that was big enough for our young daughter to play in now, and have friends over to hang out in the coming years. So we were after a pool that was a reasonable size. In the end it’s almost 8 x 4, rectangle-shaped, so it’s a good size. We haven’t used it much yet because it’s been too cold, so we’re resigned to the fact that most likely we’ll wait until Spring or Summer to really get the most use out of it.
We went pretty traditional in terms of what we wanted. I wanted a blue looking pool so for the Beadcrete we went with a mid to dark blue colour. The pool has a really nice blue tinge to it. Our whole backyard looks completely different. Apart from a small patio it was just a flat grassed area, so in addition to the pool we had it fully landscaped.
It's been a big project. For me the process was all new – I’d been involved in building projects over the years just in terms of putting in new bathrooms, so certainly not something that goes on for 3 months. It’s such a big thing. The biggest challenge was the weather. It didn’t stop raining the entire time the pool was being built. It was a mud pit. That was a little bit stressful for me. I thought we’d dig a hole, fill it in, that would be that. The rain and the wind was a huge challenge. I’d hear the rain all night and think – it’s never going to stop. I spoke to Cronulla Pools and they reassured me there was nothing to panic about, but it got to the stage where the pool was actually starting to encroach on our neighbours’ driveway. As soon as I had that conversation with Matt, a day later he had 5 or 6 guys out here working to finish the dig and get the concrete done. If it hadn’t been for the rain it would have been a smooth operation. I was relieved when the concrete was finally in.
Josh was a really good guy to work with. He was here most of the build and he was very good with communication and chasing things up. It’s been a good experience overall – I’ve enjoyed it. One thing I would say was really standout during the construction process were the trades, all the people Cronulla Pools work with. All the subcontractors, and everyone Cronulla Pools team up with, they were amazing. I didn’t have any experience in those areas and basically everything was brand new, so that was a real positive experience.
The end product is amazing. Overall the landscaping was basically a blank sheet before, and we’ve got a pergola, new lighting, plants – we’ll get a lot of use out of it. Believe it or not, we bought all these pool toys in London, so that will be great in summer. We had to unwrap all these things – a big swan, a big blow-up shark. They’ll be such good things for my daughter and her friends to play with once summer is here.
If you’re after a pool of your own, please get in touch.
