~DIY FAIL~ Ducky Swimming Pool Rebuild ~ DIY REBUILD~

Not all ideas and plans work out they way one would invision it the first time. We all wish for an idea to work perfectly the first time and for it to last a longtime. Sadly that wasn’t the case for version 1 of the Ducky Pool. It had its minor flaws that I could deal with. Such as the drain under the fence was a little small, it drained slowly and often would get clogged. Easy to fix but just a slight annoyance. Overall it seemed to work pretty well for a few months, then this started to happen.

If the kids or I stepped to close to the side of the pool, the dirt would push down and collapse the side of the tote. Shrinking the size of the pool drastically. With 6 Runner Ducks...uh...running around, they need as much swimming room as they can get. Though the tote idea worked great for an instant pool, it was just a little to flimsy on the sides.

Then just the other day the line in the sand was crossed. The valve that was used to drain the pond into the empty lot behind my house broke and the pool would no longer drain. So today I decided it was time to scrap this idea and come up with something new.

Sometime you gotta give a little to get a little you know what I mean? I’m going to forfeit the drain on this next pool design. Ya, I really did like the idea but it just ended up having problems...clogging, then finally breaking. This is what has pushed me to redesign the Ducky Pool. If any of you caught my last DIY post, I mentioned about using some of the old roof materials being torn off the shop at work for another project. Well this is that project.

It is a nice thick rubber liner that was used on the roof of the shop. This is going to work perfect for lining the Ducks new pool. I can make it whatever shape I want and make it easy for them to get in and out. We are talking beach entry custom Ducky Pool here...luxury

Just as I got started shaping the pool, guess who shows up to supervise the construction site and make sure I do it to their specifications.

Now, if I could just get these guys to leave me alone so I can get some work done that would be nice. They did score some tasty treats while I was digging and shaping the pool. Worms... and lots of them. Maybe those worms will distract these Ducks until I get done...maybe not!!

So the side of the pool closest to the fence is the deepest part and it is straight up and down. The other 3 sides are kind of a bowl shape, all have a nice gradual slopeback toward the fence. This pool is going to be a lot bigger and give them a lot more room to get wild and crazy in the pool.

My plan for emptying and cleaning the pool is this: I’m going to pick up an electric pond pump, you know the ones they use for water fountains or waterfalls. I will just attach a hose to it, plug it into the side of the shed, and drop it in the pool and pump the water out into the garden. That way I am not wasting all that water and instead using it to water the fruits and veggies we are growing. I made a deep indent in the deep end of the pool so all the mud and poo-poo can be flushed to that low point, then pumped out, hopefully for easy cleaning.

I swear everytime I try to take a photo these ducks come in and photo bomb the picture. Good grief!!!

In order to get the liner to stay in place I decided to use 2x4’s that I had laying around. So I cut and placed them around the edge of the new pool as a way to anchor the liner.

The 2x4 closest to the fence was stood up on its edge to compensate for the ground slipping toward the fence. Then I stapled the liner to it and did a full wrap around that 2x4. Then took the whole liner and placed it into the new pool. I knew it wasn’t going to be completely smooth because of its shape. I ended up with 2 creases by the time I was done. Not bad!!

Then all that was left was to secure the liner to the 2x4’s with staples and trim off the excess. I left an inch or 2 over hang past the 2x4’s just in case I want to roll it under the 2x4’s. But for now I think it looks pretty good.