When an inground pool has outlived its usefulness and become an eyesore, there are a few different options. You can move, and let someone else renovate the pool, but this is not going to go well since a house with a swampy pool may have trouble selling. Then there’s renovating the pool back to its former glory, but this may be too costly. Then there’s removal of the pool all together. Whatever your case, if you need the pool gone, how much should you expect to spend? How much to get rid of inground pool?
How Much To Get Rid Of Inground Pool
Whenever you’re figuring out how much to get rid of inground pool, there are some basics to start with. Begin by considering some of the pool features as well as access restrictions you might have in your yard. For the steps required to remove the pool, you can check out our article herewhich goes over this in detail.
When figuring out the demolition and remediation costs however, you need to look at what your pool is made of. A gunite or concrete pool will cost more to remove than a vinyl pool. A large concrete deck will cost more than a small brick deck to remove. If you can drive a dump truck up to the pool area it’ll cost less than if you have to shuttle all the material with a skid-steer.
How Much Does Pool Demolition Cost?
When factoring in demolition costs there are two major factors. First, what the pool is made of and how will it be disposed of. Next, the amount of time it will take to demolish and remove the pool and deck areas.Then, how much time for backfill.
What Makes A Pool Removal Expensive?
The most expensive by far of any pool I’ve ever had to remove was a painted concrete pool with a huge concrete deck. Painted pools are unfortunately the most expensive because they cannot be recycled. The typical concrete pool can be taken to a concrete recycler who can crush the concrete and separate out the rebar. The rebar can be recycled and the concrete resold as engineered fill for parking lots and other approved uses. Painted concrete has to go directly to the landfill. Yet another reason to never paint your pool.
What Makes A Pool Removal Inexpensive?
The least expensive pool I’ve ever had to remove is a vinyl pool with steel walls and a small deck area. This was out of the ground completely in a couple hours. The steel walls went to the recycler, and the vinyl liner went in the dumpster.
Additional Cost Factors For Getting Rid Of An Inground Pool
My experience is primarily related to removing pools to build another pool in its place. However, there are times when pools are removed and backfilled. This is when your access is incredibly important. Not only do you need to get the pool off the property, but you need to truck in fill dirt as well. It is becoming less and less common for municipalities to approve leaving a pool in place and burying it. They want the pool completely removed in most situations.
When your project takes more time, that equals more money the excavation contractor is going to need to charge for their work. Keep in mind that doing some landscape work might be less costly than trying to force your excavation crews into a small access. It may be less expensive to allow the excavation contractor to use larger machines. This could destroy some of your landscaping. However, then they could use small machines for all the work.
How Much To Get Rid Of Inground Pool Summary
Ultimately, when looking at how much to get rid of inground pool, the answer is it depends. It could be as little as $7,500 to remove and backfill a small vinyl pool, or as much as $30,000 or more to remove a large painted concrete pool with a big deck with poor access. There unfortunately is not a great way to know how much your pool removal will cost without contacting some excavation contractors, having them come out to your house, and give you a price for the work.
