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Your Pool Building Is Delayed And Here Are 3 Reasons Why

Your Pool Building Is Delayed And Here Are 3 Reasons Why

It has been nearly seven months since your permit to build your pool has been approved. You picked out the tiles, selected your contractors, and started building. Your summer pool party invitations have already been e-blasted to your friends and family. However, summer is here, and your pool is still not completed. 

Like most of us, you would understandably feel frustrated, maybe even angered at the possibility that you might not be able to enjoy your pool for the summer months. It can make you feel out of control and singled out, and a whole bunch of questions come to your mind: What did I do wrong? Was my scheduling off? Was my pool design too complicated? Should I just cut my losses and forget about the whole thing? 

J Designs Pool and Spa has over 20 years of experience building and designing pools in California. We are here to tell you that there might be certain factors that could be causing the delay in your pool being built. 

These factors may seem out of your control, however by the end of this article, you’ll be able to identify them as: 

  • increased demand
  • equipment delays
  • labor shortage

By knowing what reasons could be behind your delayed pool construction, you can then work with your contractor to build a better plan and make sure your project doesn’t leave you frustrated and disappointed. 

Now let’s dive into some of these pool delay factors, and find some possible solutions! 

 

Factor #1: Increased Demand

“We’re stuck at home. Let’s build a pool!”

So what led to this surge of pool buying with homeowners in the last few years? Well, several things contributed to this increase in demand. 

COVID - 19

It’s hard to remember what our lives were like before COVID-19. It not only changed the way we related to the outside world but how we related to our own homes. Mandatory stay-at-home orders confined us to our houses and forced us to get creative with our time there. 

More Than Just A House 

In this new reality, where our worlds barely extended past our front yards, our homes were now our schools, offices, movie theatres, rec centers, day spas, and private resorts. 

Vacation Plans Are Canceled

With airlines keeping their planes docked for a time, vacation plans were canceled, so what were homeowners were growing frustrated with vacation money to spend, but nowhere to go. 

So what was the best solution to these issues? Easy. Build pools.

The demand for inground pools since 2019, the start of COVID, has increased between 20%-21%, and it is continued to grow through 2022. That’s great news for the pool and spa industry, but how does this matter to you?

Because there are more and more homeowners looking to install a pool on their property, timelines might be stretched longer than they would pre-pandemic. 

It’s even a surprise for a lot of pool design companies with contractors saying that this is something that’s unprecedented.

Our CEO claims that before the pandemic the time between signing a contract to taking your first dive would only take a few months. Now it could take up to six months to a year for a pool to finally be built. 

Keeping up with the increasing demand from homeowners is hard for a lot of our contractors to keep up with. It creates a bottleneck effect, where even after you get a permit to have a pool it might take you months to start the construction process. 

Imagine that you’re going to the opening of a fantastic new restaurant. However, you find out that you have arrived at the doors at the same time everyone else has. There is still a chance, despite all of your preparations and planning, that you might still have to wait to get that table. 

 

Factor #2: Equipment Delays

“A pool is only the sum of its parts. But where are the parts?”

Okay, so equipment delays and the increased demand kind of go hand in hand. Also, both started with COVID. 

Nationwide Shutdown

Before the pandemic, there was a steady global supply chain between contractors and their pool equipment manufacturers. You would order a part that would come overseas from China, it would take a few days to transport and then be delivered and readily available in a store for pick up. Pretty easy. Very quick. 

But what happens when those stores are suddenly shut down and the ordered parts have nowhere to go? There’s a freeze. 

Limited Warehouse Space

Now, contractors are scrambling to buy warehouses for them to store incoming materials. The downside of that is that, yes, warehouses are available but for a hefty price. A lot of contractors are not able to afford that and opt for shipping containers. Those who purchase a warehouse now have an even bigger problem: storage space. Preordered materials are now coming in, but space might be running out on the warehouse shelves. 

Travel Restrictions

Luckily, with the high demand for pools still rising during COVID, parts, and equipment don’t stay in the warehouses for very long. However, with current travel restrictions due to the pandemic, the equipment being delivered to the warehouses has taken longer and is more expensive to ship…You don’t need a crystal ball to foresee how this could spell trouble for pool contractors and your deadline. 

The shelves are emptying, and equipment that would usually take weeks to ship and deliver is now taking months. This causes a ripple effect which may, unfortunately, cause your pool to not be up and running when you want it to. 

 

Factor# 3: Labor Shortage

“Calling all pool builders!” 

It’s a recurring theme in this article, but the pandemic has changed the pool construction industry in a lot of ways. One of them is possibly our most important aspect: our labor force. 

Since 2019, COVID has caused a major reduction in our contractors: those hard-working angels measuring your pool, laying your tile, checking your chlorine levels, and ensuring that all of your pool dreams are fulfilled. 

This has caused a major problem within the pool industry and is also another factor about why the building of your pool is taking longer than usual. 

A few listed reasons there are fewer laborers after COVID are: 

  • Death or death within their family 
  • Early retirement
  • Relocation to take care of a loved one or be closer to family
  • High stress and burnout from increased demand 
  • Relocation to more affordable areas of the country

With the increase in gas prices, a lot of laborers who work as drivers of materials are finding it more difficult to commute. So more are opting to find jobs that allow them to work remotely. Then they want to build a pool to make their time at home more exciting and continue the cycle! 

 

What You Can Do To Speed Up Your Pool Building

So, in this article, you were clued into the three possible factors that could be behind your summer enjoyment turning into your fall headache. 

In a situation where you might feel out of control, now you have the knowledge to put the control back in your hands. However, there are additional things that you can do such as:

  • Keep an open line of communication between you and the contractor of your choice to stay updated on any possible delays. There is an online Project Management tool, where you can stay informed of everything happening to your project in real time. This online tool can give you direct access to your contractor, so if there is a delay, you will be the first to know about it.
  • Ask about their pool equipment supplier. With the right supplier, your contractor can get a steady shipment of products and materials needed to build your pool on a faster timeline, versus if they had overseas suppliers. Hayward Pool Products is a wonderful company that is growing in popularity among pool designers. 
  • Research your pool designer and their workforce. A growing number of them are employing licensed contractors who do specific work geared towards the building and maintenance of your pool. Experts in their field can make sure that your backyard oasis is as perfect as you want.

At J Designs Pool and Spa we’ve had 20 years of designing and installing world-class swimming pools for our customers across California. At the same time, we also care about helping you make the best decision when it comes to building your dream pool.

To learn more or to ask questions about your pool installation, contact us today to talk with one of our experienced specialists.

 

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