Unfortunately, there are some serious fiberglass pool myths regarding the potential drawbacks of owning a fiberglass pool. The following goes a long way toward addressing and alleviating these so-called issues:
Fiberglass Pools Will Float or Pop-Up
This is one of the most amusing, and most common, of all the myths and misconceptions we’ve heard regarding fiberglass pools. If anyone (especially another pool dealer) tells you that fiberglass pools pop out of the ground, then they are simply being dishonest and trying to use fear as a means of motivating you to purchase another type of pool. When you are told a Fiberglass Pool will pop out of the ground you should immediately ask just how a pool with 60 tons of water in it pops out of the ground.
The reality is that no more will fiberglass pools pop or float than will vinyl liner pools. In fact any watertight object will float if there is more water under it than in it. Pools can only float when they are drained and the water under the pool exerts upward pressure because there is no water in the pool.
So why would you need to drain a pool? Concrete pools need frequent draining to remove cracks, acid wash, clean stains and re-plaster the pool. Similarly, vinyl liner pools must be drained to replace liners or repair liners. Fiberglass pools NEVER need resurfacing so there is no need to drain the pool. So the end result is that many more concrete and vinyl pools float than do fiberglass; don’t be fooled.
After having installed hundreds of fiberglass pools in the ground, we have never had a pool float after installation. NEVER!
Fiberglass Pools Will Crack In Cold Climates
This fiberglass pool myth really makes no sense at all!
It is an accepted fact in the swimming pool industry that fiberglass has the ability to “flex” due to its incredible tensile strength, much more so than any other type of pool (i.e. concrete or vinyl). Moreover, when people are concerned about freeze conditions having an adverse affect on fiberglass, they are forgetting that when the water in a pool freezes, it expands in an upward direction (where there are no barriers).
But the simple fact is that Fiberglass Pools are 17 times stronger than concrete and can withstand ANY temperature. We have never had even one customer sustain any damage to their fiberglass shell due to freezing weather conditions. NEVER!
Fiberglass Pools are Much More Expensive than Vinyl Liner In-ground Pools
The answer to this fiberglass pool myth is a little tricky, but hopefully we’ll be clear here. Typically, if someone is comparing a fiberglass pool to a liner pool – apples to apples, features with features – they will find that a fiberglass unit typically runs 3-5k more, initially. We say initially, because when considering the cost of pools there are two different ways to arrive at the number.
The first way is by solely looking at the initial cost of the project. The second, unlike the first method, takes the initial price but also adds the expenses of the pool over the course of its lifetime.
For example, let’s say you spend $25,000 initially for a vinyl-lined pool. Considering the liner will typically last 7 years on average before it has to be replaced, and the average cost of a liner replacement is approx $3500, a pool owner could easily spend $7000 or more on liner replacements alone during the first 15 years of the pool. A cost you need to budget for!
With a Fiberglass Pool, there aren’t any large expenses down the road for a homeowner to worry about. This is one of the great beauties of Fiberglass.
When a potential pool buyer figures in the cost of long term repairs/expenses, as well as the year-to-year savings on chemicals, it is no wonder why so many consumers are willing to pay more initially for a Fiberglass Pool in order to pay less and have fewer headaches in the long run.