THE POOL GUYZ, Inc.

I would never use THE POOL GUYZ, Inc. again and I would tell everybody I know not to use them. I've had my pool for two and a half years. I got it in 2014. I started with them in May of 2014 and they did not finish the job until September. They were terrible, terrible. I would never recommend them. I'd give them an F if I could but I'd be kind and give them a C. What stood out was the incompetence of not getting everything aligned with the subcontractors, and also, they did not train me on how to use the components of the pool, you know, they were very haphazard on how they did things. They didn't contact me the way they should've contacted me. I felt like I was running the contractors. And I, at that time, had been laid-off from my job so, I mean, I could deal with it better and I knew, because I worked in an engineering, how to run subcontractors. I mean, I had to be on top of their subcontractors constantly and constantly calling THE POOL GUYZ, Inc. to see what comes next, you know. It was a terrible experience. I would never recommend them, never. I think they need to have a better communication with the customer and act like they really care about what they're doing, provide better customer service. I had them open and close my pool and the price was good but the service was terrible. They left sand on the side of my yard and it washed out into the street and I was almost fined for that. My landscaper had to come in and pick up all that sand and everything. It was just a terrible, horrible experience. It really was. Even some of their subs that came out just shook their heads and weren't surprised. They were totally in it for the money. I love my pool, you know, don't get me wrong, I love it but the experience was horrible. Heck no, I would not use THE POOL GUYZ, Inc. again and I would not recommend them to anybody.

Great service and the pool turned out awesome.

unknown

Ric Reineke and The Pool Guyz, are exemplary! Simply phenomenal service! Their workmanship and customer service speak for themselves and are completely based on the needs of their customers! Being this was the first time we ever built a pool (we've always had homes that already had pools), you can imagine how nerve racking it can be. The thought of ripping your front and backs yard apart, ending up with a gaping hole that creates major issues all while throwing away considerable sums of money - that nightmare can keep you awake at night! I'm happy to report however that Ric and his Pool Guyz team made the process incredibly easy. I did my research thoroughly. I obtained quotes from 6 different companies. Ric was not the cheapest, but he impressed me with his easy going nature and how quickly he responded to questions throughout the process. He also took the time to explain each and every option/feature and worked hard to work within our budget. IFYOU'RE LOOKING FOR RELIABLE, EXPERIENCED CRAFTSMEN WHO PAY ATTENTION TO THE LITTLE DETAILS, AND UNDERSTAND THAT THEIR WORK IS THEIR SIGNATURE ~ THEN THESE ARE YOUR POOL GUYZ! They listened carefully to our design requirements, gave us great suggestions to incorporate into our plans, and executed the construction perfectly using only the highest quality materials & equipment. And best of all, they completed the job on a tight schedule. The Pool Guyz are a different breed of contractor. I watched them closely every day while they worked and found they don't take short cuts and they don't cut corners to save time. They're old-school and ALL ABOUT QUALITY. They show up on time every day, work long hard hours, and actually do what they say they're going to do with smiles on their faces. IT'S QUITE APPARENT THEY SINCERELY CARE ABOUT THEIR CUSTOMERS AND THEY DEFINITELY STAND BEHIND THEIR WORK. They repeatedly followed up with us after completion and stopped by our home several times afterwards to ensure we were completely happy with their work. If you choose to hire them ~ you're making the right decision. Everything I could ask for in any contractor (let alone a pool contractor) was in abundance with The Pool Guyz: -- quoted a fair price and stuck to it -- delivered everything they said they would -- always open to changes/adjustments, etc. -- on time and delivered on their promises -- talked us out of spending money on features that would add nothing to overall enjoyment or longevity of the pool So, yes - this is a 100% satisfied customer endorsement of The Pool Guyz. We never thought building a pool would be so fun and easy. Ric really came through, as did his right-hand man Daniel. The world would be a better place with more people like The Pool Guyz! Highly recommended! Great attention to detail, craftsmanship, and quality ~ very reliable. Built us a fabulous custom pool, spa, and water features.

unknown

No ownership of subcontractors or their own responsibility. Started two weeks late. Just didn't show up. No call. The pool Guyz installed a pool in May 2014. The contract said the work would take approximately 30 days. The work took over four months. They claim it is not their fault the patio/paver guys took so long. The sales person informed me, when he sold me the pool, that they had paver guys on staff. This is not true. They subcontract out. Then the Pool Guyz take 10% of the paver cost for doing nothing and holding no responsibility for the paver work. In fact this was the first time they had even hired this company. Then the paver guys didn't even have an employee that could install paver pool coping. They ended up subcontractoring my brick guy to do the work. So I paid top dollar to get a subcontractor of a subcontractor. I could have hired the coping guy myself and saved 50% on the paver work. Now nine months later the pool has still not had the final city inspection. I have paid $50,000 cash for a pool and patio that I cannot legally use. They have ignore numerous attempts for myself and my lawyer to resolve this issue. I'm out $1000 in legal fees already and have lost an entire season of use of the pool and a year of the equipment warranty. My family sure would love to use the pool they were promised last year.

The Pool Guyz were very prompt and professional with the paperwork. They explained the process well, what was included and what was not. They hit their dates and timelines on the money. Two workers with a skid steer started digging the hole one day and less than 30 hours later were filling the pool with water. The contract allowed for four loads of dirt to be hauled away. If more loads were required, it would be at additional expense. I had assumed that The Pool Guyz would have known how many hauls would be required. I was wrong. It took an additional four hauls at $108 per load ($432). Other than that, the only other issue was the concrete around the pool. The contract included approximately 4' width of concrete around the perimeter of the pool as a "skirting". The Pool Guyz advised that if I wanted to add additional square footage to the area or have the concrete tinted, I could contact the concrete contractor directly to add it. Being a commercial contractor myself, this seemed odd. If I contract a company to install my inground pool, it is because I don't want to do it myself. Owners pay general contractors, so that they do not have to do the work of acquiring and overseing the various subcontractors on the project. I reluctantly contacted the concrete sub. We agreed on more footage and to have the concrete tinted with a tan hue. I wrote him a check directly and he poured the slab. The finished product was beautiful except that as it cured, there was no tan hue. Either the supplier did not add the tint or did not add enough tint. The concrete guy did explain before the slab was poured that sometimes the tint is not as pronounced as in the picture. When there apeared to be no tint, I asked a different concrete contractor's opinion. His opinion was that there was no tint in the mix. Here's the problem. Now I want the $900 additional I paid for the tinting that was not there. Because I dealt directly with the concrete sub, I had to be the bad guy. The sub did respond promptly and after several phone calls and e-mails, he reluctantly agreed to refund the $900. In the end, it was not that big a deal. But since I am a contractor myself, I have been involved in similar conversations through the years. Some colorful language may be needed but one becomes seasoned and adept at explaining his/her position with regard to the issue being discussed. In the case of the concrete contractor, once I explained that the choices were that he either reimburse the $900 or he could break up the slab and re-pour it, he was very agreeable to writing me a check. The problem is, not everyone that has a pool installed is also a contractor. Most home owners would be intimidated into not asking for their money back. That is why it would be better for them to have the full weight of the prime contractor (The Pool Guyz) arguing on their behalf. It is always difficult to foresee all possible problems or scenarios that could arise from a contract or installation. To avoid a similar situation, I would insist that all work associated with the install be included in the contract so that the prime contractor would be the one arguing the case with the subcontractor instead of the paying customer.

Beginning three months after installation, the concrete installed by The Pool Guyz began failing. The Pool Guyz refuses to rectify the situation. Ric (the owner of The Pool Guyz) utilized Luke McGhee as a concrete sub-contractor. Luke was a disaster! Ric is well aware of this, which is why he described him and his team in texts on February 21, 2014 as the ?nightmare that never ends? and on September 28, 2013 as ?the clowns?. These are not references to a satisfactory sub-contractor. If nothing was wrong with Luke?s workmanship why is Ric is no longer utilizing Luke?s services? From day one Luke was a problem, as he walked off our job for a week over a payment dispute with the Pool Guyz. He continued to show he was not suitable for the job when he began pouring a large concrete job at 5pm! This resulted in a visit from the Virginia Beach Police Department at midnight demanding that he stop working due to the noise and lights! Imagine our embarrassment with our neighbors! Because of this, Luke had to jackhammer and remove a section of concrete that was not usable. By Luke?s own admission, he secured concrete for our job from two different concrete suppliers and did not utilize a proper ?stamping mix? for the second batch because it was not available. Throughout the job Luke was argumentative and unreliable. In the end we are paying for this with the poor concrete we have. The concrete was finished in October 2013. We did not believe the quality of the work was what we expected, or paid for, but ultimately had no recourse to fix any of the issues that we were concerned about. Ric indicated that this was the best we were going to get. In February 2014, we notified Ric that the concrete was failing in multiple places. The top layer of the concrete has failed and chipped off in a variety of areas, in addition to cracking, discoloration and settling issues. We believe this is a direct result of the work performed by the concrete sub-contractor of Pool Guyz. In fact, Ric indicated in a text message on February 21, 2014, that the sub-contractors ?Luke'sconcrete is doing this all over. We are looking into the situation...?. In March 2014, Ric sent over a new contractor to evaluate the damage. Ric indicated that they were working on a solution for us. We never were provided an estimate or evaluation from this contractor and in April 2014, the contractor recused themselves from any activities associates with Pool Guyz and this situation. In April 2014, we received a letter and legal settlement document from the Pool Guyz. In this letter, Pool Guyz did not take responsibility for the failing concrete. In the interest of ?customer service? they offered a settlement of $2,500 in exchange for us signing a waiver and release of all claims regarding the concrete. Included in this waiver was a ?gag-order? type clause that prohibits us from discussing this matter, including on-line postings and reviews. We rejected this settlement offer. In September 2014 we were finally able to speak with the repair contractor Pool Guyz sent over. The settlement offers Pool Guyz provided to their customers were way below the estimates the contractor had provided to the Pool Guyz. This was causing friction with customers who were rightfully expecting the settlement to cover the full cost of the repairs. Based upon our conversation, I believe he stopped working with the Pool Guyz because he he did not think the settlements were the proper way to handle this and no longer wanted to do business with someone that was not standing behind their work. After receiving the settlement letter from the Pool Guyz, we had multiple contractors review the concrete and provide estimates for repair, replacement or covering of the failed concrete. These estimates were well over the cash settlement offered by Pool Guyz. In June 2014, we responded to the Pool Guyz indicating that the settlement was not sufficient and provided the estimates. They responded by asking to send over their own 2nd expert for an estimate. In July 2014, their own expert indicated that the concrete ?is not structurally sound and is of poor quality?. They recommended ?demolition, removal and replacement? of the concrete at a cost of $15,384. In August 2014, we sent a letter to Pool Guyz indicating that we would accept a settlement from them using their expert?s estimate plus incurred attorney fees. We asked for a response by August 15, 2014. We never received an acknowledgement or response. At this point we feel that we have been abandoned by Ric and the Pool Guyz. They have not replied to our communications. Ric has failed to return multiple phone calls and text messages regarding this situation. In fact, even after multiple requests, Ric has never come to our house to view the extent of the failure. We believe the failure of the concrete is a direct result of the Pool Guyz sub-contractor?s failure to perform the work in a workmanlike manner or use the proper materials. In addition, Pool Guyz failed to properly monitor their sub-contractor (which Pool Guyz subsequently severed ties with) while he performed the work. Every construction type contract includes an implied warranty that the work is performed in a workmanlike manner with appropriate materials. In addition, the contract also includes a standard one year VA contractors warranty on all workmanship. This additional warranty does not have an exclusion related to concrete issues. Ric is hiding behind an invalid contract exclusion to avoid the responsibility of dealing with the poor workmanship performed by his sub-contractor. All we are asking is that we get what we paid for. In fact, we have already been negatively impacted with stress, embarrassment and additional costs associated with this situation. If Ric has a better and cheaper solution to permanently solve the issue we are more than willing to discuss options. We have only been relying on the recommendations of multiple contractors on how to permanently resolve this situation, including Ric?s own expert. Ric led us to believe he was working on a solution for us; instead he was working on a solution for himself. He cut off contact and engineered a settlement document to protect his interests, instead of the interests of his customers. In the middle of the construction when we were having all of the problems with his concrete sub-contractor, Ric told us not to worry and that although things seems to going poorly that he ?had our back? and was ?going to make sure things would work out satisfactorily?. We are just looking for him to be a man of his word and honor that commitment. We trusted him and paid him a lot of money for a job for which we are sure he would be too embarrassed to show to any potential customer.

I met with Louie from the Pool Guyz while going through a review of the local pool builders in the Hampton Roads area. After spending some time reviewing builders and options, my wife and I decided to have The Pool Guyz install our pool as we were very impressed with their Viking product line. The Viking product is a superior fiberglass pool and is even backed with a transferrable warranty! There is a greater up front cost vs. liner pools, but the lifelong and yearly maintenance costs will be significantly lower. Arnold and his crew showed up on a Friday to begin the install by completing a layout of the backyard with me. We discussed where and how to layout the pool, and how they would access the backyard with their equipment and materials. The dig began the following Monday with Arnold moving/replanting an in-the-way tree in the backyard. The dig and install went quickly and I cannot offer high enough praise for Arnold and his team. They worked quickly and effectively, without a lot of downtime and had the pool in the ground inside of three days (it would have been two if not for a shipping delay caused by the wide-load size of the pool on the roads). The excavator driver backed over a 3'-4' foot section of our neighbors backyard. Arnold and his crew spent time to working on his yard to ensure there was no lasting damage. Since the install, Arnold had personally been back to monitor the activities and status of the final phases of the build which were being completed by our other contractors (electrical/gas/paver/fence). We now have a sparkling, crystal clear pool and the backyard of our dreams (once we add some landscaping).

The contractor ordered a pool with the wrong size design. He blamed us but ordered another pool. He continued to bring up the pool he had to "resale" for a loss, whenever we brought up any other promises he made and did not keep. Now after 1.5 years the concrete around our pool is falling into the pool. Our dream of a "backyard Oasis" was merely a dream with this company in charge. I called the owner 11 times and he finally responded after threating to call a TV station. He promised to remedy the problem. After two weeks we received a letter stating he would give us less than $3000 to take care of a problem that will cost at least $10,000 and we paid $16000 initially! Sorry to say, I would recommend that you stay away!!!

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Did not use them.

Viking Pools are one of the best in my opinion. I did a lot of research on the company prior to installation and purchase. Great product, strong build, and beautiful pool. The pool itself has been in for a season and I love every bit of it. There were some ordering issues with tile as the pool came without hem installing it. This was fixed as a Viking rep came and installed the tile on the pool once it was in the ground. This spring I have ordered a heater which has caused some huge issues for me and my family though. I planned to have it installed on the 1st of April in order to surprise my family with a warm spring break surprise. Needless to say I was disappointed when on the day of installation I found out it would not arrive until a week later. This was a Jandy issue - not the Pool Guyz. Then once it was received by the Pool Guyz it seems that the coordination with their electrical and gas contractors was not done until that day. What was to take a single day as promised is now on day 3. The electrical and gas guys that they contract with have been very responsive and helpful. I just wish things were coordinated a little better and that the Pool Guyz were a little more reliable in the installation of it. As of this moment Spring Break of 2010 is ending and I still do not have the heater working. If I had to do it again - I would have done it differently... Update - Kids are back in school... still not hooked up and working Update - Day 20 - since they never did a site survey, they never told me that I needed a larger gas meeter to handle the heater. So not VA Gas is coming to install the new gas meeter. Also they are now saying that the price of the heater did not include Gas hook up and electrical. So I guess the Pool Guyz mean that if they place it on your property then it is installed. Update day 29 - i paid them and still have no heater installed... Day 40 - after visiting the company they sent someone out to hook it up. Not impressed at all.

Arrived when they said they would. Very considerate to limit damage to yard during installation. Crew worked as required to complete job on time. Very friendly and helpful. Overall very pleasant experience. Heard a lot of horror stories from friends when other companies installed their pools. Had very few minor problems but they were fast to respond and correct. Very happy I chose ThePoolGuys!!!

Initially, the owner was very pleasant and optimistic in how the whole process would go. As the process took place, I was very disappointed. The job appeared to be rushed and as if they had taken on more jobs than they could handle. In fairness, I did want the work completed as quickly as possible. They needed to set the pool three times and never got it completely level. The concrete work was absolutely awful. They used someone other than the normal person because of being so backed up. The concrete has cracked in several places and chipped away on the sides of he pool. The yard was left in a mess. It was unlevel, covered with sand fences down, trees damaged and generally awful. The owner stated they rough graded and that was all they were responsible for. He also stated there was no guarantee on concrete. This was not explained up front. Complaints were ignored or minimized throughout. All in all, while I love my pool, I would never use this installer to do it again.

It was very good. I had no problems at all. The product is phenomenal. Their professionalism is right up there. They were there on time and finished when they said they would be. They were really professional.