Pools - Auburn,MI

Both are fine for what you want, but if you do not take it down it will get destroyed in the winter weather. Please keep this in mind.

We just recently bought a 16x48 Intex metal frame pool. It hasn't been put up yet but will be this weekend so I really can't say if I like it or not just yet. I can tell you that we had an inflatable pool last year that was absolutely horrible! With ton's of patching we were lucky that it lasted almost until the end of summer. We haven't heard any bad things about the metal frame pools as of yet. Good luck with whatever you decide. Have a great summer!

We have the intex metal frame pool, 15x42. We got it at Meijers on sale for about $200, which included the entire pool, filter, cleaning items (like vaccuum and skimmer), ladder and a tarp for ground cover. We had the inflatable pools for several years, but repairing all the holes was such a pain, and they were never really fixed that well and would often still leak even after repair. Also, it was hard to find holes and leaks, but we always knew we had them because we would end up losing so much water week by week. We also had a dog at the time, and he would put his paws on the inflatable ring, inevitably making MORE holes in it. For what you're likely going to spend on an inflatable pool (about $100 or so), you're better off getting the metal frame pool. The inflatable didn't come with the items you need to clean it or the tarp to cover the ground. You will DEFINATELY want ot use the tarp, especially if you plan to take it down at the end of swim season. This will help you keep the bottom of the pool clean so it won't smell like funky mud when you put it up the next season (believe me, THAT smell is putrid). WE LOVE the metal from pool and have had it for two years now. We were taking it down at the end of every season, but I've seen alot of people in our area just leaving them up through the winter and read on line that it really doesn't do any harm to the pool if you leave it up. I'm still not sure if we're going to do that or not. It was really easy to put up and take it down. Not at all as much of a pain as it was with the inflatable pool. Like I said, our pool is 15x42 and it was set up in about an hour. Keep in mind if your backyard is damp most of the time (like ours is) the poles will sink a little, but not so much that it was a problem. Filling it, we used our hose initially and it took about 6 hours or more. This year (we just put it up last weekend) we used our hose AND our neighbors hose and it was filled in about 3 hrs or less. We also run the filter 24/7 and it didn't raise our electricity bill hardly at all (maybe $10 a month or so). I recommend leaving the filter running at all times because there is much less daily maintence to do that way. We run the filter to our outdoor power supply using an outdoor extension cord and even in thunderstorms or heavy downpours, we've yet to have a problem. You can also purchase an additional attachment skimmer that will hook to the side of the pool and catch all the stuff that floats on the top. I think we bought it for about $20 at meijer also. Seriously, these things are SO LOW MAINTENANCE!!! We bought "small pool" chlorine and add the recommended amount (I think its about 10 little scoopers total) and we've never had a problem with slime at the bottom or a "dirty" looking pool. The size that we have---my son was four and it came up to about his lips when he was standing on tip toes. It can easily hold him and about 10 of his friends in it. We adults also use it all the time too. Even for my hubby (who is 6'3) it comes up to about his waist. On all the pools (including the inflatable) the cover never REALLY fits well and will usually blow off the edges and end up at the bottom of the pool. With the metal frame, my hubby just bought some medium sized clamps and clamps the cover to the poles. There are about 12 poles on the metal frame, but he only clamps the cover to about 5 of them and it keeps the cover on perfectly.

Finally, with any small pool, there is no heater at all, so the water is generally pretty chilly, even in the sun all day. You can get a solar cover for any small pool for about $20-$40 depending on size. There are also these new (new to me anyway) solar filled pills. Essentially, they are little aluminum foil things that you pop a whole in and put in your filter. They emit a "liquid solar cover" over the top layer of your pool and add about 7 degrees of warmth to your water. You can't swim for 24 hrs after putting them in (so it has time to spread out properly) but after it spreads out, you're good to go. After you get out of the pool, it will essentially reset itself to re-cover the top of your pool. Its supposed to be non-toxic chemicals. Google it or check with your local pool supply store for more info on them, as I've not tried them yet (will probably use them in the next week or so).

If you have any other questions about the intex metal frame, please feel free to message me. I can't say enough good things about them.

We have a 12'x3' PVC pipe pool. It takes about 30mins to connect the pipes together. I bought this pool back when my first born was 10 - he is 19 now and it has lasted. It came with a filter system that we had to replace once. We have been lucky w/ 3 kids to never have a hole in it but we do take it down in Sept (when the kids return to school) and store it in the garage. The kids and I love this pool. I don't see many of these PVCpools around. I know that a friend of mine bought the inflatable type and it only lasted 2 years because her kids had to climb in/out which damaged it. We bought a ladder/cover for ours. Good Luck.

I don't have one myself, but I have seen those big inflatable pools that even have a filter on a couple of yards in our neighborhood. They keep reappearing year after year so I have to think they are a good purchase.

Metal frame!!!! Super sturdy and you will get years of use out of it. I was given a ring kind that got a hole in the ring, then it got another hole and would not hold air - so the pool would not stay up!! I also do not like the way the sides slant in the inflatable pool.

We bought the 48in deep 15ft round Intex frame pool kit a number of years ago. It cost about $400 online at that time. Now, I think the exact same pool (including filter, etc) costs much less and you can get it from Target or Walmart. That pool lasted 4 summers (about twice as long as they said it would)! We put it up in the summer and took it down in the fall and stored it in the garage, out of the elements. We also got a solar cover for it (about $50), so the sun would heat the water and it would be the perfect temp. My kids learned how to swim in that pool. We spent hours and hours in that pool. Now we live in an area that has major restrictions and we can't have a pool (portable or otherwise) that's deeper than 36in without a locking fence around it. So no more pool for us (36in is way too shallow for my kids now). We miss that pool...sigh...The only people I knew who had the inflatable ring pool HATED it and eventually got a frame pool.