For the Ballard Family
401 Folding Hills Rd · Woodstock, Vermont
Prepared by Dylan Hoyt, PHTA-CPO · May 9, 2026After twenty-five years, your pool's earned its retirement.
Lance — thanks for having me out yesterday. The bottom rail's the canary in the coal mine; in another season or two, the wall would be the next thing to go. Better to do this now, with intention, than next May at the start of a heat wave.
This proposal is built so you and your family can sit down together — with coffee, on a phone, on a laptop — and walk through every choice that goes into your new pool. There's a recommended path through it, but nothing is locked. You can swap components, add upgrades, skip what doesn't fit. As you make selections, the running total at the bottom of your screen updates in real time. Once you've landed on a configuration that feels right, hit the submit button at the end and I'll get an email with your selections and follow up with an itemized invoice and a Stripe deposit link within 24 hours.
A few honest notes before you start. First, every option here is a real product I'd actually install — there are no fake tiers built only to make another tier look good. Second, where there's a real tradeoff (salt vs. chlorine, single-speed vs. variable-speed, what to do about the old pool), I've laid out the pros and cons as I see them after seventeen years in this work. Third, if anything is unclear, text or call me directly at (802) 585-1507 — there's no version of this where I'd rather have you guess.
From signed proposal to your first swim.
Universal commitments — included in every tier.
Pick a tier. You can swap individual components below.
Each tier is a complete, drop-in pool. Pick the one that aligns with your goals — long-term durability, premium materials, or value-conscious foundation — and you'll see the components automatically populate in the sections below. From there, you can swap any individual component up or down, add or remove upgrades, and the total updates as you go.
Liner gauge and pattern.
The liner is the only thing standing between thirteen-thousand gallons of water and your backyard. It's also the single biggest predictor of how long your pool lasts before its next renovation — vinyl thickness directly translates to years of life in the Vermont climate.
Liner gauge
Required choiceLiner pattern
Required choicePattern images are direct from Pool Warehouse, the supplier I order from. I'll bring physical fabric samples on the day of install if you'd like to see exact patterning before the liner is set in place.
Filter and pump configuration.
Your tier includes a fully-functional Hayward filter and pump combo. The two real decisions here are filter size and pump type. Both have honest tradeoffs.
Sand filter tank size
Required choicePump speed
Required choiceChlorine, with salt as an option I don't recommend.
I want to be straight with you here. Salt systems are popular and they have real benefits — softer water feel, less weekly chemical handling. But for an outdoor above-ground pool in Vermont, I think chlorine is the better call, and I'd rather tell you why than sell you something that won't perform the way you'd expect.
Why I'm steering away from salt for this pool
Salt cells stop generating below ~50°F. Vermont's outdoor swim season runs roughly Memorial Day to Labor Day at safe water temps — but May openings and September closings happen colder than that. During those weeks you're hand-dosing liquid chlorine anyway, so you've paid for a system that's idle.
Salt corrodes metal. Above-ground pool kits have steel components — coping, top rails, hardware. Salt accelerates corrosion on every exposed metal surface near the pool. The all-resin Sharkline Matrix and Wilbar Quest kits handle this better than older steel kits, but ladders, light fixtures, deck hardware, and any metal patio furniture nearby still take damage.
The pH drift is real. Salt cells produce sodium hydroxide as a byproduct, which pushes pH up every time the cell runs. You'll be dosing muriatic acid weekly to compensate — which is the exact kind of chemical handling salt was supposed to spare you.
The cell wears out. AquaTrol cells last 3–5 years and replacement runs ~$450. Over a 10-year pool life, that's $900–$1,500 in cell replacements on top of the $1,250 to add the system in the first place.
Sanitization system
Required choiceAdd what you want, skip what you don't.
None of these are required. Each one is independently checkable. Pricing reflects the part plus my markup; nothing here is intended to push you toward over-buying.
Liner protection upgrades
Pool features
Cleaning
Covers
Season extension
Three things you can do yourself, or hire me for.
You have a crew. None of these are required for me to do — they're choices about whether you want me handling them, or whether you'd rather save by handling them yourself.
Old pool teardown and disposal
Required choiceSite re-leveling
Required choiceInitial water fill
Required choiceSimple, transparent, no hidden fees.
- 50% deposit upon signed proposal — confirms your install slot and pays for materials.
- Remaining 50% due upon completion of installation and water-up.
- Stripe is the preferred payment method. ACH and check are also accepted.
- Materials markup is built into the all-in tier price you see. No surprise upcharges, no hidden fees.
- Quote validity is 30 days from the date at the top of this proposal. Pool kit pricing moves seasonally; locking in protects you against mid-season increases.
- Change orders are agreed to in writing. If anything in the scope of work needs to change after deposit (e.g., you decide to add a heater later), I'll quote it as a clean addendum, not bury it in the final invoice.
- Certificate of insurance ($1M/$2M GL) issued in your name as additional insured before any work starts.
What I stand behind, in writing.
Two-year Dylan Hoyt CPO workmanship warranty
For two years from substantial completion, I warrant the assembly, leveling, plumbing connections, and skimmer/return seal integrity of this pool installation against defects caused by my workmanship. If something I built fails because of how I built it, I fix it.
Excluded from the workmanship warranty: chemistry-related liner damage, ground settlement beyond the first frost cycle, acts of God (ice damage, fallen trees, flooding), damage caused by misuse, freezing from improper closing, and unauthorized modification.
Manufacturer warranties pass through to you directly:
- Pool kit structure: 25 years (Aquarian 600) or 60 years (Sharkline Matrix / Wilbar Quest), per manufacturer's terms.
- Liner: pro-rated by manufacturer (typically 15–25 yrs).
- Hayward filter and pump: 1 year parts and labor.
- Hayward AquaTrol salt cell (if selected): 3 years.
- Liner installation labor: 1 year against installation defects (separate from material warranty).
If a manufacturer warranty claim ever needs filing, I'll handle the paperwork and coordination at no charge — that's what I'm here for.
Ready to make it real.
When you submit, I'll get an email with everything below itemized. Within 24 hours I'll send you an itemized invoice and a Stripe deposit link to confirm your install slot.
No deposit due at submission. You'll only be charged after you receive and approve the itemized invoice.