Pool Company Won't Install Equipment You Bought Online

[@frankbottiglieri9793]

The best is when its the middle of opening season and the custimer needs you to come pull their defective stuff right away because the pool started turning. That 10pm disconnect is going to cost more then the original install/reinstall 🤣

[@BobsPoolService]

All good points Steve. We install a lot of COE (customer obtained equipment) and have gained some great clients doing so. There was once a day when dealers like ourselves could buy at reduced rates and selling gear was profitable even if you had to compensate out of your own money when things broke but those days are long in the past. Sure mfg's have changed warranties but truth be told it's the same product. On the other hand though I've seen some truly interesting things from people that bought online, the best had to be a used burnt out heater! Yep, they were shipped one that I'm guessing was returned. Also, gasket and seals form amazon oftentimes simply don't fit. During covid we had to actually buy some supplies from whoever had it, at almost any cost because our wholesalers had zero stock, even on supplies like pipe! Ironically we have a few customers that pretty much give us an open check, they trust us and whatever the pool need we just do. The pay less per repair than anybody because we can simply charge them for exactly what we had to do, no need to pad the bill in case things don't go as planned to cover ourselves, we can just come up with the price after the work is done.

[@Swimmingpoolsteve]

Great info - thank you for sharing your experience here for others to read. Cheers.

[@sanisidrocr]

The installer also knows the products he sells more and any third party pump they are not regularly installing slow the installation a little as they are not familiar with the nuances of that specific model or just don't have the same experience with that model.

[@davel623]

I always take my ground beef & bun to a restaurant & ask them to make me a burger too!😂 As a retired automotive tech I agree & understand. It's a little bit of both (profit on parts AND warranty or defect issues) BOTH are true!

[@SoleilRoiLe]

Well that is a nice story line. My pool guy installed Pentxxxx pump. It has annoying issues. The freeze setting does not work. On really cold nights in Florida, I make sure I run the pump at night. Every few days the pump flow rate drop s to 6 gallons / minute, even though it is set to 30 gpm. My pool guy just brushes all that aside. Won't do anything about it. Gives me a long story each time.

[@storypunman]

A find everyone is pushing Hayward and that stuff seems to break down all the time. I have a Jacuzzi pump from 1996, had the motor re-built in 2014 and it is still going strong. So, re-built after 18 years and now almost 10 years since the re-build. Pump is now 28 years old, I bet a Hayward would last 3-5 years if your lucky.

[@TheNine6]

I have been involved in to many warranty finger pointing. Seal on motor leaks, customer contacts where they bought it. Then the online store blames the install. I will only install hayward if bought online because I have a good relationship with them.

[@AidanSkoyles]

They wont install online stuff because they want to sell you their own stuff at a markup. Solution: DIY everything.

[@Swimmingpoolsteve]

If I charge you $200 to install your new $1500 VS pump you bought online, will you also pay me $200 to remove it so you can return it, and then another $200 again to come and re-install it for you when you eventually get another one?

[@TheNine6]

Do you buy your car parts online and bring them to your mechanic to install?

[@AidanSkoyles]

@@Swimmingpoolsteve You're assuming it'll break. The reality is that it's highly unlikely your online-bought pumps will break "after week one" and I think you know that. The reality is that local pool guy makes much more money selling you a $3k pool pump and installing it than he makes charing $200 to install your $1500 online pool pump.

[@AidanSkoyles]

@@TheNine6 Yes and no. I buy some stuff online and install it myself, but bought tires online and had the local guy install; no problemo.

[@Swimmingpoolsteve]

If you install enough equipment you WILL have some stuff that fails under warranty. So it is a guaranteed problem that I would have if I installed equipment bought online. Not a maybe...a guarantee. So it is avoided by the pool pro by not installing equipment purchased online. Also, why would it be bad for a professional to make a small mark up selling equipment? What equipment for your home do you buy from professionals at their cost? @@AidanSkoyles

[@brooklyndreadlocks8182]

My Jandy plus hp .75 only lasted 7 years. I'm pissed. I wanna just replace the motor.

[@philipstreechon4523]

I see your point but when the pool company charges you 3 times what you pay online you have to wonder are they a rip-off or what. The owner of the pool company just want's your cash and they get their parts online Like Pinch-a Penney / RIP-OFF (we have to order it from where).

[@patd4u2]

my pool is 2 1/2 years old from new it's a saltwater pool with a ozone generator last month. My parts per million is at 3600. It's usually at 3200. I cannot understand why I cannot get that parts per million down to 3200 what could it be? i'm in Phoenix Arizona where the temperature in the summer is around 115° now the temperature has gone down to around 50° at night. Could that be part of it? The pool lady comes every Tuesday and I ask her about it and she says the water is fine, I turn the salt water generator down to 50% and she said the chlorine level was a little low but OK

[@lordgarth1]

I think it’s ok if the customer knows they’ll be paying for additional services to uninstall/reinstall for a warranty replacement but if I’m going to buy something that needs to be installed I’m going to install it myself. It’s not rocket science.

[@mayorb3366]

It is important to know that some mfrs do not warry or short warry equipment bought online. A year is all you get on most things that went through retail/wholesale anyway. And if there is a failure, a factory authorized tech will take care of the repair if it was installed by a pool professional. If it was a DYI, may have trouble with that. I don't mind installing owner bought equipment. If a customer selects and buys their own equipment, I'm out of the loop. Spending hours dealing between the customer and the factory doesn't pay a dime, and puts me behind on other work. Another factor is all the trouble going on these days with QC at the factory. Pool forums are lit up hard with owners having issues with later model equipment.

[@DifficultNerd]

Seems reasonable

[@Swimmingpoolsteve]

It is actually quite reasonable but to the average pool owner who does not understand the ins and outs of the industry it can seem frustrating. You have a pump you bought and you want it installed...so what is the problem? The problem is lower quality products from online, no after sales support, slow / no warranty coverage etc. The pool professional knows that problems with the equipment can end up costing the pool owner a ton of extra money, so they simply refuse to install anything they did not sell. I just want pool owners to better understand why service professionals refuse to install equipment purchased online.

[@TheNine6]

The best is when a customer orders a liner or a safety cover online. Who would want to install that cheap crap 😂

[@randymartinez5238]

The mark up you pool guys charge is ridiculous i say DIY

[@J_Strong]

This is a bunch of nonsense.

[@Swimmingpoolsteve]

Which part? Pool companies do not like to install equipment purchased online. Is that the part you don't agree with?

[@drdrew3]

@@SwimmingpoolsteveThe company is double dipping: they deservedly charge for the labor but then they pad their profits by overcharging for the same equipment the homeowner can get online for a fair price. The real reason they won’t install customer purchases is that it’s a money grab. Pool plumbing and electrical is an easy DIY and they are trying to discourage it with this de facto boycott. Homeowners resent the ripoff and your failure to acknowledge it

[@gixxergermany]

Doesnt make any sense whatsoever! pool guy makes money every time you call him over, he is more then happy to come over and make money best case for him. Customer covers labor on whatever i want to have done.

[@AidanSkoyles]

pool guy's gotta maximize profit per unit time. Max profit comes from selling equipment and time.

[@frankbottiglieri9793]

Online is cheaper then my distributor

[@AidanSkoyles]

@@frankbottiglieri9793 of course it is! I'm assuming you are a pool guy. You sell from your distributor at a massive markup, right? And you're losing business to DIY'ers thanks to online channels like this who have emboldened people to give it a go themselves, right? How do you feel about that?

[@estebansierra4348]

🤣🤣🤣, DUDE you are cracking me up!! That is like saying that I am taking business away from a mechanic if I DIY my own car. The fact is: I take my car to the mechanic because I DON'T WANT to take the time to fix it, not because I am unable to fix it. I could say the same for most of my pool customers, they pay me because they don't want to deal with their pools not because they are unable to deal with them. The fact that @frankbottiglieri9793 finds online prices cheaper than retailers tells me one of 2 things: First, that he is too new in the industry to know better or, second, that he hasn't taking the time to seek out and build relationships with the right people that sell pool parts. There is no way that online retailers are cheaper than wholesalers that sell pool parts to professionals for the same quality parts. @@AidanSkoyles The fact remains: Pool pros do not want to work on equipment you purchased online. I know I wouldn't. and in fact, as a pool owner, I would be weary of anyone that claims to be a pool guy that is willing to do it. True professionals that are knowledgeable, value their own time and care about their business, and about their customers, would say no without batting an eyelid.

[@frankbottiglieri9793]

@@AidanSkoyles since COVID we have quadrupled in revenue partially thanks to you DIYers who fuck things up and tell us "But KZbin said" It is so strange how COVID destroyed so many businesses but benefited others.