What's become quite apparent to me is that getting the dirt into the empty pool and then getting it compacted and graded is going to be the hardest part of this project. The dirt guys are wildly different with their bids and all of them are a little...well dirty. Since I'm not going to be building a structure on that spot the city will not be checking the final compaction. In fact the inspector told me they don't care what's in there "as long as it's not glowing." That's your tax dollars at work folks. I do know it has to be compacted at 90% in order for the grass on top to retain its base and so I don't get a dirty bowl of soup in my back yard. So not only do I need dirt but I need it done right. Plus, before I put in the dirt I really should put in a layer of gravel so it drains better. This makes things even harder...pun somewhat intended.
The Craigslist guy who's doing the same project told me that contractors have lots of dirt they need to get rid of and I shouldn't pay a penny for it. He said he's trying to get one of them to deliver free dirt and then load it into the pool with their bobcat for free. He's been waiting 2 months so far for this to happen. I've decided I'm going to pay for the dirt so I don't have a 9 foot hole in my back yard for the rest of the year.
Dirty Man #1
I called a guy on Craigslist who said he can deliver dirt and gravel and then load it into my pool. In order to do that I'd have to take down my gate and a 3 foot wall of cinderblock, which is fine cause it's old and doesn't match the new wall. Then a bobcat needs to drive through the space and shuttle the dirt that will be dropped on the street in front of my house. My neighbors will LOVE me. I need about 100 yards of dirt which is about 10 truckloads so it's a big deal. The Craigslist guy must have smelled blood in the water because he quoted me $3500 for the dirt and another $3900 for labor to put it in the pool. That bid is higher than previous bids I got to complete the entire job. I laughed and said no thanks. If you don't learn anything from this blog (and really how could you) at least remember this - you must get several bids before taking on any project because they can vary wildly and by talking to contractors you'll learn a lot about what they really need to do.
Dirty Man #2
Remember the contractor who showed up two days late and told me his personal problems? Well he really wants to work and he said he has a guy who gets dirt, dirt cheap. That's no big feat. You can get dirt for free. There's tons of it literally lying on the side of the road and on construction sites all over. They want you to take it otherwise they have to pay to take it to the dump. If you're not upset about your dirt being a little dirty, you can get a lot of it for free. Anyway the late contractor said he can get me a great deal on dirt and the bobcat and do the compaction and grading and then repair my block wall for $3500. See? The price immediately dropped in half. I told him I'd think about it cause I know he's hardly Mr. Reliable and I don't want to get into any kind of problem situations with anyone wonky.
Dirty Man #3
I found the next guy on Craigslist and his claim to fame is that he installed Smokey Robinson's swimming pool. That is a lame claim to fame. Turns out he's actually working on two houses on my very block, which is weird because a) there are lots of blocks in Los Angeles, what are the odds he'd be on mine and 2) neither Smokey Robinson nor any of The Miracles live on my block. All we have is a local weatherman, David Caruso and one of the naked bankers in the Washington Mutual ad campaign. It's hardly Starville, USA. So Smokey's guy basically crossed the street and came over. He looked at my pool asked a few questions and then quoted me $4500. He then asked if I had gotten any other quotes. He said, "If you have, will you tell them to me and not lie?" I told him I had another bid for $3500 and he looked at me as if I was lying and then left. Excuse me but my mama told me, "You better shop around." He might have thought he really had a hold on me but as far as I was concerned he could follow the tracks of my tears back across the street and keep his old dirty dirt.
Dirty Man #4
In Culver City a major excavation is taking place and the contractor is giving away tons of dirt for free if you pick it up or it's $75 by the truckload delivered. He even said he'd break the price for a big order. I told him I needed 10 truckloads and he said I could have all the dirt for $500. He also has a bobcat operator and he'll find out how much that will cost me for the day. But there's a hitch. There's always a hitch. Apparently he's not supposed to be excavating where he's excavating so the city has stopped his project indefinitely. He may be up and running by tomorrow or it may be 6 weeks. At this point he doesn't know.
This is a dirty business. Basically, I got nothing.
