文章分享了作者一家购买并使用家庭泳池的经历。五年前，作者以700美元的价格购买了一个来自Costco的简易泳池。尽管最初需要学习如何维护，但这个泳池很快成为了家庭娱乐的重要组成部分。作者详细介绍了泳池的安装过程、维护方法以及带来的便利。家庭泳池不仅提供了随时随地的游泳乐趣，还方便孩子们练习游泳技能，增进了亲子关系。文章强调了家庭泳池带来的自由和快乐，以及它作为一项值得的投资的价值。

🏊‍♀️ 作者一家五年前以700美元的价格购买了一个来自Costco的简易泳池。最初的安装过程在朋友的帮助下花了不到三个小时，搭建在草坪上，铺设了防水布和隔热层。

💡 作者详细介绍了泳池的维护过程。最初，作者的丈夫需要频繁清洁泳池。后来，他们花费约300美元购买了盐水转换器，大大简化了维护工作，每周只需吸尘一次。

🎉 家庭泳池带来了诸多便利。它提供了随时随地的游泳乐趣，方便孩子们练习游泳技能，例如在后院练习潜水捡戒指。作者一家还用泳池举办了派对，增进了家人和朋友之间的互动。

My husband had joked about getting a pool someday, but it wasn't really in our budget.Five summers ago, we decided to get an inexpensive, by comparison, above-ground pool from Costco.The $700 investment has been one of the best purchases we've made for our family.

My husband has always joked about getting a pool someday, and while that's a lovely dream, I viewed it as just that.

However, during the early days of the pandemic everyone was buying pools of all varieties for at-home entertainment. We were a little late to the (pool) party, but we jumped on the bandwagon when I realized that at $700 (the price at the time when we bought it at Costco) for a medium-sized pool, an above-ground pool cost wouldn't break the bank.

Now, we consider it one of the best purchases we've ever made. This will be our fifth summer with the pool, and I've enjoyed watching my kids go from being held in the water to swimming mostly independently.

There was a learning curve our first summer

We had two friends help us with the initial setup of the pool since it was a little windy and we weren't sure how things would go. In retrospect, my husband and I could have set it up by ourselves, thought it was surely easier with extra hands.

I'll note that we were lucky in that we had a flat area in our backyard and didn't need to do extra ground preparation prior to the install. Setup took a less than three hours. We placed a tarp on top of the grass, with fanfold insulation on top for a cushy base layer, and then laid the pool down and connected all of the brace supports to it. Then it was time to fill it up. Honestly, putting a tarp over the top of the pool for the winter months is more difficult than the initial setup was.

The first summer, there was heavy smoke from wildfires near us, and since we were still learning how the pool worked, my husband was frequently cleaning it.

The following summers have been significantly easier, especially once we converted to a saltwater system (which we paid around $300 for). I wish we had bought the saltwater converter sooner. Now, maintenance is minimal. We vacuum the pool about once a week, and use the skimmer before hopping in to swim.

A home pool offers minimal-prep fun

Going to a local pool requires a bit more planning, especially with kids. Having one in our backyard allows our family to swim at any time without worrying about crowds or littles falling asleep in the car on the ride home. It's easy to grab a snack from inside and hop right back in the water. During my daughter's first summer, she was able to nap in the stroller right next to the pool while my son and I played.

We've hosted 4th of July parties with the pool, entertained friends and family, and I even hosted a book club in the pool once. But my favorite part is the moments with my children, watching their joy as they're splashing or jumping into the pool.

I also love having the ability to take a quick dip in the water after dinner or in late fall after public pools are closed — the pool is open when we want it to be, and we don't have to plan around crowds or other people.

We're able to practice swimming skills regularly

Both of my kids take swimming lessons, and when they were little, sometimes they would receive feedback to practice certain skills in the bathtub. But as they get older and are learning swim strokes, it's not a bathtub activity anymore. I enjoy being able to easily practice skills with them, like diving to retrieve a ring from the bottom of the pool, right in our own backyard.