Intex 18′ x 48″ Easy Set Pool

Absolutely the pits!

by A. Ashley from Massachusetts on 2010-07-08
The "Easy Set" Intex pool is the furthest thing from easy I have ever seen. We had the 18x48 inch version. It leaks and the ladder is only good if you're a child. Who lets their child swim in a pool alone? It took days to drain it. There is no way it would ever fit back in the box. I returned mine to the store and couldn't be happier to see it go.

A good pool for a level spot

by Sugarmaker from VT USA on 2010-06-20
This is the 3rd easy set we've owned. As they get bigger they are less tolerant of uneven ground. For this one, I used my mini excavator to level the spot to within 1/2", put it on a 20 x 24 blue tarp, and took a week to put the 5,000 gallons of water in. Looks just like the one in the picture, very stable, weighs 40,000 pounds. Previous smaller ones were lop sided as I didn't level the spot, had a 15 footer collapse when it was 5" out of level (came home and the pool was drained) I use my laser level with a tape measure, as over an 18 foot area I can't tell 3" of slope, which will likely cause major problems for this pool. These are impossible to move with more than an inch of water in them, so it needs to be correct from the start. Inflatables work well for us as they go up in spring and come down in fall, the location is used to stack snow in the winter. Can't speak for the filter on this one yet as it hasn't been up long enough. There are some knock offs out there, can't speak for those, but the intex's have been good. Got this one for 279 + tax landed from [...], store pickup. Tried an amazon vendor, they wanted 250 shipping which was a deal killer (more like an ebay trick...)

Intex Pool: Great buy in my opinion

by S. Selsavage from Barrow, AK on 2009-08-19
I bought the 48" easy set pool. These are wonderful products: easy to set up, easy to maintain . One day after pool arrival from Amazon, I had 6 kids in the pool; 2 hours later I still had 6 kids in the pool. One comment I am sure made by others: these pools are designed for flat ground. This is a 'must.' For example I am 100% certain the pool would not work if placed on the grass. So a flat, cement driveway is the way to go. But again: the pool has made for many enjoyable days for my kids, and we live 3 blocks from the ocean!

Just like having a big pool

by Elizabeth from NC on 2009-05-22
When my boys were 4 and 5, I was eager for them to learn to swim well. We'd never had regular access to a pool. I had them in private lessons (5 one-hour sessions) and they were doing well. I kept thinking, "We need regular access to a pool, and they'd be fine." My lightbulb went off & I realized, "I'll buy one of those cheap above-grounds!" I headed straight out & bought the biggest one I could find (18 x 48), and also 2 invaluable toys: Diving Toys to get them accustomed to putting their head underwater, and a great lounge raft for me. This worked like a charm! I remembered loving Diving Toys when I was a kid. Within 2 days, my boys were swimming like fish. I was tan and relaxed from laying around in my raft. We loved the pool all summer. For our family of 4, this was a great pool, just like having a "real" one. We are on the coast, and a crazy rainstorm caused a blowout in our pool. It was kind of a freak thing, and at the end of the summer, so no big deal. But I watched for a fall clearance, and checked Walmart every day as they dropped the price on these pools. I paid around $300 for the first one, and got the second one for $148. That was the lowest they ever went, then they were all sold. I was thrilled to nab that one. I stored it in the garage, and we once again enjoyed it the 2nd summer. Now it's on the 3rd summer, and it's beautiful and we love it. We have swimming parties all the time. I set up plastic chairs, little tables, an umbrella stake in the ground, etc. I nailed up lots of hooks for towels on a nearby deck. You don't need a lot of money to have a ball....visiting kids think this pool is a blast. I've had to learn how to maintain it, but the Intex website now says: this pump & filter alone will not keep your pool clean. The first summer we had algae, but now I shock it every week and keep a floater with chlorine tabs in it. It's staying sparkling clean. Read the other Intek reviews for many, many tips on cleaning.