MARTIN POOLS - The nightmare experience
The entire process from start to finish and through the entire warranty was a complete nightmare. I wouldn't wish Martin Pools on anyone. They lied, cheated, stole, committed fraud, screwed up nearly every single step of the way, gave me nothing but constant attitude and every time one of their worthless subcontractors came I had to take off work to be the unpaid foreman making sure they didn't ruin my house. I paid them the price of a small house or a nice car for this pool and every step of the way they lied, cheated, stole, defrauded me, and answered the phone with contempt with contempt and disgust disgust towards me like it was my fault I had to keep calling them to fix their screw-ups.
First, someone came out to do the estimate. He was told over and over we were going to be moving the solar panels from our old house to this one, but when we went to their office to sign the contract they were surprised by it and made a last minute change to the contract when I brought it up in the office. This raised the price. The contract was not even signed yet and they already screwed me out bn of the difference between the 1hp 2 speed & 1.5 hp variable motor needed to run the solar panels.
A light controller was on display in showroom yet when I tried to buy it they told me they can't get them and offered me a remote control that I could lose. I had to order it directly from the manufacturer.
I was told they would contact me to show me the LED lights installed in someone else's pool so I could figure out how many to buy and where to place them in the pool. I waited 5-6 weeks and continually checked back in. Finally I had to go down to their office and make a scene 1-2 days before the concrete was scheduled to be poured because the lights have to be set when the concrete is being poured. I was forced to make a last minute emergency decision because I didn't have time to think about it.
Next, I was swindled out of another $2000 out of pocket expense because Martin Pools measured and guaranteed that the power lines could be run above ground, then when it was time to build it, they said we HAD to bury it underground to meet code, their measurements were wrong, and though they admit fault it would be another $3,000 cost to me. Then they said they were covering 1,000 of it like they were doing me a favor.
This $3000 is the list price they charge everyone for this service, the contractor is not paid that amount. That means not only did they screw us once by charging me at all, there is mark-up built into the price and they made a profit from their "mistake". THAT'S CALLED FRAUD!!!
I special ordered spa jet addons that were supposed to be in a single seating configuration, not 3 jets for 3 people in 3 different seats. No one mentioned it wasn't possible until after they drew up the contract and I brought it up again later when reviewing the plans after taking my money. They also argued with me that it would be too much pressure for me as if it weren't my decision and like I didnt have a pump I could turn up or down to set the pressure, or that we there isn't a valve that controls the pressure so I could turn it down by directing the water through the other jets also. Once again, i got nothing but excuses and arguments when I point out their numerous failings, like they were some temperamental unemployed artist instead of a service provider.
I had the pool done in natural Earth tone colors. When they came to do the tile, the supervisor Lou lied to me saying the grout could be colored and HAD to be the white grout I didnt want because the pool will bleach it out. I took their word for it but later, after the pool was done, found a grout product made for exactly this.
The cap tiles around the semi-circular stairs were very poorly installed, using 6 inch long tile that could not possibly conform to the pool shape and forcing them into an edgy hexagonal shape which conflicted with the round shape instead of splitting the 6 inch tile into 3 inch tiles. Supervisor Chuck showed up, looked, and said to me mark them with tape AND IF HE AGREES he will split them, forcing me to have either a hexagonal pool or a sloppy tile job with different sizes. I marked the tiles and there were so many that it would look terrible to not split all of them. I was actually told repeatedly (this is really absurd) that the refractive optic qualities of the water would make the stairs look flat so there's no point in fixing the tile to make it look more round. This is completely false and after weeks of complaining and them refusing, they finally fixed it at the last minute before the acrylic finish was put on. Once again, nothing but excuses and arguments when I point out their numerous failings.
So far, beyond their customer service policy of everything being about what they wanted instead of what I wanted, and beyond all their lies, constant attitudes and arguements, I was still out of t read more