Adams Pool Solutions focuses solely on pool remodeling, and uses new technology to the advantage of its customers.

Most companies start out in a niche with plans to expand and cover other sectors of the market
in the future. But Adams Pool Solutions made a conscious decision years ago to focus entirely on pool remodeling. “There’s still really no other company, that I’m aware of, that generates its entire business around just remodeling swimming pools,” Vice President of Sales Rick Wolpin says. “I’m sure they’re out there, but we’re the only one in this area. The only companies we compete with are also companies that build new pools.”

The company has reasons why it does not expand into the pool-building business. “A good portion of our income is working as a subcontractor for pool builders, so we choose not to compete with them,” Wolpin says. “It would be very difficult for us to bid against them, and then if they got the job, we’d have to show up as a subcontractor. It’d also probably be hard for them to write checks to us knowing we compete with them.”

Adams Pool Solutions decided to stick to remodeling pools early on, he adds. Founded by Earl Adams in the late 1950s and formerly known as the Earl Adams Tile and Plaster, the company started out as a tile, masonry and plaster subcontractor for pool builders. In 1991, President Tony Adams, Earl Adams’ son, and General Manager Marc Hannigan decided to go after the remodeling market because of the numerous requests from clients.

Wolpin says Adams Pool Solutions is the largest pool remodeling company in the country. It has five offices: its headquarters in Pleasanton, Calif.; Houston; Dallas; Sacramento, Calif.; Las Vegas; and a sixth office which will open in Phoenix.

Saving Lives and Energy
In the past few years, Wolpin says, pool technology has improved dramatically. Technology to control pools from inside the home, filtration, sanitation and solar-heating systems are at the forefront of pool technology. Because of the new technology, Wolpin notes, deaths from drowning that occur in swimming pools in the United States total 3 percent, the lowest percentage of drowning deaths, and lower than drowning deaths in lakes and oceans, according to Pool and Spa News. “Some safety features that are being built in pools include automatic covers to prevent kids from falling in, and pool suction covers that use new technology to prevent small children, or even adults, from getting trapped by suction lines,” Wolpin says.

“What we’ve done is adopted a remodeling policy for all spas or any pool that is less than six feet deep – our main drains need to be split,” he says. “If there’s a single suction outlet, all the suction comes from that, and if anyone lies on their stomach or covers that pipe, they can become trapped. By splitting it with two outlets three feet apart, it’s virtually impossible to cover both outlets at the same time. If someone sits on one, the suction will go to the other outlet. This eliminates the possibility of someone getting trapped and drowning.

“We try to stay focused on safety,” he adds. “Where there’s water, there can be catastrophic disasters.”

Aside from the personal impact of a drowning, both the bad publicity and the financial affect on the industry reverberate throughout the country. It is much like the airline industry after a crash, he says.

In terms of water treatment, chlorine generators have become popular. These use salt in the pool water to create chlorine. Chlorine generators have gained real popularity in the past four years. “In California, and maybe a handful of other states, we’ve adopted a law where any replacement recirculation motor must be multi-speed,” he says. “This saves energy. We install a pump with variable speeds – low speed for filtration and higher speeds to operate jets or water features, and it can ramp up to do a bit more for sanitation if someone has a large party. The energy savings is pretty significant – in some cases, more than $1,000 in savings a year.”

In California, the emphasis on saving energy is reflected in new solar heating equipment for pools. “We take advantage of the sun here,” Wolpin says. “A solar-operated pool might cost money to install, but the system pays for itself in two to three years.

“It’s basically free heat. Customers can save as much as $500 a month depending upon how hot they like to keep their pool,” he adds.

Wolpin explains solar heating is not like a hot water heater that has a reserve. Instead,
the pool itself is the reserve during the day. Water goes from the pool through a filtering system to the solar panels, and then back into the pool.

Unlike a hot bath, which can lose its heat over time, after the sun goes down, a solar-heated pool won’t lose heat quickly. “As long as the filtration system is operating and the sun is out, the pool will be heated and it will stay warm.

“In most cases, we install a gas heater as a backup, because 99 percent of people use their spas in the evening,” he says, “and they won’t be able to heat that up to 100-some degrees with just solar heating. And solar heating can only work if it’s sunny – if it’s foggy or cloudy, the gas heater will kick on and heat the pool.”

Proud of Projects
Wolpin says he is proud of many of the company’s projects, but its work on the Auberge du Soleil, a high-end salon and spa in Napa Valley, Calif., stands out. Adams Pool Solutions remodeled the pool, spa, and 2,500 square feet of pool deck made from custom stone flown in from Greece. Wolpin says there were “major time constraints” on the outdoor job. Construction started in January 2007 and was completed in April of this year.

“Other work besides remodeling of the pool was going on, so we had to wait for other contractors to finish before we could complete the pool and spa,” he says. “We could have finished [our work] sooner, [otherwise]. We also had to watch the weather carefully – those are typically our wettest months. The owner was prepared to put a tent up over the pool so we could work [in case it rained], but we never needed it.”

The result was a completely remodeled pool and spa including new tile, coping, plumbing, equipment electrical, and decking. “I am particularly proud of this project [because] we either met or exceeded every time or budget constraint that was placed upon us,” Wolpin says. “We were able to accomplish this because all of the work was done with our own in-house crews and therefore were able to control both costs and scheduling. Because of the uniqueness of the project and the high quality of both the material and workmanship, we helped to transform this pool area into one of the most luxurious and highly regarded resorts in the entire Napa Valley. It will serve as a springboard for more work in other spas and hotels in this very popular … spot.”

Adams Pool Solutions also just completed the remodel of a standard, existing pool into a vanishing edge pool at a customer’s home. “This five-month-long project – which was also coordinated with an extensive home remodel project – was a rather fun project to be involved with,” Wolpin says. “It was one where the customer was both pleasant to deal with and accommodating. They knew what they wanted.”

It did, however, present some structural and hydraulic challenges which were outside the norm of a typical backyard situation. The final product was a vanishing-edge pool that looked out to a spectacular view of Mount Diablo. “The edge disappears into the mountain in the background,” Wolpin says. “It always works out real well when you can make your customer’s vision a reality.”