Catalina Pool Builders, LLC

Not what I expected!

15-month nightmare briefly summarized: -contracted pool renovation February 2020 and paid $21K deposit (about 1/3 of the total)-promised done by Memorial Day 2020 -dozens of phone calls and emails to Catalina, including Josh - one of the owners, when nothing was happening â no answer -old pool deck demo done 5/19/20 (6 days from Memorial Day) â $10K due/paid per contract -over a period of 2 months, short lived communication after numerous calls and emails with a couple of new employees who quickly left the company -finally got a call from Josh after getting another new employee on the phone and exploding after months of being ignored. He was unhelpful but promised 2 free chairs and free pool chemicals - I got one cheap lounge chair and no chemicals. -plumbers came July 2020 - $10K due/paid per contract â later I checked on the work and noted that the 40 y/o main drain had not been replaced. Josh tried to convince me it did not need replacement. Research indicated replacement is required by code. Eventually, they jack-hammered a trench in the side of my pool to replace the main drain pipe. I called Catalina to see if they cut the rebar and if so, was it rewelded as necessary â to this day no answer. The main drains at the bottom of the pool were placed randomly and do not look professional. Other pipes in the spa were placed randomly, asymmetrically and again appear unprofessional. There remains no power line to the pool pump. - April 2021, the trench containing the PVC pipes going from the pool to the filter is uncovered with piles of dirt on either side. Prior to this, I had to notify and request that Catalina drain the pipes as the plumbers had charged the system with water that would freeze over the winter. Over the last year, the pipes have been exposed to sun (which degrades PVC pipes), snow and were actually encased in ice over the winter. It will require pressure testing to ensure pipes were not damaged while exposed to the elements. -no significant work done from July 2020 until January 2021, when the sun deck was completed. The Gunite was shot in freezing temperatures well below recommendations for concrete to cure properly. I questioned this and was told they would be using heaters and covers to keep the deck warm. I drove to the house to see if this was done â it was not. The Gunite sundeck and benches in the spa are not level. -I got a call from my livid neighbor because the Gunite truck drove on her lawn leaving large trenches. I called Catalina about this issue and managed to reach a new employee who connected me to a foreman. Nothing was done. The foreman didnâ t bother to go next door to speak to my neighbor. -I had a pool expert survey the work, which besides being grossly delayed, appears to be poorly done. The most concerning issue - the main pool drains are not VGBS Act complaint as required. VGB refers to Virginia Graeme Baker. Google her name to see why this is so serious. The pool was left empty for months and over the winter - not good for the shell of the pool. The skimmer installed as part of the sundeck construction is poorly placed. We have 6 children along with friends and relatives who will be swimming in the pool. That is a major reason we wanted the pool upgraded. I cannot trust this company to provide me with a quality and more importantly a safe swimming pool. -A disturbing aspect of this awful experience is the abject disdain this company exhibits towards its customers. The disrespect and disregard toward people who contract with them is shocking. In reality they are not Catalina Pool Builders, they are Catalina Pool Subcontract Managers who take a confiscatory amount of money up front that makes escaping the contract stressful and expensive. I regret I did not do my due diligence. Reviews on Google and Better Business Bureau critiques are clear.

.5 stars is way too much of a compliment to this company. I hired Catalina pools on February 4th with the salesman telling me they would be out within two weeks to start the dig. 5 weeks later after several phone calls and emails they started. It is now June 12th and I m not even close to swimming in my pool. They never return a phone call (not once) or email. So far every crew that ha shown up to my house has destroyed something that Catalina refuses to fix. They keep telling me that they didn t do it their sub contractors did the damage. Everytime they call me it come up in the caller ID as a unknown number so that you can t call them back. People please please please stay away from this company. I promise you don t want the headache I have from this company. I only wish I read reviews before I started this project!!!

Easy to get a hold of when I had questions. Each contract for each new phase did a great job.

The looks great! Complete renovation. Stacey was amazing, great customer service and attention to detail. The crews work hard and take pride in their work.

They are as close to a 5 star review as I can give. I was impressed with the timeliness of completion and the professionalism of Brian and Stacy. The work was completed from start to finish in 10 days. I was able to pick out beautiful coping stone and tile and the crews were prompt and thorough. My 30 year old pool looks brand new! They coordinated the pool water refill and I am swimming again before the end of summer! I would recommend them!

Catalina did a great job on my tile and coping renovation. Their price was much lower than the competition and the quality was good. Most impressive was the customer service provided by Stacey Hogan. She scheduled all of the contractors and was constantly in communications with me to ensure everything was meeting my expectations. She even contacted me on labor day weekend to make sure that the tile and coping installation was going smoothly, Working with Stacey made the whole process worry free. I would definitely recommend Catalina Pool builders.

Poorly managed company, not customer focused and more concerned with sale of the pool than completing the pool in a timely fashion.

Certainly highly recommend! This was a significant decision for us and considered several area pool companies. From the very start, Catalina (John) was the only one who was quick to respond, punctual, and 100% prepared. They also were the only company to have completed their due diligence with the county regarding any land restrictions (which we were surprised to discover). The project managers were very professional, thorough, and very responsive to any and all questions and concerns we had (which were many). John was amazing in providing superior customer service not only for the sale, but througout our entire project. He was incredibly responsive to any and all of our concerns and questions (24/7), with expert advice and knowledge. While everyone at Catalina was terrific to work with, we want to give a big shout out to some other staff in particular. Among them, Kelly, in helping us select our tile and coping. Between ordering tile samples, and meeting with me to discuss and help us with our selection, she was always quick to respond and a pure joy to work with! Excellent customer service and super friendly! We also are incredibly grateful to Stacey, who was brought in toward the later part of our project. Without her tireless efforts outstanding customer service and superior problem-solving skills, we would never have come close to our goal completion date! She also was always avail 24/7, and responded quickly with a positive and can-do attitude. She went above and beyond to ensure every task, and every contractor and county official were being scheduled timely and completing their jobs in order to meet our completion date. Our pool was completed w/in 2 weeks of our goal, and we couldn't be more pleased! We absolutely love our pool and are incredibly pleased to have selected Catalina. They provided us with a beautiful, well-constructed pool, unbeatable customer service, and all within a reasonable budget.

Catalina took ok our job during some extremely difficult weather conditions, we are happy to say our pool was delivered on time and with excellent craftmanship, they continue to be a excellent resource for me if any questions arise, this was our first pool and things could not have gone any better.

We signed paperwork and paid the cost for permits for this project on May 2. Permits were completed June 15. As of the June 27th, we still had no one contact us regarding building our pool. I called to find out what was going on (was given the run around (folks not even knowing that we were customers). Later that day, construction was scheduled (claiming that the permits had only been approved that day--which was false). We had 2 weeks of rain after excavation (which caused some delay)...we were not provided with any sort of pump to pull the water out of the pool so we figured the next contractor would handle the water situation. When the rebar contractor arrived, we were reprimanded for allowing the water to build up. They only did half the job and we were pushed to the bottom of their schedule to complete the rebar portion. Rain caused the walls to collapse due to the length of time between the excavation and concrete shoot (almost a month). The communication with and customer service of Catalina Pools leaves much to be desired. Complaints about the contractors, timelines (or lack thereof) and instructions (or lack thereof) to homeowners fall on deaf ears. When I complained about the rebar folks and what had happened, I was told that Catalina has no control over their contractors (but the affiliation says it all). We were told we needed to hire a professional plumber to hook up the heater (but my idea of "hook up" and theirs are two different ideas). By "hook up" they meant a plumber had to come out and run the gas line and THEN hook it up to the heater and tank (not simply hook it up). The electrician showed up (and didn't have the CGFI breakers needed to complete the electrical work despite electrical panel pictures that were sent to him) so he tells us he'll come back when he has a job in the area b/c we are 2 hours from his shop (who knows when that will be). You pay for the water to fill your pool (it is not part of the exorbitant cost). I highly suggest you go through a lender as opposed to financing the pool yourself (because you are expected to provide all funds up front for each milestone (one of them for us being $37,000 BEFORE any work is completed) and are at the mercy of whenever the contractors come out to get the job done). At least the lender does not pay until certain milestones are met first (which helps drive the timelines). We have at least another 3 weeks before this project is close to being done (the decking isn't scheduled until Monday, 11 days from now). Our pool will be done just in time to scrub the surface of the plasterer for 2 weeks and close it. I normally tout family-owned businesses. This is not one of them.

Our experience with Catalina Pools could not have been better. The pool that was designed and built was exactly what we wanted. It was built on-time and without any problems. Frankly, we were shocked at how smooth the process was. They really did a great job. Then, when we called later to order some extra light cover pieces in different colors, they even sent a box to us without charge immediately. Fabulous service, work, and product. We love our pool and are very happy that we chose Catalina Pool Builders.

The worst service I have ever received. Very poor management of the project. Hired in beginning of March and not started until May. Project not completed until July 1st. Avoid at all costs. Mostly used subs. Marginal workmanship. Almost never showed when promised.

Poor customer service from management. Damaged several items on property, will not fix or very slow to fix. Severed propane line to house, damaged deck steps, exposed footers to house, pool dug out in wrong place costing us over $7,000 due to their error. Still wont respond to or correct these issues, has been over 9 months now. DO NOT USE THEM!!!

Catalina built our pool and did well enough. All of the work except plumbing was subcontracted out and the subcontractors were good. The in house supervision and quality control of the project was non existent. The first two seasons Catalina closed the pool. However in 2015 I called on Sept. 1st to schedule the closing they took my number said the Service Dept would get back to me . They never did despite 3 follow up calls eventually I was told to use a different service company as they would not do the closing. Do not use Catalina for service work.

Came in with lowest offer, started job and then told us it would be $4,000 more to complete! Now they will not finish the job and no one will return my calls! They are holding my deposit hostage! Awful experience! I should have checked the Bettter Business Bureau first, they have MANY complaints!

Helped solve my after dealing with several contractos the past two years.

At first there was some confusion on both parts about schedules for the job. Since I was having the pool replastered which require removal of old plaster etc and installation of new plaster. Their subcontractors showed up unannounced to start work on both trips creating some inconvenience to me. Failure to inform me of scheduled dates so I could plan other items to my personal schedule was upsetting. However in all honesty their sub contractors were very polite, professional and do quality work. They need to work on scheduling to inform clients in the future.

all work was completed on a time.

Very fast service and the two gentlemen that came were very kind. Certainly knew what they were doing installing my lnew liner. I highly recommend them.

They saved us thousands of dollars

Very friendly people. Only thing is long time to get an appointment

I needed an estimate for a spring pool opening to give to a home buyer with the sale of my home and Kip was very helpful and quick to provide the necessary document. I recommended that the home buyer call him when she was ready to get the pool opened next spring. Kip provided excellent customer service !!!

great job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!