It's more a beach than a pool...

July 7, 2010 10:46 AM

Easiest way to level sand?

Got the pool walls up and realized I needed more sand. Got a buddy with a Bobcat and he helped me get a truckload of sand inside the pool, now I need to level it out.

What would be the best (and easiest) way to level 4 tons of sand inside a circular tube?

posted by Hugh2d2 to home & garden (4 answers total)

Get in there with a shovel and rake, and do a rough cut of it. Next step is called screeding. You want to get yourself a level guide on either side of the hole. 2x4s are best, but you can use twine if need be.

In the case of 2x4s, you install them long-ways and level, and then shimmy a 2x4 across them in a perpendicular direction, dragging the high spots into the valleys. With twine, you carefully keep the 2x4 just under the twine doing the same.
posted by bfranklin at 11:05 AM on July 7, 2010

If I'm understanding the situation correctly traditional screeding is not going to work because the pool has a convex bottom.

Like bfranklin says the rough cut will be a rake and shovel. Your next step would be to use a darby float (basically a 2-3' 2x4 with a handle) to knock down the high spots and fill the valleys.

Honestly if this was me I would be going to the day labor pick-up near me and getting a crew of three guys who will be able to knock this out before lunch instead of spending two or three days trying to go it solo.
posted by Bango Skank at 11:31 AM on July 7, 2010

what bfranklin and bango skank said. Also, depending on how thick the layer of sand will be, 1" electrical conduit is very rigid and makes a good screed guide if your sand will be less than 1" thick.
posted by reverend cuttle at 11:38 AM on July 7, 2010

ah, but if I assume you are doing the flat bottom of a cylinder, 2x4s or twine will be easier to make into a custom form.
posted by reverend cuttle at 11:40 AM on July 7, 2010