Dh put the pool in dry dock

We've been in this house almost three years and our ancient in-ground pool is in need of repairs. Emptying it (27,000 gallons) seemed like a monumental task, but dh decided to just do it. It WAS a monumental task! The water doesn't just go down a drain, you have to pump it up and out, then let it dissipate SOMEwhere. That "somewhere" was our postage stamp-sized back yard, the back alley, and finally, the front street. It took about a week, doing a few thousand gallons every couple of days in order to let it evaporate and to keep the water out of the neighbors' yards.

Here it is with a lot of water drained:

Finally the pool pump was unable to clear the last of the water, so we got a water pump to get the last of it. Water pump--funny, right? It actually uses the velocity of water from the garden hose to power it and it clears water in about a 1:5 ratio, and very effectively.

That's about it. Tomorrow someone is coming out to give us an estimate on repairing two of the ladder stairs in the deep end, and will probably give us an estimate on doing some minor patching of the walls, and a cleaning and repainting. We'll likely have them do the stairs and dh will probably do the rest. Then refill and swim!