Billiard Cloth
When it comes to picking a color and type of cloth for your pool table it can sometimes be a struggle. If you are selecting a color for your new table or for recovering you existing table, I suggest selecting a color that is more of an accent color in your room. With such a big splash of color you don’t want your area to be too monochromatic. I know I’m no designer, but I always seem to find customers agree with that perspective. We carry tons of different colors so I’m sure we will have something that will work in your rec room. Everything we carry is also Teflon protected for easy clean up and durability. We also carry blended cloth to ensure the longest possible life for your cloth. Some higher wool cloth might play slightly faster and have less resistance, but they tend to wear more quickly while actually costing more. If you are in need of some new cloth be sure to stop and check out our selection of colors…and if you don’t want to change it yourself you can always have our service department do it for you. Hope to see you soon!
Craig
Darts, Darts, Darts
I’m not sure everyone is even aware that we have darts here at Eastgate Pools, but we not only have darts (steel tip and soft tip), we also have boards, cabinets, and most other accessories you might need. I played a lot of darts in college and really came to enjoy the game and I think it is a game that more people would enjoy if more people set up a board in their house. One of the best things about darts is that it is a game where you can really develop some skill…and you don’t have to spend a whole lot of money to get started. For me steel tip darts is the way to go, but we have plenty of soft tip options for younger players along with several electronic boards that will keep score for you. I encourage you all to consider giving darts a try. I’m sure you will like it.
Craig
Debunking A Spa Myth
I will fully admit to not remembering everything I have said on this blog over the years, but just the other day I was faced with a spa request that is always tricky to explain. I had a customer walk in and say they wanted a small spa with lots of jets. Now, I understand that people are wanting more than just a couple of jets in a spa, but I think there is confusion out there that more jets equals better therapy and that simply is not the case. Jet count is important, but effective movement of water through those jets is even more important. All spas mix air with water and the air mixture is equal to every jet. Because of this smaller jets tend to have a higher psi and aren’t quite as effective at delivering the heat and massaging benefits of true hydrotherapy. Many manufacturers take advantage of consumers just looking for a high jet count by using a great deal of these small jets that may look impressive but fail to truly deliver the therapy they are supposed to provide. Since very few people actually wet test the spas they don’t really get a fair comparison of a spa that does things the right way and one that uses smoke and mirrors (or excessive jet counts). Hopefully that all makes good sense, if not stop in and I will be happy to show just what I mean…and I will be sure to show you exactly why the products we carry do things the right way.
Craig
The Great Eastgate Music Debate
We have a little satellite radio tuner here that we play in the store. In my time here we have played stations with steel drums and Jimmy Buffett, 80’s tunes, adult contemporary, and 70’s hits…which is really just a bunch of Disco music. I guess I’m just one of those people that cannot block out background noise, but I wish we could find a station for customers to appreciate while not driving those of us that are here five days a week insane. Christmas music is here, which means I will have a reprieve from the mundane, but that station tends to be even more repetitive. Anyhow, I suppose I’m just venting a bit, but ultimately I’m curious as to what our “audience” here at Eastgate Pools & Spas would find most pleasing. I know you never what to play music that is too risqué, but I’m always wondering what our patrons really would enjoy. Let me know what you think and it might your own personal soundtrack playing next time you stop by!
Craig
Fall Switcheroo . . .
Every year in October you can expect to see some major changes in products shown in each of our showrooms. Just a couple of weeks ago I took off my salesman hat and helped to move the bulk of our casual furniture to our second showroom and we loaded up the primary showroom with all the fun game tables for those cold months indoors. There are still countless options for casual furniture, several fire pits, and plenty of patio room options to be had. We are loaded to the brim with options for every category so please stop in and we will help you find just what you’re looking for.
Craig
One of the Possible Attractions you Might See at Eastgate…
I don’t know that anyone has ever brought up one of the frequent visitors here in the store, but several times during the pool season you might stop in and see a spider monkey named Nikki wearing a diaper. While the monkey never buys anything she does hang around and provide us and all the other patrons with the unique opportunity to get up close and personal with a pretty entertaining creature. She is over twenty years old and has been with the family for nearly her entire life. She has a little bit of belly on her and generally spends here time in the store sitting down with her arms resting on top of it. Last time she was in the store I loaded a case of liquid chlorine for the customer and I’m pretty sure Nikki laughed at me. Her handlers said it was a chirp, but I think she just thought I was funny looking. It is always fun to see her, but we have to make sure that Dos, the store cat, isn’t around because they don’t seem to get along too well. There you go, just one more reason Eastgate Pools & Spas is a great place to visit.
Craig
Pool Tables At Absurd Prices . . .
I know people don’t necessarily think of pool tables as a seasonal item, but we tend to sell the majority of our pool tables when the temperatures start to drop. Currently we have some unbelievable prices on many of our tables. Nearly every table is at “Price Blowout” pricing, which means you are getting the table below even the lowest sale prices we have offered. If you are thinking about getting a table for your home or have thought about it in the past there has literally never been a better time than now in the nearly eight years I’ve worked here. Please stop and see what great values we have for you…I’m sure you won’t regret it. Hope to see you soon!
Craig
New Item . . . EZ Drain Covers
New for us this year is the EZ Drain cover. This cover takes the aboveground pool cover to the next level. Traditionally aboveground pool covers take a beating when there is too much water on top of the cover. The opposite can be just as much of an issue when the wind whips the cover up and down. With the EZ Drain cover you have a mesh center that allows water to pass through a drain that is connected to your pool return fitting. The cover maintains just the right amount of water on the cover and saves you the unnecessary waste of dropping your pool water level for winter. In addition to these great features, the cover also boasts the highest thread count of any of our winter cover options at 15 strands by 15 strands per square inch. All of these features will help extend the life of the cover and save you the hassle of draining water from your cover during those cold and miserable days.
Craig
We Are Still Booking Installs!
We are closing in on the end of the traditional swim season, but there are still plenty of reasons to go ahead and buy an inground or aboveground pool. We are still running great promotions, including 10% off all of our inground package specials. With material costs seemingly always on the rise it is next to impossible to predict where pricing will go next year, but we are currently offering running at pricing comparable to 2006 prices. With aboveground pools there are a number of closeouts available on special purchase Horizons and Ultra 8s. These are both durable and high quality pools with very inclusive package specials. If you want it installed there are deals there too, but you can always choose to do your own install…and no it won’t affect your warranty in the least. So if you are thinking about a pool for next year it might just be worth your time to look into doing something sooner rather than later. Stop in and we would be happy to tell you about any of these great late season promotions.
Craig
More Markdowns!
We just recently marked down many of our toys and inflatables from 35% to 80% off! There are also a number of whimsical decorative figurines that have been further reduced. I know it has been really hot out so people are still using their pools to catch a moment of relief, but we are beginning to think about stocking the shelves for next year. That gives you an opportunity to take advantage of some extra discounts on items that still have plenty of use this season. If you haven’t seen our “Singing Gondolier” then you are in for a real treat! Might as well get the most for your dollar. Stop in as soon as you can to catch some of these great deals.
Furniture Blowouts!!
It is reaching that time of year where all of the box stores are moving on to Halloween accessories and away from outdoor furniture. That is not the case here! We still have two showrooms and three tents full of quality casual furniture products for you to choose from. As summer comes to a close and the fall approaches people sometimes forget that is probably the most comfortable time of years to step outside and enjoy the weather. As we start to put together orders for next year’s patio groupings we have to weed out discontinued frame and fabric patterns and styles. That means big savings for you. I encourage anyone in the market to stop out and take a look at some of these great values. We currently have closesouts available in sling, cast aluminum, wrought iron, and all weather wicker so I’m sure you can find something to meet your outdoor needs. I look forward to seeing you soon!
Craig
Service Area
Regrettably I have run a few inground pool appointments this year where the customer opted to go with someone closer to them for fear that Eastgate wouldn’t be able to prioritize them with an install or for potential service down the road. Obviously this was a disappointment to me, but more importantly it got me to thinking that belief might be something that keeps others from calling us. Let me assure you that nothing could be further from the truth. Eastgate Pools services a very wide area from Maysville to Batesville and if we felt we couldn’t provide the level of service that we pride ourselves on we would absolutely say so. The fact of the matter is that we probably cover a wider area than another other pool builder in the tri-state area. Couple that with the fact that our service department is here 12 months out of the year and I have no reservations in saying that you can expect the highest level of service available anytime you choose us for your pool, spa, and casual furniture needs. Service is a big part of why we have been honored with the Aqua 100 award eight times. So if you find yourself on the West side or in Indiana don’t hesitate to give us a call. I can promise you no one is more eager to earn your business than Eastgate Pools and you won’t regret your decision. Hope to see you soon!
Craig
Debunking An Aboveground Myth…#2
The vast majority of our customers that have shopped around for aboveground pools come in to the store looking for a resin pool because that is what they have heard is the best. Well, you won’t get that same endorsement here. The argument is always that resin won’t rust like steel. The question you should immediately ask at that point is why is the wall made of steel then? The reason…steel is stronger. The same applies for toprails and uprights. While it is true that resin doesn’t rust it does chalk, discolor, crack, and warp. If properly protected through hot dip galvanization, and other methods steel will provide you with a much more durable and long lasting pool than resin. Not all resin is bad, but gas assist injection molded resins are far more expensive to produce and that is not what you are going to get with pool “specials”. Our inground pool manufacturer uses the story of bridges to explain why steel is superior and I have to agree. You don’t often see bridges made of plastic. Consider the fact that we have installed over 3200 steel wall inground pools and never replaced a single panel in almost 32 years. If that isn’t validation, I don’t know what is.
Debunking An Aboveground Myth
I will be the first to admit that I am a fan of stainless steel products. My kitchen is appointed with stainless appliances and my grill has stainless burners and they are perfect for these applications. With aboveground pools it is quite common to find a stainless steel panel where the skimmer and return are located. Given my appreciation of stainless products you would likely assume that I think this is the way to go…that would, however, be incorrect. The argument for such a panel is that the gaskets at the skimmer and return are the most likely area on the pool wall to fail and that the stainless panel won’t rust. This is partially true, but the stainless panel is actually the weakest part of the pool wall as it isn’t corrugated like the rest of the pool wall. On our Oceanic and Endeavor pools this replaceable panel is the same material as the rest of pool wall because it providers greater strength and durability. When you are trying to retain thousands of pounds of water weight it is incredibly important to have a strong pool at all points. On these Sharkline pools that panel also matches the rest of the pool design so you don’t have an unsightly stainless panel sticking out like a sore thumb. Some of our pools don’t use these panels and honestly there is nothing wrong with that either. As long as you don’t have leaking at those gaskets you shouldn’t ever have a problem there. Think of it this way, if the pool is so well built why would you ever want to use a different material at one location? I will let you be the judge there.
The Price Of Aboveground Pool Installation
We have already seen a significant number of aboveground customers looking for early season specials…and let me be the first to tell you that we have them. One of the things that customers seem to shop more than any is the cost of installation. While some places may offer attractive and reduced installation costs, I encourage you all to consider the logic behind some of those “discount” prices. We have standard pricing for installation all year long, except for pools that have installation package prices. We keep our prices consistent because the costs associated with installation are consistent. Because these prices don’t fluctuate it is unrealistic to think that an installation crew could afford to install a pool for some discounted rate. The discount is typically added back into the pool or package price. Our goal is to be upfront and reasonable about installation and to not penalize those customers that wish to install their own pools. At a minimum I would always encourage customers to look at the quality of the pool, what is included in the package, and what is included in the installation when comparing pool builders and their products. If you keep all of those factors in mind I’m sure you will find Eastgate Pools & Spas to not only be reasonable, but also provide you some of the best values in the market. Never be afraid to ask us, because we are always happy to explain our products and services and stand behind them. I hope to see you all here soon…and some nice weather as well.
Craig
