Pool removal in Kentucky

These figures are national numbers from Angi, recalculated using Kentucky wages for construction laborers, who make $22.04 per hour compared with $25.02 across the country (BLS).

A fill-in leaves part of the pool in place, while full removal takes the whole pool out of the ground. Full removal means every piece of the pool comes out of the ground, and all that extra digging and hauling raises both the cost and the schedule. After someone sees your yard, a written quote puts a real number on your job.

Before any building gets demolished or removed, Louisville Metro asks for a wrecking permit. That page talks about buildings, and the city has not published any rules aimed specifically at pools.

The local sewer district, MSD, has a permit for land disturbance that covers digging to build a pool and taking down buildings under 2,000 square feet, but its guidance does not say whether pool removal needs it. It asks for a site plan, so ask your crew whether they'll handle it.

Under Kentucky law, anyone about to excavate or demolish has to contact Kentucky 811, the service that gets buried utility lines marked. State law says you need to give notice at least 2 full working days ahead, and no more than 10.

Once you file a locate request, it holds for 21 calendar days starting the day it is made. Work that begins after that window calls for a fresh request.

The sewer district in Louisville wants the water tested before anything else. Total chlorine should be close to zero, around 0.1 ppm (parts per million), with a pH somewhere between 6 and 8.

Louisville MSD says chlorine-free pool water can be drained slowly onto a grassy area large enough to absorb it. Homes with a sanitary sewer cleanout can send the water there instead.

The state's housing and construction department handles licenses for plumbers, electricians, and a handful of other trades. General contractors and demolition contractors do not appear on that statewide list.

At the city level, Louisville Metro licenses building contractors locally under Building A and Building B classes. When the crew gives you a written price, ask them to confirm which permits are covered in it.

The seller disclosure form used in Kentucky asks whether the property has ever had issues with things like unstable soil, water drainage, flooding, or problems with grading and erosion. The form asks about problems even if they were fixed, so keep your paperwork from the job for when you sell.

Tell the crew a little about your pool and yard, and they'll book a time to come out and give you a written price. One call gets it started, so call now and you can have that number before you plan anything else.