In today’s fast-paced world of pool construction, finding a comprehensive and efficient solution is key for both builders and homeowners who desire a faster turnaround time. Only Alpha Pool Products, a family-owned and operated business, has emerged as a frontrunner, offering turn-key pool kits that are gaining swift traction among pool builders seeking a high-quality, streamlined, and versatile system.
Who is Only Alpha Pool Products?
Founded in the early 2000s by business partners Tim Saxer and Tom Epple, Only Alpha Pool Products has had a rich history in manufacturing swimming pool components. With a diverse team representing hundreds of years of experience, the company has become a powerhouse in the industry, introducing innovative products and systems tailored to meet the evolving demands of the market.
One of Only Alpha’s standout offerings is the composite wall system, available in both vinyl liner (Fusion) and linerless (Evolution) configurations. Evolution which was inspired by materials used in the automotive industry, provides a hardy and temperature-resistant alternative to traditional polymer-based pool systems. This innovative approach has allowed the company to make a splash in the market, starting with the installation of the first Evolution pool in a Pennsylvania hospital back in 2009.
Composite Wall Pool Systems
Tim Saxer, Executive Vice President, explained why their composite wall system has become a mainstay product for Only Alpha Pool Products. “The reason why we went to composites rather than polymer, which is what everybody else does, is composites have a much broader temperature range. Heat and cold don’t affect it during the installation or transportation process. It’s a very hardy product that can handle heat well, and really builds like steel on a non-corrosive platform.”
Steel Wall Pool Systems
In addition to composite wall systems, Only Alpha manufactures steel wall pools in various heights, offering a versatile solution suitable for fully buried or semi-inground installations. The company also produces fiberglass, acrylic, and thermoplastic steps, bending its own coping and, as of last year, has begun manufacturing vinyl liners for swimming pools.
Builders Gravitating To Only Alpha Evolution
The Evolution, a standout product in Only Alpha’s lineup, has garnered high praise from pool installers, who emphasized its suitability for commercial and higher-end residential projects. Saxer, a seasoned expert with decades of experience in the industry, offered insights into the fast installation time that has become an appealing selling point with pool builders.
“It’s precision made. The product has 10,000th of an inch variation in its dimensions on it. So it’s a very exacting product,” explained Saxer, “internally, we have the ability to manipulate the product. We can cut it, we can glue it together so we can be able to make an interior that’s unique to anything precisely requested by a dealer. we’ve also worked with 3M on various adhesives to help build the pool, to make it a watertight shell without any coating on it.”
Speedy Build Time & Ships Ready For Assembly
“The wall structure, assembly of the wall structure, or in the case if you look at a concrete pool, would be called a bond beam. The assembly is very quick. We have a special adhesive that you would use between the wall systems to make it watertight, but it builds very quickly,” explained Saxer.
“It’s a prepackaged product, so it comes on pallets. It comes virtually preassembled. Once they pull it off the truck they can go right to work assembling it. Unlike a gunite pool, where you’re playing around with rebar and everything else. With this system, it’s all preset,” said Saxer.
“The concrete bottom has got to be poured correctly,” said Saxer, indicating one of the similarities in respect to traditional gunite pools. “You need to pour it fairly dry so you don’t have shrinkage in it.”
On Site Training & Support Allows Builders To Take On Larger Projects
Although a turn-key system, Saxer explained that builders still need proper installation training. Saxer conveyed that Only Alpha provides extensive training for dealers, ensuring that a trainer is present on the job site for each installation. The insistence on having a trainer present on the job site during the construction speaks to the company’s emphasis on hands-on learning and guidance, ensuring that builders have the necessary skills and knowledge to execute the building process with precision.
Only Alpha’s pool systems offer a variety of design options, from quick installs suitable for various shapes to replicating specific designs requested by customers. Saxer explained how their pool system has enabled builders to take on larger jobs. “We did a 30 foot vanishing edge pool for an apartment complex right near Purdue University,” said Saxer, who explained their system provided one of their vinyl liner dealer the opportunity to sell an apartment pool.
Only Alpha Pool Products Expedited Build Process Is Appealing
“Another interesting project was someone who came to us that was a one piece fiberglass builder. The consumer wanted a much larger pool, but they loved the interior design of the fiberglass pool,” explained Saxer, “we were able to replicate that pool on a larger scale for the customer,” who was looking for an expedited build process.
“The customer preferred this over gunite. Gunite is very expensive, and frankly, it’s a project. It’s going to take 30 to 45 days to complete a gunite or shotcrete pool shell. Two installers could assemble the 20 x 40 wall system in our evolution pool in less than 2 hours,” explained Saxer.
Manufactured With Sustainability in Mind
In an era where environmental consciousness has become paramount, Saxer says that Only Alpha Pool Products is commited to environmental responsibility and sustainability in the production process.
“On the production floor, everything we build is 100% recyclable. The vinyl liner could be any scraps get sent back and get reground into a 3D binder book cover for a kid at school. Steel is reprocessed. The composite panel can be reground, and it has the ability to be used as a filler for roads. Everything’s able to be reprocessed and recycled into another product. We’re very big on that in our industry.”
Want to take a deeper dive and learn more about Only Alpha Pool Products? Listen to our interview with Tim Saxer on the Pool Magazine podcast.
