Pool Furniture Questions

Several of our chaise lounges have reached an age that the vinyl can't quite be cleaned anymore and a couple of straps have broken here and there. I have been told that chairs can be re-strapped with new vinyl as opposed to replacing the entire chair.

Has anyone done this, how does the cost compare to just buying new furniture?

I have done some research online and it looks like we could purchase new commercial lounges for around $110 each. Does this seem comparable to what other associations have paid?

Are there any advantages to going with resin chairs vs. metal frames with vinyl straps?

How often does your association replace its pool furniture? Do you include this as a reserve expense or operating expense?

We went the re-strapping route for a few years and it seemed that we were doing it every year; so a few years ago we just bit the bullet and replaced them all with new. As to the resin chairs, if everyone in your community is a 102lb supermodel it might work but if they are more American sized (fat) i wouldn't recommend them. They have a way of collapsing at the most inopportune moments, usually with someone wedged into them.

I agree with Glen...stay away from resin! After a couple of seasons, it gets brittle and breaks easily. We've had luck with benches and lounges made of recycled milk jugs. They come in several colors, are very sturdy and easy to clean and the cost is comparable to commercial grade furniture. We've had ours for almost 4 years and they still look great(though the lounges aren't the most comfortable in the world) We budget for pool furniture as an operating expense.

We got ours at: www.polly-lumber-furniture.com and the 4" bench was under $400.(don't remember the cost of the lounge) If you google "recycled plastic furniture" you'll come up with a number of places. One other thing about these is that they are relatively heavy so you don't have to worry about them blowing around or ending up in the pool, but if they do, they float!

We have furniture from Wholesale Pool Furniture.com which was pretty good and lasted for 4 years. However, when people use lotion and no towels the strapping is stained and uncleanable. To replace a chaise is $99 and to restrap is $120 both plus shipping - so do the math. We have switched to mesh covering and will see how that lasts.