Pioneer Family Pools

This location provides good value and many outdoor lifestyle products. The testing area is great add. unfortunately staffing levels are inconsistent creating long wait times and frustration in finding the right product.

I visted their Oakville store several times to test my water and buy any required chemicals, and I am under impression that they are employing some seasonal employees with the most basic knowledge whose their guess might not be better than average customers. As soon as the question is getting a bit tricky, they would try to look away or reading the products specification for you. If you need to talk to a pool expert don't go there but for a simple advise you would get some help there.

So disappointed with the quality of service, lack of responsiveness and willingness to fix issues from Pioneer Pools. They make you pre-pay first before they deliver the services as promised, good luck getting your money back or a fix.
We purchased a new filter and opened the pool with them this season; the filter came with no box, no manuals, no warranty information, probably used or returned item.
Tried to get the warranty information for the filter, they said it stays with the company. I called Hayward they said you should ask for it because you need it to register with Hayward. We still don't have it as Pioneer pool refuses to provide it.

Then two guys came to open the pool, no markings whatsoever of belonging to the company, we are pretty sure it was outsourced to other companies. They didn't brush the pool cover as per services provided information when you pre-pay for it and they DUMPED THE DIRT IN THE POOL exactly what the cover is supposed to prevent from happening.
Called to complain about it, nobody picks up. Left a voicemail days ago, nobody called.
Very very disappointed

I had a salt system and pool pump installed. $418.00+tax is an expensive labor charge for 1 hours worth of work. For example my Electrician charges $65/hour. Plus, after waiting for the glue to dry we started the system and one of the joints starting leaking. I proceeded to spend the next couple of hours working with caulking and tape to stop the leak. My efforts were unsuccessful and after multiple VM's and emails was able to secure an appointment for a technician to return and repair the leak 2 days after the initial install. The repair was finally finished at 8:30pm but the installer splashed glue all over my new pump and patio stones. I've been a loyal Pioneer customer for over a decade. I have had all underground lines replaced, purchased multiple pumps, salt systems, cells, filters, robot, etc and have always been happy. Unfortunately this wasn't the usual experience....and will be my last.

Called to get my hot tub fixed. They sent a terrible technician, no follow up, and bad customer service. And have now disappeared for 2 months with no info. Go elsewhere!

Had my pool opening done by them. Had some minor service issues that were promptly addressed by a senior manager and promptly fixed in a professional manner. Getting pool companies to respond and act quickly during pool opening season is usually not easy but Pioneer did a great job. Will use them again.

WARNING: Don’t use them. You will have issues with your pool guaranteed. Anyone writing a positive review has zero clue about how a pool should be installed but are just happy to have a pool and believed all the sales tactics Pioneer gives you. You all need to know Pioneer are not pool installers, they are just a sales company. They hire subcontract companies to put your pool in and pressure them to cut corners in order to increase their profit margins.

I know dozens or people who have had major issues with their pool installs because of the lack of quality and the corner cutting they do. This includes unlevel pools, pool walls not square, pool heating issues and chemical imbalance due to the fact they only install 2 return jets and a skimmer no matter the size of your pool. It does not take a rocket scientist to know that you can’t properly circulate or heat a 30,000 plus gallon pool with 2 jets, 1 skimmer and no main drain. You need at least one jet per 250 sq ft of pool and a main drain for pools with deep ends or you will get thermoclines and pay and ridiculous amount of money trying to heat a pool which is only drawing water from the top 2 inches. Also chemicals are more dense than water and without proper circulation the chemicals will settle near the bottom and reduce the life of your liner as it will essentially eat away at it and discolour it in double the time.
Pioneer will try and tell you they don’t put main drains in because they leak but the truth is because they don’t want to warranty their work and want to sell you a pool for 65k + while doing the bare minimum of work. They even try to say that a single stage pump is it as or more efficient than a variable speed pump because they get a discount to push the single stage pumps. There are numerous pool companies that will give you all the proper equipment and install your pool properly for 10k cheaper or a basic pool.

Pioneer (their subcontractors) do not install pools the proper way and only care about pushing volume over quality.
I am not affiliated with any pool company and won’t make a recommendation but you better do your homework to understand the right way to install a pool. This is a huge investment and one that should last a lifetime. I have no idea how they have stayed in business for so long with this sort of business model and should be embarrassed with the way they treat current and potential customers.

It’s been a while that I wanted to post a review and didn’t come around to doing it, but here goes! We got our 30+ year-old pool renovated with Pioneer in 2019. After being let down at the last minute by Backyard Retreat Pools, we did a second round of quoting and that’s when we met Marcel from Pioneer’s Oakville location. From the very beginning, his approach was friendly and he showed he cared. From there, he was really responsive through emails and phone calls to answer my multiple questions. We ended up choosing them for our reno, and despite some delays due to weather, the process was smooth, the construction guys were friendly and polite, and the construction manager/lead (Dillon I think) was also really nice and professional.

Granted, this was before all the COVID craziness, but we were really happy with the overall experience. Their pricing was competitive and service has been excellent honestly. They won our business for years to come.

Shame on us! We had a below average experience with them when we build our pool. However, we still decided to go with them for our hot tub because of how close they are to us. Hot tub was supposed to arrive in November, still waiting. Sales person, Ben, just let our questions sit for weeks, if I don't follow up, I don't get answers. Their customer service is very poor and bordering the impolite. Slow responses, poor answers and some unauthorized charges to my card. DO NOT RECOMMEND.

They have a great sales reps and the initial installation is done well. They have probably the worst customer service ever. We had a liner discolouration which appeared not even after a full season. The customer service rep blamed us stating that it’s because we “shocked our pool” which we actually never did. They said we could have the liner replaced at ‘cost’ but it would be at our cost of over $2000. Why should I have to replace it at my own cost and why would I when they can’t even tell me what actually happened because they clearly have no idea. Getting water samples done at their facility is a way for them to get out of replacing things and make you liable. If you don’t get the samples tested then they it’s your fault because there is no way to know if you’re taking care of your pool because they don’t know what your levels are. On the flip side getting samples done allows them to find an excuse and say it’s because “this” value was out of our recommended range even if it’s just slightly over/under. When I explained the situation to the lab testing reps they even told me our water chemical values are some of the best they have ever seen and that what the service rep said doesn’t make sense and apologized for him.

We also got Pioneer to open and close our pool and that service is a joke. For the close they didn’t lower the water level low enough (below the jets) and they didn’t clean off the cartridges both of which are stated on the website as part of the closing process. When they did the opening in the spring they just folded up the safety cover and bagged it with out cleaning off the algae build up. We have spent an additional 4-5hrs of work to clean up what they were paid to do. Unacceptable. When we spoke over the phone to the customer service they were unable to credit or give any compensation as it was prepaid. They outsource labour to other companies so can’t reassure the quality of work. They offered to come back and clean the cartridges and lower the water level however we had already spent 3hrs cleaning them and it was null and void. I warn you, do not go with Pioneer as they are not the best pool company out there.

Addendum: I visited the store today and spoke with customer service in person regarding the open/close service explaining the situation. He has credited our account $50 plus chemicals for a future open or close and has placed a note on our account to ensure it’s pioneer’s labourers that come out and do the service. He also included cartridge cleaner pucks and gave my 2.5yr old son a pool noodle which was very sweet.

I am still very upset about the pool liner however because it was definitely not our fault that staining occurred and yet their top customer rep was condescending and essentially blamed us for the damage. As far as I’m concerned he should not be in this role.