Man Discovers Swimming Pool Hidden Underneath His Boggy Back Garden
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When John Reynolds bought a run down house that was set to be bulldozed (for just £15,000) he never imagined he would find a swimming pool hiding in the back garden.
John, 35, from Texas said he felt like he'd won the lottery when he bought the detached, three bedroom house two years ago.
Three months after purchasing the property - which he intended to refurbish and sell on - the nurse was left speechless when he discovered a 40,000 gallon, 32x17ft pool hidden under junk and debris in the back garden.
"It feels like I have stumbled across a winning lottery ticket," said John.
"Never in a million years when I bought the property did I think I would be swimming in my own pool.
"I bought it as a bit of an investment with the intention to do it up and sell it on, but it has yielded so many surprises I don't know if I can let it go.
"My friends and I are in it every day for hours on end now. You couldn't wish to find a bigger reward in your back garden."
When John first purchased the property, it had been vacant for over a year due to the previous owner passing away. Due to lack of maintenance, the garden was very overgrown and despite noticing one area of the garden was always 'boggy' John didn't give it a second thought.
It was only when a large rainstorm filled the pool to the brim, shifting the debris, that he uncovered the hidden gem.
He said: "I could see a bit of concrete edging but I just thought it was part of the patio or more flower beds.
"There was so much going on with the house, that little area was my last concern, but I did notice that it was always boggy despite the fact we hadn't had any rainfall for weeks.
"When a huge rain storm finally came, I got a call from my neighbour asking if I'd seen my pool.
"I said 'I don't know what you're talking about, I don't have a pool' and she said 'yes you do'.
"When I went out you could just see the water line tile and the water was standing right up next to it. I was in shock.
"I thought 'whether I live here or sell the house, I can't leave it like this'
"It took 11 months just to do the cleanup process and as the shell started showing I was waiting for a huge crack to surface but that never happened.
"When we got back down to the bottom of the pool I realised it was still in really good shape."
Overall, John has spent £7,500 ($10,000) repairing leaks, cleaning, repainting and refilling the pool. And he's even decided to keep the house himself, despite it now being worth £165,000 ($220,000).
"I used to drive past the house all the time and it always caught my eye because it had so much potential," he explained.
"When I finally bought it, it was so dilapidated you could smell it from two blocks away.
"Transforming it has been a labour of love, and I've decided it's going to be my home now."