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So, in the lower half of my parent's yard, we have what used to be a 40 x 20 ft (approx) in-ground swimming pool. Years and years ago it was drained. We busted up the concrete around the pool and tossed it into the hole. The idea was to fill on top of that and create a nice landscape.

However, that never got done, and INSTEAD, the former pool has functioned as a landfill with everything from grassclippings and leaves to an old microwave, ironing board, and chest of drawers being thrown in.

It's been so many years that all the organic material has become quite fertile and the place is filled with gigantic weeds. The weeds could be pulled, but it would only expose the garbage underneath.

Any ideas for ways to deal with this thing? My main concern is that if we were to just fill it in and cover it up with dirt and landscape on top of it, the compostable material underneath would decay and we'd have an uneven sinkhole in the back of our yard. So...are there ways around that? Any ideas?

Thank you SO MUCH for any thoughts.

-Tim

I'm sorry, but that sounds so much like one of those you know you are a redneck when jokes... what are you doing in Pacific northwest home of Microsoft and Starbucks?

I think there's only two choices: haul all of the garbage back out of the pool and take it to a real land fill (I expect things like microwave ovens count as hazardous waste) and start over. Or else just throw in a ton of topsoil and just keep adding more as it sinks down.

You're pulling our legs, right?

Get a crane, a bobcat and 40 yard dumpster.

Seriously. That cannot be good for the watertable with rainwater seeping through all of that old junk. Do your parents have well water? Concrete is sturdy, but it will settle, and there is no way that you'll get fill down to the bottom of the 'pool' through the weeds, junk and chunks to prevent movement. The concrete floors and walls of that pool will heave, crack and cave with all of the added weight of the concrete chunks, junk, water freezing and thawing, and then top soil on top of it?! All of that movement will make everything in that pool settle, and settle, settle. You'll have issues with that spot for years. Not to mention the rebar in the pool walls that will be corroding and sending more yucky stuff into your water. Pay for the tear-out, or do it yourselves, but you should really get the junk out of there.

Sorry, hubby in conrete! I hear all about this kind of stuff.

She is right.