Home Still Works

Contractor Gone ยท Aquanautics

Aquanautics customers: what the filing means and what to do

WFLA's Better Call Behnken reported that the company told customers it planned to file for bankruptcy, leaving about sixty pools unfinished.

Reported byWFLA 8 On Your Side
Reported statusTold customers it planned to file; roughly 60 unfinished pools
FilingNot confirmed as of 2026-09-07
LicensingFlorida DBPR pool contractor license; look up the qualifier as well as the company

Where things stand

As of this page's date we have not confirmed a bankruptcy filing on PACER. Until a case number exists there is no automatic stay, which means the demand letter, the DBPR complaint, and a small-claims filing all still work. Search PACER for the company name before deciding which path to take, and check back; this page is updated when a filing appears.

What a customer can do, in order

  1. Card payments first. If any payment went on a credit or debit card, call the issuer and open a dispute for services not rendered. The bankruptcy does not stop a chargeback; the card network's clock does.
  2. File the proof of claim. If a case is open, the court will mail a notice with a bar date. Official Form 410 is free, no lawyer needed. A deposit for household services is a priority claim up to $3,800 for cases filed on or after April 1, 2025; mark the priority box and attach the contract and receipts.
  3. The state path. Florida has the Homeowners' Construction Recovery Fund ($100,000 per claim for Division I licenses (general, building, residential); $30,000 for Division II (pool, roofing, and other specialty licenses), for contracts dated on or after July 1, 2024). Precondition: Licensed contractor; a final order from the Board or a civil judgment for a violation such as abandonment or misapplication of funds; the loss must be from a residential contract. The Florida page has the license lookup, the deposit rule, and the small-claims cap. Note: a licensing complaint and a fund claim are not stopped by the bankruptcy stay in most states because they run against the license, not the debtor's assets; confirm with the agency.
  4. Subcontractor notices. Florida's Notice to Owner system means a sub or supplier who served notice within 45 days of starting can lien your home even though you paid the contractor. The defense is 'proper payments': releases of lien for each payment. If you never received a Notice to Owner from that sub, its lien rights may be gone; demand a copy.
  5. Financing. If the contractor arranged a loan, write to the lender. A lender on a contractor-arranged consumer loan generally takes the loan subject to the claims you have against the contractor (the FTC Holder Rule); ask for a stop on payments while the claim is resolved.

Run the free check as a Aquanautics customer

The paperwork, done

The Contractor Gone kit, $39 builds the chargeback script, the proof of claim worksheet with the priority box explained, the Florida licensing complaint, the fund or bond paperwork where it exists, and the lien-defense letter, all with your dates and amounts in place. What's in it.

Sources

Facts checked 2026-09-07 against the sources above. Case details change; the PACER docket is the record. Nothing here is legal advice. If you are a customer and something on this page is wrong or out of date, email jon@homestillworks.com.