How to patch plaster...and refill

[dickeystorm]

Hi,

I have several spots that need patching on my 26 year old IG plaster pool. How do you do this? Do I have to drain to patch? My CH and CYA are sky high so I will need to do some draining anyway. My thinking is to wait until the fall when the sun is weaker since I read direct sun could damage exposed plaster. Is it true? I don't want to have to fight the chemicals and high chlorine for the next 3 or 4 months. What' the berst way to do this?

Thanks

 

[Little Aussie Battler]

I am about to undertake some patching. I will post my results shortly. How big are the spots that need patching? I drained my pool as my refurb project is quite large. You need to use a grinder and because water and electricity don't mix you may want to consider draining your pool. I think plaster damage can sometimes occur from the suns heat expanding the plaster. The plaster can lift off the base and when it shrinks back it crazy cracks. My pool is full of crazy cracking. :-D Surprisingly there seems very little druminess. I intend to refinish with paint.

 

[dickeystorm]

There is a mix of spots. Some are in the 1-3 inch range. There is a cluster of spots in the deep end near the drain that kind of run together. I can see dark in them, the concrete below I guess. The plaster looks like it's roughly 1/4 inch thick. I'm leaning toward a complete drain since my numbers are so high. The pool calculator tells me to drain 73%, so I might as well go all the way. Just not sure if I should attempt it now in the middle of summer or wait for better weather conditions.

 

[Little Aussie Battler]

!/4 inch is perfect, that thickness usually gives the most economical life of the plaster before it starts to fail. The grey areas are more than likely areas where the plaster has worn thin. If you drain the pool you can give these areas a closer inspection even if it means lifting the plaster to see whats going on. If you find the plaster very thin it's more than likely that's a good sign that the pool needs a re plaster. At 26 years I'd say the plaster is not the only thing that needs re placing. Our pool originally had a thicker than normal plaster 3/8 to 1/2 inch but it has worn very rough and has many holes and cracks to repair. It needs to be polished back to a smooth surface. I opted to repair it myself, learning and having fun along the way. But really it was the cost that made me decide to do it myself. A quote for to do the work was $25000 and $8000-$13000 for the re plaster. If I get another 7 years out of the pool I'll be happy. I expect the cost to be less than $3000 and that includes all the fun tools I had to purchase. :-D

I think I would wait for cooler weather before doing anything.

cheers