Gunite shell penetrator leaks

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Belldiver

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Sep 7, 2007
344
Lafayette, Louisiana
Hi folks,

A quick question here...I just had the shell of my pool shot today. Everything went great and the shell looks great. The only small hitch that happened is the light niche for the deep end of the pool ended up a little crooked and by the time we noticed, the gunite was just starting to setup. They dug a little out around the niche and straightened it out then powdered the area around the niche with some dry Portland cement and then packed fresh gunite around that. Everything looks normal and the niche is now straight and correct.

My question is...would it be normal for water from the OUTside of the pool to leak past the niche and seep into the pool? Due to the rain today we had some water on the outside of the forms and I can see water slowly seeping past the niche from the outside down to the bottom of the pool. The gunite guys didn't seem concerned at all and said it happens sometimes around penetrators (PVC and/or light niches) and the plaster is what actually seals all these small leaks. I do trust them, they've been very upfront about everything and helped me out alot since they know I'm learning a little as a I go. I'd like to hear it from another source though. (that's y'all)

This is a pic of the water on the backside of the forms. I'll bunker it up tomorrow so water can't sit there, but it doesn't change the situation. Would I need to pack some other sealer around the niche? Or will the plaster do the trick? By the time we plaster and fill, it's too late to do anything else if there's a problem...

P1010149.jpg


Thank for any input on this...

Jim
 
You should be fine. As they said it is the plaster that is really waterproof, not the concrete. As long as there isn't a river flowing through the hole washing the concrete out you will be fine. It is actually better for the concrete to be wet for a while after it is poured, it cures better.
 
OK thanks, I feel better.

It is definately NOT a gusher, just a very small drizzle. You can't even really see it flowing.

I guess the plaster guys have to be good about smearing it up right against all the gunite penetrations eh? Otherwise you could end up with leaks all over the place...

Jim
 
They are definitely correct. Gunite is porous, and can let some water through. I have seen small streams coming down the side of a gunited pool, but when the plaster went up, there were no problems. I wouldn't worry about it.
When there is a leak in plaster I usually see it around light niches, or pipes coming through the walls. Usually something simple like having a tiny gap in the plaster at the edge of the niche. It happens, and it's typically easy to fix if it does happen.
 
You could have them pack some hydrolic cement (ie, waterplug) into the suspect area before plastering or use some marine epoxy to do the same thing. As was said, sometimes the plaster crew doesn't get the plaster in all the way to seal a light or horizontal pipe, if you know that there is a small leak - have them give it a patch before they apply the plaster.
 
Also make sure they remove the light when they are plastering, otherwise they won't get the plaster up to the housing like they should. I'm sure they will do that without being told, but if you're around while they're plastering it's one more thing to watch out for.

We had a lot of rain after gunite and the water weeped through the gunite in several places including the light niche. It's nothing to worry about, as everyone else said it's the plaster that makes everything watertight.
 
I'll have to mark all the penetrators that I can tell have small weeps. I've had a ton of rain since the shoot and it has pooled up against the back of the pool walls. There are a few penetrators that weep a little. And just make sure they do what they're supposed to do...

Thanks...
 

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It is not so much an issue as getting the penetrations water tight before plastering as having a good solid surface for the plaster to bond to. If there are significant voids the plaster will not be properly supported in front of the void. Plaster can bridge small gaps that water might seep through, but it will lose strength and tend to crack if bridging too large of a gap or a several cubic inch hole. As long as there is something solid to support the plaster, the plaster will take care of making everything watertight.
 
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