Hi, I’d like to apologize for what will be a lengthy intro post and I hope someone will direct me if I should post it elsewhere.
I live in coastal Northwest Florida (not a mile from the bay) and am the proud new owner of a mid 1980's 18x36 gunite pool that we hired a local contractor to resurface and is now floated and I'm hoping to receive some knowledgeable advice. We sought several quotes from local contractors to resurface our pool and were told conflicting information regarding whether well points needed to be put in or not and how each contractor would handle the hydro static pressure of our extremely high water table. We had two quotes that didn't require well points being installed, both from reputable companies that stated using a pump in the drain and/or drilling additional pressure relief holes in the pool bottom would achieve the same end. We chose a company that has been installing pools in the area for 35 years and who said well points were not necessary. They began draining the pool on Monday evening and it was completely drained on Wednesday evening. The contractor called me and told me to turn off the submersible pump that was now pumping ground water only. They did not drill additional pressure relief holes. The next morning I hear the pool workers discussing why it was shut off and they turn it back on. I didn't go out to look at the pool again until Friday afternoon when the job was completed, but a pump had been set up at the deep end of my pool that is still pumping ground water so I didn't walk the perimeter of the pool at this time. The water is turned on to fill the pool and I didn't look at it again until sunset Friday. At this time I discover that the deck around my deep end has raised at least an inch, slopes at a and there are cracks around my deep end skimmer and diving board and the cement deck now has at least a 4% slope at the deep end. There are cracks near the steps in the shallow end and the deck has sunk around an inch below the cement pad it was once level with. When the water line is level with the bottom of the tile line in the shallow end, it’s at least inches below the line in the deep end.
I have much more to relate and many questions, but would like to be certain that this is the place to do so.
I live in coastal Northwest Florida (not a mile from the bay) and am the proud new owner of a mid 1980's 18x36 gunite pool that we hired a local contractor to resurface and is now floated and I'm hoping to receive some knowledgeable advice. We sought several quotes from local contractors to resurface our pool and were told conflicting information regarding whether well points needed to be put in or not and how each contractor would handle the hydro static pressure of our extremely high water table. We had two quotes that didn't require well points being installed, both from reputable companies that stated using a pump in the drain and/or drilling additional pressure relief holes in the pool bottom would achieve the same end. We chose a company that has been installing pools in the area for 35 years and who said well points were not necessary. They began draining the pool on Monday evening and it was completely drained on Wednesday evening. The contractor called me and told me to turn off the submersible pump that was now pumping ground water only. They did not drill additional pressure relief holes. The next morning I hear the pool workers discussing why it was shut off and they turn it back on. I didn't go out to look at the pool again until Friday afternoon when the job was completed, but a pump had been set up at the deep end of my pool that is still pumping ground water so I didn't walk the perimeter of the pool at this time. The water is turned on to fill the pool and I didn't look at it again until sunset Friday. At this time I discover that the deck around my deep end has raised at least an inch, slopes at a and there are cracks around my deep end skimmer and diving board and the cement deck now has at least a 4% slope at the deep end. There are cracks near the steps in the shallow end and the deck has sunk around an inch below the cement pad it was once level with. When the water line is level with the bottom of the tile line in the shallow end, it’s at least inches below the line in the deep end.
I have much more to relate and many questions, but would like to be certain that this is the place to do so.
