hey everyone, im new to the forums, and i just bought my first home. it came with a 40x20ft gunite pool. the pool was winterized and shut down in 2014. we have a lot of pools around here, so i have a ton of help maintaining it, but will be using this forum a lot as well. my main concern is the marcite. im going to try and contact the previous owner and see when it was resurfaced last, if it even was, but im almost positive its going to need a resurfacing. my thing is, i want the one size fits all surface lol, and i know that probably doesnt exist. i dont mind the feel of marcite. ive swam in plenty of hotel and gunite pools. my main concern is durability and longevity, but if i can gain smoothness and great feel while having both, that would be great. i contacted a contractor, and he ballparked me at $6900 for marcite. he then mentioned hydrazzo finish. said you never have to resurface your pool again. just get it buffed out etc, but comes in at almost double. im not the wealthiest man in the world, but i would wear swimming shoes, as im gonna open the pool here soon dealing with the current surface, and save up the money for that if its true. does anyone have any information on hydrazzo finish or recommend any other great finish? im new to all the finishes. ive been researching on all of the materials, but i would like some feedback from people who have multiple different kinds of finishes, how long they last, the maintenance on them, etc. i just wanna get my pool back to 100% eventually! also, would taking the pool down to the gunite be recommended? i kinda dont feel comfortable about a chipped out resurface. why leave parts of it that might go bad like the chipped out parts? id have more peace of mind if the whole thing was just redone. any help is appreciated!
gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
- Thread starter emceelovin
- Start date
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
Hi there emceelovin
Welcome to TFP. Glad to have you here!
One finish you need to investigate is Aquabrite. It is the mac daddy of pool finishes, although kinda pricey.
Otherwise I'm sure others will come along and share their pool surface opinions with you. I'm going to tweak your title to show what you're asking better. You'll get better responses this way.
Maddie
Hi there emceelovin
Welcome to TFP. Glad to have you here!One finish you need to investigate is Aquabrite. It is the mac daddy of pool finishes, although kinda pricey.
Otherwise I'm sure others will come along and share their pool surface opinions with you. I'm going to tweak your title to show what you're asking better. You'll get better responses this way.
Maddie
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
glad to be able to be here! that's awesome, I'm investigating that finish right now! that's what I was hoping for as well. others do chime in and give me information on the various finishes.
glad to be able to be here! that's awesome, I'm investigating that finish right now! that's what I was hoping for as well. others do chime in and give me information on the various finishes.
- Nov 12, 2017
- 12,034
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
How long do you plan on owning this house/pool? 10 years? 20? Forever house?
How long do you plan on owning this house/pool? 10 years? 20? Forever house?
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
most likely my forever home. which is where my post stems from lol. I absolutely love the house, layout, subdivision, the neighbors, and the pool!
most likely my forever home. which is where my post stems from lol. I absolutely love the house, layout, subdivision, the neighbors, and the pool!
- Nov 12, 2017
- 12,034
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
OK, me too. I based my decision about which surface to choose on longevity, and my projected lifespan. No joke. There are too many variables at play to make a really reliable decision based on that, but that didn't stop me! Here's how I figured it out. I made some wild assumptions, but you can narrow those down if you choose to do more research than I did, which wasn't all that much.
I figure if I live well, I might get another 30 years. I'm also assuming I'll be interested in swimming in my pool that whole time, or at least be interested in enjoying others swimming in my pool (kids, g-kids, gg-kids, etc).
I also figure that I'll be willing to do the very best I can, the whole time, to take care of the surface of my pool (by maintaining great water conditions using TFPC). I'll either do so myself, or coerce and manage someone else to do so if I get too feeble (kids, g-kids, gg-kids, etc).
OK that's two variables. What about feel? What about cost? Those were the only other variables I considered. I owned plaster. Love the feel. Plaster was the cheapest finish I considered. The plaster longevity estimates are pretty broad, but I'd heard 5-15 years. Mine made it six, due to some extreme conditions. Some claim plaster pools of 30 years or more, but there's no knowing how that was achieved, and not something to bank on. I didn't think I could even hope for that possibility. I figured the 5-15 numbers were based on the average way pools are taken care of, which is not all that great. I learned that the early demise of plaster is very much influenced by poor water conditions. So let's say I do an extraordinary job of taking care of plaster, and stretch the estimate to 15-20 years. That means, best case, I'd be looking at two plaster jobs, one now, and one more someday. And I don't think it's a stretch to assume a plaster job in 20 years will cost twice as much (that's probably very conservative). So (for my pool) that's $5500 now, and another $11K down the road, let's call it $20K total to cover contingencies and a more realistic inflation amount. For a very nice finish now, that won't be a all that great as it reaches end of life (the plaster's, not mine!). Pool surfaces get rougher over time, until they fail beyond what one can tolerate (roughness, chipping, flaking, etc).
So the only other surface I considered (due to cost) was pebble. I think that is the next type of surface in line, cost-wise, from the available list. They go up in price from there. Definitely not as comfortable as plaster. Appearance, to me, was a wash, I like the look of each equally, maybe pebble a little more, I like the pebbles. Pebble is estimated to last 5-10 years longer than plaster (again, no science to either set of numbers, all anecdotal, off the internet). And let's again assume I can stretch those pebble numbers by applying diligent care of the water, so 10-15 years longer? Which means, theoretically, I could stretch the lifespan of pebble to 25-35 years. Again, this is using some wild assumptions, but at least feasible. Which could then mean I'd only have to pay for one more surface in my lifetime. And that's about $7500 now. Way less than half the cost of plaster over my lifespan. No inflation figure to consider. So I went with pebble. If nothing else, pebbles give me a better possibility of paying just this once, over plaster which is more likely to fail in my lifetime. You could do similar math with the other available surfaces, and their claimed projected lifespans.
This could all backfire (probably will). Maybe I could have gotten one of those 30-year plasters, and had a much more comfortable finish the whole time. Or maybe my pebble will poop out in 20 years and I'll have to pay for another surface anyway, which means I blew the $2K extra I just spent to buy pebble. There's no way to know, so I took a stab, based on some unprovable assumptions, and rolled the dice.
If you're 80 years old, or money is no object, get plaster. If you're half that old, and need to watch your dough, break out the calculator, gather your own surface longevity projections, and do the math...
Sidebar: if you're fussy about the look of the finish, get white. It'll stay true to its initial look the longest. If you like a darker pool, be prepared for the surface's appearance to degrade relatively quickly, and get worse over time. My new pebble, at less than a year old, is already sporting slight color variations (mottling), which don't bother me at all, I kind'a like that look. But that is pretty typical, and I expect it will continue to degrade (the looks, not the feel so much). My previous 6-year-old plaster was heavily mottled and had wild color variations (though some of that was due to calcium scaling deposits). This is true of at least plaster and pebble, you'll need to research a bit to determine if the other types of available finishes have this issue.
Looking forward to hearing what you decide...
OK, me too. I based my decision about which surface to choose on longevity, and my projected lifespan. No joke. There are too many variables at play to make a really reliable decision based on that, but that didn't stop me! Here's how I figured it out. I made some wild assumptions, but you can narrow those down if you choose to do more research than I did, which wasn't all that much.
I figure if I live well, I might get another 30 years. I'm also assuming I'll be interested in swimming in my pool that whole time, or at least be interested in enjoying others swimming in my pool (kids, g-kids, gg-kids, etc).
I also figure that I'll be willing to do the very best I can, the whole time, to take care of the surface of my pool (by maintaining great water conditions using TFPC). I'll either do so myself, or coerce and manage someone else to do so if I get too feeble (kids, g-kids, gg-kids, etc).
OK that's two variables. What about feel? What about cost? Those were the only other variables I considered. I owned plaster. Love the feel. Plaster was the cheapest finish I considered. The plaster longevity estimates are pretty broad, but I'd heard 5-15 years. Mine made it six, due to some extreme conditions. Some claim plaster pools of 30 years or more, but there's no knowing how that was achieved, and not something to bank on. I didn't think I could even hope for that possibility. I figured the 5-15 numbers were based on the average way pools are taken care of, which is not all that great. I learned that the early demise of plaster is very much influenced by poor water conditions. So let's say I do an extraordinary job of taking care of plaster, and stretch the estimate to 15-20 years. That means, best case, I'd be looking at two plaster jobs, one now, and one more someday. And I don't think it's a stretch to assume a plaster job in 20 years will cost twice as much (that's probably very conservative). So (for my pool) that's $5500 now, and another $11K down the road, let's call it $20K total to cover contingencies and a more realistic inflation amount. For a very nice finish now, that won't be a all that great as it reaches end of life (the plaster's, not mine!). Pool surfaces get rougher over time, until they fail beyond what one can tolerate (roughness, chipping, flaking, etc).
So the only other surface I considered (due to cost) was pebble. I think that is the next type of surface in line, cost-wise, from the available list. They go up in price from there. Definitely not as comfortable as plaster. Appearance, to me, was a wash, I like the look of each equally, maybe pebble a little more, I like the pebbles. Pebble is estimated to last 5-10 years longer than plaster (again, no science to either set of numbers, all anecdotal, off the internet). And let's again assume I can stretch those pebble numbers by applying diligent care of the water, so 10-15 years longer? Which means, theoretically, I could stretch the lifespan of pebble to 25-35 years. Again, this is using some wild assumptions, but at least feasible. Which could then mean I'd only have to pay for one more surface in my lifetime. And that's about $7500 now. Way less than half the cost of plaster over my lifespan. No inflation figure to consider. So I went with pebble. If nothing else, pebbles give me a better possibility of paying just this once, over plaster which is more likely to fail in my lifetime. You could do similar math with the other available surfaces, and their claimed projected lifespans.
This could all backfire (probably will). Maybe I could have gotten one of those 30-year plasters, and had a much more comfortable finish the whole time. Or maybe my pebble will poop out in 20 years and I'll have to pay for another surface anyway, which means I blew the $2K extra I just spent to buy pebble. There's no way to know, so I took a stab, based on some unprovable assumptions, and rolled the dice.
If you're 80 years old, or money is no object, get plaster. If you're half that old, and need to watch your dough, break out the calculator, gather your own surface longevity projections, and do the math...
Sidebar: if you're fussy about the look of the finish, get white. It'll stay true to its initial look the longest. If you like a darker pool, be prepared for the surface's appearance to degrade relatively quickly, and get worse over time. My new pebble, at less than a year old, is already sporting slight color variations (mottling), which don't bother me at all, I kind'a like that look. But that is pretty typical, and I expect it will continue to degrade (the looks, not the feel so much). My previous 6-year-old plaster was heavily mottled and had wild color variations (though some of that was due to calcium scaling deposits). This is true of at least plaster and pebble, you'll need to research a bit to determine if the other types of available finishes have this issue.
Looking forward to hearing what you decide...
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
this was a very thoughtful and awesome reply. a lot of stuff you mentioned were things I've been thinking about myself. almost all of them actually. when I get around to replying how I want to, I will! this is exactly the kind of reply and mentality I'm having so far. I'm 31 years old, and basically I'm giving myself a very generous time span in this house of 50-60 years, so given the, like you said, average years of plaster, I've been dividing that time span by EVERYTHING. I was told that aquabright is the macdaddy of all finishes earlier in this thread, and based on what it is, I'm leaning towards it. after researching it, I like the fact that its inert due to it being basically plastic. it won't react with my chemicals like plaster, so besides being a pool finish, it adds to lower maintenance. also, the longevity of it seems to be great as well, and that's what I also want in a pool finish. plastic and water are pretty good buddies really. I contacted a pool contractor that does everything, and he roughly quoted me 6k for plaster and 10k for hydrazzo/auqabright/anything else. even though he was pretty rude on the phone kinda due to being on a job sight I guess. I have a 40x20ft 9ft deep pool, so if I can get hydrazzo or aquabright for 4k more than plaster, I'm most likely gonna go that route! you have a very impressive signature btw! I want all of those doodads so maintenance can be easier lol
this was a very thoughtful and awesome reply. a lot of stuff you mentioned were things I've been thinking about myself. almost all of them actually. when I get around to replying how I want to, I will! this is exactly the kind of reply and mentality I'm having so far. I'm 31 years old, and basically I'm giving myself a very generous time span in this house of 50-60 years, so given the, like you said, average years of plaster, I've been dividing that time span by EVERYTHING. I was told that aquabright is the macdaddy of all finishes earlier in this thread, and based on what it is, I'm leaning towards it. after researching it, I like the fact that its inert due to it being basically plastic. it won't react with my chemicals like plaster, so besides being a pool finish, it adds to lower maintenance. also, the longevity of it seems to be great as well, and that's what I also want in a pool finish. plastic and water are pretty good buddies really. I contacted a pool contractor that does everything, and he roughly quoted me 6k for plaster and 10k for hydrazzo/auqabright/anything else. even though he was pretty rude on the phone kinda due to being on a job sight I guess. I have a 40x20ft 9ft deep pool, so if I can get hydrazzo or aquabright for 4k more than plaster, I'm most likely gonna go that route! you have a very impressive signature btw! I want all of those doodads so maintenance can be easier lol
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
I also love the idea of aquabright, but I'm not going to be in my home above 10 more years so I'll likely be going plaster when something finally gives. Thanks Dirk for a great writeup!
I also love the idea of aquabright, but I'm not going to be in my home above 10 more years so I'll likely be going plaster when something finally gives. Thanks Dirk for a great writeup!
- Nov 12, 2017
- 12,034
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
Coolio! I think had I researched more, I might have come to the same conclusion about Aquabright (this was pre-TFP for me, so I had no one to ask). But my plaster was destroyed by a contractor, so the $5500 expense, with or without the $2000 extra for pebble, was completely unplanned, way premature, and not any part of my annual budget. I had to replace before I could be guaranteed reimbursement from the contractor (he was denying responsibility the whole time), so I couldn't afford to look beyond the expense of pebble, in case I got stiffed. Aquabright sounds great. I like the notion of the smooth of plastic and the best longevity. I didn't realize it wasn't that much more expensive than pebble.
Of course, I thought the extra money I spent on my dream leathered granite kitchen counters in my forever house was money well spent, too. I moved two years later! Now someone else is using my counters!! Life plays tricks on you. If I had bought plaster, then surely I would live to be 100. Now that I've gambled on pebble, I'll probably drop dead in five years!! What'ya gunna do...
The trick is to spend your last dollar, watch the wheels fall off your car, the tiles crumble off your roof, and the plaster peel away from your pool, all on your last day! Then let your kids deal with the mess!!
Coolio! I think had I researched more, I might have come to the same conclusion about Aquabright (this was pre-TFP for me, so I had no one to ask). But my plaster was destroyed by a contractor, so the $5500 expense, with or without the $2000 extra for pebble, was completely unplanned, way premature, and not any part of my annual budget. I had to replace before I could be guaranteed reimbursement from the contractor (he was denying responsibility the whole time), so I couldn't afford to look beyond the expense of pebble, in case I got stiffed. Aquabright sounds great. I like the notion of the smooth of plastic and the best longevity. I didn't realize it wasn't that much more expensive than pebble.
Of course, I thought the extra money I spent on my dream leathered granite kitchen counters in my forever house was money well spent, too. I moved two years later! Now someone else is using my counters!! Life plays tricks on you. If I had bought plaster, then surely I would live to be 100. Now that I've gambled on pebble, I'll probably drop dead in five years!! What'ya gunna do...
The trick is to spend your last dollar, watch the wheels fall off your car, the tiles crumble off your roof, and the plaster peel away from your pool, all on your last day! Then let your kids deal with the mess!!
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
If you have a local Pebble Tec dealer, look into Pebble Fina. We just got it in our pool, and love it. Cost was quite a bit less than their traditional pebble, but it is supposed to have the same longevity. It feels smooth similar to a plaster finish, just lasts a lot longer.
Pebble Fina Pool Finishes - Pebble Tec
If you have a local Pebble Tec dealer, look into Pebble Fina. We just got it in our pool, and love it. Cost was quite a bit less than their traditional pebble, but it is supposed to have the same longevity. It feels smooth similar to a plaster finish, just lasts a lot longer.
Pebble Fina Pool Finishes - Pebble Tec
Oly
Gold Supporter
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
I moved into a home with a fiberglass coated gunite/plaster pool and I really like it. Very smooth surface and bright white. I had not experienced this resurface type before but do enjoy the benefits.
This is a link to a company in CA that has been doing this process since 1993. http://www.advancedpoolcoatings.com/fiberglass-pool-resurfacing/
I moved into a home with a fiberglass coated gunite/plaster pool and I really like it. Very smooth surface and bright white. I had not experienced this resurface type before but do enjoy the benefits.
This is a link to a company in CA that has been doing this process since 1993. http://www.advancedpoolcoatings.com/fiberglass-pool-resurfacing/
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
it's sad to say, but neither any aquabright or pebble tec authorized dealers will come out to me unless I'm a millionaire basically lol. the guy I called about plaster, 6k quote, claims he does everything, but when it comes to 10k and aquabright/exposed aggregates opposed to plaster, I want it done right... there was another guy who quoted me 6900 for plaster, and said he does hydrazzo finish, and it would be almost double, but I don't think he's authorized either. is me thinking like this normal and correct, or can anyone who does plaster pretty much do anything besides aquabright which needs that special flame thrower lol?
- - - Updated - - -
that's actually pretty interesting. I was also told I could concert it to vinyl, but I just don't like that look or nature. I like the nice concrete plaster or other finish look. idk, I just like that overall aesthetic look of it. if that makes sense.
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I live in Southeast Michigan, and plaster might be my only option. well see though. I have one guy coming out Thursday to look at my pool, but it would just be nice if I had options other that plaster that justified the price. if I pay double, I'd like double the durability, or else that's just a waste to me and I can get brand new plaster again for the same price.
it's sad to say, but neither any aquabright or pebble tec authorized dealers will come out to me unless I'm a millionaire basically lol. the guy I called about plaster, 6k quote, claims he does everything, but when it comes to 10k and aquabright/exposed aggregates opposed to plaster, I want it done right... there was another guy who quoted me 6900 for plaster, and said he does hydrazzo finish, and it would be almost double, but I don't think he's authorized either. is me thinking like this normal and correct, or can anyone who does plaster pretty much do anything besides aquabright which needs that special flame thrower lol?
- - - Updated - - -
that's actually pretty interesting. I was also told I could concert it to vinyl, but I just don't like that look or nature. I like the nice concrete plaster or other finish look. idk, I just like that overall aesthetic look of it. if that makes sense.
- - - Updated - - -
I live in Southeast Michigan, and plaster might be my only option. well see though. I have one guy coming out Thursday to look at my pool, but it would just be nice if I had options other that plaster that justified the price. if I pay double, I'd like double the durability, or else that's just a waste to me and I can get brand new plaster again for the same price.
Oly
Gold Supporter
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
Looking at it and feeling it is similar to plaster only smoother. Quick facts....http://www.advancedpoolcoatings.com/quickfacts
Glass vs. Plaster....https://static1.squarespace.com/static/55301e00e4b0ba7d376feebb/t/5530503ee4b0d04675f97238/1429229630197/Advanced-Glass+vs+Plaster.pdf
Here is some detail on the process, http://www.advancedpoolcoatings.com/advanced-glass-fiberglass-pool-finish/
Looking at it and feeling it is similar to plaster only smoother. Quick facts....http://www.advancedpoolcoatings.com/quickfacts
Glass vs. Plaster....https://static1.squarespace.com/static/55301e00e4b0ba7d376feebb/t/5530503ee4b0d04675f97238/1429229630197/Advanced-Glass+vs+Plaster.pdf
Here is some detail on the process, http://www.advancedpoolcoatings.com/advanced-glass-fiberglass-pool-finish/
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
gonna check all of these out. thanks!
gonna check all of these out. thanks!
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
FWIW, I swam in my 1974 gunite, original, neglected for the passed 5 years plaster pool, and I expected it to be 5000 worse. my feet were fine and I didn't have any reason to get out of the pool. this gives me so much confidence and is gonna save me a ton of money by going with the most reasonable plaster quote next year. I don't have a doubt in my mind that I can't take plaster to 15-20 years in this pool with proper maintenance. I just swam on 50 year old plaster lol. maybe it's just my feet, but marcite never bothered me when I swam in hotels, other inground pools, etc. everyone's feet are different I'm sure. aggregate/exposed aggregate/pebble aren't gonna be worth the almost double price to me. in reality, I'm looking at two resurfaces in my lifetime, so I think I'm just gonna stick with marcite. I'm sure the plaster tech is a little better these days too. included some pics to show you how bad this marcite is and the terrible hack patch job the last owner did over the years. uploaded a few pictures of my before and after here to imagur since I don't know how do use the forum attachment
pool resurrection - Album on Imgur
FWIW, I swam in my 1974 gunite, original, neglected for the passed 5 years plaster pool, and I expected it to be 5000 worse. my feet were fine and I didn't have any reason to get out of the pool. this gives me so much confidence and is gonna save me a ton of money by going with the most reasonable plaster quote next year. I don't have a doubt in my mind that I can't take plaster to 15-20 years in this pool with proper maintenance. I just swam on 50 year old plaster lol. maybe it's just my feet, but marcite never bothered me when I swam in hotels, other inground pools, etc. everyone's feet are different I'm sure. aggregate/exposed aggregate/pebble aren't gonna be worth the almost double price to me. in reality, I'm looking at two resurfaces in my lifetime, so I think I'm just gonna stick with marcite. I'm sure the plaster tech is a little better these days too. included some pics to show you how bad this marcite is and the terrible hack patch job the last owner did over the years. uploaded a few pictures of my before and after here to imagur since I don't know how do use the forum attachment
pool resurrection - Album on Imgur
Attachments
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
Hi Neighbor! We live in Oak Park!
Don't have any experience with IGP but just thought I'd say "Hi".
Hi Neighbor! We live in Oak Park!
Don't have any experience with IGP but just thought I'd say "Hi".
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
howdy!
so I had prestige pools come out and quote me for marcite, tile, and coping. everything on my pool is 50 years old, so I wanna redo it anyway. I'm getting the marcite done first, and then the tile and coping. at first, he quoted me 11k for just marcite. I was like I got ballparked at 6k on the phone by the owner, who is his dad, so he came back and asked me what I wanted to do with the pool. I told him I wanna replace the tile eventually, so we ended up coming up with a package deal that i was able to lock into AND over time. not all at once. they would honor the prices of each repair individually at separate times. thought it was really nice. well, the quote for marcite was 8k, coping and tile 5k each. 18k overall. now I don't know what most people are paying, but I have around 1500sqft of surface area with my pool, and according to Google, that's 7700 alone in marcite! does this sound right? I have 130 linear feet approximately with my stairs, so can anyone chime in and see if these numbers are right?
howdy!
so I had prestige pools come out and quote me for marcite, tile, and coping. everything on my pool is 50 years old, so I wanna redo it anyway. I'm getting the marcite done first, and then the tile and coping. at first, he quoted me 11k for just marcite. I was like I got ballparked at 6k on the phone by the owner, who is his dad, so he came back and asked me what I wanted to do with the pool. I told him I wanna replace the tile eventually, so we ended up coming up with a package deal that i was able to lock into AND over time. not all at once. they would honor the prices of each repair individually at separate times. thought it was really nice. well, the quote for marcite was 8k, coping and tile 5k each. 18k overall. now I don't know what most people are paying, but I have around 1500sqft of surface area with my pool, and according to Google, that's 7700 alone in marcite! does this sound right? I have 130 linear feet approximately with my stairs, so can anyone chime in and see if these numbers are right?
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
hey everyone, im about to replace all of the black poly i can(the exception being the main drain since its 10ft underneath my pool :'(. unless someone can figure out how i can dig a 9-10ft hole without collapsing, and sliding new pvc pipe into the old pipe hole), and im trying to figure out what to do with the two returns and vacuum suction i have. getting to the pipe, removing the pipe, cutting, fitting, and glueing PVC isnt an issue. the issue is the existing two returns and suction in the wall. am i able to reuse those? where do i even begin? do i have to core drill new holes? can i just somehow drill out the old PVC inside of those and slide some new waterstops or whatever they call it in? i honestly might just call a pool service company to do that part. i dont really feel comfortable touching the gunite structure in anyway. digging, trenching, plumbing are all fine and easy.
i have a vacuum suction like i said, but im gonna probably convert it into a pressure side cleaner, i prefer to vacuum through the skimmer since the basket is way easier to takeout and i dont want to clog the plumbing in anyway. ive included a diagram of my pool and how, 90% sure, the plumbing is ran to it if anyone cares to see what im working with.
my deck is shot and being replaced as soon as i can, so i dont care about destroying any part of it. i got a quote of 18k for coping, tile, marcite, and my skimmer plumbing is leaking somewhere in there too, so if any of that has to be replaced, i think i talked the guy into doing that at cost, but i just would like to modernize my plumbing since my pool was built in 1974. almost 50 years old. my main drain plumbing seems to be ok, and i can deal with that not being changed right now. its my only suction left out of the three i have in my pool and im not getting any air in my system just running it with the main drain only, but it would be nice if that somehow was able to be changed eventually. anyway, what i would like is as much info and help about how to tackle this as i can. im already prepared to dig and trench to the existing pipe, but like i said, the deck and coping are going to get replaced anyway. what would the best order be? cut out as many squares as i need to and place a tarp until i get the deck replaced? replace the coping/tile first and then the deck, and while replacing the deck, just have the people come back later to pour it after i do what i need to do?
any help is very much appreciated. this reno is gonna take a bit, and thats ok, but i just want to do things the right and most efficient way so it lasts another 50 years!
does that quote for coping, tile, marcite, and the skimmer repair thrown in sound reasonable? also, i have 680sqft of decking i need to be replaced. i plan on putting a cabana in the back, so im probably gonna keep the back 4ft deep instead of 9 like it is. since i can just accomodate new cement in the future. my buddy does concrete, and can do it for 6-7/sqft he said. i have around 650sqft, so 3900-4500 for the deck alone. overall, im looking at about 22k for new coping, tile, marcite, and a deck. which would be a 100% brand new backyard. doesnt seem too bad of a price to me. what are your thoughts?
overlook of the pool from my bedroom
pool plumbing — imgbb.com
hey everyone, im about to replace all of the black poly i can(the exception being the main drain since its 10ft underneath my pool :'(. unless someone can figure out how i can dig a 9-10ft hole without collapsing, and sliding new pvc pipe into the old pipe hole), and im trying to figure out what to do with the two returns and vacuum suction i have. getting to the pipe, removing the pipe, cutting, fitting, and glueing PVC isnt an issue. the issue is the existing two returns and suction in the wall. am i able to reuse those? where do i even begin? do i have to core drill new holes? can i just somehow drill out the old PVC inside of those and slide some new waterstops or whatever they call it in? i honestly might just call a pool service company to do that part. i dont really feel comfortable touching the gunite structure in anyway. digging, trenching, plumbing are all fine and easy.
i have a vacuum suction like i said, but im gonna probably convert it into a pressure side cleaner, i prefer to vacuum through the skimmer since the basket is way easier to takeout and i dont want to clog the plumbing in anyway. ive included a diagram of my pool and how, 90% sure, the plumbing is ran to it if anyone cares to see what im working with.
my deck is shot and being replaced as soon as i can, so i dont care about destroying any part of it. i got a quote of 18k for coping, tile, marcite, and my skimmer plumbing is leaking somewhere in there too, so if any of that has to be replaced, i think i talked the guy into doing that at cost, but i just would like to modernize my plumbing since my pool was built in 1974. almost 50 years old. my main drain plumbing seems to be ok, and i can deal with that not being changed right now. its my only suction left out of the three i have in my pool and im not getting any air in my system just running it with the main drain only, but it would be nice if that somehow was able to be changed eventually. anyway, what i would like is as much info and help about how to tackle this as i can. im already prepared to dig and trench to the existing pipe, but like i said, the deck and coping are going to get replaced anyway. what would the best order be? cut out as many squares as i need to and place a tarp until i get the deck replaced? replace the coping/tile first and then the deck, and while replacing the deck, just have the people come back later to pour it after i do what i need to do?
any help is very much appreciated. this reno is gonna take a bit, and thats ok, but i just want to do things the right and most efficient way so it lasts another 50 years!
does that quote for coping, tile, marcite, and the skimmer repair thrown in sound reasonable? also, i have 680sqft of decking i need to be replaced. i plan on putting a cabana in the back, so im probably gonna keep the back 4ft deep instead of 9 like it is. since i can just accomodate new cement in the future. my buddy does concrete, and can do it for 6-7/sqft he said. i have around 650sqft, so 3900-4500 for the deck alone. overall, im looking at about 22k for new coping, tile, marcite, and a deck. which would be a 100% brand new backyard. doesnt seem too bad of a price to me. what are your thoughts?
overlook of the pool from my bedroom
pool plumbing — imgbb.com
- Nov 12, 2017
- 12,034
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
You young whipper snapper!! I got tired just reading your post!!
Can't help you on most of that, but if you're willing to dig enough to replace returns, here's some thoughts.
Consider the location of your skimmer, and/or adding another. Has it been working OK? Skimmers should be located to take advantage of the prevailing wind, so that surface debris both circulates to the skimmer opening, and gets blown to it by the wind.
With a properly designed skimmer and return design, you don't need a bottom drain at all, so you could kill two birds. Drains are ugly, hang up vac's and brushing, and can be a safety issue (entrapment). No drain = no problems. Especially something to consider if you only have one drain. There are drain systems that can address some of those issues: adding a two-drain system, or a flat grate-type drain, etc. But those solutions wouldn't address the older plumbing.
I thought I read here that black poly is a very reliable material (but you have to confirm that, don't take my word for it), so maybe just leaving it all alone is the best solution. Something to research.
Do your returns have directional eyeball fittings? Whether you redo or not, be sure you end up with those. Mine were added to my returns during my resurfacing. Deleted my drains at the same time. No regrets, the pool circulates just fine. Now, my pool is only 7.5' deep, so 9' might be something else again. But even adding a low return would be better than a drain, for circulation, IMO. The trick is to find someone that can engineer your circulation system for optimum performance, one who could determine for you if your current return layout would be sufficient without the drain, or what you would need to add or move to improve performance. Can your PB do that? Or maybe find an engineer that specializes in pool design to give your system a once over. I wouldn't think that would cost all that much, and this is not something you want to guess about, or get wrong, since it'll all be under brand new concrete eventually.
If you add or replumb returns or skimmer(s), I'd want each to run back to the pad, on their own dedicated valve, so that you could really dial each in.
There is a school of thought here that pressure-side cleaners are old-school tech, and not to be a first choice option. They still make 'em, and install 'em, but robots are all the rage. I wouldn't want a robot, so I used the middle ground. I had my pressure line converted to suction and replaced my pressure vac with a suction vac. To be honest, I didn't see a big difference, but I was able to eliminate the booster pump, which helped with the energy bill. My pressure vac (like most? all?) had that stupid tail that sprayed out of my pool and ruined my windows. Took me two days of mechanical polishing to remove what that tail did to my glass!! Look into robots. Research pressure vs suction vacs. At the very least, I'd make sure the new plumbing can be used for either type of vac, so that you have the option. Even if you go robot, I'd still install that line. Ya never know when you might need it. If nothing else, it's a convenient connection for manual vacuuming for the quick spot cleaning jobs. That all said... Warning: a suction port poses an entrapment danger if not properly plumbed (needs a special flap device), so there's that. A modern VS pump (any pump, really) and an unprotected suction port can eviscerate a person! There's no coming back from that. Like a drain: the safest suction port is no suction port.
If I was replumbing everything, I'd use sweep 90s exclusively. Many here think that idea is hooey, and that a sweep 90 doesn't provide significantly better flow, not enough better to justify their cost. I don't agree, but maybe that's just me.
OK, that's all I got this morning...
You young whipper snapper!! I got tired just reading your post!!
Can't help you on most of that, but if you're willing to dig enough to replace returns, here's some thoughts.
Consider the location of your skimmer, and/or adding another. Has it been working OK? Skimmers should be located to take advantage of the prevailing wind, so that surface debris both circulates to the skimmer opening, and gets blown to it by the wind.
With a properly designed skimmer and return design, you don't need a bottom drain at all, so you could kill two birds. Drains are ugly, hang up vac's and brushing, and can be a safety issue (entrapment). No drain = no problems. Especially something to consider if you only have one drain. There are drain systems that can address some of those issues: adding a two-drain system, or a flat grate-type drain, etc. But those solutions wouldn't address the older plumbing.
I thought I read here that black poly is a very reliable material (but you have to confirm that, don't take my word for it), so maybe just leaving it all alone is the best solution. Something to research.
Do your returns have directional eyeball fittings? Whether you redo or not, be sure you end up with those. Mine were added to my returns during my resurfacing. Deleted my drains at the same time. No regrets, the pool circulates just fine. Now, my pool is only 7.5' deep, so 9' might be something else again. But even adding a low return would be better than a drain, for circulation, IMO. The trick is to find someone that can engineer your circulation system for optimum performance, one who could determine for you if your current return layout would be sufficient without the drain, or what you would need to add or move to improve performance. Can your PB do that? Or maybe find an engineer that specializes in pool design to give your system a once over. I wouldn't think that would cost all that much, and this is not something you want to guess about, or get wrong, since it'll all be under brand new concrete eventually.
If you add or replumb returns or skimmer(s), I'd want each to run back to the pad, on their own dedicated valve, so that you could really dial each in.
There is a school of thought here that pressure-side cleaners are old-school tech, and not to be a first choice option. They still make 'em, and install 'em, but robots are all the rage. I wouldn't want a robot, so I used the middle ground. I had my pressure line converted to suction and replaced my pressure vac with a suction vac. To be honest, I didn't see a big difference, but I was able to eliminate the booster pump, which helped with the energy bill. My pressure vac (like most? all?) had that stupid tail that sprayed out of my pool and ruined my windows. Took me two days of mechanical polishing to remove what that tail did to my glass!! Look into robots. Research pressure vs suction vacs. At the very least, I'd make sure the new plumbing can be used for either type of vac, so that you have the option. Even if you go robot, I'd still install that line. Ya never know when you might need it. If nothing else, it's a convenient connection for manual vacuuming for the quick spot cleaning jobs. That all said... Warning: a suction port poses an entrapment danger if not properly plumbed (needs a special flap device), so there's that. A modern VS pump (any pump, really) and an unprotected suction port can eviscerate a person! There's no coming back from that. Like a drain: the safest suction port is no suction port.
If I was replumbing everything, I'd use sweep 90s exclusively. Many here think that idea is hooey, and that a sweep 90 doesn't provide significantly better flow, not enough better to justify their cost. I don't agree, but maybe that's just me.
OK, that's all I got this morning...
Re: gunite pool on recently purchased home- Resurface Options?
I love my suction port and my Kreepy. It's nice to have something vacuuming the pool any time the pump is running (I turn off the suction valve when the kids are swimming) versus a robot that I have to put in and out, store somewhere, etc.
I love my suction port and my Kreepy. It's nice to have something vacuuming the pool any time the pump is running (I turn off the suction valve when the kids are swimming) versus a robot that I have to put in and out, store somewhere, etc.