HELP!! Repainting and cracks!

[kleinmk]

TFP,

HELP!! I started painting my pool have had 3 cracks that need repair.

I need help from you experienced pool renovators out there!! For the last 1.5 years I have been trying to get my pool repainted. After talking to many contractors, I finally found a couple who still do pool painting (in Milwaukee, WI - not easy to find!). Unfortunately in either case, both contractors turned out to be unreliable and I did not move forward with either because of unresponsiveness. So I decided to do it myself.

Drained pool last weekend (23k gallon in ground concrete pool). TSP'd, acid washed and then TSP again for prep. Noticed 3 hairline cracks that had slight seepage from it. Thu night have 3 ins of rain, and more water started to leak from these cracks. Fri I used Pool Patch to take care of various areas that needed clean up - the Pool Patch did not really handle the cracks since there was water drainage from them.

I started to paint today (Sat) as I was told from Olympic that the primer would handle hairline cracks. That did not work well or at all, so I tried various products such as more Pool Patch, DryLoc fast plug, some Pool Puddy. The Pool Puddy seems to have slowed it down, but now I have the walls primed, however the floor still has streaks of water and none of those products really have solved the cracks.

I also just remembered tonight that the manufacturer of Olympic pool paint told me that I need to make sure that I am applying the additional coats within 48 hrs. I cannot paint the floor of the pool until the cracks are resolved. Here are my questions:

• Any recommendations on pool crack repair, preferably without drilling into the concrete?
• What happens if I cannot get the 1st coat of paint on the primer within 48 hrs?
• If anyone is in the Milwaukee, WI area, any recommendations on reliable Concrete Pool repair contactors?

I called a few pool supply companies looking for referrals of contractors and they are "making some phone calls and will let me know if they hear from anyone, but not sure what that will bring". Need serious advice!!

Thank you!!

 

[pooldv]

I would deal with the cracks after you refill. Stuff Pool Putty into the cracks after it is filled. It is designed to cure underwater. I had a leaking crack that was fixed 5 years ago with Pool Putty and it still doesnt leak.

Maybe too late now, but we really do not recommend painting plaster pools. It will only last 2 or 3 years and it starts making a big mess with peeling, oxidizing and/or clouding the water as it breaks down. It is much better to wait and replaster in a year or three.

 

[kleinmk]

Thanks PoolDV for the reply. However, the problem is I cannot finish painting without patching the cracks because the water trickles will mess the paint up. Furthermore, I only have a coat of primer down so it is half a white pool right now.

Regarding the plaster, it had been previously painted and I had sent in a sample to Olympic to test first.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks,

Kevin

 

[pooldv]

Ok, hydraulic cement is probably the best option at this point.

 

[griffths]

TFP,

HELP!! I started painting my pool have had 3 cracks that need repair.
......
I called a few pool supply companies looking for referrals of contractors and they are "making some phone calls and will let me know if they hear from anyone, but not sure what that will bring". Need serious advice!!

Thank you!!

Drained pool last weekend (23k gallon in ground concrete pool).

Do you have a main drain/hydrostatic relief valve? You don't want to leave your pool totally empty due to an increase risk of it lifting out of the ground. The fact that you have water coming in through the cracks tells me that you have water behind your pool walls and therefore need to be aware of this possibility more so than if no water was coming in.

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• Any recommendations on pool crack repair, preferably without drilling into the concrete?
  
  
  You will never get a good seal trying to patch a hairline crack. There is simply no way to get anything forced deep enough into the crack to prevent it from being pushed out. I know you don't want to drill into the concrete but I would strongly recommend you take the time now to fix the problems correctly rather than paint over them. Any pressure behind the primer/paint will cause it to blister/peel over time and your painting efforts now will be wasted, not to mention the cost of the paint/primer. I had a number of large cracks As well as hairline cracks and used an angle grinder with a tuck-pointing blade to open them up so I could get sealant and/or grout in to do a proper repair.
  ​
  
  
  
• What happens if I cannot get the 1st coat of paint on the primer within 48 hrs?
  
  
  Are you using their epoxy, rubber based or acrylic based coatings? I used Poxoprime II primer as my base since it is water based and therefore I didn't need to worry about having a completely bone dry surface. Once the Poxoprime was cured (overnight) I applied their high build Gunzite primer over that to hide some imperfections in the surface of the pool bottom. If you allow the primer to cure longer than 48 hours it gets too hard for the subsequent coats to bite into and the recommendation is to scuff the surface with sandpaper or Scotch brite pads so the new layer has something to grab onto, otherwise there is the possibility that all subsequent layers will peel off.​
  
  
• If anyone is in the Milwaukee, WI area, any recommendations on reliable Concrete Pool repair contractors?
  
  Can't help with this one.