Safely Square Corners of a Gunite Pool?

[midwestwinter]

Hey there,

Wanted to get everyone's opinion on changing the shape of a gunite pool.

The current design (from late 1980's, though well maintained) has rounded out corners with some small cracks in the coping from the above ground track. The cover also recently broke and is in need of replacement and we're planning to replace the deck pavers.

With that, we have a proposal to change the shape to be more rectangular, add an in-line spa, and move the cover under the top. We'd be replacing the deck pavers + repairing the coping at the same time, but any thoughts on whether this can be done safely (from a structural standpoint)?

See attached "proposed pool" to get a feel for the concept.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Jimrahbe]

mid,

Have you ever been in a gunite spa before??? If so, great, if not, you really need to try one before you buy one. About 50% of owners that have gunite spas, almost never use them as they are not what they expected...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[AQUA~HOLICS]

Are your plans to remove the radius corners and have them reshot to obtain the straight lines?

 

[kimkats]

Any thing like this can be done with a fat enough wallet. Not sure it would be worth it in the end though. I like the look of the rounded corners.

 

[midwestwinter]

mid,

Have you ever been in a gunite spa before??? If so, great, if not, you really need to try one before you buy one. About 50% of owners that have gunite spas, almost never use them as they are not what they expected...

Thanks,

Jim R.

No - this is a great suggestion, will find a way to give it a try.

 

[midwestwinter]

Are your plans to remove the radius corners and have them reshot to obtain the straight lines?

That's the proposal. I'm worried it could affect the structural stability of the entire pool, though don't know enough to really weigh in.

 

[midwestwinter]

Any thing like this can be done with a fat enough wallet. Not sure it would be worth it in the end though. I like the look of the rounded corners.

I don't mind them at all, but would really love the track to be below the coping. If we werent' replacing the pavers/deck, probably wouldn't be considering this.

 

[kimkats]

What I would do is get as many quotes as you can with DETAILS of how they will do the work. Get at least 3 solid quotes. More if possible. Share the details here so we can help you find the best one for your pool.

 

[midwestwinter]

Quote #1 (others in progress):

• Remove existing pool water,tile, and plaster; remove automatic cover, cover tracks, and cover box; remove quarter circles from corners
• Install new rebar and gunite walls for steps and integrated spa; repair gunite walls in corners
• Bond spa and steps into existing bonding grid; add new bonding wire as needed
• Install new 6x6 ceramic tile for pool and spa perimeters
• Install mosaic tile for top of spa walls
• Replaster all walls
• Fill pool
• Install new automatic pool cover with undermount tracks and new cover box with aluminum cover
• Build new skimmers for pool (x2) and skimmer for spa (x1); install three new drains in pool/spa
• Install new pool equipment on new concrete pad; add new plumbing lines as needed for spa and return lines

Labor Costs:

• Existing Pool Feature Demolition $5,000.00
• Form Gunite Walls, Shoot Gunite Walls, & Plaster $40,000.00
• Automatic Pool Cover with Concealed Tracks $20,000.00
• Pool Tile Installation (Perimeter, Step/Tanning Ledge Nosing, Spa Walls) $5,000.00
• Electrical and Pool Lighting $3,500.00

Equipment Items:

• Pool Equipment
  • Pump - Hayward Tristar 2.7HP Variable Speed Pump
  • Heater - Hayward 400000BTU H-Series Heater (manual bypass valve for spa)
  • Filter - Hayward Pro 36" Sand Filter
  • Lighting - Hayward 12V LED 150' full-spectrum light
• Spa Equipment
  • Pump - Hayward Single Speed 1HP Super Pump

Equipment Costs:

• Pool Equipment & Installation Labor $11,000.00
• Spa Equipment & Installation Labor $1,500.00
• Build 3 New Skimmers with Lines $7,000.00

Total is right @ $100k w/ taxes, which is a bit over what we'd initially planned.

FWIW, we're literally open to any option here - even if it means demoing this pool and putting in another (eg: Liner?) if it's a better long term investment + more cost effective.

 

[sktn77a]

Those rounded Grecian corners are part of the structural integrity of the pool. If you remove them, you'll have 4 vertical walls not connected to each other. That's asking for trouble. I don't think you're going to be able to re-create the original structural integrity by adding a 90 degree replacement at each corner.

 

[midwestwinter]

Those rounded Grecian corners are part of the structural integrity of the pool. If you remove them, you'll have 4 vertical walls not connected to each other. That's asking for trouble. I don't think you're going to be able to re-create the original structural integrity by adding a 90 degree replacement at each corner.

That's a concern. If they truly demo'd the whole thing and rebuilt, probably less of a concern? But guessing that's not what folks are proposing. Need to clarify...

 

[kimkats]

The number one thing for you to do it get an engineer involved with this.

 

[KevMo]

Remove existing pool water,tile, and plaster; remove automatic cover, cover tracks, and cover box; remove quarter circles from corners

Are they doing a full chip out of the old plaster with flat chisels?

Replaster all walls

Are you planning on only replastering the walls and not the floor? If so, how will the finish look between the two?

Build new skimmers for pool (x2) and skimmer for spa (x1)

Why are you looking to put a skimmer in the spa? Are the pool & spa separate bodies of water?

 

[midwestwinter]

Are they doing a full chip out of the old plaster with flat chisels?


Are you planning on only replastering the walls and not the floor? If so, how will the finish look between the two?


Why are you looking to put a skimmer in the spa? Are the pool & spa separate bodies of water?

These are all good questions - will inquire... All of this has us rethinking and possibly seeing if we can simply add an encapsulated/recessed track (we're replacing the decking/pavers) that goes over the grecian corners and explore a separate spa someday down the road.

 

[proavia]

The number one thing for you to do it get an engineer involved with this.

This right here!!