Pool not dug deep enough? New construction

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Just digging it deeper I don't think will suffice. There is the whole grade of the bottom and integration into the sides. I really think to do this correctly it needs to be started over. Gunite can be sprayed in phases over time but that is when the job is correctly set up for it with rebar spanning where it is supposed to go and not just cut and pasted back in.

Does your builder offer a lifetime guarantee on the gunite shell also guaranteed by a third party or a fund in case the builder should go under? Mine does.

I think if you press it enough, the builder might just walk away and tell you to sue him. This will tie you and your money up and put you without a pool until it is resolved. You are in a bad situation. I hope it all works out. I would not settle for a pool without a deep end. I got 9 feet and wanted to go deeper than that. What makes it worse is you told him about this with plenty of time for it to be corrected before the spray.
 
even if you get a guarantee that only lasts as long as the company that cant build a pool to the contract
if the depth is in writing on the contract
I would get an attorney and tell them you will NOT pay any more and will not accept less than the stated depth
I would also refuse the rework thats a disaster waiting to happen
as was stated by others you will have inherent crack/ leak flaws in the shell
Sorry you are seeing this

It might be worth installing a motion camera
here timelapse from mine that I used more than once to "correct " issues
Pool RefurbTime Lapse - YouTube
 
PoolGate said:
Does your builder offer a lifetime guarantee on the gunite shell also guaranteed by a third party or a fund in case the builder should go under?
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Then you just hope that the builder and/or 3rd party doesn't go under. 3rd party warranty/insurance companies are known for this when their claims go up and start eating into profits!



PoolGate said:
I think if you press it enough, the builder might just walk away and tell you to sue him.
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Agree, if you wait for him to tell you to sue him. Maybe a pre-emptive attorneys letter would take him by surprise and get him moving?
 
If done correctly removing the shotcrete, cutting the rebar, lowering the bottom will be just as strong as it was before. They should remove the shotcrete and leave about 2' of rebar sticking out the bottom and then 100% tie new rebar to the existing and then shoot the gunite back over it.
 
Bama Rambler said:
If done correctly removing the shotcrete, cutting the rebar, lowering the bottom will be just as strong as it was before. They should remove the shotcrete and leave about 2' of rebar sticking out the bottom and then 100% tie new rebar to the existing and then shoot the gunite back over it.
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Agreed. And after plaster you’ll never know.
 
sktn77a said:
Then you just hope that the builder and/or 3rd party doesn't go under. 3rd party warranty/insurance companies are known for this when their claims go up and start eating into profits!





Agree, if you wait for him to tell you to sue him. Maybe a pre-emptive attorneys letter would take him by surprise and get him moving?
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The way it was explained to me is there is a contractor fund set up that most pool builders in my area are in that will back lifetime shell warranties if the builder goes under. The way it was explained it is some sort of "official" fund that can't go under.
 
PoolGate said:
The way it was explained to me is there is a contractor fund set up that most pool builders in my area are in that will back lifetime shell warranties if the builder goes under. The way it was explained it is some sort of "official" fund that can't go under.
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That's the exact wording in the prospectus for Bernie Madoff's fund. - LOL

Maybe it exists, but it sounds made up to me. I suspect that if you ever needed it and asked another builder about it, they would laugh so hard that they would leak a little bit.

But, maybe it's real, you know, like bigfoot.
 
I talked to an expert today, they said as long as all the guidelines and procedures are followed and adequate pre and post curing it should be ok. I still haven't heard from my PB yet. I emailed them this morning but nothing, I even called and the lady said oh I clicked it thinking it was something else and it wasnt so I just moved on, I'm glad you called me ill be sure to reply to it.

I asked for everything in writing... that they'll fix it, assurance and warranty etc. Hopefully I'll get something... I feel like I won't though lol
 
Breatheeasies said:
So hopefully they'll fix it, and it won't ruin the integrity of the pool.

Does anyone know if the pool will maintain its structural integrity?
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That totally depends on how they do it. It can be done in such a way that the structural integrity is as good or better, but that doesn't mean they will do it that way. It takes significantly more knowledge and skill to make a change to a shotcrete shell like this and maintain structural integrity than it does to build a high quality shell in the first place.

Breatheeasies said:
I talked to an expert today, they said as long as all the guidelines and procedures are followed and adequate pre and post curing it should be ok. I still haven't heard from my PB yet. I emailed them this morning but nothing, I even called and the lady said oh I clicked it thinking it was something else and it wasnt so I just moved on, I'm glad you called me ill be sure to reply to it.

I asked for everything in writing... that they'll fix it, assurance and warranty etc. Hopefully I'll get something... I feel like I won't though lol
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Assuming they agree to honor the contract and fix it, ask them for details on exactly how they plan on fixing it, with every step laid out. Post their response here and we can help you determine if their plan is sufficient/valid. And make sure they remove enough of the bottom to regrade to a pleasing shape. You don't want a funky drop off where it transitions to a deep section just large enough to satisfy the depth stated in the contract, but with most of the deep end still functionally 5.5ft deep. They really should remove where the walls start to curve inward and everything below that.
 

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Hey everybody after a lot of back and forth and trying to make sure everything gets done right as well as getting a warranty it has finally been jack hammered out and redug it looks pretty close the grade of the pool is a little drop offy but that's ok. The company gave me a 10 year shell of the pool warranty.
Thanks for everyone's support on this! I talked to some gunite experts at other companies and they said the integrity of the shell should be fine. Supposedly there should be water in my pool by thursday... then they'll finish the rest of the work I had, pavers/ with a patch of grass and a retaining wall, and a patio cover. Hopefully that doesnt go awry too! Lol
 
Man o man. Crazy story. Thanks for the update. I’m sure lots of us have been waiting to hear if you prevailed with your pool builder. This is one of the more riveting stories I’ve seen during a build. I’m sure your experience will be inspirational to others having challenges and in some cases battling with their builders.

Now. This is a super busy time for you, but it would be a great idea to take pictures of whatever you can...dirt hole, rebar, finished product, etc. This may be helpful to have in the unlikely event you run into issues. Also, us TFP folk would love to see the work being performed ::epds::
 
Congrat's on finding a solution you're comfortable with.

A fill coming up! I have to mention...

Take snapshots of your house's water meter right before and right after the fill, to use to calculate your pool's volume. This opportunity won't come around again any time soon, if ever. It's a lot more accurate than trying to do the math on dimensions of such a freeform shape. An accurate number for your pool's volume comes in real handy when figuring out how much chemicals to add. If you'd like to give this a try, and want more details about how it's done, I can fill you in.
 
Hi everyone thanks for the replies! They did the plaster and the pool is now filled as of Friday night. The start up guy said not to do anything to the pool like start the filtration Jr do any brushing, this confuses me as the company says to start brushing immediately for 3 x a day for 10 days for proper curing. We picked harbor blue for our plaster and it came up a lot lighter than I thought it would. I thought it would be a darker blue. Anyway here are some pictures of before and now.

Also sorry i would have replied sooner my baby was born and had to be in the NICU for about 6 days. Shes ok and healthy now!

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20180922_064347.jpg20181008_155235.jpg20181013_104049.jpg

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It wont let me add any more pictures but there we go

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They jack hammered out the bottom pulled up old rebar removed plumbing dug deeper tied in new rebar re did plumbing and redid shotcrete shell
 

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