gunite
- Thread starter TonyTonyTony
- Start date
And if you know of a defect and don't disclose it, you may face legal action. Do the right thing, don't just band-aid it and dump it. Fix it right or disclose the issue.
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I have requested from the building permit office at the court house, all documents they have on file associated with the pool, such as building permits, design, etc. They said it would take 3 days to get it.
I have requested from the building permit office at the court house, all documents they have on file associated with the pool, such as building permits, design, etc. They said it would take 3 days to get it.
Put the house on the market with a kickback towards a new plaster job. Then the new buyers can pick out their own plaster finish/color.
Maddie
I have requested from the building permit office at the court house, all documents they have on file associated with the pool, such as building permits, design, etc. They said it would take 3 days to get it.
I have requested all documents they have on file from the office where you get a building permit. Hopefully they also have a design plan, and as you say, an engineer stamp on it. Hopefully I will have it in a day or two.
I have called twice, and emailed twice and sent pictures, to the structural engineer on Angie's llist. He has never contacted me back. So, that is going to be a dead end.
Got the pool documents today, and they didn't tell me much. The pool contractor and the owner were the same person. I have attached the only diagram. The pool was built in 1983. Other then the diagram that I sent you, the documents only containes building inspection reports.
In with the pool documents, was a building permit for the house. Apparently the ower was the contractor for the house in 1982, and then the contractor for the pool in 1983.
Since the contractor, for both pool and the house, was the owner, I feel both must have been well built. I feel the problems I am having with the pool is due more to age than anything else, after all the pool is 37 years old. So, I just need to figure out the best way to repair it.
sktn77a
Gold Supporter
Usually, the reverse it true.......................................
Since I now know that the pool is 37 years old, would you think the problems are due more to age of the pool than anything else?
Probably not. Concrete gets stronger as it ages most concrete shell problems are due to finishes, delamination, etc. Back then there was little code and specs on pools. Does anything you have state a rebar inspection? Usually they only checked to see the pool was where it was supposed to be and an electrical inspection
The only thing I have is the building permit dated 3-14-83, and an electrical inspection dated 7-29-83, but nothing regarding rebar. It seems it took over 4 months to build. Since I know the name of the person who built it, I have tried to find them with Facebook, Google search, and asking the neighbors, but everything has lead to a dead-end. Also, I have not heard from the structural engineer.
I'd the engineer doesmt do pools he wont bother. Do a google search for professional engineer and add swimming pool. Lots of them stamp pool designs. Evan a call to local pool companies will get you a name
Reluctantly, I called an established pool builder in my area. They have several stores, that also test pool water, sell chemicals, spas, etc. During the conversation, the owner said they have been building pools for 47 years. She said if a owner submitted a pool design, they built it, and they didn’t need to get the plans approved by an engineer. They only had to get a building permit. So, apparently there is no building code for pools in my area, like they maybe in your area. She didn’t know anyone she could refer me to, such as a structural engineer. Frankly, what I was talking to her about, seemed foreign to her, because she kept referring to the pool leaking, and not the structure. She said I could try Liquid Gold to stop the leak, but I am not sure what that is. She said there were people who detected leaks, but that would not be helpful to me, since I know where the leak is. She said I might also try someone who repaired concrete.
I found a Civil Engineer firm about 35 miles from me. Their website states they specialize in dams/spillways/flood control/drainage structures/reservoirs. Sounds like they work with lots of structures containing water. Perhaps they might offer good advice.
I sent an email, with pictures, to the Civil Engineer. Hopefully they will get in touch. If after a couple of days I have not heard back from them, I will follow up with a phone call.
The Civil Engineer never returned my email, so the other day I followed up with a phone call to him. As it turned out he hadn’t seen the email. He was very nice and informative. He said, if it was a structural problem, it would have shown up before the pool was 2 years old. He said a 37 year old pool has settled all its going to settle. He said it cracked because of age not structure. He said it cracked and then it must have plenty of steel that picked up the weight. He said it cracked because of the weight differential. From the shallow end to the deep end there is a a constant slope. After the slope, there’s a significant drop to the deep end. This is where the cracks are. He said the weight of 10 feet of water was astronomical, and there was significantly more weight on the deep end then then the shallow end, and it was this change in weight that caused the pool to crack along the lines where the deepest end started. He said it could be fixed with 6000 psi epoxy. He said his firm has used that to even hold bridges up. He said with that epoxy, it would last another 37 years. He said. I could cut out the crack approximately eight inches on both sides of the crack, and two inches deep, to make a trough, and fill the trough up with the epoxy. He said this would make the surface smooth, and no one would stub their toe. But since it’s so deep, at the location of the crack, I think there’s not much chance of stubbing you toe, and just to fill the cracks up with epoxy would be okay, even if the bottom is a little rough. What do you think?
Are you really asking? OK. I have been following quietly. Your pool is TOAST. Either resurface it completely or subtract an appropriate amount from the asking price.
mguzzy
Gold Supporter
I've been following this thread.. but first my disclaimer, I am not an engineer, but I used to work with them. So this is just my opinion. So... based on the pics in post 23, and the fact that this is an owner contractor built pool in an area where there is not any real code for pools I really doubt there is any rebar in floor. The cracks are circular around the deep end with what look like three cracks radiating out from the main drain. To me it that looks like the area under the pools is washed out and the cracks are caused by the concrete sagging into that void. If the gunite structure of the pools floor was tied together with rebar it would not crack in that pattern even if there was a washout under it. This looks similar to a pool I had in a house I rented. It was home built IG pool with a sloping concrete slab floor with cinder block walls that were plastered and then painted. there was nothing structural about it. I'm afraid to do this right you are going to need to get a structural engineer to get is patutie on site and look at the failure pattern in the concrete to really give you an idea. Some cores will need to be drilled to figure out what is going on with what the Owner Contractor built. Honestly it might be more cost effective to demo it (or at least the floor) and rebuild it for a liner if you really wanted to have a ready to swim in pool for the buyer. This just doesn't look like something that can be patched with stuff from the local hardware store.... This looks like the beginning of a much bigger problem. Sorry
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