Reviving out of service pool: FG & deck Refresh

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Fiberglass work-lets try @ajw22 if he does not know he might have a link to two to past threads that could be helpful.

Something else you can start looking into is finding a boat repair guy/shop. Some other members have had good luck with this skilled trade fixing steps so..............you might be able to find someone local that does this kind of work and are willing to work on a pool!

You are clearing it up good! Yeah no more vacuum to waste. Let that filter do it's job!

Kim:kim:
 
I am lost on this long thread as to what is fiberglass and cracked. Point out pics of it.
 
Note that both cracks in post 313 align with joints in the deck. I don’t think that is a coincidence. I think the deck is putting pressure on the pool walls causing structural problems.

I don’t understand what the pool walls are made of or how the walls and deck structurally fit. For any long term fix the deck needs to be removed from those areas to get to the rear of the wall. If the crack goes through the wall any repair needs to be from both sides.

Basically you need to remove the cause of the cracking first - likely the concrete deck - then structurally repair the wall from both sides, and then replace the deck.

Any surface repair without dealing with the cause of the cracking will not last long.

If the walls are fiberglass and can be fixed with fiberglass sheets and resin then you need to find boat or auto repair folks who work with it and talk to them. Working outside with old dirty fiberglass will not make the work easy.

It is not a simple fix of squirting some glue in the crack from one side. Exploratory surgery is needed to fully understand the problem.
 
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ajw22 said:
Note that both cracks in post 313 align with joints in the deck. I don’t think that is a coincidence. I think the deck is putting pressure on the pool walls causing structural problems.
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Agreed. Cracks first showed up more than a decade ago. Supposedly patched when pool was resurfaced way back then, but reappeared a month or so later. Didn't seem to leak. Only started having a problem now, more than 10 years later.

ajw22 said:
I don’t understand what the pool walls are made of or how the walls and deck structurally fit.
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Think my sig says it: in-ground fiberglass (built 1978).

ajw22 said:
Any surface repair without dealing with the cause of the cracking will not last long. ... It is not a simple fix of squirting some glue in the crack from one side. Exploratory surgery is needed to fully understand the problem.
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Said earlier in the thread that a true repair is beyond me. What I was looking for was a timeline/roadmap for repair w.r.t. getting the water cleared up so pool could be inspected for other potential problems. Have been digging into the archives for earlier fiberglass crack posts.

Trouble is getting pros out; have made some calls last week and ... crickets. Hopefully there's a temp DIY fix so that skimmer can be used. I don't want to try something that'll make it worse for the pro.

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Noticing a repeated wet spot by one of the low lying sprinkler heads. Doubtful, but long shot possibility that I'm getting siphoning from new pool filler (repurposed Polaris vac line). Think I'd tested that last week, but will turn off shutoff to the line again to make sure.

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When I start up the filter and turn pressure valve off when water shoots, pressure rises rapidly and I quickly shut off pump as it approaches 20 lb. Reopen pressure valve, restart pump, turn off valve when water shoots and pressure stays < 5 lb. Is something amiss?
 
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dianedebuda said:
Noticing a repeated wet spot by one of the low lying sprinkler heads. Doubtful, but long shot possibility that I'm getting siphoning from new pool filler (repurposed Polaris vac line). Think I'd tested that last week, but will turn off shutoff to the line again to make sure.
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Not sure what you mean by "siphoning." I would first suspect the sprinkler valve that feeds that sprinkler. Have you ruled that out?
dianedebuda said:
When I start up the filter and turn pressure valve off when water shoots, pressure rises rapidly and I quickly shut off pump as it approaches 20 lb. Reopen pressure valve, restart pump, turn off valve when water shoots and pressure stays < 5 lb. Is something amiss?
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Maybe disassemble and then reassemble filter, as per manual? Or, post some pics of the interior of the filter to see if someone can spot what's going on. Otherwise, could be a blockage in the plumbing past the filter.
 
Dirk said:
Not sure what you mean by "siphoning." I would first suspect the sprinkler valve that feeds that sprinkler. Have you ruled that out?
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As in pool water being sucked by irrigation valve later in the line. Ruling it out is why I'm going to shut off filler pipe; glad I put a ball valve in the pad before it goes to the pool. Like I said, a real long shot.

Dirk said:
Maybe disassemble and then reassemble filter, as per manual? Or, post some pics of the interior of the filter to see if someone can spot what's going on. Otherwise, could be a blockage in the plumbing past the filter.
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Getting good return flow, so don't see blockage past the filter as likely. Filter seems to work fine after second start. Think I'll let it run most of the day today to see if pressure increases and water clears.

Maybe I'm just not letting enough water spew before closing the valve?

Edit: the pump doesn't stay in prime mode more than a moment on the second start - maybe a connection?
 
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I'm sorry. I can't make sense of what a leaking sprinkler head has to do with your pool filler line. You wrote "wet spot by one of the low lying sprinkler heads." As in: a sprinkler head in your garden/lawn somewhere? Then you wrote "pool water being sucked by irrigation valve later in the line." Which irrigation valve? Which line? Are you thinking pool water is being drawn out of the pool, back up through it's control valve, back through some tee fitting that splits your water source to both your pool filler and your irrigation systems, and then making it through your irrigation valve and then leaking out into the sprinkler head?

Isn't your pool filler control valve an anti-siphon sprinkler valve? That should prevent that. Unless it has failed. But that back-flow would also have to get past the sprinkler valve that controls the drooling sprinkler head. Or is the pool filler control valve not anti-siphon, and just a ball valve? That would still mean the pool water would have to make it through two valves to get to the sprinkler. All while both valves are under pressure from the water source? I still don't see how any water, pool or source water, is making it to the drooling sprinkler unless the sprinkler control valve is leaking. Or could it be that the low-lying sprinkler is just venting the remaining water in the pipes after the sprinkler valve is closed, causing the puddle.

It's very hard to picture your system(s) without seeing it all in person or a schematic drawing of it. Wish I could help more.

I do admire your fortitude, as you deal with one problem after another...
 
Dirk said:
I'm sorry. I can't make sense of what a leaking sprinkler head has to do with your pool filler line.
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Probably 'cause it is Twilight Zone class stuff. Yes, the valves are all supposed to be anti-siphon. We were talking about this and BFPs when you joined this thread.
irrig line & valve pics at end of this post

Grasping at straws, ya know. :LOL: Probably not worth any more time on your part.
 

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No, I remember all that well. (TFP turned that post into a "Further Reading" article.) Keep your chin up. One problem at a time, maybe?
 
My motto: Why should it be easy if it can be hard? :giggle:

Tried to phone the nearby fiberglass cricket again and got to talk to someone. (y) Sent them pics. Cross fingers, y'all.

Filter still at 5 lb; water is ... well, I'll wait for my end of day wrap for that. :sneaky:
 
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I thought of tape, too. There'd be a lot of force on it (water pressure), which would tend to shove it into the crack and compromise the adhesive. So maybe some steel mesh behind it? I'd cut a strip or two of 1/4" hardware cloth to overlap the crack by 3/8" to 1/2", then apply some good tape. The steel would keep the tape from getting pushed into the crack. Gooping the cracks up with anything else will just make the correct repair all the more troublesome. Rust from the steel and adhesive from the tape will get sanded off during the repair.

If you don't like the steel, the concept is still sound. Use a piece of resin or plastic or other suitable material: something that will support the tape against the water pressure.
 
Here's some of the pics that I took a couple of days ago that I sent to fiberglass repair place this morning.
House side crack
house side far 20200914_104617.jpg
house side near 20200914_103424.jpg
White wire on left is 1/8" diam for crack size comparison.
house side near 20200914_103622.jpg
From deck, looking down
house side near 20200914_103412.jpg
house side near 20200914_090614.jpg
Lawn side crack
lawn side far 20200914_104551.jpg
lawn side near 20200914_104043.jpg
lawn side near 20200914_104304.jpg

The FlexSeal idea is interesting. I've used the narrow stuff before. So if I can't get a pro patch soon, it'd be like doing a drywall seam but with FlexSeal instead of mud over the mesh. Would it just be sanded off when making a real fiberglass patch? Wonder if being just a flat surface instead a wrap would be a problem though.
 
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Both cracks go pretty much down 7" from the bottom of the deck to the "no leak" water level and then angle for another 9" or 10". By "no leak" I mean the pool loses water if filled above that point.
 

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