First pool Tampa area - Plumbing question

[Texasresident]

I will add my builder excuse that I heard yesterday . When I pressed for waterproofing layer for tile installation (not using it ), PB said he has seen basecrete and Laticrete layers knock off tiles as they interfere with tile bonding and also if i still insist he won’t warranty the work as it deviates from his normal process ..

 

[ajw22]

PB said he has seen basecrete and Laticrete layers knock off tiles as they interfere with tile bonding and also if i still insist he won’t warranty the work as it deviates from his normal process ..

Don't let the fact that the tile manufactuer recommends it alter the poor process he has bee following.

I would tell him to have it done as his warranty is probably worth little.

Glass tiles installation - thinset feedback

Hi All - Tile installer are here this morning to install 1*1 glass tiles . I asked them if they are applying waterproofing layer and they said NO , thinset already has waterproof . Here is the thinset they are using .. from what I have read here , waterproofing is important. Can you please...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Texasresident]

Don't let the fact that the tile manufactuer recommends it alter the poor process he has bee following.

I would tell him to have it done as his warranty is probably worth little.

Glass tiles installation - thinset feedback

Hi All - Tile installer are here this morning to install 1*1 glass tiles . I asked them if they are applying waterproofing layer and they said NO , thinset already has waterproof . Here is the thinset they are using .. from what I have read here , waterproofing is important. Can you please...

www.troublefreepool.com

I was afraid if any issue comes up in tile he will easily bail out blaming waterproofing as he is not taking responsibility of work ..so I told him to go ahead and follow how he does it .
Didn’t have a choice when he said not taking responsibility if I introduce my own stuff during installation

 

[ajw22]

I was afraid if any issue comes up in tile he will easily bail out blaming waterproofing as he is not taking responsibility of work ..so I told him to go ahead and follow how he does it .
Didn’t have a choice when he said not taking responsibility if I introduce my own stuff during installation

Well I hope you have no problems with his work as it will be interesting how much he backs his "process".

 

[HermanTX]

Well I hope you have no problems with his work as it will be interesting how much he backs his "process".

Allen - just curious for my own knowledge. If the waterproof layer is NOT installed, would you expect to see an issue within 3mos, 12mos, 24mos?
As you state, the warranty may not be worth anything if it takes extended time to show any issue as the PB can point to other factors thus not really have to warrant the issue.

 

[ajw22]

If the waterproof layer is NOT installed, would you expect to see an issue within 3mos, 12mos, 24mos?

Impossible to say. So many other variables including what type of coping and the way the coping is installed.

 

[TampaKathy]

As you know, my build is taking awhile and my patience ran out...now I am wondering if I am just being a jerk....so a few weeks ago a guy did some stucco on the back wall...it looks like sh*t so I said something to the PM who inadvertently (I assume) gave me the impression that the guy was not associated with a company...like he was just one-guy sometimes working, sometimes AWOL for weeks....so fixing/finishing the stucco is on my "punch list." I asked 2 PB employees what the name of the stucco company was and they both gave me the same name (I was curious if either of them would say, Oh, that's just Jose)...so I tried looking up the company name on my county’s business license website and Secretary of State and it definitely does not come up on the county site. On the SOS site there are similar names but none based out of the Tampa area. I looked up other subs just for the heck of it and the deck people don't come up with a business license either (but they are on the SOS). Soooooo, do I say something to the PB or do I just need to chill out? I am more concerned that they may not be insured (mostly the stucco guy)...not sure if I've crossed into "crazy lady" land or if I should be a PIA and tell them I want a COI naming me as a covered insured. When I interviewed the PB, I asked about getting proof about licensing and insurance for all subs and they pretty much implied that this was a ridiculous request b/c they verify this for all their subs twice a year. Un huh.

 

[JamesW]

I'm not sure what you can do about it now.

What is you goal at this point?

Whenever someone asks about stucco, I am reminded about what Groucho Marks said about stucco.

 

[ajw22]

I am more concerned that they may not be insured (mostly the stucco guy)...not sure if I've crossed into "crazy lady" land or if I should be a PIA and tell them I want a COI naming me as a covered insured. When I interviewed the PB, I asked about getting proof about licensing and insurance for all subs and they pretty much implied that this was a ridiculous request b/c they verify this for all their subs twice a year. Un huh.

I tell all contractors who work at my house, "No Insurance, no work". I need to have their insurance certificate on file before they do ANY work.

If a contractor wants to subcontract the sub contractor can provide their insurance certificate or the contractor can show me that their insurance covers the sub contractor.

Otherwise you can be liable for any injuries workmen get on your property.

You are not being a crazy lady, just a prudent property owner.

 

[TampaKathy]

I'm not sure what you can do about it now.

What is you goal at this point?

Whenever someone asks about stucco, I am reminded about what Groucho Marks said about stucco.

Both of the subs need to come back to finish...if they weren't coming back, I wouldn't bother.

 

[JamesW]

They should have a business license, liability insurance, worker's compensation insurance and a general contractor's license or a specialty contractor license for any work that requires a specialty license.

You can also request a performance and payment bond, but it is likely too late for that.

Those are reasonable things to ask for, but they will likely not have those things.

You have to be ready to fire them and find other contractors if they do not provide the requested documents.

A payment bond and a performance bond work hand in hand.

A payment bond guarantees a party pays all entities, such as subcontractors, suppliers, and laborers, involved in a particular project when the project is completed.

A performance bond ensures the completion of a project. Setting these two together provides the proper incentives for laborers to provide a quality finish for the client.

What Is a Performance Bond and How Does It Work?

A performance bond is issued to one party of a contract as a guarantee against the failure of the other party to meet obligations in the contract.

www.investopedia.com

 

[JamesW]

At this point, you are probably frustrated and aggravated at the lack of performance in speed and quality of the work as well as the lack of respect you feel from the way they are not providing you any information about when things will get done.

This is understandable and you probably feel like you want to tell them to get it done quickly and correctly or get fired.

Only you can decide when you have been reasonable enough and you have to begin to get more insistent and demanding.

 

[TampaKathy]

I think I will just ask for a COI...these 2 trades do not appear to need specialty licenses. I have a neighbor who is going to be using the same PB...I'll at least give him a head's up that he may want to be more thorough than I was. This process is exhausting. You are correct, at this point I think I am looking for things to complain about, lol...I'm actually going to start doing some things on the punch list myself just to see progress, hahaha.

 

[TampaKathy]

Few questions before I add these to the punch list (The punch list is going the wrong direction...I keep adding things and very little is coming off! ).

I went back thru my pictures and I don't have any really good ones that show this but I *think* this is connected to the rebar...should it also be connected to something else? Or just cut or buried?


The hole on the right in the skimmer goes to the filter...the hole on the left appears to do nothing but collect dirt...should there be a cap on this?


This is hard to get a good picture of but the plaster people got plaster all over the travertine...they have removed it from the top of the travertine but it is still on the underside of the coping. It can really only be seen when you are in the pool. The guy that was here cleaning up said this was normal and he can't get it off (I don't think he even tried). Should I continue to press for them to remove it or drop it? What would you do?

 

[KCNM]

I'm pretty sure that's the bonding wire. I believe it's just supposed to electrically ground the pool, so it just needs to be in the ground. I think it actually runs through the ground all the way to your equipment pad, where it also grounds the pump, lights, and anything else over there. So that all the pool and equipment are grounded to the exact same potential.

So, in my pool, there is no suction directly to the maindrain. The maindrain is hooked up to the skimmer, and the skimmer is routed to the pump. So apparently they still hook up the skimmer to the maindrain even with suction, to allow water to flow up into the skimmer from the maindrain if the water level goes below the skimmer. The reason why it's "collecting dirt" is because there's not really any suction or pressure there. It's just open to allow waterflow. If you have suction in your maindrain, you can probably blow it out with a hose every a couple times a year to push the dirt into the maindrain.

Why Does My Skimmer Have Two Holes?

Confused by the two holes in your skimmer? Skimmer secrets revealed! Learn their purpose and improve your pool's health!

easypoolcleaning.com

For the last one, my acid wash crew took care of stuff like that. (And griped about the plaster crew not taking care of it, but the plaster crew didn't have a pressure washer, so I'm not sure what they were expecting.) Then again, your crew also didn't patch that line, so it seems like they were slacking a bit on your project. You can still pressure wash it now, it's just that all the stuff will go into the pool.

 

[HermanTX]

I went back thru my pictures and I don't have any really good ones that show this but I *think* this is connected to the rebar...should it also be connected to something else? Or just cut or buried?

Is this your bonding wire? You should have bonding wire to your pump, heater, automation box - is that done? Is this picture by the equipment pad or the pool?

The hole on the right in the skimmer goes to the filter...the hole on the left appears to do nothing but collect dirt...should there be a cap on this?

This is pretty normal to collect debris. There is a plug but it is on underside of that hole which is catching debris. I just reach in and clean it out every so often.

This is hard to get a good picture of but the plaster people got plaster all over the travertine...they have removed it from the top of the travertine but it is still on the underside of the coping. It can really only be seen when you are in the pool. The guy that was here cleaning up said this was normal and he can't get it off (I don't think he even tried). Should I continue to press for them to remove it or drop it? What would you do?

Seems they could take a putty knife and scrape it off possibly. Did they get any on the waterline tile? Seems pretty high up for them to be that sloppy.

 

[TampaKathy]

I'm pretty sure that's the bonding wire. I believe it's just supposed to electrically ground the pool, so it just needs to be in the ground. I think it actually runs through the ground all the way to your equipment pad, where it also grounds the pump, lights, and anything else over there. So that all the pool and equipment are grounded to the exact same potential.

So, in my pool, there is no suction directly to the maindrain. The maindrain is hooked up to the skimmer, and the skimmer is routed to the pump. So apparently they still hook up the skimmer to the maindrain even with suction, to allow water to flow up into the skimmer from the maindrain if the water level goes below the skimmer. The reason why it's "collecting dirt" is because there's not really any suction or pressure there. It's just open to allow waterflow. If you have suction in your maindrain, you can probably blow it out with a hose every a couple times a year to push the dirt into the maindrain.

Why Does My Skimmer Have Two Holes?

Confused by the two holes in your skimmer? Skimmer secrets revealed! Learn their purpose and improve your pool's health!

easypoolcleaning.com

For the last one, my acid wash crew took care of stuff like that. (And griped about the plaster crew not taking care of it, but the plaster crew didn't have a pressure washer, so I'm not sure what they were expecting.) Then again, your crew also didn't patch that line, so it seems like they were slacking a bit on your project. You can still pressure wash it now, it's just that all the stuff will go into the pool.

Good idea about using a hose to blow the dirt out...I've been trying to scoop it out by hand. Yeah, the guy that came yesterday was the acid wash guy! I'm not done with the lines/cold joints...I'm still b*tching about them, hahaha.

 

[TampaKathy]

@HermanTX This wire is on the far side of the pool...so nowhere near the equipment pad. There is a bonding wire at the pad...this is the only spot that sticks out of the ground. I'll ask the PM what is up with this...supposedly he is coming by this week (translation, maybe next week). Yes, they got plaster on the tile...they did an amazing job getting plaster everywhere.

 

[wireform]

@HermanTX This wire is on the far side of the pool...so nowhere near the equipment pad. There is a bonding wire at the pad...this is the only spot that sticks out of the ground. I'll ask the PM what is up with this...supposedly he is coming by this week (translation, maybe next week). Yes, they got plaster on the tile...they did an amazing job getting plaster everywhere.

That is your bonding wire which is connected in many places around your pool even on the far side. Eventually the bond wire ties in at the equipment pad so all the equipment and the pool are bonded together. You can just dig a bit and push it under the earth and call it done.

 

[TampaKathy]

Busy week...they replaced a broken skimmer basket...thankfully it's almost the weekend so hopefully the PB can rest and recover from all that. At this rate, we should be done the punch list by 2023.