Hi all--
I've been using TFP for a while to help me understand chemistry, which I've maintained myself for the four years we've been in this house. Here's a bit of background:
25000 Gallon In-Ground Pool
Salt-Water Generator
Our pool/home were built in the 70s. When we purchased the home the pool had been painted blue, and over the course of a few summers we started seeing the paint degrade, and last summer missing chunks of plaster started appearing. It was clear it was time for a replaster.
We live in Southern Oregon so options are few on replaster companies. We settled on one who had done the local swim club's pool and worked with a local chemical-supply shop. Nice guy, and despite being a little scattershot on the communication end, we were happy with his quote to retile and replaster the pool, and have it done in time for summer.
Work began in February. Pool was drained and prep work began. Here are some before pictures so you can see what things looked like:
Prep work:
New tile put on:
There were several long periods of delay because of the weather here. On March 7 the bond coat was put on:
After several weather-related delays, replaster day finally came last week on April 23. Our water table was causing the pool to "fill" a little bit so they put in a pump system to pull out ground water so the pool would be dry while they plastered:
Later that evening two guys came back and removed the pump, put on the drain caps (we had to have a second drain added to bring it to code), and started filling:
Took about 18 hours to completely fill, and I was instructed to begin brushing it 2-3 times a day once it was full. I completely cleaned all filter elements and go the pump up and running with no problems. Upon the first brushing I noticed some spots that would not move when brushed over, but attributed it to my crappy brush. The next day I had the chemical gal come out to help me get things set up. I too showed her these spots and the guy who brushed the pool (with a much better brush that I then purchased) also pointed them out. She told me that it's possible that debris blew in as the pool was filling and set into the plaster, but that it's not her area of expertise. As I've continued brushing the pool 2-3 times a day, I have seen a few areas where this is occuring. It basically looks like the debris you'd sweep away, but it just doesn't move when you brush it. Unfortunately it's difficult to get clear pictures of, but it's worse in the shallow end.
I have the plaster guy coming out tomorrow or Tuesday to inspect, but I'm really in unknown territory here. Am I unreasonable to expect a perfectly white pool? If debris getting into the pool as it filled/cured was an issue, shouldn't plants have been tarped over? The pool covered while filling? If debris is set into the plaster, will a coarser brush remove it, or will it come loose over time? Any help or information I can get so that I can approach the meeting with the plasterer is much appreciated. If it's not reasonable, I don't want to be handed a line that "these things happen sometimes" and that's that. Overall we are very happy with the job but these spots seem troublesome to me.
Thanks!
I've been using TFP for a while to help me understand chemistry, which I've maintained myself for the four years we've been in this house. Here's a bit of background:
25000 Gallon In-Ground Pool
Salt-Water Generator
Our pool/home were built in the 70s. When we purchased the home the pool had been painted blue, and over the course of a few summers we started seeing the paint degrade, and last summer missing chunks of plaster started appearing. It was clear it was time for a replaster.
We live in Southern Oregon so options are few on replaster companies. We settled on one who had done the local swim club's pool and worked with a local chemical-supply shop. Nice guy, and despite being a little scattershot on the communication end, we were happy with his quote to retile and replaster the pool, and have it done in time for summer.
Work began in February. Pool was drained and prep work began. Here are some before pictures so you can see what things looked like:
Prep work:
New tile put on:
There were several long periods of delay because of the weather here. On March 7 the bond coat was put on:
After several weather-related delays, replaster day finally came last week on April 23. Our water table was causing the pool to "fill" a little bit so they put in a pump system to pull out ground water so the pool would be dry while they plastered:
Later that evening two guys came back and removed the pump, put on the drain caps (we had to have a second drain added to bring it to code), and started filling:
Took about 18 hours to completely fill, and I was instructed to begin brushing it 2-3 times a day once it was full. I completely cleaned all filter elements and go the pump up and running with no problems. Upon the first brushing I noticed some spots that would not move when brushed over, but attributed it to my crappy brush. The next day I had the chemical gal come out to help me get things set up. I too showed her these spots and the guy who brushed the pool (with a much better brush that I then purchased) also pointed them out. She told me that it's possible that debris blew in as the pool was filling and set into the plaster, but that it's not her area of expertise. As I've continued brushing the pool 2-3 times a day, I have seen a few areas where this is occuring. It basically looks like the debris you'd sweep away, but it just doesn't move when you brush it. Unfortunately it's difficult to get clear pictures of, but it's worse in the shallow end.
I have the plaster guy coming out tomorrow or Tuesday to inspect, but I'm really in unknown territory here. Am I unreasonable to expect a perfectly white pool? If debris getting into the pool as it filled/cured was an issue, shouldn't plants have been tarped over? The pool covered while filling? If debris is set into the plaster, will a coarser brush remove it, or will it come loose over time? Any help or information I can get so that I can approach the meeting with the plasterer is much appreciated. If it's not reasonable, I don't want to be handed a line that "these things happen sometimes" and that's that. Overall we are very happy with the job but these spots seem troublesome to me.
Thanks!
