My gunite job was completed on Tuesday. My pool is being built next to a South Florida lake so builder is dealing with water table. The sides of the pool and most of the bottom have gunite applied;however they did not gunite the deep end around the drain and there is still rebar showing. I called the forman and he said not to worry that it's normal where there is a higher water table, it's necessary. He said they will eventually fill that area in with an even stronger material.. Is this really normal? I am really concerned..
Gunite Job Partially Complete??
- Thread starter SouthFlorida123
- Start date
Welcome to the forum. 
I would trust your PB until you have VERY good reason not to. It sounds like he is using a local technique and knows what he is doing.
This forum is primarily pool owners.....not builders and not people familiar with local building techniques in South Florida.
I would trust your PB until you have VERY good reason not to. It sounds like he is using a local technique and knows what he is doing.
This forum is primarily pool owners.....not builders and not people familiar with local building techniques in South Florida.
I am in to watch this to learn.
I would love for you to ask the PB what he is going to use that is "stronger" to fill in the open area. This could be a learning experience for all of us.
OH and ask him the timing ------when will the hole be filled AND how far behind will the plaster be?
THANKS for letting us learn with you.
Kim
I would love for you to ask the PB what he is going to use that is "stronger" to fill in the open area. This could be a learning experience for all of us.
OH and ask him the timing ------when will the hole be filled AND how far behind will the plaster be?
THANKS for letting us learn with you.
Kim
S.F.123,
At this point I'm not sure you have any other option than to follow Duraleigh's advice. I suggest that you allow your PB to finish the project and see where you stand. In the meantime, document everything and take a ton of pictures.
I do not have a clue how they deal with these issues in Florida, but I do know what happened during my pool build in Texas (DFW) area. As they were building the pool, groundwater kept collecting in the bottom of the hole. PB says "No Problem". Even after the Gunite was blown in, water came up through the holes that they purposefully left in the bottom of the pool, as well as through every plumbing penetration in the Gunite. PB says "No Problem".
At this point I'm told that the Gunite is just for the structure and that the Plaster is what makes the pool water tight. This may be true, but the catch is that the plasterers will not apply plaster if water is actively seeping, or in my case running, into the pool. The PB waits a couple of weeks hoping the problem will go away, but it doesn't. If anything it gets worse. He made several attempts to stop the water, but none of them worked.
To cut to the chase... the PB finally had to jackhammer up 250 square feet of new deck, and install a four foot deep, 50 foot long, 18" wide French drain on two sides of my pool, with a sump pump to continually remove the excessive water. Then of course, reinstall the deck.
Not trying to scare you, in fact, just the opposite. The PB did not run off and leave me with a half completed hole in the ground, but rather went out of his way to work through the problems and completed the job. I suspect your PB will do the same thing for you.
Again what other options do you have?
Jim R.
At this point I'm not sure you have any other option than to follow Duraleigh's advice. I suggest that you allow your PB to finish the project and see where you stand. In the meantime, document everything and take a ton of pictures.
I do not have a clue how they deal with these issues in Florida, but I do know what happened during my pool build in Texas (DFW) area. As they were building the pool, groundwater kept collecting in the bottom of the hole. PB says "No Problem". Even after the Gunite was blown in, water came up through the holes that they purposefully left in the bottom of the pool, as well as through every plumbing penetration in the Gunite. PB says "No Problem".
At this point I'm told that the Gunite is just for the structure and that the Plaster is what makes the pool water tight. This may be true, but the catch is that the plasterers will not apply plaster if water is actively seeping, or in my case running, into the pool. The PB waits a couple of weeks hoping the problem will go away, but it doesn't. If anything it gets worse. He made several attempts to stop the water, but none of them worked.
To cut to the chase... the PB finally had to jackhammer up 250 square feet of new deck, and install a four foot deep, 50 foot long, 18" wide French drain on two sides of my pool, with a sump pump to continually remove the excessive water. Then of course, reinstall the deck.
Not trying to scare you, in fact, just the opposite. The PB did not run off and leave me with a half completed hole in the ground, but rather went out of his way to work through the problems and completed the job. I suspect your PB will do the same thing for you.
Again what other options do you have?
Jim R.
I watched a show a few years ago about a south Florida IG pool build (Animal Plantet reality show).
I'm actually going to be a bit stronger than Dave above. What your gunite foreman described makes sense. By having a large hole in the bottom you allow the shell to cure and fill in the hole just before plaster.
To me this looks like a work around in a high water table environment.
Even in dry California the gunite crew left 4 small holes in my pool shell just in case.
To me this looks like a work around in a high water table environment.
Even in dry California the gunite crew left 4 small holes in my pool shell just in case.