wicked rough gunite pool

[Maresa]

My pool is about 15 years old, but I have only owned it for 1 1/2 years. I started out knowing absolutely ZERO about pools and have made a lot of mistakes, but learned so much in less than 3 seasons. I assume I made a season long mistake this year by not being more vigilant about my ph levels. They were always up and I added acid every week, but every time I checked they seldom were below 7.8. I THINK I kept other numbers in range.
So this is what happened...Almost all of a sudden my pool surface got rough and rougher and insanely rough. There were also large groups (like 3 feet wide) of white dots which were equally rough, but even where there were no dots it was rough. Least rough was on steps. Also, there were wild white swashes of color down from the sides and into the pool bottom (like what would result from a pouring of something). None of this was there early this season.
Am I right to blame this on my not keeping my ph down? I keep reading that gunite pools have rough surfaces. They say that like it is inevitable and not a chemical imbalance. Is that it?
Mostly, what do I do? Acid wash? Use an electric type sander and grind it down? Or new plaster? What about paint?
(Also, if someone could explain the difference between etching and scaling I would appreciate it!)
THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR ANY HELP!!!!

 

[proavia]

I see your signature says you are "using Taylor test kits". Which exact test kits?

Also, you're on a well. Are there any metals in the water? Easier to get this tested at a pool store.

Please post a full set of test results for us to look at.

FC
CC
pH
CH
TA
CYA
Salt
Water temp

Etching eats into a surface
Scaling builds up on a surface

 

[pooldv]

Yes, it sounds like calcium scale which is certainly contributed to by high pH. More here, Pool School - Calcium Scaling. PoolMath will give your CSI after you enter all your test results. Tweak PH and TA to move the CSI number.

Three choices

Least aggressive
Lower your CSI to -0.8 to -0.9 and brush a lot to dissolve the scale. It will take a while, about as long as it took to scale. You can also wet sand the rough spots.

Next choice, no drain acid bath
The Zero Alkalinity Acid Treatment

Last choice and most aggressive is to drain and acid wash. This will remove plaster from your pool and shorten the life of your plaster.

After you clear it up keep the CSI between -0.3 and 0 to prevent scale in the future.