getting quotes for old 1970's gunite pool reno

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rlefig

rlefig

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Apr 29, 2013
257
Reading, MA
Good morning, this forum has been of great help and service and I have used it a bunch in the past to help with this pool. We turned a black swamp into a nice sparkling pool, built a patio and more. But now it is time to finish the job. I am getting quotes to replaster the pool, redo all the tile as 1/3 is missing and redo the coping stones as a couple of the formed concrete stones are cracked and one is missing a big piece from it. The pool company will also take a peak at main drain which is plugged and pressure test lines.

I have had two companies come in and both agree all aspects of the pool are original, besides pump and filter which I installed. They both agree that replacing a couple of pieces of coping is useless as it is all so old and basically they use a top down approach.

They both come in at an estimate of $13k for a pool that is approx 16k gallons and 460 square feet, perimeter 84 feet kidney shape. Both agree installing a pool light to be to expensive, which is too bad.

They will look at the beam of pool as I told them the water is off 1/2 or so end to end.

One company came in with brick coping and plaster (could be colored) at that price point. They also offer pebbletec not sure if I want that.

The other company came in with formed concrete coping and 3 quotes of Ecofinish aquabrite at that point. The Bullnose brick coping cost $1800 more.

We are still awaiting a 3rd quote.

How do these sound? Any recommendations for pool rehab places in Eastern MA? What about thoughts on finishes and coping and anything else I should do at this time.

Thanks

Rob
 
I really don't have a feel for that area, and work on pools here is very high. If you're not sure on Pebble, is it because of roughness? Cost? For either, Quartz might be a good option and what we chose for both reasons.
 
I'd label them 1, 2 and 3 so things don't get confusing. For PB 2, are you saying that they will do concrete coping, tile and Aquabrite for $13K? That seems like a great price for a top shelf finish, coping and tile. MA isn't exactly a hotspot for pools in the US which doesn't usually help pricing.
 
Thanks Bmoreswim this is a huge job. I forgot I posted a similar thread back in February stating we were thinking about the reno if somebody wants to combine them.

Here are the two statement of works:

PB1:
Below is a outline of the scope of work and projected cost.

Observations:

The pool was built around 1973 is under 460 square feet and has a preminter of around 84 feet. The gallons are around 16,000.

Based on the age of the pool the coping and tile need to be upgraded and replaced. The plaster because od age also needs to be replaced.

Based on our conversation the pool structure appears to be in good condition. Once the pool is pumped down the pool needs to be inspected for bean damage and hollows in the plaster. Based on our conversation I don't anticipate any mejor issues.

The pool should be pressure tested as the main drain is not currrently working.

The concrete deck is in good condition and should be painted prior to the new coping and tile being installed.

Access is not an issue for all the crews and water and electricity is on site.

Concerns:

The only concern is the hieght difference between the concrete deck and coping. When installing the new coping the hieght could become more pronounced. The brick coping would update the pool and match the current paver and help the hieght concerns.

Recomentations:

Replace the current safety grip coping with brick coping. Install new tile and plaster. ( selections TBD). Install a new mastic joint ( TBD).

Scope of work:

- Remove all coping and tile

- Prep the pool for new plaster

- Prep the stairs and return lines

- Prep the main drain and pressure test

- Prep the stairs and skimmers

- Install new Brick coping and Tile ( 3 x 3 or 2 x 2 , TBD )

- Apply Scratch Kote bonding agent

- Install new plaster ( Color TBD )

Projected Cost: $12,500.00 to $13,500.00


PB2:

POOL REPAIRS TO CONSIST OF:
Draining of the pool.
Removal of existing tile and coping.
Installation of tile and safety coping (color of choice).
Acid wash pool surface and clean with TSP
Installation of 2 coats of Epoxy
Installation of 3 coats of Aquabright color of choice
Installation of Deco seal joint around perimeter of the pool.
Bull Nose brick add $1,800.00
Concrete cap add $2,400.00
The coping stone is no longer bonded to the top of the pool. The stones will continue to move during the freeze and thaw
cycles and will destroy the tile face as a result. The coping system is breaking down in several areas which would warrant
addressing the pool as a whole. The coping system must be installed at the highest point and cannot match the existing
deck.
- Pool Pro not responsible for the existing pool structure.
- Beam restoration will be completed at time and material.
- Pool Pro not responsible for underground water tables and their affects.
- Customer is responsible for supplying water and electrical as often as needed.
- Any alterations of payment schedule will render all warranties null and void.
- Patching of pool surface is over 2 hours will be additional.
Tile and coping $6,400.00
Ecofinish Aquabright $7,200.00
 
rlefig said:
it is PVC
Click to expand...

That's good to know! Honestly, if you can get AquaBright at the price they are quoting, I'm a huge fan (someday my pool will be redone with AquaBright). It's like having a vinyl pool surface. It will be very chemically stable. With a fresh plaster surface, you're going to be fighting pH rise all season long and then, when you have to winterize in Sept, the pH of the water is going to shoot up over the winter and I'd bet your next season will be started off with a pool full of calcium scale. Plaster pools are very uncommon in the Northeast for a very good reason - you guys have ground water, your air hits freezing temperatures for months on end and your pools have to be winterized for many months. True vinyl pools are much more forgiving in that type of climate.
 
rlefig said:
Thanks JoyfulNoise, chemically wise my pool has been very easy to take care or. Some Bleach daily, watch PH and CH. Is it because the plaster was so old?
Click to expand...

Yep.

When the new plaster hits, I suggest buying stock in a local muriatic acid supplier :laughblue: Very few plaster companies follow the NPC Technical bulletin on how to properly startup a plaster pool to minimize plaster dust, emission of plaster compounds into the water, etc. So what you typically see with a fresh plaster surface is a lot of emission of calcium hydroxide into the water and that drives pH up fast. So people will often experience months of high acid demand after a replaster job. Sometimes that can be hidden when people use acidic forms of chlorine (trichlor pucks and dichlor shock powder) since the acidity of those sources will neutralize some of the pH rise. But, if you use liquid chlorine in a pool or have an SWG making chlorine, then the net pH change from those sources is very small and the new plaster dominates the pH rise.

Now, if your pool is open all year and you're managing the chemistry properly, no big deal. However, where you live, no one is going to keep a pool open much past mid-October and then it gets snuggled-in tight for a long winter nap until May. So that's 7 or 8 months of the water just sitting there with the pH going up and up and up. The pH rise will be limited a little bit and might not go much higher than 9 or so, but at that point, calcium carbonate is going to want to scale out of solution. So folks will sometimes open up a recently plastered pool from it's winter slumber and find the walls and floor feel like sandpaper and there's white scale everywhere. That's a big problem and requires either a drain and acid wash to remove the scale or a no-drain acid wash to redissolve all that calcium. Either way, it's a royal PITA when it happens.
 

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Good day, we are going to go with the quote that includes the EcoFinish. He has a number of references, like 50+ and we have spoken with a couple of them and they were all pleased with the builder. One even has the EcoFinish/aquabrite finish which we are going to see.

Its still a lot of money and I am nervous as always when that much money is installed. I believe we will be going with a darker color as she like blue instead of the white plaster. If we can get it warmer that will be great as well.

I will keep posted
 
Couple of pics of pool when we first got there and now
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I'm very excited for you, as I'm sure others will be too, because we get to see another remodel AND get an additional Aquabright installation to follow/add to the "registry"! There aren't many but it seems to be a very promising product.
 
We paid the $5500 deposit yesterday picked out Blue Lagoon for the Aquabrite color. Still need to decide on tile and leaning towards a concrete cap for coping. If we do formed concrete it will be similar to what we have now just newer and white, which we do not want. We could go brick but it seemed busy. They have granite and travertine but pricey. The contractor said concrete cap is modern it can be colored and stamped as well. One of the things we do want is to try and tone down the 50 shades of gray we have going on.

Will keep all posted
 

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