Our in-ground 8x10 spa was installed this past Fall of 2016 with a dark blue/gray quartz finish. The people doing the plaster work finished late afternoon and neglected to bring a hose, so it was empty until they filled it the next day, late morning. This was at a home we were building so no one was living there, but we happened to come by and talk to the plaster guy both days. The spa has 2 full width steps across the 8' side. As he was filling the spa the next day, I noticed some tiny spider cracks on the top step. He explained that they can form when the finish dries too fast without water, however he said it wasn't too long without water and they would close up when the water was fully filled. After the water was in, I didn't notice them so I didn't worry about it. The pool contractor did not come by to check the plaster job at all. Since we are out of town, they had local people brush and handle the chemicals all through the winter.
Mid-winter we noticed that the cracks on the step had gotten much bigger and very noticeable and we also saw them to a lesser degree on the lower step. There was also staining and in random places. The pool contractor's supervisor came and agreed that it looked bad and said in the Spring they would acid wash it and also the steps needed to be replanted.
2 weeks ago they brought back the same plaster guy and we were told by our home builder that he ground down the surface of the steps and then filled in the cracks. The plaster guy said this would work instead of re-plastering. The spa again stayed empty for several days (5 or 6) because they broke a tile and had to obtain new material for that. I saw photos of the step and could still see the cracks before they got filled. Now I hear that the color he filled with doesn't match will and the pool contractor is going to have him re-do.
I'm sorry for the long post, but I want this done right and my gut feeling is telling me that these steps should be chipped out and re-done. The plaster guy is now saying that there will always be micro cracks and you normally don't see them with white plaster, but they show up more with the darker colors. We have held back the final payment due to this issue, but the job is 95% paid for. I don't know if what he says is true or not. I never envisioned seeing cracks in my steps of a new spa. Plus we paid more for the premium quartz finish. I don't want to accept this only to potentially have to replaster down the road and then have to argue about who pays for it. I need advice as to what I should expect and if this micro cracking is due to a bad plaster job, or not getting water into the spa quick enough, or if the plaster contractor is giving us some BS and the pool contractor is going a long with it so he doesn't have to re-do. I just don't know what is the truth here.
All advice is appreciated and I can upload photos if there's a way for me to do that here. Thanks.
Mid-winter we noticed that the cracks on the step had gotten much bigger and very noticeable and we also saw them to a lesser degree on the lower step. There was also staining and in random places. The pool contractor's supervisor came and agreed that it looked bad and said in the Spring they would acid wash it and also the steps needed to be replanted.
2 weeks ago they brought back the same plaster guy and we were told by our home builder that he ground down the surface of the steps and then filled in the cracks. The plaster guy said this would work instead of re-plastering. The spa again stayed empty for several days (5 or 6) because they broke a tile and had to obtain new material for that. I saw photos of the step and could still see the cracks before they got filled. Now I hear that the color he filled with doesn't match will and the pool contractor is going to have him re-do.
I'm sorry for the long post, but I want this done right and my gut feeling is telling me that these steps should be chipped out and re-done. The plaster guy is now saying that there will always be micro cracks and you normally don't see them with white plaster, but they show up more with the darker colors. We have held back the final payment due to this issue, but the job is 95% paid for. I don't know if what he says is true or not. I never envisioned seeing cracks in my steps of a new spa. Plus we paid more for the premium quartz finish. I don't want to accept this only to potentially have to replaster down the road and then have to argue about who pays for it. I need advice as to what I should expect and if this micro cracking is due to a bad plaster job, or not getting water into the spa quick enough, or if the plaster contractor is giving us some BS and the pool contractor is going a long with it so he doesn't have to re-do. I just don't know what is the truth here.
All advice is appreciated and I can upload photos if there's a way for me to do that here. Thanks.
BUT this is something that is best left between you and your builder. 
