Hybrid Pool, Help!

[LoraMae]

I'm new to this forum and I'm glad I found it. We bought a house with an inground pool and have had a lot of nightmares with it. Learn as you go... With 7 kids, we need this pool in good operating condition. It's in need of a great deal of repair. Yet, we continue to use it each summer. It appears to be a plaster pool with the plaster "etchy" in some areas. We repainted two years ago with the Gunzite and Zeron. It was a LOT of work for us. We didn't have an alternative since we couldn't find anyone in IOWA to replace the plaster for less than $12,000. The plaster only covers the bottom of the pool and upward just slightly. The sides appear to be fiberglass panels. Pool experts (so they say) who work on our pool don't really know what they are. They haven't seen a pool constructed like ours before. The panels are joined and caulked. There is a row of small tiles before the coping, which needs replacing. Have you heard of pool construction such as this? The panels have hairline cracks where they are caulked and joined. We're wondering if it's possible to replace these panels and could we do it ourselves?
40,000 gallons, SWG, gas heat, 10' deep, spa attached
Lora

 

[Exchemist]

Re: Plaster issues....going to paint

LoraMae, rather than attach your question to this topic, you would get a better response starting a new thread.

It sounds like you have a hybrid pool. There was at least on thread on this recently. Search for "hybrid" and you should find it.

 

[LoraMae]

Thank you for re-posting as a new thread. Comments made to Dawn in Oklahoma were helpful to us, and it appears her pool might look a lot like ours. We are filling it now but we know we need major work. My husband said there is no water flow working so we'll be calling a pool company tomorrow. My husband pulled old caulk from between the fiberglass sheets but realizes now that he probably pulled an important gasket. He caulked anyway. The fiberglass panels look chalky. One reply to Dawn was very detailed and it talked about a primer and two coats of something...let dry for three days and fill the pool. Only drain for emergency repairs. In Iowa, the pools must be drained halfway for the winter. I'm not sure this would be a viable solution for us, yet it may be the only one available. We need fiberglass panel repair ideas and concrete decking ideas. We'll tackle the job slowly since this is likely to be costly and there is absolutely no professional in our area who has seen a pool like ours.