New Fr. Gray install, problem?

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Thanks for getting back guys. You seem to know your stuff onbalance. I'm sorry if I offended anyone with the enthusiast label, let's try to keep it positive. Based on info i've gotten with this thread, forum stickies, and other research, it has been a concern that the pool was not filled quickly enough after the plaster. The builder has gotten back to me and he may be redoing the plaster job and arranging for supplemental water, so the plaster doesn't dry out so fast. This isn't set in stone yet, but something he may be willing to do. Hopefully, that will be the case, and there won't be some sort of legal dispute. If he doesn't agree to redo it, i will go from there. Also, like onbalance mentioned, this isn't an emergency. I'll give it some time, if necessary, and hopefully unevenness will clear out. Does anyone else have experience with not filling a new plaster job quick enough? Let me reiterate how much I appreciate everyone's help, and interest. I hope my problem will be someone elses gain eventually, and I will keep updating with pics and resolutions. I really appreciate the new pool plaster care sticky.

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Also, thanks again jason, i'm hoping discoloration isn't indicative of structural problems, if the project isn't redone.
 
The color, the lack thereof, discoloration, or the blotchy aspect of dark color pools has nothing to do with slow filling with water. A blotchy color can be due to improper mixing, and/or poor troweling techniques.

Depending on the ambient temperature, slow filling with water can result in cracking. If the weather very hot and dry, yes, that can happen. However, if the temperatures are below 85 degrees and humid, such as your area may have, then cracking should not occur even if it takes three days to fill. After that, cracking would be likely. Cracking should not occur on day one.

Cracking can result if too much water is added to the plaster mix, or when a lot of water is splash on the surface while troweling the hardening plaster finish.
 
Thank you so much. Poor troweling skill/technique seems to be main culprit of unevenness. Just so everyone has all the information, it was in the 80's and sunny during the days of the fill. This may be an indicator as to why there are only shrinkage cracks on the north wall of the pool; the surface with the most sun coming from south. This, of course, doesn't explain the bad coloration problems. I hope to get this worked out. I'll post some pics of the totally filled pool, when I get a chance. Thanks again.
 
If you go to the IMAGES tab in a Google search and search for "French Gray pool plaster" there's a selection of pictures. Some of the pictures were taken while the plaster was still wet so they look badly streaked, but go to the sites for each picture and there's usually additional pictures of consistent dried gray plaster jobs. Print them out and show them to your builder. That's what it should look like.
 
Here are some shots of the filled pool and some before shots. The discoloration is not as evident in these photos, but it's still the same, only darker. I'm not real comfortable holding my camera out over the pool, but i'll try to get some better shots of the plaster itself, at some point. I don't want to get off thread topic too much, but I thought some people might be interested in the design aspects of my project, too. I'll include them in a more appropriate thread when I have time. I have been remodeling a 100 yr old house in uptown New Orleans for over a year now, and it's become a money pit, to say the least. I apologize if all my threads haven't been perfectly thought out, my stress level is at maximum right now, and my plate is already full. A buddy of mine, and I, rebuilt the shed and tore down the old carport. The color I used on the shed is Pantone's "Radiant Orchid", which was their color of the year, last year. I normally wouldn't have painted it that loud, but I think it has a lot of pop against all the concrete and dark green of the plantanes. It is also close to the color of the crepe myrtle tree behind it. NOLA is a tropical climate, and I'm kinda going for a "carribbean" look, for lack of a better descriptor. Obviously, the landscaping needs to be redone. I've been chopping plantane trees in all the pictures. If I cut them all the way down, they will be 25 ft tall by the end of summer. The ladder rail is also coming out, and I will probably eventually redo the old Sundek, with either the same travertine as the coping, or some other tile/stone. The spa heater, and pump, were not functional. To get the spa going again, including new gas heater and replumb would have cost about 5k, plus the cost of gas to heat. I decided to spend more and just redo the pool, while eliminating the spa. The total job, including demo, steps, tile, coping, plaster, and salt water gen is coming to around 14k. I had a pro gate installer come put in the new automatic gate, with fleur-di-lis on top; it was a sliding garage door before. If I had it to do over again, I may have gone with one of the shimmering bead finishes, but finding a qualified pool person in NOLA is not that easy; it's not a big pool town.




 
That is looking good! Thanks for sharing. New Orleans is a great old city. We lived in Metairie when I was a kid. My cousin has a moneypit on St Charles. Good that people are fixing up the old places.
 
In the spirit of the tourney, and, in case anyone was wondering. Yes, that is a regulation rim, and yes, it is exactly 10 ft. above the deepest point in the pool. My pool favors shooters. I know its kind of trashy, and it will probably be stashed away after all work is done, but its still a crowd pleaser, and makes solo swims a little more entertaining.
 
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