Air pocket under gunite repair

[mvoltin]

I had a diamondbrite installed last October on budget (myself and couple stucco guys). Everything went fine except one genius attending the paddle mixer got destructed and let the diamonbrite settle inside the mixer towards the very end. I had to refocus on saving the paddle-mixer and let the other two continue mixing by hand-held drill and finishing up in the hot-tub area. There was a 2sq/ft area on the seat that was discolored from the beginning (lighter color than the rest of diamondbrite) - I am guessing it was a thicker mix or mix that was almost dry when it was put on and now I noticed that there is a air or water "pocket" under that area when I step on it (I feel it moving).

What should I do? wait until it breaks up or should I immediately empty the pool past that area, break off the loose gunite and put a fresh one just in that area? Again, this is just the 2sq/ft area on top of a seating area in hot=tube section but the rest of the pool looks fantastic. Thank you.

 

[jamjam]

i think the answer is up to you - if you think it will break off and degrade - meaning there is a material defect in the finish then that seems like it would warrant an immediate fix. If you don't care about it breaking off and you are fine with fixing it whenever that scenario presents itself, then wait. If you think the defect is allowing water to intrude into an area it would not otherwise be able to penetrate then I would assume you would want to make the repair sooner than later.

 

[mvoltin]

i think the answer is up to you - if you think it will break off and degrade - meaning there is a material defect in the finish then that seems like it would warrant an immediate fix. If you don't care about it breaking off and you are fine with fixing it whenever that scenario presents itself, then wait. If you think the defect is allowing water to intrude into an area it would not otherwise be able to penetrate then I would assume you would want to make the repair sooner than later.

Thank you. I guess I will do it within a month or so. Another related question: the concrete underneath is obviously cured but it will be wet when I empty the pool and break of the delaminated section. Do I have to wait for it to dry or is it OK to put Diamond-brite directly (after roughing the surface)?

 

[jamjam]

That I don’t know. Usually moisture in concrete is a good thing when trying to bond another cement product to it but I am not sure