Blotchy New Pool Plaster
- Thread starter appatel
- Start date
Blotchy?....frequently. I assume you haven't had an acid start or other type start up? Sometimes it takes that to improve the appearance.
Here are some helpful tips for you-
www.troublefreepool.com
www.troublefreepool.com
Also, don't forget to register your plaster finish online with which ever company brand it is.
Maddie
Here are some helpful tips for you-
Plaster Installation and Maintenance - Further Reading
www.troublefreepool.com
Plaster Start-Up Guides - Further Reading
www.troublefreepool.com
Also, don't forget to register your plaster finish online with which ever company brand it is.
Maddie
I saw a bunch of bottle of muratix acid so I am assuming he did the acid startup it just still looks blotchy after 5 days. that's for the heads up on the registering the plaster.Blotchy?....frequently. I assume you haven't had an acid start or other type start up? Sometimes it takes that to improve the appearance.
Here are some helpful tips for you-
Plaster Installation and Maintenance - Further Reading
Plaster Start-Up Guides - Further Reading
Also, don't forget to register your plaster finish online with which ever company brand it is.
Maddie
Toxophilite
Silver Supporter
sorry for the delay but I was hoping the PB would have resolved the issue already. Pool maintenance guy came by and said that plaster looks bad and that PB needs to do an acid wash first before he starts maintenance. Can an acid wash fix this?
Attachments
You might ask the company to have a rep come out and access the condition of the plaster. An acid wash will remove plaster....your hard paid for plaster which shortens the life of the finish. We always tell folks to only do this with great caution.
Maddie
Maddie
Thank you for the advice. Sadly, the person I am dealing with is the owner of the company.
Read each of these... the first has a problem section towards the bottom;
www.troublefreepool.com
www.troublefreepool.com
www.troublefreepool.com
I'm going to ask the cement expert to chime in here... @onBalance <thanks!>
Maddie
Plaster Installation and Maintenance - Further Reading
www.troublefreepool.com
new plaster streaked - is this how it is with plaster
Hi So am having the old pool re-plastered. We like the guys, we like the color, we like the startup procedure. But... The plaster is quite streaked. See pics attached. I am aware that plaster is not paint, is an imperfect media, but... Is this much streaking "normal"? Thank you.
www.troublefreepool.com
Diagnosing Pool Plaster Problems
Plaster Discolorations – New white pool plaster can discolor (darken or turn gray) from adding excessive calcium chloride set accelerator, from late hard troweling, from thin and thick areas due to an uneven shell, etc. Gray (or grey) mottled discoloration (also known as “water entrapment” or...
www.troublefreepool.com
I'm going to ask the cement expert to chime in here... @onBalance <thanks!>
Maddie
Last edited:
Please read this post.
www.troublefreepool.com
Why Colored Plaster Turns White
Plaster colors can fade or turn whitish for a handful of preventable reasons. First off, scale can be deposited onto pigmented plaster surfaces by out-of-balance pool water. As is widely known, calcium scale makes the surface rough and turns it white, and acid washing is often the remedy...
www.troublefreepool.com
If the pool was just filled and the start-up hasn't even been done yet I wouldn't worry about it yet. looks like a quartz finish do a hot acid start up and it will be fine i do this same application 300x a year without issues it always starts like this.
Appatel,
An acid treatment may remove the whitish blotchy areas in your pool and also make the color more uniform. However, it will also age the plaster by several years depending on how strong the acid treatment is. Further, if they perform a strong acid treatment, it is very likely that the plaster surface will be etched significantly. That in turn, will cause the color of the plaster to eventually fade and turn whitish again within a year. The thing to understand is that acid treatments are often used to cover up poor workmanship. Note: A Hot Startup is the same thing as doing an acid treatment.
Performing proper troweling and workmanship would have resulted in a more uniform and consistent plaster color.
Also, it appears that your pool was sprayed down with water when they started to fill the pool. That event can also cause streaks that turn white.
A better remedy for your pool is to drain and power sand the entire finish. That will produce a smooth surface and not age the plaster as opposed to an etched and rougher surface. Your builder may not want to do that due to the extra cost of labor to perform that job. Hope you can obtain a good remedy for your pool.
An acid treatment may remove the whitish blotchy areas in your pool and also make the color more uniform. However, it will also age the plaster by several years depending on how strong the acid treatment is. Further, if they perform a strong acid treatment, it is very likely that the plaster surface will be etched significantly. That in turn, will cause the color of the plaster to eventually fade and turn whitish again within a year. The thing to understand is that acid treatments are often used to cover up poor workmanship. Note: A Hot Startup is the same thing as doing an acid treatment.
Performing proper troweling and workmanship would have resulted in a more uniform and consistent plaster color.
Also, it appears that your pool was sprayed down with water when they started to fill the pool. That event can also cause streaks that turn white.
A better remedy for your pool is to drain and power sand the entire finish. That will produce a smooth surface and not age the plaster as opposed to an etched and rougher surface. Your builder may not want to do that due to the extra cost of labor to perform that job. Hope you can obtain a good remedy for your pool.
FWIW, I just had my pool replastered this month (Diamond Brite, DH Tahoe Blue), and it too is blotchy (lots of white splotches in it). I've been assured by the plaster company and the pool company this is VERY normal for new plastering, especially if it wasn't acid washed right away afterwards. I was told it was too hot to acid wash the day of plastering because it was 90+ degrees outside. I confirmed with another pool company that, light acid washes down the line will make the pool coloring less blotchy but ALSO bring out some of the black in the plaster which is not yet really visible. I've been panicked about the quality of the plastering, and wish my pool company would have informed me BEFORE the job that the NEW plaster might look a bit meh initially without the acid wash being done. So I'm trusting in the numerous sources I've been in touch with that the plaster coloring and finish will improve quite a a lot in the first year. IMHO, yours looks pretty decent (though it's hard to tell from pictures sometimes) and if I were you I guess I wouldn't worry much, especially if they didn't acid wash it yet... When you next drain the pool, a light acid washing should help pull everything together.
The above pictures are of the pool after it has been filled for a month and a hot bath has already been done. The PB came out with the vendor (assuming plaster vendor) when i wasn't there and when i followed up on the next steps his response was plaster is solid and good but he can do a light acid wash to expose the quartz. I responded saying that the plaster looks like Crud and is blotchy everywhere to which he responded that according to Noble is the type i chose. Don't know what that means he obviously does not think there is an issue.
@onBalance I am concerned that the acid wash is not a good solution.
Jesse, I don't think the picture do a good job of showing how blotchy the pool is. below is a picture from today.
Let's note that the pool was given a hot (acid) start, and yet, the plaster color is mottled with white streaks and blotches.
So will another acid treatment resolve this issue?
Apparently, the builder is fine with etching the plaster surface some more, and making it like sandpaper to achieve a more uniform color. Who wants a rough and pitted plaster surface? That is not what someone pays for.
If an acid treatment actually helps to produce a more uniform color, how long will it last? Not very long at all, because an etched plaster surface will simply start turning white again within a few months.
An acid treatment costs very little to perform. A better way to fix this pool, is to drain and power sand the entire pool. But of course, that will cost more for the plastering contractor to perform.
Lastly, I doubt the Colored Plaster Sample has white blotches all over it.
So will another acid treatment resolve this issue?
Apparently, the builder is fine with etching the plaster surface some more, and making it like sandpaper to achieve a more uniform color. Who wants a rough and pitted plaster surface? That is not what someone pays for.
If an acid treatment actually helps to produce a more uniform color, how long will it last? Not very long at all, because an etched plaster surface will simply start turning white again within a few months.
An acid treatment costs very little to perform. A better way to fix this pool, is to drain and power sand the entire pool. But of course, that will cost more for the plastering contractor to perform.
Lastly, I doubt the Colored Plaster Sample has white blotches all over it.
@onBalance I agree with you I am not okay with the proposed solution.
Unfortunately, I was not given a sample just the catalog showing what color options are available. I did see a sample of the plaster until i went to Nobile the supplier.
I feel this is going to get adversarial. Is there anything I should do in the interim so he can't come back and say oh this is happening because I am not maintaining the pool?
Unfortunately, I was not given a sample just the catalog showing what color options are available. I did see a sample of the plaster until i went to Nobile the supplier.
I feel this is going to get adversarial. Is there anything I should do in the interim so he can't come back and say oh this is happening because I am not maintaining the pool?
There is no telling what a contractor will claim. Fortunately, you have photos of the pool prior to being filled with water and after it was filled, and after the Hot startup which the contractor performed. Imo, he is on the hook for the current appearance of the plaster. You should report the current water balance readings for the record here. Oh, and please have your tap water tested for pH, alkalinity, calcium hardness, and list it here.
