Coating galvanized steel walls prior to liner change

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Catanzaro

Catanzaro

Platinum Supporter
TFP Guide
Jul 30, 2014
3,512
Monmouth County, New Jersey
One of my friends is having his liner changed in the early spring. He asked me a simple question.

If the galvanized steel walls have rust on them, what paint can I apply to protect the walls before a liner change?

Has anyone had experience with this? Are there any products to protect the walls that can be applied and dry very quickly and not cause any short or long term problems? Just curious?

I have at least 5-8 years, hopefully longer before my liner change unless something happens out of the ordinary.
 
I was a little late to the last liner change that occurred at a friends house. One wall had a lot of rust, but the PB placed foam on the walls and then the liner. The surfaced was not prepped at all. After 10 years, the walls appeared to be in descent condition from the pictures taken (far away), but some panels had more rust then one would think.

I had 2 small cuts in my liner, and because the water was so crystal clear, it was very easy to spot the cuts (Of course both done by the PB (who else) and patched up quickly. Eventually, as the liner comes down, I will have some experience on what and how well the galvanized walls have held up. This particular pool had cuts and this is probably why the apparent rust. One would think that the industry would create something that can be sprayed quickly over the pool steel walls as they have been built like this for decades.

Thanks Matt!
 
I have a lot of work related knowledge about Hot Dipped Galvanized parts and repairing it when it gets damaged or corrodes.

To keep a pretty technical subject as simple as possible, galvanizing can be successfully repaired and the older it is, the easier.

For galvanizing that is several years old, its pretty much the same as painting metal. Remove rust with wire brush, (or grinder with a wire brush wheel) clean the area well, preferably with acetone, and then spray it with zinc rich cold galvanizing compound.

New hot dip galvanizing is an entirely different story though, because galvanizing out-gasses for several years causing paint to peel and that's what happened to the gutter in Matts link. Successful painting of new galvanizing involves treating it with expensive chemicals to "pickle" it before it can be painted with any hope of longevity.
 
For galvanizing that is several years old, its pretty much the same as painting metal. Remove rust with wire brush, (or grinder with a wire brush wheel) clean the area well, preferably with acetone, and then spray it with zinc rich cold galvanizing compound.
Click to expand...

With a spray gun or does this come in a can?

The PB who built my pool states that the structure is guaranteed for 50 years, probably not for rusting panels. I would have to look at the contract. My liner replacement will not be for at least 5-8 years, maybe even longer (who knows). Then again, most PB's will also blame the homeowner for most problems.

In the spring, once my friend has his liner replaced, I will upload pictures in this thread. Thanks Dave!
 
Galvanizing is simply just a corrosion control method of buying time ... as soon as the zinc coating is compromised in any one spot on the panel, the entire panel will start to lose zinc through galvanic corrosion. That's the point, the zinc is there to sacrifice itself so the iron doesn't rust straight through. Soil considerations, exposure to pool water and a host of other factors determine how long the coating will ultimately last. Adding a layer of non-conductive paint on the surface may alter the ways in which the rest of the structure corrodes and could, if specified, void your warranty.

At the end of day, I agree with the PB - the pool structure, even with some mild corrosion, is likely going to outlast several liner changes. The chemical balance of your pool water will have the biggest impact on corrosion and I suspect many steel-walled pools that do suffer from extensive corrosion do so because the pool owner does not pay careful attention to chemistry. I don't the cost and extra work of applying a paint is really worth it.
 
Well said joyful- to the zinc doing its job.. as far as chemical damage to panels, that’s really relegated to the skimmer area.. tricolor tabs in skimmer at rest (and if the pool is grueling vinegar the light area & leaky pipe areas or wall fittings) , is like priming the system with a bucket of acid.. & marinating faceplates & gaskets in acid, is just not an awesome thing to do.

in my experience when I find a severely rotten panel, it’s a actually drainage issue & the worst of the worst have dry laid flagstone, wood/trex or no decking at all..
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply