Exposed Metal/Rebar(maybe) Above Skimmer Causing Rust and Plaster Stains

[Palpatine]

Hello Pool People,

I have an issue with rust from exposed metal and I'm hoping someone here is familiar with this problem and has a suggestion for a cheap and simple DIY fix.

I searched all over the forum but seems like there was only one other post with a similar problem but there weren't many suggestions on how to fix it.

Here it is:

When my pool was re-plastered, the bums that did the job left some metal exposed above the skimmer to lay the coping on and same thing above the outlet by the spa. It's probably rebar, but I don't know... and in the pics it doesn't really look like rebar. I've attached some pics that should show the problem pretty well.

My main concern is that the metal is corroding and rusting pretty badly. I'd love a simple solution on how to encase it some how to stop the rust from leeching out all over. It looks terrible. I'm embarrassed when people are swimming and they see it.

Also, I've been battling some stains on the bottom of the pool and now I'm pretty sure it's from this rust in the water. I've scrubbed them with a metal brush for weeks on end, same thing last year, and they have barely budged. Pool store test shows copper in water is 0.4ppm. I was thinking of doing an Ascorbic acid treatment but I definitely need to deal with this rust first.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

 

[ajw22]

Coat the metal with a few coats of rust neutralizer. Loctite, Rustoleum, and others sell it. If you can reach all the rusting areas and coat it the neutralizer will stop the rust.

If it is rusting in places you cannot reach then you will need to do some excavation to get at the metal surfaces.

 

[Dirk]

Before you apply any remedy yourself, did you give the refinishers a chance to fix it? Did you contact them about it? Did the refinishers offer any sort of warranty? Some do. Mine did. I had a rust spot, called them and they sent a guy that jumped in the water and fixed it in about 10 minutes. They had offered a five-year warranty on the finish and they honored it.

If you apply a fix yourself, before they have a chance to deal with it, they would have an excuse, a legitimate one, not to fix it themselves. Might be worth a phone call if you haven't tried that yet.

If it was a name brand finish, like PebbleTec, which can only be applied by certified installers, you might have a second course of action directly with them, as they warrant their product if it was installed correctly. But they, too, would have an out if you go messing with it before they have a look. They have been known to send their own reps to a pool if their is an issue with the finish, and intervene directly with the installer.

 

[Liz315]

Could the exposed metal that was left prior to coping possibly be the grounding wire?

 

[PoolGate]

Looks like they used an untreated fireplace lintel to span the gap above the skimmers.

 

[Palpatine]

Thanks for the replies!!!

@Dirk Contacting the contractors who did the work is not an option.
@Liz315 Definitely not.
@PoolGate Your guess is as good as mine.

@ajw22 After doing more research, and after hearing your reply, I ordered some POR 15, metal prep and top coat (gloss white), and will receive them in the next 10 days. Going to see if I can clean up the surrounding rust stains on the tile and grout with some Vitamin C tabs... and if that doesn't work, maybe a MA 1:3 solution. After I clean and paint I will come back to this thread and post pics of finished job.

I had a pool contractor out to look at it a few weeks ago and he wanted to charge me 2k-ish to saw cut out and rebuild with proper material so if this gets me by for a few years for under $100 I'm thrilled.

Just curious... any chance this is the cause of the mystery stain on the bottom of my pool that I've been working on for years now? It started out small and is quite large now (brown or greyish and blotchy). It's not hideous, but it does bother me. It's one of those stains that you can't see in the day time. Only if the sun is down can you see it. Also, interestingly enough, it's right at the transition from shallow end to deep end and it's all over the deep end. Right where both rusty outlets are. Nothing in the shallow end. Thoughts?

Pretty sure that someone is going to say to try the crushed up Vit C in a sock test. I've done it. I'd say the test was inconclusive. It did lighten up a bit when I did it... I think. It definitely didn't auto-magically make it disappear. Plus it's all over now and all other info on this forum advises to just do the Ascorbic Acid treatment in that case which I'm likely going to try in the Fall.

Thanks again for viewing and replying to my thread!

 

[PoolGate]

FYI I've had luck with the below.

Purity Pool OS Out Spot Stain Remover https://a.co/d/04DY5xO

 

[Palpatine]

FYI I've had luck with the below.

Purity Pool OS Out Spot Stain Remover https://a.co/d/04DY5xO

Hahaha... I have it. Bought it a year ago and tried putting MA directly on the stain but it didn't magically remove it either. I'm just on the tail end of a Black Algae outbreak and have really scrubbed the pool heavily over the last few weeks with a stainless steel brush. I might just try that thing out again.

 

[Palpatine]

Well, Vitamin C tabs (ascorbic acid only) were a bit disappointing. Maybe made it worse in some spots. I will be putting some pool putty on the the exposed metal and then painting it with POR 15, but would like the rest of the area to be clean first.

Any ideas on how to clean the rust off the tile and grout?

Thanks

 

[Palpatine]

After scouring the forum, it looks like @JoyfulNoise recommends Bar Keepers Friend. I'm gonna get some of the soft cleanser and see if that does it. I have the powder but seems like the soft cleanser would be easier to use on walls and the roof which are both above the water line.

My thought is to see if I can let it sit on stained areas for a few minutes and then wipe off so as to get a little as possible in the pool as I guess oxalic acid in pools, especially pools with high calcium like mine, is a no no. I'll update the thread after I try.

 

[JamesW]

You can't treat it and it is not safe.

This can fail while someone walks on the bricks over the skimmer.

You should remove the bricks and replace the metal plate with stainless steel.

 

[JamesW]

I had a pool contractor out to look at it a few weeks ago and he wanted to charge me 2k-ish to saw cut out and rebuild with proper material so if this gets me by for a few years for under $100 I'm thrilled.

Cut it out and do it right.

You can't fix this with any treatments or coatings.

 

[Palpatine]

Youch... definitely not what I wanted to hear. So, this is only a few years old... you think this is a bad idea to try and buy a few more years before paying thousands to have it fixed?

Also, would I need to drain the pool to fix this? Or, just drop the water line? How do you keep the sediment from falling in the pool? Could this maybe be a DIY project?

 

[PoolGate]

What is the warranty on the pool? This looks like incorrect construction techniques to me. I'd start with the builder.

 

[Palpatine]

@PoolGate Definitely incorrect construction. Contacting the builder is not an option. I'm on my own here.

 

[PoolGate]

@PoolGate Definitely incorrect construction. Contacting the builder is not an option. I'm on my own here.

Have you tried just a stone mason? Really you just need the coping over the overflow and skimmers removed and redone correctly.

 

[PoolGate]

@PoolGate Definitely incorrect construction. Contacting the builder is not an option. I'm on my own here.

Aren't there other remedies in CA like a fund for stuff like this when contacting the builder isn't possible?

 

[Palpatine]

Have you tried just a stone mason? Really you just need the coping over the overflow and skimmers removed and redone correctly.

I have not. Just some pool contractor... but if it's really something that I can't just patch up on my own I'll start calling others. Really didn't want to get into a costly repair.

 

[Bperry]

I have not. Just some pool contractor... but if it's really something that I can't just patch up on my own I'll start calling others. Really didn't want to get into a costly repair.

I was going to chime in on the POR-15 plan before James beat me to it. It might buy you a few weeks/months but not years. The metal needs to be removed. POR-15 has a great marketing campaign but is not the magic rust ender it’s made out to be. It’s not any worse than any of the other rust converters but not any better either .

 

[Palpatine]

I was going to chime in on the POR-15 plan before James beat me to it. It might buy you a few weeks/months but not years. The metal needs to be removed. POR-15 has a great marketing campaign but is not the magic rust ender it’s made out to be. It’s not any worse than any of the other rust converters but not any better either .

I decided not to use the POR-15... at least not yet. Instead, I purchased a bunch of the Atlas Epoxybond Pool Putty and used that to encase the metal as best as I could. I was going to paint the POR -15 over the putty but after the putty dried I decided against it.

Here's the skimmer after I removed as much of the rust and stain as I could (no cleaning products work great for this). It's not pretty but it's better than before. If I can get a couple of years out of this I'm happy. I hate to spend a bunch of money to repair this the correct way now... just to redo the entire pool in a few years.