Fiberglass Cracked-Looking for help!

[Jennaspool]

Hi everyone! I’m here looking for assistance repairing my pool. Without getting into all the dirty details I’ll give you a short background and what the current issue is.

I had had planned on putting my home on the market this past spring, as I’ve been going through a long dragged out divorce, and can no longer afford my home. When I opened my pool this spring, it had a giant heaved crack in the bottom.

It it is a 13 year old in ground fiberglass, salt water pool.

I’ve gotten several quotes for repairs from pool companies, all of them are outrageous! I am embarking on a DIY project. Through my community I found a woman who had a similar problem but not nearly as severe. She had a friend of a friend (who does fiberglass work on cars) fix her pool 2 years ago, and appeared to hold up. He’s agreed to help me out for half the cost of the pool companies.

Here’s where I am currently at.

1. I have braced the pool.
2. Drained and weighted it with water barrels (to avoid floating)
3. The next step is to make cuts to get it to lay flat. The entire slope is bubbles up. I’ll post pics below, but it’s pretty hard to see in the pics.
4. The pool will need to be painted. I am having a hard time determining what to use - there’s so much conflicting information on the web. I’d rather not have to learn the hard way. It sound like epoxy paint is the way to go with fiberglass, but prices range from reasonable to outrageous. Does more expensive mean better? 2 step coatings better than 1 step coating?
5. It just occurred to me yesterday that I should probably try to find someone to scope the lines while the pool is empty. The lines are still winterized because I obviously didn’t open the pool.

Any help in pointing me in in the right direction is greatly appreciated!

Because of upload limitations the the pictures provided are the beginning of the process. It is currently fully drained and cleaned.

 

[Texas Splash]

Hello and welcome to TFP! Well, I must say you have quite a chore ahead of you and I commend you for your determination. Not sure how much feedback you'll receive here, although we do have several trade experts who cross lines into fiberglass repairs. It's just a matter of them seeing this post. I'm going to modify your thread title to help get some eyes on this specific repair issue. Hopefully that will help. Good luck!

 

[keithw]

I've done a lot of fiberglass repair work but we'll definitely need more pictures and explanations of the current situation to offer up any recommendations.

How old is the pool? How is the shape of the FG other than the crack?

Can you post some pictures of the problem areas now that the pool is cleaned out?

 

[sktn77a]

Check into gelcoating the repaired pool - it's a structural (unlike paint), as well as a cosmetic, element and is the usual final surface of fiberglass product (boat, kayak, pool, etc). However, it may be more expensive than painting.

Have you contacted Viking pools to see if they can offer any assistance? The warranties are usually 20 years (but they invariably find a way to weazel out of it).

 

[Jennaspool]

Thank you! Sorry it took me a while to figure out how to get more pictures to post.

Here are some current pictures






It's hard to see in the pictures, but the slope from the shallow end to the deep end is supposed to be horizontally flat. The crack is at the base of the deep end and the slope. The sloped area is bubbled-up (higher in the center than on the sides). The plan is to cut that area to get it to lay flat, and then...

1) fiberglass it with woven fiberglass,
2) v/e resin membrane (I have no idea where to get this)

My question is, is gel coat like a paint? Meaning will it cover the repair area's like a paint would? There's no way to "match" the finish, thus why I am looking into paint/ epoxy.

If gel will cover the same, I will use that, as it was recommended to me. I was told to use Laminate Resin 35 ml. Gel Coat (again, I have no idea where to get this).

[update] I decided to do some research on gel coats. If anyone is knowledgable about gel coats, would this product be suitable for pool application?

https://www.fibreglast.com/product/ral-5012-light-blue-color-gel-coat/colorgelcoat

or would I be better off going with a product made for say fiberglass boats?

 

[keithw]

Gelcoat is the appropriate way to refinish fiberglass. It is basically the same type of resin that you use to to do the repair except that it normally has coloration in it as well as an agent that makes it a smoother surface cover. US Composites is a good source for resin and gelcoat, http://www.uscomposites.com/products.html

 

[Jennaspool]

I did contact them, but they were not very helpful. I was given their number by my insurance company. I tried to submit this as a claim to my insurance company, but of course the coverage covers nothing, except for maybe a boulder falling from the sky, which of course would never happen, thus why it is covered.

The problem is... with my divorce I am being forced to put the home up for sale very soon. Anyone I've talked to can't even get to it until September.

- - - Updated - - -

Okay, thank you. I will look at their products and report back.

 

[blakeusa]

I have done a lot of fiberglass repairs and this will take time but can be done - diy.

Obvious there is some type of significant pressure or lift from the bottom that caused this crack. Can you tell why this lifted? This is of concern to me as if you just patch the crack
what will keep it from happening again.

As far as the repair yes you will need to cut the damaged area out with a saw. Jig saw, circular saw, angle grinder any will work.
Cut at least 6-10 inches beyond the crack so all will be stable.
The repair area needs to be roughed up real good for the patch to adhere.
I would highly recommend getting or installing some type of backing or support under your repair. Wood strips would work.
Some would fill the void with cardboard so the fiberglass does not just go to the dirt.
I would use a fiberglass cloth and lay down several layers - I would do 3-5 layers per, one at a time and repeat until your patch is above the existing surface.
** for a clean patch area you can use duct tape to outline your repair. After 15-20 minutes of putting the cloth and resin on you cut the tape line with a razor blade and pull the tape.

For color you can make some small practice batches with pigment to get a close to color.

http://www.fiberglasssupply.com

They can help you select the right glass and resin.

As far as a Gel coat that is basically a painted on resin that is put on top of your finished repair to give it a smooth surface.
This can be sanded and buffed.

Also you can and should color your repair to get close to your existing pool color. With a gel coat you can color match the best you can but it is thin so you need color in your
glass repair underneeth.

Sand built up repair flush with 80/ 120 /180. - wet works better and less dust. Gel coats get sanded with 320 / 400 + and buffed with a compound.

Be patient.
Don't overdo the catalist in the resin as it makes it brittle.
Fiberglass is very forgiving meaning it easy to sand and refill areas.

** Wear a good respirator when sanding. Long sleeve shirt. Remove when done and immediately shower or rinse off. Do not rub your skin.

You will just need.
Fiberglas cloth
Resin & catalist
Pigment
Acetone for clean up
Medical gloves- latex etc.
Resporator
Sandpaper
Wood strips for backing
Saw
Power sander
Duct tape & razor blades
Mixing buckets - 1 time use

B

 

[Jennaspool]

Thank you for your response.

We've cut the fiberglass so it lays "flat". It appears all the earth underneath is flat and solid with no hollow spots. I am having a hard time keeping the bottom dry, as there is ground water that keeps back flowing through the crack.

As far as what caused this, it's unclear.

I submitted this to my insurance company (which of course was denied) and they sent an engineer out. His report says that the backfill (sand) "around" the pool liquified when oversaturated, and compacted near the bottom of the pool. This is obvious as the lower walls of the pool are "slightly" bulging and have no "give". If you bang on them they are solid as a rock. The pressure on the outside walls caused the weakest part of the pool (the floor) to give way to the pressure.

I was told by one pool company that the settling is most likely permanent and there shouldn't be any more issues related to changing pressure...ie it's unlikely to happen again. Obviously I want to fix this correctly, so if you have any input on the above, I'd appreciate it.

The lines are obviously still winterized, so I have no idea if there are leaks. The pool was professionally winterized and they blow the water out of the pipes, so I can't imagine a leak in the lines caused the over-saturation of the sand. I have since learned that backfilling with sand is a bad idea, I will keep that in mind if I ever have a pool in the future.

The guy that agreed to help with the fiberglass work does fiberglass work on cars for a living. He's obviously using products meant for pools and not cars (as outlined in my previous post). I've researched gel coats and was going to buy the following from uscomposites.com .Do you think this is satisfactory or is there a better product? I'd like to do this correctly and not leave a mess for someone else to deal with.

Pure White Gelcoat

[SIZE=-1]Our standard pure white gelcoat is designed for exterior use in virtually all types of marine, automotive and general part construction and repair. No wax added. [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Pigment[/SIZE][SIZE=-1] can be added to change the color of the gelcoat but any color added will be offset by the pure white color. [/SIZE]

Also, while we are in the midst of a repair, should I have a hydrostatic valve installed?

 

[sktn77a]

How is this all coming along? I realize you have begun the process with help from an acquintance but here is a place I considered when renovating our pool (we ended up going with gunite).

Swimming Pool Repair & Remodeling - East Coast Pools