Fiberglass Pool Resurfacing in Philadelphia Area

[mpiekarski]

Hi All,

So I've seen a few threads about fiberglass pool resurfacing and I'm in a bit of a conundrum. My 12x24 pool that came with our home we moved into about 2 years ago has been blistering pretty bad. A previous homeowner actually drained and popped the pool out of the ground (thanks!). It's in relatively decent shape after that, just sits somewhat uneven. Anywho, we just built a new deck around the pool (when the old home owner popped it out, the old deck was basically ruined) and wanted to start a resurfacing of the fiberglass pool itself. I've reached out to somewhere around 20 local companies and nobody will touch the thing - it seems the whole area is just Gunite, Liner or bust. One company wanted to do it and offered to use an epoxy paint. I won't mention their name but two men showed up to scope out the job and they were very clearly on heroin / strung out (Welcome to Philly). They said it would be 10k and I would be on the hook for draining the pool any any liabilities associated with the pool being drained. The whole thing sketched me out so I moved on.

Where I landed was Kore Kote (which is seemingly a rebrand of UltraGuard). I spoke with a guy over there, Grant, who was very nice and walked me through the process that seems like a ton of headache but I'm ready to carve out the time and give it a go. I've already purchased the product and was building out a BOM for all of the equipment to have on hand for the project so I can be ready to go when weather conditions are right. Here's some of my questions:

Has anyone been through this and had non horror stories on the other side?
Is Pulling this hydrostatic relief plug once the pool is drained protection against, lets say, a very light rain? And once its pulled, I gather I should put a brand new one in its place, right? My fear here is the unreliability of weather predictions and a "hey no rain for 7 days" turning into "afternoon showers today" on day 3 of this project.
Realistically anyone that's been through this, how long did the coating last before needing a re-apply?
Anyone have good tips for a process of having been through the grinding out and patching of blisters? From what I've seen, grinding fairly liberally off the gelcoat until there's no compromised delaminated material, drying the area with a heat gun, patching with a marine putty, and sanding / feathering similar to drywall. But I'd love to hear from an expert or at least an individual that's picked up some wisdom along the way.

I've been researching this for the better part of a year now and think I'm relatively well equipped. I just really want a sanity check on this being the "right thing to do" and any tips or insight from people that have also been through this process. I know these manufacturers give their 10 year warranty, but I'm interested in hearing what's a realistic length of time before having to reapply. I'd really prefer this be a one-and-done (for a while) situation so I want to do as much up front work as I can to ensure that.

I hope to at the very least document this process to the best of my ability and share my experiences -- unless someone has a cleaner option for me that I can actually afford.

Thanks in advance to anyone that responds and for the admins for running such a valuable resource for us folks who have found themselves thrust into the world of pool ownership.

 

[kimkats]

I did a search here at TFP and did not find any threads about the Kore Kote. I don't remember ever seeing it but that does not mean it has not happened. I hope you share your experience and ow it comes out!

 

[Texas Splash]

Welcome to TFP! Your note about those guys who showed up just reminds me of a Dave Chappell skit. Ha. Anyway, we had a couple members do resurfacing, I don't think they were from your area. You can try to PM @seribus. As for the HSV question, I don't think so. Depends on the water table upwards force. Just as important is the lack of support for the side walls when the water is gone. They will collapse inward. Bracing the shell is exceptionally important and not for the faint of heart. I don't suppose you have any marine stores in your area do you? Sometimes they have fiberglass experts who might be able to give you some places to check.

 

[mpiekarski]

Welcome to TFP! Your note about those guys who showed up just reminds me of a Dave Chappell skit. Ha. Anyway, we had a couple members do resurfacing, I don't think they were from your area. You can try to PM @seribus. As for the HSV question, I don't think so. Depends on the water table upwards force. Just as important is the lack of support for the side walls when the water is gone. They will collapse inward. Bracing the shell is exceptionally important and not for the faint of heart. I don't suppose you have any marine stores in your area do you? Sometimes they have fiberglass experts who might be able to give you some places to check.

I actually wasn't sure if I'd need to brace it or not because the backfill isn't exactly packed in. Attaching a few pics to show what we're working with here. I don't mind doing it but I was considering skipping it due to the shape and the backfill situation we got going on. I guess that would leave the question of if I do brace it, how do I end up treating the points of contact of the braces and not ruining the epoxy?

Good idea on the marine store -- I'll look into it. You can see some before and afters with the deck and what's going on with that backfill situation. And how to new deck attempts to hide the uneven edge of the pool. Was a less than ideal order-of-operations to put the deck on first, but it's how it had to shake out and here we are. Thanks for the quick replies guys.

 

[Texas Splash]

This may be a longshot, but I'm going to tag @MAPR-Austin for some expert feedback on this issue. Based on the appearance of the exterior of the shell, there may be more to consider than simply the interior cosmetic aspects.

 

[MAPR-Austin]

I think you are on the right track with sanding and patching the blisters, that is similar to how we would do it. I don't have any experience with that particular product though.

For the ground water concerns, it would be worth renting an electric diaphragm pump, and making an adapter to connect the suction hose to the hydrostatic port. That will pull any water from under the pool. Run it until its not pulling any water. I've done plenty of pools where we have to leave it running 24/7.

Bracing you can see in the picture how we do them. Put the braces in before you drain the pool. I would leave the braces in place until you are done, then fill the pool to a few inches below the braces, then pull the braces and touch up those areas.