I need to choose between diamondbrite or River Rok..

[Rich D]

I have made a few posts about my med Grey plaster in the past. Finally after complaining enough about the excessive mottling, spalling, footprints and fill line the PB has agreed to re-do the plaster. I will be paying for a upgrading to to either a diamondbrite or River Rok, those are the upgrades this particular plaster company offers. We would like to get as close to the med Grey plaster look and feel we have now so my guess would be the diamondbrite. However If there is a significant advantage to the River Rock IE.. Longer lasting, more durable or less of a chance of issues arising from improper installation, then we would consider the River Rok. I have another post on here hoping to find a pool nearby with diamondbrite finish we can check out. Any input on the differences between the two would be greatly appreciated..

Thanks, Rich..

 

[Rich D]

Any thoughts on this?
Is my understanding that they are the same product only Dimondbrite uses smaller aggregate correct?
It is not clear to me which would give a stronger longer lasting finish. My guess would be the River Rok becouse the larger stone would have a greater embedment in the plaster.

 

[Arizonarob]

Rich sorry you’re not getting any answers to this. It’s the summer, and folks are vacationing.
Let me ping a few folks that may have some answers.
@bdavis466 @jimmythegreek @onBalance

 

[bdavis466]

Im actually not familiar with either product. Seems they are more prevalent in the east coast

 

[Rich D]

Rich sorry you’re not getting any answers to this. It’s the summer, and folks are vacationing.
Let me ping a few folks that may have some answers.
@bdavis466 @jimmythegreek @onBalance

Great, thanks for pinging the experts..

In addition to the above questions I have also been doing as much reading on here about the bicarb start up. Looks like it would give me the smoother finish we are after along with a stronger finish.
My questions would be... As noted we would like to get as close to med Grey color as possible. So I assume this means using colored plaster with the river rok. We are pretty much locked into using the same plaster company that did the original Med Grey plaster finish, Which would mean the same products and finishing techniques that most likely lead to the more than expected white spotting / mottling issues. So, I assume with the bicarb start up I will have more plaster showing which could lead to more visible white spotting issues hence my conundrum... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I have not approached the PB about the bicarb start up so I have no idea if they will be open to the idea or if they will choose to not warranty the finish because of it.

 

[Arizonarob]

I have also been doing as much reading on here about the bicarb start up.

Brian @bdavis466 would be your bicarb guy. He’s helped a few people do it correctly.

 

[Rich D]

Im actually not familiar with either product. Seems they are more prevalent in the east coast

Thanks for the quick reply ... From my research this would be very similar to comparing pebbletec to pebble Fina if that helps in anyway..

 

[bdavis466]

Bigger pebbles vs smaller then. Fina is smoother, pebbletec would probably have a longer lifespan and better chances of the color being uniform but potentially rougher

 

[Rich D]

Bigger pebbles vs smaller then. Fina is smoother, pebbletec would probably have a longer lifespan and better chances of the color being uniform but potentially rougher

Thanks again... Kinda what I thought but always nice to hear from seasoned professional..

I found this quote from you on another post...

"My go-to technique for pebble and quartz finishes is to finish troweling, wait 2-4 hours and polish the entire thing with diamond pads on weed whackers then fill with bicarb startup...no acid wash needed"

Just curious if the polishing produces a true flat smooth finish or is the aggregate still slightly raised above the plaster?

Would you have a resource for up close pictures to compare polished, non-polished and acid wash start, bicarb start?

Thanks, Rich..

 

[jimim]

I have diamond brite. Super blue. They have grey based colors with aggregate I know. I chose a white base cause I didn’t want to deal with the unevenness and possible molting. I have been very happy. My finish is somewhat smooth. I think as smooth as you can get with this finish. I feel that way cause did not do a heavy acid wash when they finished. You could barely see my aggregate when they left. They said they did a very weak acid wash and it would be on us to brush to getcthe color out. It would help to keep it smooth. I feel it worked. I brushed 2xday for 3 weeks and then 1x day for 2 months. Amazing how I took all that cream off and exposed the color. I have been very pleased with my finish. My builder just did a pool with same color. I was up there the day they finished. Looked just like mine did when they finished. They are brushing away now and the same thing is taking place. Somewhat smooth finish for aggregate and the color coming out. I don’t know ur other finish choice but I know mine has been great through 2 winters now also. Zero issues. My build thread has a ton of pics from day 1 to today with how the color has changed. Doubt if that helps but it’s my experience with the finish you are looking at.

 

[Rich D]

I have diamond brite. Super blue. They have grey based colors with aggregate I know. I chose a white base cause I didn’t want to deal with the unevenness and possible molting. I have been very happy. My finish is somewhat smooth. I think as smooth as you can get with this finish. I feel that way cause did not do a heavy acid wash when they finished. You could barely see my aggregate when they left. They said they did a very weak acid wash and it would be on us to brush to getcthe color out. It would help to keep it smooth. I feel it worked. I brushed 2xday for 3 weeks and then 1x day for 2 months. Amazing how I took all that cream off and exposed the color. I have been very pleased with my finish. My builder just did a pool with same color. I was up there the day they finished. Looked just like mine did when they finished. They are brushing away now and the same thing is taking place. Somewhat smooth finish for aggregate and the color coming out. I don’t know ur other finish choice but I know mine has been great through 2 winters now also. Zero issues. My build thread has a ton of pics from day 1 to today with how the color has changed. Doubt if that helps but it’s my experience with the finish you are looking at.

That is a huge help... Thank you.. Is there a way I am missing to find your build thread??

 

[jimim]

That is a huge help... Thank you.. Is there a way I am missing to find your build thread??

New Northeastern Pa Build

SOME PICS BELOW. . . Working on yard pics now Pretty new here so go easy I don't know a lot. I have a lot of experience in the home building side of things, but pools are totally new to me. I never grew up with a pool just swam in others. My build in in northeastern pa. so we will use the...

www.troublefreepool.com

It’s looooong. I have pics of every single day we worked for 3 years.

 

[Rich D]

New Northeastern Pa Build

SOME PICS BELOW. . . Working on yard pics now Pretty new here so go easy I don't know a lot. I have a lot of experience in the home building side of things, but pools are totally new to me. I never grew up with a pool just swam in others. My build in in northeastern pa. so we will use the...

www.troublefreepool.com

It’s looooong. I have pics of every single day we worked for 3 years.

Ahh yes.. I have seen that one several times.... Great job on getting all that done. It looks fantastic... Your water color looks darker then I would have thought with the gemstone blue..

Did you ever consider the River Rok ? If so what made you decide to go with the diamondbrite?

 

[bdavis466]

Thanks again... Kinda what I thought but always nice to hear from seasoned professional..

I found this quote from you on another post...

"My go-to technique for pebble and quartz finishes is to finish troweling, wait 2-4 hours and polish the entire thing with diamond pads on weed whackers then fill with bicarb startup...no acid wash needed"

Just curious if the polishing produces a true flat smooth finish or is the aggregate still slightly raised above the plaster?

Would you have a resource for up close pictures to compare polished, non-polished and acid wash start, bicarb start?

Thanks, Rich..

No, the surface ends up completely smooth. I'll dig for some pictures but its basically PolishedScapes by NPT or Primera Stone by WetEdge

 

[Rich D]

I have diamond brite. Super blue. They have grey based colors with aggregate I know. I chose a white base cause I didn’t want to deal with the unevenness and possible molting. I have been very happy. My finish is somewhat smooth. I think as smooth as you can get with this finish. I feel that way cause did not do a heavy acid wash when they finished. You could barely see my aggregate when they left. They said they did a very weak acid wash and it would be on us to brush to getcthe color out. It would help to keep it smooth. I feel it worked. I brushed 2xday for 3 weeks and then 1x day for 2 months. Amazing how I took all that cream off and exposed the color. I have been very pleased with my finish. My builder just did a pool with same color. I was up there the day they finished. Looked just like mine did when they finished. They are brushing away now and the same thing is taking place. Somewhat smooth finish for aggregate and the color coming out. I don’t know ur other finish choice but I know mine has been great through 2 winters now also. Zero issues. My build thread has a ton of pics from day 1 to today with how the color has changed. Doubt if that helps but it’s my experience with the finish you are looking at.

I do have one more off topic question..

We seem to be close to the same latitude, so I was wondering how deep is your shelf and how much water do you leave on it for the winter? Do you check and maintain a certain water level?

 

[Rich D]

No, the surface ends up completely smooth. I'll dig for some pictures but its basically PolishedScapes by NPT or Primera Stone by WetEdge

The wet edge video was enlightening. The one thing I do not understand about the polished finish is they will boast about being able to re-polish or even acid wash and re-polish to fix staining are general aging which can not be done with a classic pebble finish. What is so different about a classic pebble finish that makes it so you could not just polish it instead of acid wash ?

 

[jimim]

Ahh yes.. I have seen that one several times.... Great job on getting all that done. It looks fantastic... Your water color looks darker then I would have thought with the gemstone blue..

Did you ever consider the River Rok ? If so what made you decide to go with the diamondbrite?

I have super blue. Not gemstone blue.

I only considered the diamond brite cause my wife didn’t want pebble cause of the roughness. My builder only uses plain white, diamond brite or pebble.

 

[jimim]

I do have one more off topic question..

We seem to be close to the same latitude, so I was wondering how deep is your shelf and how much water do you leave on it for the winter? Do you check and maintain a certain water level?

I make sure there is 3 inches on whatever step is close to where my level is below my tile at least 6 inches. So if I get freeze the water touching whatever step I am by does not have frozen water on it. First year I got frozen water on one step and it darkened parts of it. It is now pretty much worn away thankfully. Last winter I made sure I had no frozen water on a step. I check my water level every other week or after it snows or rains. I’m pretty nuts.

 

[bdavis466]

The wet edge video was enlightening. The one thing I do not understand about the polished finish is they will boast about being able to re-polish or even acid wash and re-polish to fix staining are general aging which can not be done with a classic pebble finish. What is so different about a classic pebble finish that makes it so you could not just polish it instead of acid wash ?

Nothing to my knowledge. We add a good amount of modifier to the plaster (same as what's used with glass finishes) to make extra sure the pebbles stay in the matrix.

 

[Rich D]

I have super blue. Not gemstone blue.

Ooops, sorry... I just looked quickly at you siggy and got the wrong color.....

I make sure there is 3 inches on whatever step is close to where my level is below my tile at least 6 inches. So if I get freeze the water touching whatever step I am by does not have frozen water on it.

You must get more than 3" of ice.... I was more or less asking about your large second step/ bench. It looks like almost the same sq ft and elevation as my sun shelf (typically 1 foot deep) wich I am unsure of the best depth to leave it at. For the past 2 yrs the pool company has drained below it and put a insulated blanket on it.