Is quartz worth it vs regular plaster?

[Nola83]

my wife and I are in the middle of putting in a geometric pool and spa combo in New Orleans. I have been reading posts and using this forum to help me understand things along the way. We are to the point of making a decision on the finish and need some help. We can achieve the water color we desire with a light-medium gray plaster, but also saw a picture of a pool our builder did and then found out it was with a quartz finish. My question is...is quartz worth it from a durability standpoint vs a standard plaster?

 

[hexabc]

I can’t attest to the durability of quartz finish, but what you would be getting is a very beautiful color, that I can say. That is, if you don’t mind slight mottling when looking down from a close distance on a cloudy day... At least that is the case with my pool, resurfaced recently with quartz plaster (sapphire).

 

[shanebo]

I don't know the answer to your question. But I can tell you that one of my PB's numerous quirks was that he refused to install quartz finishes. We wanted a colored finish and thought quartz would be a cheaper alternative to pebble, but he limited us to either white plaster or pebble. Rationale was that quartz costs more than plaster, doesn't last any longer, and the chances of running into premature issues is greater. This was based solely on his experience, though, and so he could very well be wrong.