New pool - quartzscape issue

[seaahomes]

Hi folks,

I just finished building a 18 x 40 ft infinity pool & spa with my contractor and we just filed it last week and now it’s ready to swim. I paid him nearly $180k+ to build the pool, spa & deck.

I have a pool professional taking care of startup chemicals and maintaining the pool. He owns a separate company but also happens to do startup chemicals for my contractors pool builds. He’s a good guy. The day the contractor finished acid washing it and started filing the pool, we noticed cracks all over the quartzscape plaster. He told me it’s normal and things will balance out once it hydrates.

This particular pool contractor unfortunately isn’t the easiest guy to work with. We’ve got into arguments before because he Gunited the pool and was backfilling with large holes in the wall that I caught.

Anyway, please see attached the pictures. I’d love some advice on what you’ll think about it. Is this spalling and did he (or his subcontractor) not do the job correctly.

Also, he dumped all of the muriatic acid after the wash into the soil near my orchard. I don’t live on the property there so he got away with it and I only found out after. Is it safe? The spot seems to be wet for over a week and not drying.

I want to get some advice before approaching him on this ASAP. Thanks for your help in advance.

Mahalo!

 

[Bperry]

Nice looking pool and view. I can say I’ve seen several pools with those kind of small defects but they were not in new plaster finishes and we’re several years old.

 

[Toxophilite]

If you read most plaster warranties, they do not consider hairlines an issue and state them as inherent. There's a lot that contributes to that from the mixing, application, and to just the weather. That water on that hot ledge was not good, and could cause hydration marking.

The spalls are another totally separate issue, so maybe someone from the industry or know will chime in. If you are going to let them take over care of your pool, there's really not much in the long run you can control about the care the maintenance issues of your pool, though.

 

[seaahomes]

@Toxophilite - the pool contracting company isn’t going to take care of the maintainence. It’s a separate company, by they just work with my pool contractor to do startup chemicals. He’s a good guy.

@Bperry - thanks. that’s my concern. I’ve seen the cracks eventually, just not right after plaster. That’s why wondering if these do hydrate with chemicals and water. My guess is the plaster wasn’t troweled right.

Hoping somebody else can chime in. Mahalo.