Hello Trouble Free Pool!
I wish I could say my pool experience has been trouble free.
I'm looking for some advice on how to proceed with our brand new pool.
The pool was built and continues to be maintained/serviced by the same company.
I’m afraid it wasn’t started up correctly and the surface did not cure properly.
It was not brushed during the 1st week of operation.
I also believe the water has never been properly balanced..The pH is always above 8 (taking 5-10 drops to bring down)
On multiple occasions the water level was dropped 25% to repair leaks.
Finally, the interior finish has become very rough.
Timeline of events:
Wednesday December 6th - The pool was acid washed and filled the same day with trucked in water (18,000 gallons).
Friday December 8th - A pool technician came out and fired up the pool (2 days after it had been filled). He did not brush the pool. I asked him for a brush to remove some white spots I had noticed on the deep end of the pool. He said he had to leave and could not leave his brush with me.
Monday December 11th – A different pool technician came out and looked at the pool. I expressed my concerns about the spots and how the pool and not been brushed. He did not have a pool kit for us but he left his own brush for me. I tried to remove the white spots but was unable to.
Monday December 18th – 12 days after being filled, they came to give us pool school. They left us with the new pool kit and we agreed that they would continue to monitor and service the pool. I overheard him yelling at someone over the phone because he was very frustrated with the sate of the pool.
Over the next couple of weeks, the water level kept dropping and several leaks were found. They fixed these issues, but it required draining the pool by 25% (multiple times) which left the new finish exposed. It is my understanding that the finish needs to remain fully submerged to properly cure.
We also had to refill the pool with well water on these occasions.
We trucked in originally to avoid using sediment heavy well water.
The finish company unsuccessfully tried to fix the white spots on the deep end of the pool.
They did this by dropping acid down a PVC pipe.
Their attempts to fix the spots ended up creating a much larger discoloration at the deep end of the pool.
February 24th 2018 The pool company performed a “Low Alk” treatment to fix the discoloration at the deep end of the pool. This is when they drop the PH and Alkalinity to fix any discolorations. It made the entire finish darker and it did make the stains less noticeable.
March 24th 2018 The finish on the pool suddenly became very rough (like sandpaper). The tiles imbedded in the stairs, lights, and spillover stone have also been covered in roughness. Given the constantly high pH, I believe it is scale.
The pool company is contemplating another “low alk” treatment but they want the finish company to OK the procedure incase it ends up making things worse. It sounds like it may need to be refinished. I am so confused as to how this company could have let this happen. What should I do? What would you do?!
Last Pool Test Reading (4/06/2018)
Total Chlorine 2.0 ppm
Free Chlorine 2.0 ppm
pH 9.0 / Acid Demand 5
TA 90ppm
Calcium Hardness 399ppm
Stabilizer 50ppm
TDS 5,500ppm
Salt 4,000pp
Pool Specs
Rectangular 40X16 Ft with a sun shelf
6 ft deep and 3 ft shallow end
Pentair Variable Speed 3HP
Pentair Free & Clear 200
Pentair IC 40
Pentair 140K BTU Heat Pump
250 Propane Mastertemp Heater for spa
Interior Finish: Mini Pebble Tahoe Blue
I wish I could say my pool experience has been trouble free.
I'm looking for some advice on how to proceed with our brand new pool.
The pool was built and continues to be maintained/serviced by the same company.
I’m afraid it wasn’t started up correctly and the surface did not cure properly.
It was not brushed during the 1st week of operation.
I also believe the water has never been properly balanced..The pH is always above 8 (taking 5-10 drops to bring down)
On multiple occasions the water level was dropped 25% to repair leaks.
Finally, the interior finish has become very rough.
Timeline of events:
Wednesday December 6th - The pool was acid washed and filled the same day with trucked in water (18,000 gallons).
Friday December 8th - A pool technician came out and fired up the pool (2 days after it had been filled). He did not brush the pool. I asked him for a brush to remove some white spots I had noticed on the deep end of the pool. He said he had to leave and could not leave his brush with me.
Monday December 11th – A different pool technician came out and looked at the pool. I expressed my concerns about the spots and how the pool and not been brushed. He did not have a pool kit for us but he left his own brush for me. I tried to remove the white spots but was unable to.
Monday December 18th – 12 days after being filled, they came to give us pool school. They left us with the new pool kit and we agreed that they would continue to monitor and service the pool. I overheard him yelling at someone over the phone because he was very frustrated with the sate of the pool.
Over the next couple of weeks, the water level kept dropping and several leaks were found. They fixed these issues, but it required draining the pool by 25% (multiple times) which left the new finish exposed. It is my understanding that the finish needs to remain fully submerged to properly cure.
We also had to refill the pool with well water on these occasions.
We trucked in originally to avoid using sediment heavy well water.
The finish company unsuccessfully tried to fix the white spots on the deep end of the pool.
They did this by dropping acid down a PVC pipe.
Their attempts to fix the spots ended up creating a much larger discoloration at the deep end of the pool.
February 24th 2018 The pool company performed a “Low Alk” treatment to fix the discoloration at the deep end of the pool. This is when they drop the PH and Alkalinity to fix any discolorations. It made the entire finish darker and it did make the stains less noticeable.
March 24th 2018 The finish on the pool suddenly became very rough (like sandpaper). The tiles imbedded in the stairs, lights, and spillover stone have also been covered in roughness. Given the constantly high pH, I believe it is scale.
The pool company is contemplating another “low alk” treatment but they want the finish company to OK the procedure incase it ends up making things worse. It sounds like it may need to be refinished. I am so confused as to how this company could have let this happen. What should I do? What would you do?!
Last Pool Test Reading (4/06/2018)
Total Chlorine 2.0 ppm
Free Chlorine 2.0 ppm
pH 9.0 / Acid Demand 5
TA 90ppm
Calcium Hardness 399ppm
Stabilizer 50ppm
TDS 5,500ppm
Salt 4,000pp
Pool Specs
Rectangular 40X16 Ft with a sun shelf
6 ft deep and 3 ft shallow end
Pentair Variable Speed 3HP
Pentair Free & Clear 200
Pentair IC 40
Pentair 140K BTU Heat Pump
250 Propane Mastertemp Heater for spa
Interior Finish: Mini Pebble Tahoe Blue
Your pool looks great and I am confused as to how rough is your pool. We have pebbles in our pool plaster and there is some texture to it but I would not refer to it as being rough. Hopefully others will chime in
I see that you have a SWG, when did they add the salt? Most usually wait for 30 days, but I am not sure what happens to the fresh plaster if it is added earlier.