- May 23, 2015
- 25,697
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Plaster and Aquabright Comparison
- Thread starter bdavis466
- Start date
The low pH/TA water had the CH go from 125 to 850 in two weeks. These samples are very brittle.
The high CH/TA water had the CH drop to 825 and 875. These plaster samples are noticeably harder and and stronger but they are very rough.
The high CH/TA water had the CH drop to 825 and 875. These plaster samples are noticeably harder and and stronger but they are very rough.
- May 23, 2015
- 25,697
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Is that shot of the midnight blue mini-pebble your pool or someone else's?
I know my Caribbean Blue Pebble-Tec plaster is definitely faded. In fact, I have a warranty plaster job in my spa (a short 8" crack in the seating deck at the roll off edge) that I'm sure the plasterer is going to tool out and refill with a P-Tec patch in the same color. I'm willing to bet a box of donuts that it is not going to match due to age differences and stick out like a sore thumb.
I'll have to snap a picture of it before and after for reference.
I know my Caribbean Blue Pebble-Tec plaster is definitely faded. In fact, I have a warranty plaster job in my spa (a short 8" crack in the seating deck at the roll off edge) that I'm sure the plasterer is going to tool out and refill with a P-Tec patch in the same color. I'm willing to bet a box of donuts that it is not going to match due to age differences and stick out like a sore thumb.
I'll have to snap a picture of it before and after for reference.
It's my pool. It was beautiful immediately after it was plastered but is really discolored now. The most disappointing thing is the overall water color has a green hue to which is the last thing I wanted.
- May 23, 2015
- 25,697
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Well, I like this thread a lot. I think it'll be a great asset to TFP to give future pool owners some very unbiased info and highlight the differences in materials and methods.
Just remember to give your wife your login info for your TFP account so she can post pictures of you recovering in the burn unit...I have no doubt you'll singe a lot more than your clothes with the flame-thrower
Just remember to give your wife your login info for your TFP account so she can post pictures of you recovering in the burn unit...I have no doubt you'll singe a lot more than your clothes with the flame-thrower
I bought chonies made of nomex just in case. Thanks for the concern over my precious parts!
This is very interesting stuff. I agree that plaster isn't great. Mine has etched, scaled, cracked and the black has faded to gray in places. TFPC from day one, although I did have some curve on managing CSI early on. Our water is very prone to scale but started out with low CH, 150-160, so it etched early on and then flipped over to scaling once CH got up. Although, it has been pretty well under control since 2013.
So, does this stuff have any flex? My pool has a few cracks in the plaster from soil movement over the years. All 1/16" or less. One leaked 3 more did not. PB stuffed pool putty in the cracks which has worked fine. The crack that leaked was from 2012 and it still doesn't leak, or at least not enough to count.
So, does this stuff have any flex? My pool has a few cracks in the plaster from soil movement over the years. All 1/16" or less. One leaked 3 more did not. PB stuffed pool putty in the cracks which has worked fine. The crack that leaked was from 2012 and it still doesn't leak, or at least not enough to count.
- May 23, 2015
- 25,697
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
I'll be roasting coffee in my BBQ this fall and bought Kevlar lined GrilleArmor gloves to deal with the 600F stainless steel drum....save me a bed in the burn unit next to yours....
- May 23, 2015
- 25,697
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Is the "aggregate" look just a different type of polymer material with a higher melt temperature that gets spray along with the bulk of thermoplastic or is it actually a mineral aggregate?
It is quite flexible and I was told small cracks like you describe are no issue. The plaster would get two coats of epoxy which would penetrate deep into the surface, especially the cracked areas. As long as the plaster is still bonded to the shell it shouldn't be a problem.
At least you'd be in good company but I'm sure I would have destroyed your Flock of Seagulls cassette tape within the first few hours.
I'm pretty sure it's still a polymer. The stuff looks like a powder and silica sand type consistency before is applied. I don't know for sure but I'd be willing to bet the recipe is locked up in the same vault as Busch's baked beans.
These days I wonder if it's too bland especially compared to all the glass people are putting in their pebble finishes.
This is great information.
I read through the thread, but have missed how the Aquabrite sample got scratched in the first place. Did you delibrately scratch the sample to see what effect it would have on durability or did the scratch arise from one of the previous tests?
How difficult is it to gouge the finished Aquabrite surface?
I read through the thread, but have missed how the Aquabrite sample got scratched in the first place. Did you delibrately scratch the sample to see what effect it would have on durability or did the scratch arise from one of the previous tests?
How difficult is it to gouge the finished Aquabrite surface?
See the video above....I gouged it with a screw driver. With the force I used it would have damaged any type of surface.
Oddly enough when I originally got these samples, all I wanted to do is destroy them. I'm not sure why (maybe because it's new to me) but I've had hundreds of plaster samples and never felt the same urge.
The ease of repair and the ability to blend the new with the old really went a long way for me. I don't really see any way to damage this surface that wouldn't also damage any of the other finishes. A pebble surface would likely hide the damage better than anything but pebbles would definitely get knocked loose leaving pitted areas off plaster. I have several areas like this in my own pool... It loses pebbles like a dog sheds fur.
Oddly enough when I originally got these samples, all I wanted to do is destroy them. I'm not sure why (maybe because it's new to me) but I've had hundreds of plaster samples and never felt the same urge.
The ease of repair and the ability to blend the new with the old really went a long way for me. I don't really see any way to damage this surface that wouldn't also damage any of the other finishes. A pebble surface would likely hide the damage better than anything but pebbles would definitely get knocked loose leaving pitted areas off plaster. I have several areas like this in my own pool... It loses pebbles like a dog sheds fur.
The coating isn't thick enough. I asked the same question and they gave an indication that they had something in the works to appeal to those looking for more sparkle. You could still do the marker tiles wherever you like but would require that they be taped off with a heat resistant masking type tape before application.
- May 23, 2015
- 25,697
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
So I guess having Danny standing there in his flip-flops and Hawaiian shorts hand-tossing crushed abalone shell into the path of the flame thrower is not going to be your front-up approach for adding "bling", eh?
Give them time and I'm sure people will come up with all sorts of crazy things you can thrown into hopper...
Give them time and I'm sure people will come up with all sorts of crazy things you can thrown into hopper...
I would think so. It crossed my mind to throw some glitter from your Backstreet Boys t-shirt into the hopper... Might make the aquabright sparkle like your eyes when the boys hit the stage.
That's what I was thinking, glitter bomb! 
So, if it gets gouged it can be drained and re-firebombed to fix it? That's pretty cool.
So, if it gets gouged it can be drained and re-firebombed to fix it? That's pretty cool.
I was surprised at what just a heat gun was able to do. I bet you could sprinkle some product on the gouge and heat it up to blend it right in
- May 23, 2015
- 25,697
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
They talk about being able to achieve a rough or smooth finish which is up to the customer. Is that something they add or just a variation in the process temperature? After the surface is shot, can you change your mind later?
On the final application the heat is turned down so that the material doesn't melt as completely as the other passes.
Change your mind as in color or go back to the original plaster?
Color change, no big deal. Shoot the new color right over the top. It may take a couple passes but it will cover up the previous as if you repainted a wall. This is a huge advantage for beach entries where someone would want one color fade into the next. You could truly blend the two together to your liking for a nice even transfer. I've seen this attempted with pebble finishes in a couple pools near me and both ended up looking sloppy, almost like it was a mistake. I'm sure there are plasterers that could make it look right but I've yet to see one.
Going back to plaster, not possible without also destroying the underlying plaster.
The company can make stencils of any design you choose. Lay them in the area that you want them and apply each color (almost like the way a screenprinting is done in layers) to create the image. Lane markers and depth indicators can also done this way and unlike tile, they are a part of the surface.
You could do a colored Big Green Egg brochure on the bottom of you pool. Once you sell the house, the new owners could throw their Primo flyer over the top.
Change your mind as in color or go back to the original plaster?
Color change, no big deal. Shoot the new color right over the top. It may take a couple passes but it will cover up the previous as if you repainted a wall. This is a huge advantage for beach entries where someone would want one color fade into the next. You could truly blend the two together to your liking for a nice even transfer. I've seen this attempted with pebble finishes in a couple pools near me and both ended up looking sloppy, almost like it was a mistake. I'm sure there are plasterers that could make it look right but I've yet to see one.
Going back to plaster, not possible without also destroying the underlying plaster.
The company can make stencils of any design you choose. Lay them in the area that you want them and apply each color (almost like the way a screenprinting is done in layers) to create the image. Lane markers and depth indicators can also done this way and unlike tile, they are a part of the surface.
You could do a colored Big Green Egg brochure on the bottom of you pool. Once you sell the house, the new owners could throw their Primo flyer over the top.