Plaster questions

[cybertoad]

We just had our pool built last summer, and the color was mottled and somewhat uneven... not severely but I wasn’t thrilled. The builder called the plaster contractor to have them work on the plaster. This week the pool was drained by the plaster company and, as it turns out, the entire pool appears to have been covered by a layer of white haze which really became apparent after draining. (The mottling shown is much more pronounced with the pool drained than it was with water in the pool, to be fair, and the plaster was in the process of drying to some degree.) The plaster contractor acid washed and polished the entire pool using diamond pads. The color looks much darker now and very even, however I am concerned with a couple isolated areas at the bottom of the pool wall where there is some cracking (hairline) and rough/pitted surface texture.

Anything I should do to document this with the plaster contractor case it causes issues down the road, or is it within the normal limits of surface variation per the workmanship standards of the pool industry? I just don't want to have major surface failure issues 5-7 years down the road and have the plaster company blame me for "improper upkeep" or some other nonsense excuse.

The finish is Wet Edge Altima with Tahoe pigment.

 

[ajw22]

These look like craze cracks. I would let the builder know of the problems and see how it develops.

Plaster Installation and Maintenance - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

Diagnosing Pool Plaster Problems

Plaster Discolorations – New white pool plaster can discolor (darken or turn gray) from adding excessive calcium chloride set accelerator, from late hard troweling, from thin and thick areas due to an uneven shell, etc. Gray (or grey) mottled discoloration (also known as “water entrapment” or...

www.troublefreepool.com

Craze Cracks – Crazing is an excessive amount of surface shrinkage cracking which can result from an overly-wet plaster mix, from excessive calcium chloride set accelerator added to the mix, from the adding of excessive water while troweling, or from excessive drying of the plaster before the pool is filled. Crazing often leads to other problems including calcium nodules, staining, and provide a home to black algae. Excessive crazing may require replastering.

 

[cybertoad]

Thanks.... I will reach out, if for nothing more than to document it on my end for future warranty claims. It was plastered on a very hot day and I suspect that contributed to it.

 

[Dirk]

Even I'm getting sick of hearing me tell this tale... but it might be useful to you. Based solely on what I've learned here and my own direct experience with my own pool, you've been short changed. You're describing symptoms that indicate your plaster was not installed correctly. To address the symptoms (NOT the cause), your plasterer used a very common technique: an acid wash. They do so because the proper fix is far more expensive: replacing your plaster and doing it right. Anywho, an acid wash removes plaster. It doesn't magically attack just the stains or the white or the mottling, it chemically sheers off a layer of plaster and takes all the stains with it. If it's done really well, the plaster loss is minimal, but generally leaves the plaster etched, feeling rougher. Which is why they then typically sand away at it (removing even more plaster) to help improve the end result. It can end up looking better, and feeling smooth enough. But you've just "paid" the plasterer to fix his original faux pas with your plaster's longevity. You'll never know how many days/weeks/months/years you just gave up, because there's no way to prove it. But you paid none the less. And when the loss occurs (at the end of your plaster's lifespan), the plaster will no longer be under warranty, so the plasterer "gets away with it." That's my 2 cents about acid washing. Oh, and some incorrect installations can be masked with a wash, but later the same symptoms reoccur because the cause was never addressed.

Now, the pits... those are bad, and exactly what happened to my pool after an acid wash, only mine were so bad that my pool was destroyed and I had to have the finish completely chipped out and replaced. IMO (based in part on two experts I had look at the damage) the pitting is caused by over exposure to the acid. Without going into even more detail, if the acid wash is not properly applied and then neutralized quickly, it collects at the bottom of the pool and continues to eat away at your plaster. That's why the damage to my surface was really bad in the deep end. Sound familiar? They can't sand out the pits, because they're too deep and doing so will likely expose the aggregate under the plaster's top layer.

You've got a tough call. I believe your plaster was not installed correctly, and now it's been further damaged by the acid wash. You can accept the job as is. You can ask for a discount. You can insist on a complete redo, or a partial one. I demanded my plaster be replaced and had to go to battle with the contractor. I won, but it was very stressful. What are you up for?

But before you get any more riled up, let's see if others here can give you a better prognosis...

 

[TXaquaholics]

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