Please help! My pool is...growing something? from the wall.

Jump to latest Follow Reply
A

Aweb

0
Nov 22, 2018
9
Dallas, Texas
Hi all,

I'm not really sure how to describe this issue, but hoping someone might have seen this before and can help point me in the right direction. I have an in-ground plaster SWCG pool, and this summer I noticed it would keep developing a brown spot on the wall. I could scrub it off, but it'd be back in a day or two. Looking at it underwater it almost appeared to be a brownish algae.

I let it go for awhile and it started to get pretty dark, and developed a ~4"x3" spot that was pretty stained, so I took some sandpaper to it and cleaned everything up. As I sanded it, it appeared to be a couple small blue-ish spots where the discoloration was coming from. I attempted to sand those away but it appeared to me that they were pretty deep or all the way through the plaster. So instead, I thought as a temporary fix I'd put some pool-repair epoxy on it and cover up the source of the issue.

However, to my amazement, the brownish stuff is now coming out through the epoxy. That's what I have photos

What in the world could this be, and/or how can I get it figured out and resolved? Here are a few photos, I apologize for the poor quality. If needed I'll drain the pool enough to get a better look at things...
https://imgur.com/fk0sR7E
https://imgur.com/F90c8ws
 
See if a magnet sticks to the area.

It looks like you have rusting rebar below the surface of the pool. What you see are rust stains.
 
  • Like
Reactions: derekm and Aweb
Hey guys, thanks for the quick responses, much appreciated!

Jimrahbe said:
Looks to me like your plaster is delaminating and what you are seeing is Pool Plaster Delamination: Everything You Need to Know | Willsha Pools.
Click to expand...
If I’m reading this right, delamination involves the surface bubbling or deforming, which I’m not seeing. Just to clarify, the white bubble is a bunch of epoxy I put over top of the area where I was seeing the issue, to hopefully seal it off. Unfortunately it didn't work.
ajw22 said:
See if a magnet sticks to the area.
Click to expand...
Intuitively this seems like it might be the case, the brownish stuff does kind of seem rust-like. I tried a couple magnets in the area and didn't get any pull, but I'm wondering if the ~1/3" of epoxy is affecting that. I might try to remove it soon and see if that changes things.

If it is rusting rebar, how much of a problem am I looking at here?

Thanks again!

Edit: from googling about rusting rebar, the pictures do look a lot like what I'm seeing. Sigh...
 
For rusting rebar you have to drain down below the area, chip out the plaster to expose the rebar, cut out the rebar, put hydraulic cement over the hole, replaster the area or the entire pool.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Aweb
ajw22 said:
For rusting rebar you have to drain down below the area, chip out the plaster to expose the rebar, cut out the rebar, put hydraulic cement over the hole, replaster the area or the entire pool.
Click to expand...
Oof. Sounds like I’ll be calling a pro then. I’m all for DIY repairs but that sounds fraught with opportunities to screw it up.

Thanks again for the guidance, at least now I know what to ask about when calling around.
 
Finally got a contractor out to look at it, they quoted me 1800 and said “Saw-cut and remove damaged metal causing rust, prime any exposed metal repack the area and repair quartz finish. Once repaired we will refill pool.
Please note that this repair will be noticeable. We cannot guarantee an exact match”

Anyone know if this is a reasonable quote?

Also worth noting that I’ve called 8 places and the others all said they’re booked solid for the next 6 months (DFW area), so my options appear to be pretty limited.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
Aweb said:
About a foot, but unfortunately it’s in the deep end so the guy said he’d have to pretty much drain the pool.
Click to expand...
Why does the pool need to be drained?

Drain below the spot, cut it out and patch with some patch material.

It's not that difficult.

Get a concrete saw blade on a circular saw and cut out a square around the spot and chip it out.

Vacuum the pool afterward to get and metal debris.

Only do what you know you can safely do.

www.homedepot.com

Pool Patch 10 lb. White Pool Plaster Repair Kit WPP10 - The Home Depot

Easily fix problems with your pool using this 10 lb. White Pool Plaster Repair Kit. Use this to mend cracks and gaps in the plaster. The waterproof cement material creates a tight bond when applied.
www.homedepot.com
 
JamesW said:
Why does the pool need to be drained?

Drain below the spot, cut it out and patch with some patch material.

It's not that difficult.

Get a concrete saw blade on a circular saw and cut out a square around the spot and chip it out.

Vacuum the pool afterward to get and metal debris.

Only do what you know you can safely do.

www.homedepot.com

Pool Patch 10 lb. White Pool Plaster Repair Kit WPP10 - The Home Depot

Easily fix problems with your pool using this 10 lb. White Pool Plaster Repair Kit. Use this to mend cracks and gaps in the plaster. The waterproof cement material creates a tight bond when applied.
www.homedepot.com
Click to expand...
Tempting… but my pool is the main selling point of my house, and I’m not confident in my abilities to do this and make it not look like Crud. My goal is to hopefully have it look decent when done, although this statement from the contractor doesn’t fill me with confidence either “Please note that this repair will be noticeable. We cannot guarantee an exact match.”
 
  • Like
Reactions: JamesW
Aweb said:
Tempting… but my pool is the main selling point of my house, and I’m not confident in my abilities to do this and make it not look like Crud. My goal is to hopefully have it look decent when done, although this statement from the contractor doesn’t fill me with confidence either “Please note that this repair will be noticeable. We cannot guarantee an exact match.”
Click to expand...
How old is the plaster? Maybe do the repair and then have it replastered at the same time.
 
Aweb said:
I’m not confident in my abilities to do this and make it not look like Crud.
Click to expand...
I suspect that when you see the patch that the service person would do, you would probably say "I could have done that".

In any case, it's up to you.

Also, I still don't see why the whole pool needs to be drained?

Maybe 6 inches below the spot to allow some room to work.

Anything more than that does not make sense.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply