Pool Design Help - Treasure Coast, FL

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We went with quartzscapes finish in Barbados blue. It's very dark color. We love it. It was a big upgrade 5000.00 but so glad we did. The diamond brite dark colors where about half the price of the quartzscapes. We went round and round and finally decided if we were making that big of an investment in the pool. what really was another 5000 for the finish we really both loved.

 
MayorHanna said:
Thanks for the compliments Kim and Indigo Blue.

We had walked out of our PB meeting perfectly happy with our choices. Once home with the full force of the Internet in front of you indecision takes hold again though.

Florida Gem "Blue Gem"...
blue-gem_zpsb9f778ou.jpg

or Florida Gem "Hawaiian"...
hawaiian_zpsuocpu98k.jpg

Hmmm, we favor the Hawaiian at the moment but maybe it's too similar to the tile blues?
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I LOVE the Blue Gem - It will go so nicely with the tiles :)
 
bdavis466 said:
Black, brown, grey and green are non organic pigments that are much less prone to fading from chlorine. Blue is probably the worst offender and often bleaches out completely.

I did however see a grey pool recently that completely bleached out in all but a few areas. Calcium was added to the mix and is likely partially responsible for the consequences.
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Thanks bdavis. PB actually did seem more concerned over fading than mottling. Good feedback and it led me to some other discussions that provided additional insight on the question of finishes (apparently a favorite topic around here).

Indigo blue said:
Ugh I tried to post something and it didn't happen... Well, I had the same exact experience as you when I built my first pool (12 years ago) and the PB talked me out with the same arguments but this time I was determined! Even knowing all that could go wrong I was still sure I wanted a dark plaster pool! I don't call myself Indigo Blue for nothing, LOL to my luck and surprise my deep dark pool finish is completely even and perfect everywhere! I credit the plaster company who did the job, go on my thread and take a close look, and I don't have anything fancy, it's just Diamond Brite midnight blue x onyx mix... Now... I see you live in Palm city, if you zoom in on the picture where they are applying the finish you could see their phone number on the guys t-shirt just saying...

Btw, have you visited some finished pools with some different finishes? That will help you decide, that and Houzz hahaha

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Indigo, I'm not sure if we're willing to be so adventurous and go against our PB on our first build. We may try to search out some darker colored quartz finishes to view though before making a decision. Seeing your pool pics is one of the reasons we starting looking at the darker finishes though (so nice)...

Dreynolds said:
We went with quartzscapes finish in Barbados blue. It's very dark color. We love it. It was a big upgrade 5000.00 but so glad we did. The diamond brite dark colors where about half the price of the quartzscapes. We went round and round and finally decided if we were making that big of an investment in the pool. what really was another 5000 for the finish we really both loved.
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Dreynolds, oh you are tempting us. Another reason to go see a few dark finished pools in person. Our PB is located not too far from you, hmmm. Quartzscapes wasn't an option mentioned and I might drive myself crazy trying to compare different quartz products (Diamond Brite vs. Quartscapes vs Florida Gem, etc).

lovestoswim said:
I LOVE the Blue Gem - It will go so nicely with the tiles
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Thanks lovestoswim. I think we'll still be fine with that and it will come out nice.

To sum this all up:
- Still looking to do something a little more on the finish.
- Scared off of the dark finishes (for now).
- Not willing to jump up to a PeppleTec finish (out of budget).
- Last option given by PB was staying with the light colored Florida Gem finishes like the Blue Gem but consider double (+$500) or triple (+$1000) the quartz aggregate without adding a dark color/pigment. Waiting on some pics and pools to view with the triple gem finish.

In the meantime, HOA approvals, cut/cap irrigation, clearing some landscaping for the pool access and equipment pad and a few other mundane things ongoing.
 
My PB didn't know anything about quartzscapes either but since most of the PB have the same companies putting the finishes on he taked to the guys NPT in west palm and they told him the best guys to install it and used them. It was a 5000.00 upgrade but I figured since I'm making such a large investment really why am I squabbling over that one it was a color I love the most. It was a lot more Quartz in it than diamond brite or Florida gem. I looked at pebbletec as well. You can go to the NPT warehouse and they have a small showroom and look at all the finishes they offer. I'm so glad we did that. Quartzscapes has certified applers and comes with a lifetime warranty as long as you don't abuse your pool and keep your chemicals and balance. But really it seems to be a great products so far.

- - - Updated - - -

Also the finish as gotten dark over time. It does keep our water a little warmer. Which my hubby loves being a Florida boy lol.
 
Dreynolds, you pool looks stunning!!! Absolutely stunning!

The only thing I was able to get within my budget unfortunately was DB but I'd have gone with quartzscapes as well.

Mayor, the best thing is to visit some pools and see it for yourself, it's such an emotional and expensive process that I think in the end you are the one who needs to be 100% happy and get what you want, and like Dreynolds said, I believe the application is key, hers is perfect! You're welcome to come visit my pool anytime, I think you're about an hour from me. PM me if you do.


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They look nice, just got ours done a month ago. you have very similar tiles and finish. You will like the color we sure do, and it also looks nice at night with LED lighting. Worth the extra $, we also put on more up grades that will make it more user friendly and energy efficient. Savings add up to help cost of running it lower. Like vs pump, and solar heat, and screen room, built in floor cleaner. Very easy to take care of. This will be a nice pool. One tip: keep a close eye on the contractors, and check their work to plan, I had a lot of issues and sent emails, photos and phone calls. To them forever to complete as well as completing the way it should have been done to plan. Also if you haven't signed on the dotted line yet think about financing it or some, that way you can hold them accountable, ( hold payment) once they have your $ they can do what they want.
 
Creeping along.

POA approval received 04/26/2016.
Still waiting on county permits, pending this dig still scheduled for 05/11.

Also still freaked about the dire warnings on the darker colored quartz finishes so sticking with the blue gem mentioned earlier but going with a triple blue gem for higher quartz aggregate. We shall see...

Pool
 

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WMS said:
I went with the lighter gem color. It sure gives a beautiful look. Also on the safety side easier to see anyone on the bottom. Its all about what you want, you will have it a long time.
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From what I understand you can still see the anything in the water fine on the darker finishes. Maybe at night without lights on it would be more difficult but that would likely be in any color pool. My husband jokes and says we're so pale that the darker the finish the better to see us with.
 
MayorHanna said:
Also still freaked about the dire warnings on the darker colored quartz finishes so sticking with the blue gem mentioned earlier but going with a triple blue gem for higher quartz aggregate. We shall see...

Pool
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I had a light colored liner pool at my previous house and we built a new vinyl liner pool at my current house but this time went with a darker liner. fwiw, I like the lighter look better. I feel like it "sparkles" in the sun in a way the darker doesn't. The water has a crystal clear look to it (when they are both clean haha). Of course we're lucky to have such "problems" so either way you'll love your pool. I'll go lighter next time I get a new liner. When I first read the post showing the pictures I liked the blue gem.
 

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