Pool Finish and Color Viewing Room...TFP Member Sound Off
- Thread starter 3asyB
- Start date
Has anyone added abalone to plain plaster? We love the bright white but a little extra shimmer on the ledges and steps may be nice.
Here is my just completed pool. Stonescapes Aqua White with Abalone shell hand cast.
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ChaChaChandra
New member
Prettygirlt5
Member
I really like your pool color! I couldn’t tell if you have a tanning ledge. If so what does the color look like on top of it. Also, what is the depth of your deepest part of the pool? Mine is only going to be 6ft so I know I won’t get the deepest color I would want.Hi, does anyone have any pictures of colorscapes caribbean blue or bora bora blue? Thanks! We are getting plaster any day now, so I think my time for deciding is almost up. We really like the quartzscapes tahoe blue but don't like the price to upgrade
Jen,
How about this one..
View attachment 146530
Taken during Operation Duck Rescue...
Thanks,
Jim R.
i love this color! What is it? Reminds me of the Bahamas
jennbostwick
Active member
Beautiful!Jen,
How about this one..
View attachment 146530
Taken during Operation Duck Rescue...
Thanks,
Jim R.
Rattus Suffocatus
Silver Supporter
Since I had been asked for it, this is a picture from yesterday when we had the cover off with no one in it, a rare occurrence. I don't know if the tanning shelf and depth question was for me or not, but the shallow end with a small ledge if in the front of the picture, the 6' deep end is to the rear right. 
Hi I love the color of your pool! Can you tell us what finish and color it is? Also are you using a solar cover? Any pros and cons to it?
Rattus Suffocatus
Silver Supporter
PebbleSheen Irish Mist. Just standard, nothing added to it. It's NOT an upgrade color, it's in the standard price selection. The deck are standard pavers from a company in Phoenix, nothing special. It's an "upgrade" pool because of the Pebble Sheen versus standard plaster but that is about it. The salt generator is probably the only real upgrade on it, but I added that myself.
I do not have a heater for my pool and I like the water warm so I use a solar cover 100% of the time when it isn't in use (plus or minus an hour or two).
Pro: Even in Arizona, the water will take on the average temperature without heat (And that's not as hot as you would think because it can get chilly here at night) but it's somewhat worse than that here because of the super dry air, large amounts of water will evaporate out during the dry times like now which will: 1. Cause more water to be needed to refill-- with high CH and high TA fill water, this makes a drain and refill needed more often. 2. The evaporation itself makes the pool water significantly COLDER because it acts as a swamp cooler. In humid climates like Florida this isn't nearly as much an issue. It's pretty critical to cover the pool at night for this effect but not so much during the day. 3. You lose maybe 25% less free chlorine if you run it covered most of the time. 4. The pool stays a little bit cleaner.
Cons: Covers are expensive, ugly and a PITA to take on and off. Tops of them always have Calcium deposits and on a salt pool like mine, salt. So there is a white layer on it all the time and it's pretty futile to try to clean it off. We would likely actually USE the pool MORE if we didn't have to cover it and uncover it. They don't last the advertised three years, I suspect I'll have to replace ours next season at the beginning meaning it had a year and a half worth of life. That will cost $300. The most important one is that they can be dangerous for small children and pets if they get trapped under one.
Right now, I bet my CH level would be double, water bill would be $20/mo more, the Salt Water Chlorine Generator would have to run at 20% more output and the temperature of the pool would be 5 degrees Fahrenheit less if I didn't religiously cover it.
Edit: That wadded up blue plastic thing in the pictures by the deep end is the solar cover. I do have rollers for it and really should cut it in half and get it on the rollers...
I do not have a heater for my pool and I like the water warm so I use a solar cover 100% of the time when it isn't in use (plus or minus an hour or two).
Pro: Even in Arizona, the water will take on the average temperature without heat (And that's not as hot as you would think because it can get chilly here at night) but it's somewhat worse than that here because of the super dry air, large amounts of water will evaporate out during the dry times like now which will: 1. Cause more water to be needed to refill-- with high CH and high TA fill water, this makes a drain and refill needed more often. 2. The evaporation itself makes the pool water significantly COLDER because it acts as a swamp cooler. In humid climates like Florida this isn't nearly as much an issue. It's pretty critical to cover the pool at night for this effect but not so much during the day. 3. You lose maybe 25% less free chlorine if you run it covered most of the time. 4. The pool stays a little bit cleaner.
Cons: Covers are expensive, ugly and a PITA to take on and off. Tops of them always have Calcium deposits and on a salt pool like mine, salt. So there is a white layer on it all the time and it's pretty futile to try to clean it off. We would likely actually USE the pool MORE if we didn't have to cover it and uncover it. They don't last the advertised three years, I suspect I'll have to replace ours next season at the beginning meaning it had a year and a half worth of life. That will cost $300. The most important one is that they can be dangerous for small children and pets if they get trapped under one.
Right now, I bet my CH level would be double, water bill would be $20/mo more, the Salt Water Chlorine Generator would have to run at 20% more output and the temperature of the pool would be 5 degrees Fahrenheit less if I didn't religiously cover it.
Edit: That wadded up blue plastic thing in the pictures by the deep end is the solar cover. I do have rollers for it and really should cut it in half and get it on the rollers...
Right now I am at triple the black and same amount of dye--can I ask why you lowered the dye amount?
Thanks! The color is beautiful but pebbletec is out of my price range and would be too rough on skin. I wonder if a cheaper brand has a similar color. Right now it seems like are only option for the texture we want is plaster. Also, do you have a specific tech on taking off your cover to make it easier?
Rattus Suffocatus
Silver Supporter
This is PebbleSheen, not PebbleTec (It's by PebbleTec, though). They also have a plaster like one--PebbleFina I think. The surface isn't rough at all, just a little bit of grit which is actually nice for safety, I wouldn't have done PebbleTec either, the rocks are too big in it. I don't think it was much more than a grand more for the standard color PebbleSheen. Which sounds like a lot, but that little pool was $40K. If I would have added no options it would have be $32K for reference, most of that was for the floor cleaner I added which isn't popular here in TFP but despite that (in my opinion) works well in the desert. I wouldn't do it any place "green". The days of $25K play pools have passed, unfortunately. The cheaper brands aren't that much cheaper, as I did bid out one pool with a clone of this stuff. If you want to go cheaper then standard plaster is going to be your choice (or maybe one with quartz added), but it also doesn't last as long. I suspect you might be able to find someone to use inorganic stains to color it. You at least have a reference on the color if you like.
Was your deck also included in your pool build cost? We are in the beginning stages of plan building. I really like your deck design as well. We are doing a 15x22 rectangular chlorine pool (may do salt down the road) with no spa and heat. We are planning to add a 3 tiered water spill feature. I’m in So Cal and quote for the pool is about 43K.
Rattus Suffocatus
Silver Supporter
Yes, the paver deck was part of the design and bid. I added salt myself for about $800 this year., so that wasn't includes in the just about $40K. That water feature does tend to add a lot of cost to the project ... you also will drive pH up with it. Both factors are okay if you want it. I didn't do something like that because we have pretty alkaline and mineraly water here and most people around here have to have that stuff bead basted every season.... But I am sure your water will be better in California.
I would expect prices to be 10%-20% higher in California than Tucson but that is certainly in the ballpark for that size pool, at not even 10% higher. The charts say your pool will be about 14K gallons or roughly the same size as my free form. Rectangular pools are easier to cover. They are harder to dig and that costs a little bit more... But that seems about right....
I would expect prices to be 10%-20% higher in California than Tucson but that is certainly in the ballpark for that size pool, at not even 10% higher. The charts say your pool will be about 14K gallons or roughly the same size as my free form. Rectangular pools are easier to cover. They are harder to dig and that costs a little bit more... But that seems about right....
Hi! I have the same predicament. Need to give my tile order and surface/ finish decision to my builder ASAP and feel like if I go with his Pebble Sheen recommendation, I am stuck with either a darker blue and more refraction than I want (Aqua Blue) or something that the builder thinks would be so light (it is so hard without being able to see any pools in person). I want a light pool. If it were up to me, for the look I would go old school plaster that looks light blue or light aqua (like a tropical lagoon), but he is really sold on Pebble. Fina seems to have some lighter shades, but I am being repeatedly warned about the possibility of it hazing and having to be acid washed/ drained within the first two years, and that it will not last as long. I almost don't care in order to get the color that I want (and lack of light refraction and bumpiness on your feet). What did you do? When I use search terms in this site, and they pull up these surfaces or tiles in which I am interested, I never can find actual photos of them within the posts. What did you decide to do? I am guessing your pool is finished by now. Thank you SO MUCH.
Rattus Suffocatus
Silver Supporter
Fina should last longer than normal plaster by a fair bit. I don't know if you understand that. It won't last as long as Sheen or the normal PebbleTec because the actual rocks in it are what protects the finish longer. The Fina has them in there but ground up very fine. I have Sheen and I think it's a good balance. I do like it better than regular plaster, it is just enough not to be rough but it is anti-slip. I am really glad I chose something other than blue, though I get what you are saying about the two standard blues in the PebbleTec lineup.