Pool Leak at grout line on the water line tile

Jump to latest Follow Reply
D

Dave722

Active member
May 27, 2021
26
USVI
Good morning,
So when the contractor poured (concrete) my pool, he poured the our deck pad on top of the pool wall instead of having the pool wall a solid piece all the way up. The problem is that where I live we get minor earthquake tremors and this has caused the pool to crack along the wall. Fortunately it's right at the 6" water tile grout line. So I have repaired it twice now by cutting out the existing grout and re-grouting it in the past year. It has done it again and I need to find a longer term solution. My question is, is there a product (caulk or something else) that would be flexible enough to support very minor shifting? The other options I have thought of would be to take the water tile completely off and put some type of vinyl liner on the wall or to take the tile off, chip out the concrete and put schluter membrane over it (then re-tile it) and this would provide enough flexibility with the tile over it that if it did crack it wouldn't leak again. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
Dave722 said:
Good morning,
So when the contractor poured (concrete) my pool, he poured the our deck pad on top of the pool wall instead of having the pool wall a solid piece all the way up. The problem is that where I live we get minor earthquake tremors and this has caused the pool to crack along the wall. Fortunately it's right at the 6" water tile grout line. So I have repaired it twice now by cutting out the existing grout and re-grouting it in the past year. It has done it again and I need to find a longer term solution. My question is, is there a product (caulk or something else) that would be flexible enough to support very minor shifting? The other options I have thought of would be to take the water tile completely off and put some type of vinyl liner on the wall or to take the tile off, chip out the concrete and put schluter membrane over it (then re-tile it) and this would provide enough flexibility with the tile over it that if it did crack it wouldn't leak again. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Got any pictures? Sounds a bit scary for a pool construction technique.
 
You can cut an expansion joint (Red Line) in the deck to isolate the pool bond beam and the deck, but if the deck is resting on the bond beam, then the deck might settle.

Expansion Joints and Coping - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com


1704035886993.png




1704035969423.png



1704036105204.png

www.pooleng.com

Cracking Up - Pool Engineering

Pool cracks are no joking matter. They have many causes, but often are reparable. Source: CUSTOM HOME Magazine Publication date: 2005-06-02 By Rebecca
www.pooleng.com www.pooleng.com
 
  • Like
Reactions: Bperry
Horizontal cracking in the waterline tile

What it looks like: This is the most common type of cracking found in pools, and it looks just like the name indicates.

What causes it: The concrete deck is not completely separated from the pool’s bond beam. The deck moves, putting pressure against the pool wall. As a consequence, the pool’s bond beam may crack. If waterline tile is affixed to the problem area, the tile will fracture as well. Similar cracking can result from a common technique used to prepare for the coping. Workers level the top of the bond beam by applying a layer of mortar. If the material doesn’t properly affix to the beam, it may delaminate, causing the tile in front of it to crack.

How to prevent it: Completely separate the concrete deck from the pool’s bond beam. An expansion joint must extend the full depth of the deck. For example, if your deck is 4 inches thick, the expansion joint must be 4 inches deep. This prevents the two bodies from touching. To ensure proper adhesion between the bond beam and that leveling layer of mortar, follow proper workmanship procedures. Moisten and clean the beam before applying the mortar.

How to fix it: In either case, the pool builder must remove and replace the cracked materials using proper trade procedures. Often, workers must retile the waterline as well.

1704036277377.png


www.pooleng.com

Cracking Up - Pool Engineering

Pool cracks are no joking matter. They have many causes, but often are reparable. Source: CUSTOM HOME Magazine Publication date: 2005-06-02 By Rebecca
www.pooleng.com www.pooleng.com

1704036354958.png

1704036380776.png


 
Thanks for the replies, but unfortunately that wasn't how my pool is poured. I live in St. Croix USVI and they still use plywood for forms. The 6" slab sits on top of the pool wall. See attached pics. I did look at some previous pictures and for whatever reason he didn't use rebar from the wall to tie into the deck slab which would have probably eliminated the movement. I'm almost considering driving through the slab into the wall and putting rebar and epoxy or some type of bolt system and retile the the top of the deck along the pool. I was really just hoping to use something at the grout line that would shift when we get those minor quakes from the caribbean sea.
 

Attachments

  • Pool wall top where deck sits.pdf
    328.3 KB · Views: 14
  • Pool pad.pdf
    571.2 KB · Views: 7
Dave722 said:
Thanks for the replies, but unfortunately that wasn't how my pool is poured. I live in St. Croix USVI and they still use plywood for forms. The 6" slab sits on top of the pool wall. See attached pics. I did look at some previous pictures and for whatever reason he didn't use rebar from the wall to tie into the deck slab which would have probably eliminated the movement. I'm almost considering driving through the slab into the wall and putting rebar and epoxy or some type of bolt system and retile the the top of the deck along the pool. I was really just hoping to use something at the grout line that would shift when we get those minor quakes from the caribbean sea.
Click to expand...
Unless you can decouple the deck from the pool shell you are going to get cracking. Same thing happens on the mainland when there’s no expansion joint.
 
  • Like
Reactions: JamesW
If you cut the deck, will the deck fall or is it supported by the ground underneath?

If you have a well prepared ground under the deck, the deck should not fall when you cut an expansion joint.

If the deck is resting on the bond beam with a big gap beneath the deck behind the bond beam, then the deck can fall when you cut an expansion joint.

You can possible "SlabjacK" the deck, which is where you inject material beneath the deck to fill in any gaps beneath the deck.
 
Show us pics of the cracks.

You can let that joint become your expansion joint and remove the grout along it and fill it with a polysulfide-based sealing compound like Deck-O-Seal. For a vertical surface you do not want self leveling material. It will not look as good as a grout line.

www.wrmeadows.com

DECK-O-SEAL GUN GRADE

DECK-O-SEAL GUN GRADE is a two-component, non-sag, non-flowing, polysulfide-based sealing compound. It is a non-staining sealant that cures to a firm, flexible, tear-resistant rubber.
www.wrmeadows.com www.wrmeadows.com
 
Dave722 said:
Thanks for the replies, but unfortunately that wasn't how my pool is poured. I live in St. Croix USVI and they still use plywood for forms. The 6" slab sits on top of the pool wall. See attached pics. I did look at some previous pictures and for whatever reason he didn't use rebar from the wall to tie into the deck slab which would have probably eliminated the movement. I'm almost considering driving through the slab into the wall and putting rebar and epoxy or some type of bolt system and retile the the top of the deck along the pool. I was really just hoping to use something at the grout line that would shift when we get those minor quakes from the caribbean sea.
Click to expand...
I have to backtrack a bit. Are you saying that the deck is NOT pinned to the pool shell? If so, that’s ideal. But the joint between the two should not be under water. You’ll need to fill that joint with flexible mastic cause the joint is designed to move. It would help to see a picture of the crack. Just attach a JPG from a phone.
 
I'll post a pic, but the cracks in the grout are very fine and only I know they are there as this is the 2nd time I grouted it. When I cut the grout out the previous times, you could see the crack through the mortar horizontally right where the slab sits on the wall. There is a garage under the deck so I cannot cut the deck. I was thinking of pinning it with rebar so its more solid. Idk :(
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
Dave722 said:
I'll post a pic, but the cracks in the grout are very fine and only I know they are there as this is the 2nd time I grouted it. When I cut the grout out the previous times, you could see the crack through the mortar horizontally right where the slab sits on the wall. There is a garage under the deck so I cannot cut the deck. I was thinking of pinning it with rebar so its more solid. Idk :(
Click to expand...
Don’t take a close up picture of a crack. Take one farther away so we can see the deck, the tile, pool surface etc all in one picture. Keep the camera 6feet away from the crack. Trying to understand how it was built.
 
Last edited:
Dave722 said:
submerged between the 2nd and 3rd tile, exactly where the slab meets the wall
Click to expand...
So the slab joint falls in the same spot as a tile joint? If so, it seems like that would be a good spot for a flexible sealant if one exists for underwater use.

I would not pin those together or you’ll break the shell as the slab expands and contracts at a different rate than the pool shell. The cracking you have will just move to somewhere else you may not want. That’s why they aren’t typically pinned together. See the illustrations above.
 
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