Red staining on waterline grout

[benpcoleman]

Our pool is less than a year old and I found this staining near the skimmer. I don’t know if it is rust, but there really isn’t any metal I can see. It won’t come out when I brush it. It is also starting at other spots, very faint. For one, I need to be much better about brushing and cleaning the tiles, but any advice? Doesn’t seem normal. Thanks!

PH regularly kept between 7.6-7.8, never has gotten over 8.0. Pristine water since day 1. Hard water here in San Diego.
TA: 75
CH:500
PH: 7.6

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Apply a paste of vitamin C in a thin sock for a few minutes and see if it gets better. You can just buy a bottle of Vit C tabs at the local pharmacy store and crush them up. Put them in a nylon or very thin dress sock (or go buy a skimmer sock at the pool store for 10X the price ).

Report back if it lightens or goes away.

 

[benpcoleman]

Thank you! Yes!! It lightened quickly and almost went away in the spots I rubbed a vitamin c tablet. So is this metal or rust? I also reached into the skimmer and there are chunks of what look like rust or something peeling off the wall. Should I call the pool builder for repair? Help!

 

[JamesW]

Rust above skimmer entrance - advice?

I recently moved to a new home and am excited to take advantage of the pool! I recently noticed that the are above the skimmer entrance has rusted rebar. Given that this is not a structural issue (correct me if I am wrong) I was considering using something to try to remove some rust and then...

www.troublefreepool.com

Exposed Metal/Rebar(maybe) Above Skimmer Causing Rust and Plaster Stains

Hello Pool People, I have an issue with rust from exposed metal and I'm hoping someone here is familiar with this problem and has a suggestion for a cheap and simple DIY fix. I searched all over the forum but seems like there was only one other post with a similar problem but there weren't...

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[JoyfulNoise]

You have a source of iron behind those tiles. Likely rebar or a rebar tie. Only want to fix it is to dig it out which means demolition of those areas to get below the surface. It’s not a quick fix project. You should probably ask the builder/remodeler their thoughts and maybe plan for the project to remediate it AFTER the swim season is over.

 

[benpcoleman]

Sheesh, seriously?! How does that even happen? What was done improperly to result in such exposure to the water? I have alerted the builder and definitely expect them to fix this, as I’m sure it will only worsen and continue to discolor other areas.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Sometimes when the forming subcontractor forgets to bend back the rebar and then the gunite crew doesn’t spot it and it leaves the rebar too close to the gunite surface. Or sometimes a rebar tie isn’t properly bent back and it sticks out too close to the surface. Or sometimes the plaster crew picks up discarded nails or ties from the worksite accidentally and it gets mixed up into the plaster which then causes staining. It’s really a quality control issue during build that good pool builders know to look for and inexperienced ones don’t.

It sucks, but it does happen. There’s no telling what it is until the fix is started. I had a neighbor whose pool was 6 years old before a stain on the plaster started to develop. It was a rebar tie that got caught up in her plaster. A pool tech was able to do a small chisel out of the area and then apply a plaster patch reasonably well enough that it wasn’t a big deal. But the fact is it took 6 years before the stain started to show.

 

[benpcoleman]

Thanks so much for your wisdom. This was a very reputable experienced builder. It would be reasonable to assume this is covered in the warranty? Pool is less than a year old…

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Thanks so much for your wisdom. This was a very reputable experienced builder. It would be reasonable to assume this is covered in the warranty? Pool is less than a year old…

Hard to say. It’s not an insignificant amount of work to fix this and so they’re not going to be happy about it. But if they care about their reputation, then some amount of it should be covered. You’ll have to get with them and see what they say.

 

[benpcoleman]

Hard to say. It’s not an insignificant amount of work to fix this and so they’re not going to be happy about it. But if they care about their reputation, then some amount of it should be covered. You’ll have to get with them and see what they say.

Just a follow up here. Builder is taking care of it, said it was rust coming from shell, rare but happens, and should be an “easy fix”. I also found a nail sticking straight down out of the skimmer cover! We requested to wait until after swim season since they will have to drain the pool. Thanks for all your help!

 

[JamesW]

they will have to drain the pool.

Why?

 

[benpcoleman]

Why?

I wondered the same thing. Maybe a tiny bit to access the skimmer, right? Should I push back on that?

The one silver lining was my CH is 600 and rising so that refill could help.

 

[JamesW]

Should I push back on that?

At least inquire why they need to drain the pool.