Refinishing/Polishing Gunite Slide

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

We had a gunite slide/waterfall combo installed with the pool five years ago. The slide chute is finished with an epoxy paint/coating that only last a little over a year before requiring recoating. The chute usually begins to fail where hairline cracks form and push out calcium that gets under the sealer. They've used a variety of coatings, but none is better than the other. The builder has covered each of these service visits, but this will be the last time. I'm waiting for a call back from the company to schedule a service visit. They usually spend at least 5 hours each time they repair the slide.

I'm looking for a more permanent alternative an epoxy coating or paint. Can gunite be polished smooth enough (along with some type of wax/sealant) to work on a slide? I'm guessing the initial polishing would require a variety of diamond polishing discs and compounds, but I can probably handle annual maintenance with a few discs and the tools I own. When the company comes out, I can ask that they remove the existing flaking finish. I plan to discuss polishing with them, but would like to be armed with some information ahead of time.

Here's a photo of the slide...

 

[RonsPlc]

I would be REALLY tempted to try laying in a fiberglass layer over the gunite through the trough of the slide if was mine.
But I don't know if that would be do-able in that situation.
Some of the experts here will surely speak up, and correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

I would be REALLY tempted to try laying in a fiberglass layer over the gunite through the trough of the slide

I've thought about this, but I think a one-off job of this type would be costly. Maybe I'm wrong?

I saw an earlier post where a gunite chute was finished in tile. I'll look into this as well...