SW Florida - First Time Pool Build - Need your opinion on what appears to be a terrible plaster application...

[EMRtek]

RE: SW Florida - Florida Pebble Pearl bad plaster application job?

We had our plaster done last Friday and being a newbie I did not even check what material they used. Looking back, I should have taken some photos of the bags but that is not our main concern right now. Our biggest concern is the uneven application, this is very noticeable in the steps, edges of the walls, some lights/outlets, and the swim out bench edges. Please review attached photos.

With that said, I have requested that the pool builder have these issues somehow rectified but I'm still waiting on a response. Here are my questions:

-We were supposed to get Florida Pebble Pearl plaster but in my opinion it looks more like Petite Pearl. What do you think?

-Is this uneven application normal for Florida Pebble plaster?

-How difficult would it be to have these issues corrected? Do we have to redo the plaster or can we add more material to smooth it out?

-Any other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

 

[kimkats]

Hi and welcome to TFP. I am sorry we are meeting in this way though. To help you with this issue I need to ask some questions first.

-Are they done?

-Is there water in the pool yet?

-What kind of start up did they do?

You cannot really add more material to smooth it out. You can do an acid wash to take some of the plaster way but that holds risks and shortens your plaster's life. It can also make the plaster rougher.

 

[EMRtek]

Thanks for the quick response. Yes, pool is full now. They started filling the pool as soon as they were finished with the plaster. These photos were taken last Friday as the pool was being filled. I notified the pool contractor right away and he said that it was "fine." He said "let's wait a few days until it is filled up, you probably won't notice the imperfections at that point." Because of this, we let it be over the weekend but noticed that some of the imperfections are actually more noticeable now. We reached out to the contractor again on Monday and he has not responded.

About the start up, I'm not sure what method they used. I know they have come out a couple of times since it was filled. I have seen them check the pool chemistry and also brush it twice.

At this point, we are at a loss... The contractor has been in the business for over 20 years and they have great reviews. I'm afraid I was the guinea pig for him, I suspect this is the first time he works with this plaster company or the people doing the application had no prior experience. With labor shortages nowadays anything is possible.

Based on your response, it seems like the only real solution is to redo the plaster?

 

[TampaKathy]

It doesn't look like any of the pebbles on the Florida stucco page...it kinda looks more like a gem finish but it's very hard to tell.

 

[kimkats]

Ask your PB if he used an acid start up on the pool.

 

[EMRtek]

Ask your PB if he used an acid start up on the pool.

I spoke with the PB today, he does not call it an acid start up but they did use acid to get chemistry balanced in as early as two weeks. We are now waiting to schedule a meeting with the plaster company to discuss available options to correct the unevenness. The PB does not think that we have to redo the plaster but did not offer any possible solutions other than "let's wait to see what the plaster company says next week."

I'm wondering what the plaster company will suggest... Any ideas?

 

[TampaKathy]

After they installed the plaster on Friday...What did they do to expose the aggregate? Maybe FL pebble is different than Wet Edge that I have but it was a 2 day job...day 1 they did plaster and day 2 they did an acid wash.

 

[EMRtek]

It doesn't look like any of the pebbles on the Florida stucco page...it kinda looks more like a gem finish but it's very hard to tell.

Here is a pic from today, this is from the sunshelf area. The PB could not confirm if they used Florida Stucco or some other manufacturer, which seems a bit shady...

 

[EMRtek]

After they installed the plaster on Friday...What did they do to expose the aggregate? Maybe FL pebble is different than Wet Edge that I have but it was a 2 day job...day 1 they did plaster and day 2 they did an acid wash.

I got my days mixed up... The entire plaster job was done in one day, Thursday, Nov. 18th. After reviewing my security camera videos it looks like they first used water, then acid to expose aggregate.

 

[KCNM]

So typically the surface is allowed to cure for a day before acid wash. I'm not sure what effect not waiting would have. That's probably @ajw22.

Bump outs in the plaster near fixtures like lights or returns is not atypical. That's just building up the plaster to meet the fixture. Those areas look fine.

The stairs do not look great.

AFAIK there's no way to just add material after curing begins. You'll get a cold joint and it will never properly bond. The only thing that could be done is chip it all out and redo it.

 

[Bperry]

Yea, only possible issue I can see is maybe the steps are a little wavy. Everything else looks really nice.

 

[EMRtek]

So typically the surface is allowed to cure for a day before acid wash. I'm not sure what effect not waiting would have. That's probably @ajw22.

Bump outs in the plaster near fixtures like lights or returns is not atypical. That's just building up the plaster to meet the fixture. Those areas look fine.

The stairs do not look great.

AFAIK there's no way to just add material after curing begins. You'll get a cold joint and it will never properly bond. The only thing that could be done is chip it all out and redo it.

Yea, only possible issue I can see is maybe the steps are a little wavy. Everything else looks really nice.

Thanks for chiming in... The problem is that it's not just the steps but also all the exposed edges of the plaster. All the vertical edges are wavy, the swim out bench has a very noticeable bump in the corner. Also, one of the LED lights is clearly not straight, it's pointing up and towards the left. I'm no expert, but I have never seen a pool with such noticeable imperfections. I doubt that any PB's pool looks this way, they would probably immediately demand that it be redone.

I'll post more photos later today.

 

[TampaKathy]

It's sometimes hard to see the imperfections in pictures...I'm going thru the same thing with my PB and when I posted pictures on my build some people said they couldn't see what I was talking about but everyone that has seen it in person can see the imperfections. I had the same thought that there's no way my PB would accept the plaster job that I got on his pool.

 

[KCNM]

Thanks for chiming in... The problem is that it's not just the steps but also all the exposed edges of the plaster. All the vertical edges are wavy, the swim out bench has a very noticeable bump in the corner. Also, one of the LED lights is clearly not straight, it's pointing up and towards the left. I'm no expert, but I have never seen a pool with such noticeable imperfections. I doubt that any PB's pool looks this way, they would probably immediately demand that it be redone.

I'll post more photos later today.

Yea, I know they are hard to capture in pictures. I commented on what I could see, and specifically didn't comment on anything else. And trust me, if you can see it, you can definitely *feel* it when you're in the pool. Touch is much more sensitive than the eye here.

 

[skimmerswimmer]

The mottling will usually fade and blend a bit over time (years). Keep your PH on the low side for the next year and brush when you can. The pool builder likely won't be able to correct the issues without a full redo and even that could come out worse. I wasn't happy with my plaster job either, but I've learned to live with it. The pool builder didn't offer anything and the pebble manufacturer said it's within normal deviations. The contract even has a clause expecting mottling and uneven surfaces.

 

[Oona]

I am confused, all the PBs I got quotes from used a particular company for the pool finish (Pebbletec, stonescapes, Radiant etc) and we got to choose a finish from that-did you get to select what you wanted? Even so they should definitely be able to find out especially since finishes come with some type of warranty (though mottling is excluded) and will often reach out to the manufacturer for any issues with it. That said, my BiGGEST fear going into our pool build project is ending up with a mottled finish on our pool and if mine turned out like your pics I would be concerned but I don’t think it looks terrible and may go away with the brushing in 2 weeks or so.
I found this pick of a mottled pool and made it, in the words of the honorable judge Belvin Perry “abundantly clear” that this better not happen. Sorry to whoever’s pool this is

 

[EMRtek]

Thanks for the comments everyone... I have another question:

Water level is down approximately 1" since it was completely filled on Fri, Nov. 19th. Is this considered a normal water level drop for this short period of time (14 days) on a new pool. I'm concerned about a potential pool leak.

 

[TampaKathy]

I'm surprised that's all you've lost! I lose about 1/4 inch a day.

 

[KCNM]

Thanks for the comments everyone... I have another question:

Water level is down approximately 1" since it was completely filled on Fri, Nov. 19th. Is this considered a normal water level drop for this short period of time (14 days) on a new pool. I'm concerned about a potential pool leak.

1" over two weeks is very, very normal. Especially in Florida, where the summer sun is strong and the winters are dry.

 

[Lejenn]

Here is a pic from today, this is from the sunshelf area. The PB could not confirm if they used Florida Stucco or some other manufacturer, which seems a bit shady...

It looks like my pool, very uneven, bumps and dips. My pool looks terrible at night. I have pebbletec done about 6 months ago. The pool company says it is normal. I m very