Soft Plaster Surface

[garyg]

Hi All

Last year, year 4 on a 16,000 gal. diving pool, deck clorinator with ozone, cartridge filter, infloor cleaning system. 1 hp pump..I decided to drain it and acid wash beause I had a few stains, no big deal, I thought.

When the contractor came to acid wash after draining, he tried the acid in a few places and said he was not comfortable acid washing it and left. Now I am concerned and call the pool builder, he looks as it and says the clorine level had been too high and I should polish it. Well it already had been drained for a few days and even though the temp. in Phoenix had been below 80 degrees in Jan. I decided to fill it up and deal with it next year.

The pool had a light grey scale on the horizontal baja step and I just thought it was a calcium buildup. I could scratch it off with my finger, but I could not touch it with a pool brush, even the ones with steel brissles

So this year, I hired the pool contractor the pool builder recommended, as the pool builder does not polish pools. They came out and drained it and tried acid again and said the cream on the plaster was gone and it could not be polished or acid washed. I can easily scratch the pool surface with my fingernail.

So the pool builder comes out again and says the scale and soft plaster is a result of the clorine level being too high.

I was very careful about monitoring the water chemistry and tested it myself with the strips a couple of times a week and took it into a pool store to doulbe check about every other week. It is true, the clorine level was high at time 6-10 , but the pool store said not to worry about it and I just reduced the amount and it came back to 1-3 .

So my question is " can a high clorine level actually cause this kind of damage? "

Looks like I need to replaster after only 5 years but I don't want to end up in the same place 4 years from now .

What can I do to prevent this from happening again. Was this really my fault? I did my best before so now I am really concerned.

Geez, I though taking care of a car was difficult. I thought if I just keep the water chemistry within the proper ranges, I would be ok.

The finish they put on was something call "Shasta shield" and was suppose to be a big upgrade over regular plaster. It was suppose to last 10-12 years.

Really appreciate any feedback you can give me.

Garyg

[finishguy]

Hi All

Last year, year 4 on a 16,000 gal. diving pool, deck clorinator with ozone, cartridge filter, infloor cleaning system. 1 hp pump..I decided to drain it and acid wash beause I had a few stains, no big deal, I thought.

When the contractor came to acid wash after draining, he tried the acid in a few places and said he was not comfortable acid washing it and left. Now I am concerned and call the pool builder, he looks as it and says the clorine level had been too high and I should polish it. Well it already had been drained for a few days and even though the temp. in Phoenix had been below 80 degrees in Jan. I decided to fill it up and deal with it next year.

The pool had a light grey scale on the horizontal baja step and I just thought it was a calcium buildup. I could scratch it off with my finger, but I could not touch it with a pool brush, even the ones with steel brissles

So this year, I hired the pool contractor the pool builder recommended, as the pool builder does not polish pools. They came out and drained it and tried acid again and said the cream on the plaster was gone and it could not be polished or acid washed. I can easily scratch the pool surface with my fingernail.

So the pool builder comes out again and says the scale and soft plaster is a result of the clorine level being too high.

I was very careful about monitoring the water chemistry and tested it myself with the strips a couple of times a week and took it into a pool store to doulbe check about every other week. It is true, the clorine level was high at time 6-10 , but the pool store said not to worry about it and I just reduced the amount and it came back to 1-3 .

So my question is " can a high clorine level actually cause this kind of damage? "

Looks like I need to replaster after only 5 years but I don't want to end up in the same place 4 years from now .

What can I do to prevent this from happening again. Was this really my fault? I did my best before so now I am really concerned.

Geez, I though taking care of a car was difficult. I thought if I just keep the water chemistry within the proper ranges, I would be ok.

The finish they put on was something call "Shasta shield" and was suppose to be a big upgrade over regular plaster. It was suppose to last 10-12 years.

Really appreciate any feedback you can give me.

Garyg

I would say they are probably correct. I would also say plaster is the weakest part of your pool. It really doesnt take much time to eat the finish away. I use something called AQUA SHIELD to add to the plaster that is supposed to add some life.Its a very good product but not sure if its gonna make a huge difference or not. When you had your pool plastered last was it in the middle of summer or very hot out? I worked in the extreme heat for 15 years and pools dont get troweled enough sometimes to work up cream. If the plaster gets hard very fast I dont believe the finish will last as long. If your PH gets down low for a couple days the finish (cream) wont last long and being thin to start is not good!!!!

[garyg]

Hi All

Last year, year 4 on a 16,000 gal. diving pool, deck clorinator with ozone, cartridge filter, infloor cleaning system. 1 hp pump..I decided to drain it and acid wash beause I had a few stains, no big deal, I thought.

When the contractor came to acid wash after draining, he tried the acid in a few places and said he was not comfortable acid washing it and left. Now I am concerned and call the pool builder, he looks as it and says the clorine level had been too high and I should polish it. Well it already had been drained for a few days and even though the temp. in Phoenix had been below 80 degrees in Jan. I decided to fill it up and deal with it next year.

The pool had a light grey scale on the horizontal baja step and I just thought it was a calcium buildup. I could scratch it off with my finger, but I could not touch it with a pool brush, even the ones with steel brissles

So this year, I hired the pool contractor the pool builder recommended, as the pool builder does not polish pools. They came out and drained it and tried acid again and said the cream on the plaster was gone and it could not be polished or acid washed. I can easily scratch the pool surface with my fingernail.

So the pool builder comes out again and says the scale and soft plaster is a result of the clorine level being too high.

I was very careful about monitoring the water chemistry and tested it myself with the strips a couple of times a week and took it into a pool store to doulbe check about every other week. It is true, the clorine level was high at time 6-10 , but the pool store said not to worry about it and I just reduced the amount and it came back to 1-3 .

So my question is " can a high clorine level actually cause this kind of damage? "

Looks like I need to replaster after only 5 years but I don't want to end up in the same place 4 years from now .

What can I do to prevent this from happening again. Was this really my fault? I did my best before so now I am really concerned.

Geez, I though taking care of a car was difficult. I thought if I just keep the water chemistry within the proper ranges, I would be ok.

The finish they put on was something call "Shasta shield" and was suppose to be a big upgrade over regular plaster. It was suppose to last 10-12 years.

Really appreciate any feedback you can give me.

Garyg

I would say they are probably correct. I would also say plaster is the weakest part of your pool. It really doesnt take much time to eat the finish away. I use something called AQUA SHIELD to add to the plaster that is supposed to add some life.Its a very good product but not sure if its gonna make a huge difference or not. When you had your pool plastered last was it in the middle of summer or very hot out? I worked in the extreme heat for 15 years and pools dont get troweled enough sometimes to work up cream. If the plaster gets hard very fast I dont believe the finish will last as long. If your PH gets down low for a couple days the finish (cream) wont last long and being thin to start is not good!!!!

this pool was plastered for the first time in the month of may. In phoenix, the month May is warm but not hot like in july, aug, 106-115. I watched them apply it and they seemed to do an excellent job and did not seemed rushed. the temp in the middle 80's when they started and probably in the mid 90's when finished. The pool builder said the cause was high clorine, but you said low ph may be the cause.

As high clorine seems to dissipate in hot weather, it does not seem to stay high very long. High in the morning and low in the afternoon. I can understand how low ph would be harmful to a plaster surface but I don't understand how high clorine could cause the plaster to become so soft that you can scratch if off with a fingernail. Water chemistry for swimming pools seems to be very complicated and the lessons are very expensive so I really appreciate your input.

Is it pretty common to be replacing plaster after 5 years? Seems crazy as I felt I was keeping the water pretty close to the recommendations. I am thinking I might try salt water generator this time as I was not too sucessful with clorine and acid. I want to blame to plaster job but if it was the plaster, I probably would have had problems before year four.

[Chem Expert]

Hi All

Last year, year 4 on a 16,000 gal. diving pool, deck clorinator with ozone, cartridge filter, infloor cleaning system. 1 hp pump..I decided to drain it and acid wash beause I had a few stains, no big deal, I thought.

When the contractor came to acid wash after draining, he tried the acid in a few places and said he was not comfortable acid washing it and left. Now I am concerned and call the pool builder, he looks as it and says the clorine level had been too high and I should polish it. Well it already had been drained for a few days and even though the temp. in Phoenix had been below 80 degrees in Jan. I decided to fill it up and deal with it next year.

The pool had a light grey scale on the horizontal baja step and I just thought it was a calcium buildup. I could scratch it off with my finger, but I could not touch it with a pool brush, even the ones with steel brissles

So this year, I hired the pool contractor the pool builder recommended, as the pool builder does not polish pools. They came out and drained it and tried acid again and said the cream on the plaster was gone and it could not be polished or acid washed. I can easily scratch the pool surface with my fingernail.

So the pool builder comes out again and says the scale and soft plaster is a result of the clorine level being too high.

I was very careful about monitoring the water chemistry and tested it myself with the strips a couple of times a week and took it into a pool store to doulbe check about every other week. It is true, the clorine level was high at time 6-10 , but the pool store said not to worry about it and I just reduced the amount and it came back to 1-3 .

So my question is " can a high clorine level actually cause this kind of damage? "

Looks like I need to replaster after only 5 years but I don't want to end up in the same place 4 years from now .

What can I do to prevent this from happening again. Was this really my fault? I did my best before so now I am really concerned.

Geez, I though taking care of a car was difficult. I thought if I just keep the water chemistry within the proper ranges, I would be ok.

The finish they put on was something call "Shasta shield" and was suppose to be a big upgrade over regular plaster. It was suppose to last 10-12 years.

Really appreciate any feedback you can give me.

Garyg

I would say they are probably correct. I would also say plaster is the weakest part of your pool. It really doesnt take much time to eat the finish away. I use something called AQUA SHIELD to add to the plaster that is supposed to add some life.Its a very good product but not sure if its gonna make a huge difference or not. When you had your pool plastered last was it in the middle of summer or very hot out? I worked in the extreme heat for 15 years and pools dont get troweled enough sometimes to work up cream. If the plaster gets hard very fast I dont believe the finish will last as long. If your PH gets down low for a couple days the finish (cream) wont last long and being thin to start is not good!!!!

this pool was plastered for the first time in the month of may. In phoenix, the month May is warm but not hot like in july, aug, 106-115. I watched them apply it and they seemed to do an excellent job and did not seemed rushed. the temp in the middle 80's when they started and probably in the mid 90's when finished. The pool builder said the cause was high clorine, but you said low ph may be the cause.

As high clorine seems to dissipate in hot weather, it does not seem to stay high very long. High in the morning and low in the afternoon. I can understand how low ph would be harmful to a plaster surface but I don't understand how high clorine could cause the plaster to become so soft that you can scratch if off with a fingernail. Water chemistry for swimming pools seems to be very complicated and the lessons are very expensive so I really appreciate your input.

Is it pretty common to be replacing plaster after 5 years? Seems crazy as I felt I was keeping the water pretty close to the recommendations. I am thinking I might try salt water generator this time as I was not too sucessful with clorine and acid. I want to blame to plaster job but if it was the plaster, I probably would have had problems before year four.

[Chem Expert]

Hi All

Last year, year 4 on a 16,000 gal. diving pool, deck clorinator with ozone, cartridge filter, infloor cleaning system. 1 hp pump..I decided to drain it and acid wash beause I had a few stains, no big deal, I thought.

When the contractor came to acid wash after draining, he tried the acid in a few places and said he was not comfortable acid washing it and left. Now I am concerned and call the pool builder, he looks as it and says the clorine level had been too high and I should polish it. Well it already had been drained for a few days and even though the temp. in Phoenix had been below 80 degrees in Jan. I decided to fill it up and deal with it next year.

The pool had a light grey scale on the horizontal baja step and I just thought it was a calcium buildup. I could scratch it off with my finger, but I could not touch it with a pool brush, even the ones with steel brissles

So this year, I hired the pool contractor the pool builder recommended, as the pool builder does not polish pools. They came out and drained it and tried acid again and said the cream on the plaster was gone and it could not be polished or acid washed. I can easily scratch the pool surface with my fingernail.

So the pool builder comes out again and says the scale and soft plaster is a result of the clorine level being too high.

I was very careful about monitoring the water chemistry and tested it myself with the strips a couple of times a week and took it into a pool store to doulbe check about every other week. It is true, the clorine level was high at time 6-10 , but the pool store said not to worry about it and I just reduced the amount and it came back to 1-3 .

So my question is " can a high clorine level actually cause this kind of damage? "

Looks like I need to replaster after only 5 years but I don't want to end up in the same place 4 years from now .

What can I do to prevent this from happening again. Was this really my fault? I did my best before so now I am really concerned.

Geez, I though taking care of a car was difficult. I thought if I just keep the water chemistry within the proper ranges, I would be ok.

The finish they put on was something call "Shasta shield" and was suppose to be a big upgrade over regular plaster. It was suppose to last 10-12 years.

Really appreciate any feedback you can give me.

Garyg

I would say they are probably correct. I would also say plaster is the weakest part of your pool. It really doesnt take much time to eat the finish away. I use something called AQUA SHIELD to add to the plaster that is supposed to add some life.Its a very good product but not sure if its gonna make a huge difference or not. When you had your pool plastered last was it in the middle of summer or very hot out? I worked in the extreme heat for 15 years and pools dont get troweled enough sometimes to work up cream. If the plaster gets hard very fast I dont believe the finish will last as long. If your PH gets down low for a couple days the finish (cream) wont last long and being thin to start is not good!!!!

this pool was plastered for the first time in the month of may. In phoenix, the month May is warm but not hot like in july, aug, 106-115. I watched them apply it and they seemed to do an excellent job and did not seemed rushed. the temp in the middle 80's when they started and probably in the mid 90's when finished. The pool builder said the cause was high clorine, but you said low ph may be the cause.

As high clorine seems to dissipate in hot weather, it does not seem to stay high very long. High in the morning and low in the afternoon. I can understand how low ph would be harmful to a plaster surface but I don't understand how high clorine could cause the plaster to become so soft that you can scratch if off with a fingernail. Water chemistry for swimming pools seems to be very complicated and the lessons are very expensive so I really appreciate your input.

Is it pretty common to be replacing plaster after 5 years? Seems crazy as I felt I was keeping the water pretty close to the recommendations. I am thinking I might try salt water generator this time as I was not too sucessful with clorine and acid. I want to blame to plaster job but if it was the plaster, I probably would have had problems before year four.

I would suggest that no matter who did your interior finish, the outcomes would be the same. Years back pool sanitizers moved from Dichlor base to Trichlor. It is more available chlorine but has a PH of about 2.8. It offers a better chlorine for pools but owners must religiously watch their PH and Alkalynity levels to ensure they are kept within industry standards, or your water will get acidic (Corrosive) and start working on the sealing finish of the pool. This is usually accompanied by the development of spot etching, a very visible measles appearance on the finish. In addition, in a worst case prolonged low TA or PH condition, you will start seeing the formation of nodules on the surface of the plaster. The water literally begins to extract minerals from the plaster finish if the water is deficient in certain levels. All of these conditions are water induced and make the case for careful water balance.

No pool builder can protect against water conditions that become corrosive from imbalances in your water chemistry. In fact, the tell-tale signs are clear and 100% the result of water conditions that create them. It is similar to smoking cigarettes all your life and destroying your lungs. Let your TA or PH ride low for any period of time and it compromises the plaster surface, eats off the FAT (cream) of the finish, etches it and in worst situations creates the nodules.

If you are uising any type of TRICHLOR product (Tablets), gas chlorine or any acidic base sanitizers, please develop the habit of checking your PH and Total Alkalynity regularly. These two readings help you ensure you are keeping a buffer (like a rolaids tablet) in the water to protect against swings from a neutral water reading to an acidic one.

Remember, the life, longevity and integrity of the plaster finish, no matter who installed it, is 100% based upon the quality of the water balance in the pool. I have seen brand new pools that are less than a year old ruined by pool water balance. The better the control of your pool readings, the longer the life of the finish.

Chem Expert - 38 Years of Pool Building and Care

[finishguy]

Hi All

Last year, year 4 on a 16,000 gal. diving pool, deck clorinator with ozone, cartridge filter, infloor cleaning system. 1 hp pump..I decided to drain it and acid wash beause I had a few stains, no big deal, I thought.

When the contractor came to acid wash after draining, he tried the acid in a few places and said he was not comfortable acid washing it and left. Now I am concerned and call the pool builder, he looks as it and says the clorine level had been too high and I should polish it. Well it already had been drained for a few days and even though the temp. in Phoenix had been below 80 degrees in Jan. I decided to fill it up and deal with it next year.

The pool had a light grey scale on the horizontal baja step and I just thought it was a calcium buildup. I could scratch it off with my finger, but I could not touch it with a pool brush, even the ones with steel brissles

So this year, I hired the pool contractor the pool builder recommended, as the pool builder does not polish pools. They came out and drained it and tried acid again and said the cream on the plaster was gone and it could not be polished or acid washed. I can easily scratch the pool surface with my fingernail.

So the pool builder comes out again and says the scale and soft plaster is a result of the clorine level being too high.

I was very careful about monitoring the water chemistry and tested it myself with the strips a couple of times a week and took it into a pool store to doulbe check about every other week. It is true, the clorine level was high at time 6-10 , but the pool store said not to worry about it and I just reduced the amount and it came back to 1-3 .

So my question is " can a high clorine level actually cause this kind of damage? "

Looks like I need to replaster after only 5 years but I don't want to end up in the same place 4 years from now .

What can I do to prevent this from happening again. Was this really my fault? I did my best before so now I am really concerned.

Geez, I though taking care of a car was difficult. I thought if I just keep the water chemistry within the proper ranges, I would be ok.

The finish they put on was something call "Shasta shield" and was suppose to be a big upgrade over regular plaster. It was suppose to last 10-12 years.

Really appreciate any feedback you can give me.

Garyg

I would say they are probably correct. I would also say plaster is the weakest part of your pool. It really doesnt take much time to eat the finish away. I use something called AQUA SHIELD to add to the plaster that is supposed to add some life.Its a very good product but not sure if its gonna make a huge difference or not. When you had your pool plastered last was it in the middle of summer or very hot out? I worked in the extreme heat for 15 years and pools dont get troweled enough sometimes to work up cream. If the plaster gets hard very fast I dont believe the finish will last as long. If your PH gets down low for a couple days the finish (cream) wont last long and being thin to start is not good!!!!

this pool was plastered for the first time in the month of may. In phoenix, the month May is warm but not hot like in july, aug, 106-115. I watched them apply it and they seemed to do an excellent job and did not seemed rushed. the temp in the middle 80's when they started and probably in the mid 90's when finished. The pool builder said the cause was high clorine, but you said low ph may be the cause.

As high clorine seems to dissipate in hot weather, it does not seem to stay high very long. High in the morning and low in the afternoon. I can understand how low ph would be harmful to a plaster surface but I don't understand how high clorine could cause the plaster to become so soft that you can scratch if off with a fingernail. Water chemistry for swimming pools seems to be very complicated and the lessons are very expensive so I really appreciate your input.

Is it pretty common to be replacing plaster after 5 years? Seems crazy as I felt I was keeping the water pretty close to the recommendations. I am thinking I might try salt water generator this time as I was not too sucessful with clorine and acid. I want to blame to plaster job but if it was the plaster, I probably would have had problems before year four.

I would suggest that no matter who did your interior finish, the outcomes would be the same. Years back pool sanitizers moved from Dichlor base to Trichlor. It is more available chlorine but has a PH of about 2.8. It offers a better chlorine for pools but owners must religiously watch their PH and Alkalynity levels to ensure they are kept within industry standards, or your water will get acidic (Corrosive) and start working on the sealing finish of the pool. This is usually accompanied by the development of spot etching, a very visible measles appearance on the finish. In addition, in a worst case prolonged low TA or PH condition, you will start seeing the formation of nodules on the surface of the plaster. The water literally begins to extract minerals from the plaster finish if the water is deficient in certain levels. All of these conditions are water induced and make the case for careful water balance.

No pool builder can protect against water conditions that become corrosive from imbalances in your water chemistry. In fact, the tell-tale signs are clear and 100% the result of water conditions that create them. It is similar to smoking cigarettes all your life and destroying your lungs. Let your TA or PH ride low for any period of time and it compromises the plaster surface, eats off the FAT (cream) of the finish, etches it and in worst situations creates the nodules.

If you are uising any type of TRICHLOR product (Tablets), gas chlorine or any acidic base sanitizers, please develop the habit of checking your PH and Total Alkalynity regularly. These two readings help you ensure you are keeping a buffer (like a rolaids tablet) in the water to protect against swings from a neutral water reading to an acidic one.

Remember, the life, longevity and integrity of the plaster finish, no matter who installed it, is 100% based upon the quality of the water balance in the pool. I have seen brand new pools that are less than a year old ruined by pool water balance. The better the control of your pool readings, the longer the life of the finish.

Chem Expert - 38 Years of Pool Building and Care

Excellent post and right on the money!!!!!