question on pool deck

[cybernation]

hello all i have a heaving pool deck and i'm wondering what other people have done to correct this issue. I have a vinyl pool and concrete around the pool.

I've read about mudjacking or slabjacking but i'm in an area where i cannot find somebody to perform these items.
I'm curious if anybody else has had this issue?

I'll post up some pics later tonight.. but i'm not sure if i have permissions since i'm new here.

Thanks in advance!
and Hello!

[PoolDoc]

You can post pictures, with Photobucket, Webshot, Flickr or Picasa, but nobody will see them till they've been checked.

HOWEVER, if nobody in your area does "hydro-jacking" (what it's called here) . . . it's kinda a moot point. I don't think you'd want to pay travel rates for a company out of Toronto, much less Atlanta, Georgia.

[PoolDoc]

presumably, you meant 75,000 liters? regardless, from your dimensions, it's 15,000 gallons or 57,000 liters.

[cybernation]

I must have made a mistake in my measurements.. It is indeed 75000 liters verified by pool store

The issue with the cracks in the concrete is the coping has snapped off and there's a 1" gap between coping and concrete. I thought about putting concrete in the gap but I'm not sure of that's a wise idea.

Ive also thought about taking out the whole piece of concrete and putting a new one in. I'm not sure on the difficulty level of this solution. (have a bad back)

[PoolDoc]

Pool store 'verified' volume is almost always high.

[cybernation]

Yeah I know the pool store information can be highly inaccurate but I've kinda verified the amount due to the rise of tc and decrease of ph when adding a specific amount of chlorine / muriatic acid.

Thanks though!

[cybernation]

Hello here's all the pics of my problem

Any advice would be nice

Pool store told me I should fix it this year, and the cost is about 2600 for 4 corners or 4600 for all concrete pads including removal.
This pool store has a rep of telling you a low price then jacking it up while doing the work.

Could this be a DIY project,?

Should I get it fixed ASAP?

There's also a crack in the concrete in the pool as well in the corner in the water. It sticks out about 1".

[PoolDoc]

pictures:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-MTR_wWYmPfw/UCcTCFhkG2I/AAAAAAAAD5c/hFjsXolx548/s800/web%2520e83c7ddd.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-I5Cq2ezwEPY/UCcTC324gWI/AAAAAAAAD50/ph5YytRQ8UI/s800/web%2520ff7ea7ca.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-feFpGTmpk8o/UCcTChlEfoI/AAAAAAAAD5s/v7ijAqaBmHk/s800/web%2520fc32de17.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-pQ4hnnbzaaE/UCcTCFusgFI/AAAAAAAAD5g/4C4Q5ThStp0/s800/web%2520f5dbaa3e.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Ro7zvPs5wkA/UCcTCEKUk0I/AAAAAAAAD5k/tFOhRweYAMY/s800/web%2520de393ac8.jpg

from http://s1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj612/cyber-911/?action=view%A4t=3ae5b3c1.jpg&evt=user_media_share

[PoolDoc]

Hydro-jacking or slab-jacking looks like the opposite of what you need -- it looks like you're wanting some slab-UN-jacking.

Unfortunately, that gear is available only from the stores where they sell Boy Scout snipe in ready-to-use cages, board stretchers, and unsaws. I've never been able to get an address or URL unfortunately, for their location. ;)

[Charlie_R]

Cybernation,

Your best bet is to remove and replace. If you hire this out, make sure they put an inch or three of 3/8" crushed "road base" rock and hand compact it before pouring the new deck.

To explain --

Road base rock has a specific amount of various grades of fine rock chips and sand in the mix as opposed to "clean" which is 85% same size material.

You want the "fines" in the mix for your application, to help with the stability. The fine components will lock it all together, and aid in the compaction process.

Have you had an unusual amount of rain this year? From your pics, it appears that the underlying dirt/clay has expanded/swelled from high amounts of water in a short period of time.

[cybernation]

Hi,

We've had a really dry spring and summer this year.. That one bad corner has been like that for at least 1 year. I'm just getting worried that it may be getting worse.

All my corners appear to be moving. The coping has come off the concrete on all corners. Not as bad as the one picture. It's rained for 5 days straight in an extremely dry summer.

What's the harm of leaving it for another year or 2? i was thinking of filling the cracks with self leveling concrete for now.

Do you think it will cause more damage to the pool shell? is the concrete decking attached to the pool shell or is it seperate?

has anybody removed concrete decking themselves? I was thinking of hiring a bunch of labours to do the hard work instead of getting the pool store to fix. Thoughts?

Thanks guys!

[Charlie_R]

With your additional information, I would say replace by next spring, or next autumn at the latest. The cracked portion inside the pool can wait until you replace the liner.

Adding the self leveling to the cracks may not be a good idea, however it MIGHT buy a short amount of time. Not much though, so it might not be cost effective. I don't know if it would damage the coping or liner.

When you have it done, Check with your local concrete mixing plant -- the guys with the trucks -- about recommending a contractor that would be familiar with this type of work.

When you get a few contractor names, ask each of them about the feasibility of either frost wall footings or thickened edge slab for the outer edge, away from the pool. Being that you are from fairly cold country, my bet is that a frost wall footing would be best, for ground stability. There will be extra cost in doing this, but think of it as cheap insurance against this happening again. The frost wall needs only be a 4 - 6" wide trench cut into the ground near the outside of the deck, with rebar to tie the footing to the deck. Personally, I'd widen the deck about a foot or so while I was getting this done.

Again, have them place 3/8" road base, compacted, under the slab.

For removal, yes you could do that yourself, with a little labor help. Electric jackhammers are relatively inexpensive to rent. With 1 or 2 of them, you could have the deck at least broken up in a couple of hours if not hauled out to the skip.

Good luck!

[cybernation]

Ah ..... I wish there was a cheaper fix

Would it be cheaper to put down interlocking stone instead of concrete? Would that be a wise idea? Or should I just take the hit and get the guys to reconcrete?

Thanks for the advice I really appreciate it

[Charlie_R]

Interlocking stone would be ok, but requires more prep. And with what appears to be expansive clay (more common that people know), will become uneven in a few years, from the ground water changes. I am sadly lacking in experience with installing interlocking pavers (have only helped with that twice), so can't comment beyond that.

[PoolDoc]

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