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An option that my pool installer is giving me is to add Blue Quartz to the plaster surface for a pool finish that will not reveal as many stains. Is this good or bad. He also offered a pebble finish which he said was better but a little more expensive. Anybody have experience with other than white plaster? My pocket book will not let me do a tile pool finish.
Crystalline silicon dioxide -- quartz -- would be very resistant to staining. However, I don't know what "Blue Quartz" is . . . except that it's NOT blue quartz. Quartz (sand or crystals) can come in tan, clear, rose or other colors . . . but not blue. See http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartz
So, I have no idea whether your builder's product, trade named "Blue Quartz" is actually more stain resistant than while plaster or not. However, I can tell you that ANY colored finish will make your pool significantly hotter than it would be otherwise. And, that might not be what you want in south Texas!
The installer showed me a sample of the quartz product and it had lots of blue specs in the plaster.
"Blue specs" could be dyed calcium; could be plastic; could be almost anything EXCEPT actual silicon dioxide quartz. The fact that there were blue specks does not tell you ANYTHING about how the "Blue Quartz" (with no actual quartz) will stand up to stains.
Understand: I'm not saying it won't do better; I'm just saying you don't have any real information that it will do better.
I went back and read the fine print and the blue specs in the plaster is Blue dyed Quartz. He said that the blue dyed quartz mixed in with the plaster will last forever. I am not sure what his definition of forever is? His next upgrade was adding pebbles and the next upgrade was tile. Anybody used dyed Quartz before and have any comments based on their experience?
I don't think you can dye mineral quartz.
Quartz can be dyed - at least you can dye cracks and spaces in the quartz. There's an eHow article at http://www.ehow.com/how_10018390_dye-quartz.html. The permanence of the dye and the resistance to staining - I don't know. It is certainly not as resistant as untreated quartz crystal after going through the dyeing process.
I did some research on the blue quartz for pools on the internet and this is what I came up with. Some of the trade names for the Blue Quartz is QuartzBrite, ColorQuartz, DiamondBrite, Sunstone, QuartzScapes, and QuartzOne. It looks like this product is mixed in with the plaster and then sand blasted lightly to remove the plaster and expose the blue color chips of the Quartz. On the sample that the pool installer had this product felt much smoother than a pebble finish sample that he let me see. I cannot tell if it is really Quartz.
It is an aggregate finish and it can last a bit longer than marcite (plain white plaster) but much depends on how you keep up with your water chemistry. Marcite in a properly cared for pool can last longer than an aggregate in a pool where the water balance is not properly maintained. It is not always "smoother" walk on then the pebbles based aggregates but in most cases but can be rougher than marcite or a fully tiled pool. Much depends on the technique used to expose the aggregate and the actual aggregate used. It is still a plaster, however.
There are many brands and variations of aggregate finishes for pools. How well they wear probably depends more on the actual plaster application and the skill of the plasterer than what is mixed into the mix. Also, not all are sandblasted to expose the aggregate, some are acid washed instead either before filling or by doing an 'acid start up".
One suggestion if you decide to go that route is ask to see a pool that is completed with the aggregate you are interested in and walk on the surface barefoot. Some of them are very rough on the feet.
As far as pool surfaces go, a fully tiled pool is the most expensive option but is going to be much less chemically reactive than any plaster or aggregate finish and usually is much longer lasting.
Once again, how long a plaster finish lasts depends more on the skill with which it is applied and how well you maintain your water balance than on what brand of type of aggregate you select. All plaster pools do need to be refinished eventually and sometimes acid washed between. However, each acid wash shortens the life of the finish. If you can afford a fully tiled pool it can be much longer lasting but much more expensive initially.