Bad Paint Job, Crooked Pool company?

[JeffB]

I am new to operating pools, Just took my CPO course, After 15 years of the construction industry I now work as a maintenance superintendent at a condominium complex and know nothing about Re-Painting a pool. I am running a 56,000 Gallon Semi Public pool.
I have built above ground and in ground pools, so I do know a bit about their construction. When i started the job it was before the pool was open. The guys that opened the pool seemed shady to me. First of all they said the water was balanced. (then why would the Calcium hardness been at 30? They promised a lot and delivered little.

MY MAIN PROBLEM
They said they TSP washed the pool at the close of last season, and painted it. The paint is peeling, flaking, and coming up every where. Is this Normal? The Pool company that opened and painted it said " I told them that they needed to resurface the pool and painting would not work."

I think they are taking us for a ride...
What should I do?

Now my property manager is going to have them come in and paint the pool at an additional cost?
Something does not seem right..

My property Manager tells me not to worry about it that she is taking care of it.. and she is not.. she is letting the get away with doing a lot of BS work, out of ignorance or I don’t know what.
They also failed to mention several problems with how the plumbing was set up.(that I noticed)
1) the chlorinator was installed upstream of the pool heater, there was no check valve installed( not that, that mattered because the heater is now trash)
2) the flow meter is not operational and there was only one installed on one of our 2 high rate sand filters.
3) the pool heater is 9' below the pool and the (i think its called the control valve) that turns the heater off in the event that there is no water flow, was never adjusted properly so the heater ran with no water circulation.
4) the heat exchange on the heater had a 4" gap on each side (was to small)
5) they were asked to fix the leaking pipes.(never done properly.)
6) there used to be 2 Hayward Heaters that were designed for 1200 sq’ of surface area each. One burnt out because of the afore mentioned chlorinator problem, and they never told her that she would need another because the pool surface area is 2500 Sq’

That’s just a few problems I have with them, there are many more!


Can anyone tell me why the paint would flake so soon after the pool was painted?

I can post pics if yall would like to see.....

[Waterworks]

The paint could peel for a number of reasons. They may have done a poor job preparing and cleaning the pool before applying the paint. They may have tried to fill the pool too quickly after finishing the job, not allowing the paint to cure. The low calcium reading is definitly not helping anything. They may have used epoxy paint over old rubber based paint, or vice versa. Either way, it should not peel that quickly.

Brad

[Tredge]

Thats too soon for paint to peel. Find out what type of paint they used and what was under it.

Surface prep is very important in any resurfacing job....and paint is the cheapest option.

A pool that needs resurfacing should be done right and not just painted over imo. Best case you're only going to get a year or 2 with a painted pool anyways.

I'd sandblast or powerwash with a 3500+ machine then look into alternatives. This is a lot of work for a small pool....let alone a big one

[JeffB]

I apologize for all the questions and thank you in advance for your thoughts on my situation.

The pool was supposedly TSP washed and painted at the end of last season. the last maintenance guy left mid winter.
When opening the pool it had about 2' of water in the Deep (9') end.
So should I get a Paint sample of what was existing and what was painted over it and just have it tested?
I’m sure this guy will try to lie to cover his ass if I start asking questions about what paint he used.
Should I get an expert to come in and ascertain what the problem could be?
My CPO instructor also does pool inspections for like 250-300$ would that be worth while if my company decides to go after the guy?

I am keeping records of all the stuff they neglected missed and did not do correctly, to turn in to my company for my Yearly preventative maintenance report to sort of build a case against him. also after they opened the pool I took a water sample to a local Pool place and had them test the water also and they gave me a dated print out.

But for what ever reason the paint peeled, would that be neglect on their part?

So if the calcium hardness is low that can affect a new paint job?

If I decide to resurface / repaint the pool my self,
how hard is the Prep?
roughly how many hours would it take 1 person to do it (56,000 Gal / 2500 Sq water surface area)
Or if resurfacing what’s involved?
Another thing when they did the tile boarder tile around the pool they left it with just the sandy grout/mortar texture that is about like 60 grit sand paper.
They said that was normal and there was nothing that can be done about that.. is that true?
They also used the same stuff to patch stuff on the Side walls and bottom of the pool, and that has chiped and started to flake off.
I’m sorry I am all questions.
I take my pool very seriously and want to do the best I can at keeping it nice looking, safe and inviting.
I check the water daily with an FAS DPD (Taylor) kit and also keep track of the total dissolved solids once a month.
I have my lifeguards test 4 times a day during 11 am to 8:30 PM
I will post Pic's tomorow of the filter/pump area and the pool tomorow so yall can get a beter understanding of my concerns.
I hate things that are done halfassed.

Thanks again in advance!
Jeff B

[Tredge]

Ask for receipts concerning the paint. There are resurfacing resellers that will analyze a paint chip for you. Its important to know if its a rubber, acrylic, or (gasp) water based paint
It might be difficult to get an "expert" out to look at the pool. A plaster resurfacing company will blast it all off anyways.

So if the calcium hardness is low that can affect a new paint job?

Calcium has nothing to do with paint.

If I decide to resurface / repaint the pool my self,
how hard is the Prep?
roughly how many hours would it take 1 person to do it (56,000 Gal / 2500 Sq water surface area)
Or if resurfacing what’s involved?

Depending on the condition of the surface.....I'd guess 2 weeks of hard work every day for one person. A small crew could do it in 4 days.

It took me a long time to do my 40,000 Gallon pool but I couldnt spend every day on it.

Its important to get down to somthing solid....all the old paint must go. Is it a concrete base?

There are several good resurfacing options. You'll find many posts on the subject here. I went with a good epoxy myself due to cost, more expensive solutions look better and will outlast the best epoxy.

Good luck!

[JeffB]

its gunnite

[Tredge]

What condition is the plaster in over the gunite?

Is it 'hollow' sounding when you tap it with a hammer? Any plaster flaking off?

Resurfacing will probably require you to take off some if not all of the old plaster.
They probably should have acid washed the plaster before they painted...or better yet never painted in the first place.

Sorry for the bad news, but doing it right is going to be a lot of hard work.

[tomdow2]

I have a painted in ground gunite pool. It was painted about 4 years ago and it is now starting to chalk. I have gotten estimates here in Tampa to resurfacing it. Contractors are telling me that they will have to sand blast it
to remove the paint($1700 - 2000). Then the marquis resurface job will cost between $2600 and $3600. WHew!! - that's over 5K for an oval 15 X31 pool that's 5 and 1/2 feet at the deep end.

Anyone out there in this area that can help me cut into that 5K?