quote" Kelly, did you see the pictures she linked? "quote Yes, my heart breaks for this quality of workmanship. It still, unfortunately, doesn't change a thing. The concrete coping is poured and the builder made a sincere attempt to remedy the situation. Note to all readers, Although it may appear I'm taking sides, I'm not. I'm fullfilling a promise I've made to every member of every pool forum I've ever participated in, which in my introduction to the board's membership is always as follows: """ I promise you guys I'm not here to spam for work, if you feel my replies are spamming bring it up immediately to the moderators and if work comes from my interaction on the board that's a great reward for my membership. And equally I'll never sugarcoat the truth, I promise to call the situation exactly as I, and I alone, see it based on a lifetime in the pool construction industry. It may or may not be the answer you wanted to hear but it's my take based on similar situations over the course of my career. """ I've ran plenty of leads just like this member's and had to break the news to them in the same manner, i.e. presenting facts. Some listen and some don't, they simply look for another pool builder to side with them. I've seen plenty of other pool builders sued and have yet to see one in a position as her pool builder lose. The Contract did not state that "job completion" was dictated at the time she said the work is satisfactory to her liking. The man did come back and attempt to resolve the situation by slightly reworking the new coping's blemishes. I'm sorry but the job is complete, and if it goes down a legal highway I doubt if the answer will be any different when the gavel swings to hit the bench with a ruling. quote" My suggestion, work with the man in any manner possible while staying polite yet firm. You might even consider offering him a reduced price to redo the work. "quote I'll stand behind this quote and offer it once again. See ya, Kelly

Things we need to know: Perimeter of the pool. Depth, shallow and deep. Bench lengths Spa? Raised or flush? If the pool was painted, it's possible that a chip out of the old plaster may be needed and in fact, may be easier, faster, and yield better results than sand blasting. Some paints won't come off with a sand blaster, which makes an awful mess everywhere btw. Scott . Amount decking in square feet desired or width desired from the pool edge. This is big.

I hate swimming pool contractors! I am one myself. Lol! There are many good ones out there but especially ones like this make all the good ones look bad and affects the rest of us. I would stop what your doing before it gets worse and there is a point of no return. The coping and the deck are just unacceptable in overall workmanship. Not sure why they didn't Shotcrete over the exposed rebar when the Shotcrete crew was out there. Make sure they chip out around that one return more and apply hydraulic cement around the fitting to seal it up. The block in front of the reef step is really not the way to do it and as I said earlier the rebar work is terrible. Not spliced properly, not enough clearance between others. Where do you live? I may be able to recommend someone to you that could come out and take a look and write up a report for any future arbitration.

I know of one engineering firm in California that will perform forensic tests on the shell to determine the problem. So many things can create cracks in a shell such as unstable/unsuitable soil conditions, improper placement of rebar, type of rebar, amount of rebar, improper coverage and or cement ratio and content of the shotcrete. Groundwater can affect a shell as well. There may be rebound in the mix which most certainly causes cracks. Rebound is the material that "bounces" off the surface when the shotcrete is applied. It does not provide a mechanical and chemical bond needed and must be shoveled out of the shell during the shoot. That is customary during this process. Shotcrete crews may offer a warranty or be responsible in some aspect if their mix was poor and not to standards. But, they will generally be under the impression the PB will have the pool prepped properly to meet the approved plan. Your situation is horrible and I feel terrible for you. If I looked at your pool in it's present condition, I would probably recommend removal and start all over again. I think problems will continue and although the Torque Lock is a great product, a 100' crack is a lot to mend. Others may differ on opinion. You can make the repair and see if it holds, but understand it may not go away.