I'm not a pool guy but a friend of my digs them and I was with him one day when he was explaining to a homeowner the difference when it comes to Gunite pool finishes, so I'm sure some pool experts will provide more info.

They usually use 3 products Diamond Brite, Pebble Tec or Plaster which is cement with an exposed aggregate being marble.

The exposed finish aggregate of Diamond Brite is quartz which is more durable and it will last longer.

Pebble tec uses river rock as finished aggregate and probably considered to be the most durable finish out there, the only difference is, it has a rougher surface in comparison to Diamond Brite or plaster, they have a much smoother finish.

It all comes down to the money you want to spend, but before you do anything, the most important thing is to make sure the entire pool surface is cleaned, fixed and prepped before they apply any finish and make sure you get a decent warranty with it.

Good luck

If it starting leaking soon after build where is the guy who built it . You now need to find a pro that repairs these pools

How old is the pool? You should have a 5 year warranty on that. Ours starting leaking after about 7 years, we tried patches for several years but the only thing that ultimately fixed it was to re-pebble tech it (we used Wet Edge which is same sort of idea). This is a common problem, even when using the best and most highly recommended pool company.