remodel of existing pool

9 years ago

Hello, I am currently remodeling the house that I purchased. The 570 sq ft pool desperately needs to be refinished as well. We are going to drain, sandblast, chip out and re-level any bubbled or hollow sounding areas, then have it redone with diamond bright. We also thought about doing some remodeling to the current structure. We would like to add a shelf, 50sq ft, in the shallow end that is about 6"-9" under the water level that would transition into steps that then go down to the original level of the shallow end.

My question is how? I am an engineer and extremely handy but I would love to hear from some industry experience. My initial thought would be to chip away the existing finish and remove gunite to expose the steal. i could tie steal into the existing steal. Form up and pour the new stairs in concrete with steal throughout that is tied into existing structure. Backfill the area between the stairs and existing pool wall (area under the new shelf) with compacted material, then pour new floor of shelf over the compacted material. This of course would be reinforced and tied into the existing structure just like the stairs.

Please give me any thoughts you may have, is this an acceptable way of doing things? Will it stay water tight once refinished with diamond bright. Any advice would be helpful. Thank you for your time.

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Comments (6)

golfgeek
9 years ago
snowman8,
It's pretty common to gunite shelves and steps after a pool has been chipped out. For that matter, I've gunited over plaster.
Don't make it too complicated. I wouldn't backfill over the existing structure. If you are raising the floor, just gunite it. because you are working inside of an existing solid structure it simplifies things. The rebar reinforcement can also be keep simple. I usually tie into the existing cage and also dowel into the gunite structure. I've gunited over plaster with and without glue. The structure really accepts interior change very well with minimum work.
Good luck.
snowman8
Original Author
9 years ago
GolfGeek,
Thanks so much for the quick reply and the advice. I was thinking of pouring concrete as opposed to doing gunite so that I did not have to sub out any work but if gunite is the way to go then that is what I will do. I would love to save money and do it myself but not at the expense of doing it incorrectly. Thank you
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PRO
Aqua-Link Pools and Spas
9 years ago
I wouldn't Shotcrete over existing plaster. It would be to smooth for the Shotcrete to adhere to much less it's a different material. Shotcrete works well because it binds well to other concrete by forcing paste (Portland cement) into existing concrete that is rough. When I do a vanishing edge I do it in two stages because of the form work I do for the edge wall. I always make sure my edge that I'm shooting the new Shotcrete into is rough.

There is no need for glue or other type of bonding agent when applying Shotcrete to a concrete surface. Just make sure it is clean and saturated to where it is moist but not pooling water. That way the existing surface doesn't suck the moisture out of the existing surface.
PRO
Aqua-Link Pools and Spas
9 years ago
I wouldn't Shotcrete over existing plaster. It would be to smooth for the Shotcrete to adhere to much less it's a different material. Shotcrete works well because it binds well to other concrete by forcing paste (Portland cement) into existing concrete that is rough. When I do a vanishing edge I do it in two stages because of the form work I do for the edge wall. I always make sure my edge that I'm shooting the new Shotcrete into is rough.

There is no need for glue or other type of bonding agent when applying Shotcrete to a concrete surface. Just make sure it is clean and saturated to where it is moist but not pooling water. That way the existing surface doesn't suck the moisture out of the existing surface.
snowman8
Original Author
9 years ago
I have to do some price checking because I honestly have no idea, but if someone is going to charge me 2500 or so to come put in a shelf and new stairs then it would be a lot cheaper for me to build some forms and pour concrete in myself. If I chose to do it myself, gunite or shotcrete would not be an option. I do not have the equipment to use those material much less the know how, but I can build forms and I can pour concrete. If I were to pour the steps and shelf myself would that be an acceptable way of doing the job. Is there any drawbacks to pouring concrete instead of gunite or shotcrete as far as the end results go?
golfgeek
9 years ago
Just your time. Once it is poured it is all the same. You might need to ask the plasterers to provide larger inside radius so they are easier to clean. Sharpe radii make it hard to get a brush in there to clean.
Just a lot of labor to form and pour. Good luck.