Efflorescence inside a pool, Hi guys. I have seen this 3 times in as many days and tried to find more information on it but was curious how other inspectors that run into this relay the problem to their clients.
So I keep running into pools that have multiple lines of efflorescence on the side walls. some as long as ten inches or more. Please correct me in my thinking if I am wrong. What I think it is primarily from is water leaking behind the pool through pavers, poor sealing around coping etc. With that being said, is this an indicator that the marinate is also aging and breaking down? Most pools I see this on are near the 15-20 year mark.
I have heard many people respond that says its from a chemical imbalance and just scubas it off with acid. But what I see are almost straight lines of efflorescence then a few feet later another one. If it were just pool chemicals ,it makes no sense to me as to the radom placements and lines of build up. If it were chemicals it seems that it would be everywhere and not looking like a crack.
I have been telling my clients that the pool marinate is starting to break down and that they should properly seal the coping etc. The thing is one costs thousands and the other pennys. So far, with older pools, I have felt confidant in saying the shell but I really would like some straight info. The pool course does not talk about this but the other courses obviously address efflorescence and its causes. Thanks guys.
rcloyd
(Russell Cloyd, KY LIC #166164, IN LIC#HI02300068)
3
Jason,
I would simply identify the issue and refer the buyer to a pool installation specialist to determine the cause and the fix. Anything more than this could lead to you paying for the fix after they buy it.
You should describe where the stains are occurring and the color of the stains.
Stains can occur mainly when chlorine is added in water, oxidizing heavy metals to produce different stain colors, depending on the metals present in your water. Identifying pool stains.
I added photos. The one with the circle there is two others to the left I did not put arrows next to. They are not stains but a hard calcium deposit that crumbles when scraped.
The TDS (total dissolved solid) content of the water is likely too high. They can take a sample of the water into a pool store to have it checked. The fix is to remove and refill the water.
When the pool is drained, the calcium nodules can be scrubbed off with a pumice stone. A fresh batch of water lasts 3 to 5 years on average. If you are in a really hot climate, it might not be a good time to drain the pool if it is a plaster surface. I live in Phoenix and you would not want to drain the pool right now, it will crack the plaster. For our area, you do not drain a pool outside of a November thru February time frame.
That is super helpful information. Thanks to everyone who responded. The cost to replace the water is a lot less than resurfacing but it is always still good to refer a specialist . knowing the problem helps in bringing the info to the client.
