Swimming pool paint

beeza

Silver
Nov 2, 2006
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The pool is drained. Even though it's an uphill struggle keeping it empty with all this rain!

The painstaking job of stripping, rubbing and cleaning has begun.

Then I will need to paint it. The easiest way to describe the size of my pool would be about the size of a large single garage. Est 30,000 gals.

So my questions are:

Where is the best place to buy pool paint? I want to keep it white and I live on the North coast, but regularly travel to Santiago.

How much will I need, based on the rough estimate of the size I have given?

How much does it cost?

What tips / hints are there for painting pools?
 

Bob Boyd

Active member
Feb 3, 2004
272
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Steps for cleaning and painting a pool

Remove all of the loose and flaking paint.
Remove main drain cover and injectors. Remove lights from niches and place them on the pool deck.
Clean the pool with T.S.P. or strong soap, with scrub brush, to remove body oils
Acid treat the concrete/pool surface with a mix of acid & water 50-50 and rinse.
Dry in the sun for 3 to 4 days. Test dryness by taping a 16” x 16” plastic sheet to
the bottom of the pool for half a hour, in the sun, and check for moisture on
the bottom of the plastic. If dry, proceed to next step.
For patches and new cement, thin the epoxy with 15% to 20% of thinner and
paint the raw surfaces. This acts as a primer/sealer for the finish coats of
paint. We recommend TROPICAL brand industrial epoxy and follow the mixing directions on the can. Also buy the epoxy at a large ferreteria like
Ochoa or Americana that sells large volumes of paint because epoxy has a short shelf life. 1 gallon should cover about 100 to 125sq. ft.
Next day, paint the first full coat of Epoxy in late afternoon to avoid the sun from
drying the wet epoxy too fast and creating small bubbles. *** For slip resistant steps and stairs, immediately after painting the first coat of epoxy, sprinkle a fine coat of dry pool sand over the steps.
Next day, and within 24 hours, (before the paint is fully cured) apply the second full coat of epoxy in the late afternoon as to avoid the sun from drying too fast and creating small bubbles.
Let dry for 4 days in the sun before filling. Filling sooner will prevent the epoxy from curing to its full hardness and pealing prematurely. If rain occurs, drain and dry the pool in order that the epoxy fully cures.
Once the pool is full and operating, maintain normal chlorine and water balance. Put chlorine in the skimmer, not in the pool on the new paint.
 

retiree

Bronze
Jan 18, 2008
978
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This makes perfect sense and now we know why there are little bubbles after our pool was repainted after it was done incorrectly when installed. They certainly didn't take the care as described in your instructions. We will save this info in case it has to be done again under our supervision.
 

jrhartley

Gold
Sep 10, 2008
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the epoxy paint is usually guaranteed to last five years - it will probably last 1 to 1.5 years, maybe better to get someone else to paint it as it can be rather frustrating, especially the second time it needs to be done after a short period of time- think about tiles especially for the bottom
 

donP

Newbie
Dec 14, 2008
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Marmolina

_ it needs to be done after a short period of time- think about _

plastering the whole pool with 'marmolina'.
No more painting needed.
We had the 'marmolina' job done when the pool was built more than ten years ago and have not had problems since.
 

jrhartley

Gold
Sep 10, 2008
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Ive never seen one yet - are they widespread and what is the cost compared to other pools I wonder.I am right in thinking it sort of polished marble effect concrete ?
 

donP

Newbie
Dec 14, 2008
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Once and for ever

what is the cost compared to other pools I wonder.I am right in thinking it sort of polished marble effect concrete ?

Just the thought of having to do a new paint job every few years (incl. draining and filling in 30,000 gallons) makes me
28jh2f5.jpg


The 'marmolina' needs to be applied at least in half inch thickness, it's a mixture of ground marble and white cement.